Jim Reboulet

James David Reboulet

• Bats Both, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 170 lb
• Schools Southern Illinois University, Triton College

• Born August 13, 1961 in Dayton, OH USA

BR Minors page

Biographical Information

Jim Reboulet is the brother of Jeff Reboulet and stole 60 or more bases three times in a six-year career in the minor leagues. Overall, he swiped 290 bases during his time on the farm. He was part of the St. Louis Cardinals' running minor league show of the early 1980s which included Vince Coleman and Alex Cole.

Amateur career

Reboulet hit .446 in junior college in 1981 at Triton College before transferring to Southern Illinois University.

Jim stole 37 bases in 1982; as of 2006, this is the second-highest total in the history of Southern Illinois University. He added 21 the next year to put him 6th in school history as of 2006 despite only two years there. He led the team in 1983 with 43 runs, 34 walks and 8 homers.

1983-1986: Cardinals farmhand

Jim was drafted in the 20th round of the 1983 amateur draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. He hit .246/~.374/.345 for the Johnson City Cardinals and went 11 for 13 in steal attempts. He led Appalachian League second basemen in fielding percentage (.977). He also briefly played that year for the Erie Cardinals, going 8 for 34 with five walks, two steals (in three attempts) and a home run in 12 games.

In 1984, Jim hit .244/~.330/.300 for the Savannah Cardinals but scored 88 runs in 122 games and stole 62 bases while only getting caught 9 times. He led the South Atlantic League in steals and tied for fourth in runs, eight behind leader Kevin Seitzer. Reboulet led SAL second basemen in putouts (281), assists (364), double plays (82) and fielding percentage (.980).

Reboulet split 1985 between the Springfield Cardinals (.250/~.331/.279, 20 SB in 42 games) and Savannah (.235/~.366/.250, 29 SB in 40 games). In 1986, the speedster was on the title-winning St. Petersburg Cardinals. He led the Florida State League with 67 stolen bases and made the league All-Star team at second base. He hit .327/~.434/.389 and drew 83 walks. He finished third in the FSL in average behind the odd-named duo of Ron Jones and Ron Johns and was about 25 points behind OBP leader Brady Anderson.

In 1987, Jim hit .286/~.402/.364 in 21 games for the Arkansas Travelers (stealing 14) and .288/~.364/.339 in 17 games for the Louisville Redbirds (stealing 7).

1987-1988: Pirates system

Reboulet's contract was purchased by the Pittsburgh Pirates in May. He tied Darren Reed for 9th in the Eastern League in average, stole 52 bases and hit .319/~.402/.351 for the title-winning Harrisburg Senators. In 105 games with the club, he scored 92 runs. As of 2006, he held the modern (1987-2006) Harrisburg single-season stolen base record. From June 1 through July 15, he had a 32-game hitting streak.

In 1988, Jim wrapped up his career with the Buffalo Bisons. In his only extended time in AAA, he hit .280/~.329/.295 in 79 games and stole in 26 of 38 tries.

Sources: 2006 Southern Illinois University Media Guide, 1984-1985 and 1989 Baseball Guides, 1986-1987 Baseball America Statistics Reports, 1988 Baseball Almanac, 1988 Pirates Yearbook, Reb Baseball, a coaching service started by the Reboulet family, 2006 Harrisburg Senators Program