Jody Reed

Jody Eric Reed

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 9", Weight 165 lb.
• School Manatee Community College, Florida State University
• High School Brandon (FL) High School
• Debut September 12, 1987
• Final Game August 22, 1997
• Born July 26, 1962 in Tampa, FL USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Jody Reed was signed as an 8th round pick in the 1984 amateur draft by the Boston Red Sox and scout George Digby.

In his first shot at extensive playing time, in 1988, Reed got hot the same time the entire Red Sox team did, seizing the shortstop job from veteran Spike Owen and helping the club rally to clinch a playoff spot. His arm was never quite adequate at shortstop so he moved over to man second base for Boston in 1990. He proved a sure-handed defender for the rest of his playing career at 2B.

Reed learned early on in his Boston tenure to play pepper off the Green Monster at Fenway Park, creating huge double totals for himself while playing at home. He was in the top three in the American League in doubles every season during his most effective run as a hitter, from 1989 to 1991. Reed's offensive production tailed off a bit after that. Left exposed in the 1992 expansion draft, Jody was selected by the Colorado Rockies and then shipped to the Los Angeles Dodgers. After a decent 1993 season in Los Angeles, Reed became a free agent. Spurning a lucrative offer by the Dodgers, he found himself without a contract at the start of spring training. In a footnote, his refusal forced the Dodgers to look for another second baseman, and they responded by trading young pitcher Pedro Martinez to the Montreal Expos for Delino DeShields, a trade which Dodger fans rue to this day.

Reed finally signed with the Milwaukee Brewers for the league minimum in 1994. Moving on to the San Diego Padres in 1995, Reed saw post-season play for the third time in 1996, his second and last season with the Padres. It was also his last as a full-time player. He saw limited action with the Detroit Tigers in 1997 before retiring.

He finished third in the 1988 American League Rookie of the Year Award voting and 18th in the voting for the 1990 American League Most Valuable Player Award.

Reed managed the GCL Yankees in 2007-2008, and was the New York Yankees minor league defensive coordinator in 2009-2010. He also served as the interim manager of the Staten Island Yankees to begin the 2010 season while Josh Paul was serving as the big league Yankees' bullpen coach during Dave Eiland's absence. He moved to the Los Angeles Dodgers chain in 2011 as manager of the AZL Dodgers. In 2012, he was the Dodgers' minor league infield coordinator and in 2013 Reed managed the Chattanooga Lookouts. Reed returned to the Yankees in 2014 and served as the organization's minor league field coordinator for several years. He was dismissed after the 2019 season along with several other minor league coaches as the Yankees sought to improve their minor league instruction.

In 2020 the Miami Marlins hired Reed as their minor league infield and baserunning coordinator where he stayed through 2022. He returned to the major leagues in 2023 as third base coach under new manager Skip Schumaker. On July 20th Reed suffered a broken leg when a 96.6mph line drive off the bat of Jesus Sanchez hit him in the shin. Whether this incident had any long-term impact is unknown, but Reed transitioned to a role as the Marlins infield coach in 2024.

Notable Achievements

• AL Doubles Leader (1990)

Record

Reed played in 11 postseason games, losing them all. This is a record, although Joe Mauer is 0-10 through 2017.

Year-By-Year Minor League Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs	Notes
2007	GCL Yankees	Gulf Coast League	42-17	2nd	New York Yankees	League Champs
2008	GCL Yankees	Gulf Coast League	31-27	7th	New York Yankees
2010	Staten Island Yankees	New York-Penn League	8-6	--	New York Yankees	--	replaced by Josh Paul on July 3
2011	AZL Dodgers	Arizona League	34-22	3rd	Los Angeles Dodgers	League Champs
2013	Chattanooga Lookouts	Southern League	59-80	10th	Los Angeles Dodgers

Related Sites

• Jody Reed at the SABR Bio Project