Tagg Bozied

Robert Tanois Taggert Bozied

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 3", Weight 215 lb.

• School University of San Francisco
• High School Arvada High School

• Born July 24, 1979 in Sioux Falls, SD USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Tagg Bozied has topped 20 homers three times in the minor leagues but has never advanced beyond AAA.

Amateur career

Bozied was picked by the Minnesota Twins in the 50th round of the 1997 amateur draft but did not sign. He went on to college. In 1999, he won a Triple Crown in the Big West Conference, earning him Player of the Year honors. He hit .412 with 30 home runs and 82 RBI; he was 10 homers ahead of runner-up Jason Bay. Bozied also led the Conference with 71 runs. He slugged .936, the highest mark in all of NCAA Division I and tied for the second-most homers in Division I. Baseball America named him second-team All-American at DH behind Ken Harvey. He was named a first-team third baseman Collegiate Baseball All-American. He spent 1999 with Team USA, hitting .303 with a .439 slugging percentage as their main first baseman (Xavier Nady manned third, Bozied's position at the University of San Francisco). The college team USA did not play in any major international tournaments that year.

Tagg fell to .359 with 14 homers and 52 RBI as a junior, finishing 6th in the West Coast Conference in average and 4th in homers. He made All-Conference at third base. Bozied was taken by the Minnesota Twins in the second round of the 2000 amateur draft, the 42nd-overall pick, between Jason Stokes and Bobby Hill. He did not sign.

In 2001, Bozied hit .335 with 12 homers, 20 steals and 51 runs for San Francisco. He was once again the All-Conference pick at third base. The San Diego Padres chose him in the third round of the 2001 amateur draft as the 90th overall pick. He was the highest-chosen position player who did not sign by November. Negotiations fell through and Bozied went to the independent leagues instead.

Independent leagues

With the Sioux Falls Canaries in 2001, Bozied hit .307 and slugged .461.

San Diego system

Finally, Bozied signed with the Padres. He debuted as a pro with the 2002 Lake Elsinore Storm, hitting .298/.377/.546 with 15 homers as their main first baseman. That earned him a promotion to the Mobile BayBears, for whom he hit .214/.268/.389 in 60 games. Overall, his 24 home runs led Padres farmhands, as did his 92 RBI.

By 2003, Bozied was playing full-time in AAA. He hit .273/.331/.431 for the Portland Beavers. His 59 RBI tied old Conference rival Jason Bay for the team lead and his 14 homers were second to Bay's 20. He ground into 19 double plays, most in the Pacific Coast League, but also led the league with 77 assists at first base.

Tagg started off 2004 on a grand note, hitting .315/.374/.629 with 16 homers and 58 RBI in his first 57 games for Portland. His last game of the year, though, likely cost him a shot at the majors. On July 19, he hit a game-winning game-ending grand slam to give Portland a victory over the Tacoma Rainiers. During his celebration at home plate, he ruptured the patella tendon in his left knee and had to be hospitalized. He would not return to the field that year.

Bozied battled knee problems throughout 2005, hitting .333/.388/.533 in 12 games for Mobile and .259/.323/.444 in 14 contests for Portland.

Wandering the minors

Let go by San Diego, Bozied signed with the New York Mets. He batted .256/.358/.481 in 60 games for the 2006 Norfolk Tides, being used primarily as an outfielder now. He was then signed by the St. Louis Cardinals; in 2007, he hit .264/.349/.490 for the Memphis Redbirds, with 24 home runs, 82 RBI and a .336 average against left-handers (.234 versus righties). He was second on Memphis in homers and RBI, trailing Rick Ankiel in both departments.

Bozied continued his bat for hire routine in 2008, this time joining the Florida Marlins chain. He batted .306/.382/.569 with 86 runs, 28 doubles, 26 home runs and 80 RBI. He was second on the Albuquerque Isotopes in homers and RBI, trailing Dallas McPherson in both.

Bozied hit .242/.383/.424 in 20 games for the Azucareros del Este in the 2008-2009 Dominican Winter League

Taiwan

Bozied signed with the Brother Elephants of Taiwan for 2009. He debuted on May 3, going 1 for 2 with a stolen base against the Uni-President Lions. He hit .286/.381/.462 in 28 games for the Elephants then was released to make room for Josh Miller.

Sources

• MILB.com
• 1998-2009 Baseball Almanacs
• Chinese Wiki Baseball