Former Mets, A's, Angels, Brewers Outfielder Dies; Won World Series As Coach

Tommie Reynolds, an outfielder for the New York Mets, Kansas City and Oakland A's, California Angels, and Milwaukee Brewers who later won a World Series as a coach on the 1989 Oakland A's, died on March 19. He was 83.

Reynolds played eight seasons of major league baseball, debuting in Sept. 1963 and playing his final game in 1972. Primarily an outfielder, Reynolds hit .226 with a .306 on-base percentage and .296 slugging percentage in 513 MLB games. He hit 12 home runs, drove in 87, and scored 141 runs in his career.

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In 1989, Reynolds rejoined Oakland as its bench coach and collected a championship ring as the A's defeated the San Francisco Giants in the World Series.

Reynolds remained on Tony La Russa's coaching staff in Oakland through 1995. He followed La Russa east to St. Louis when the latter took over as the Cardinals' manager in 1996, and was the team's third base coach as it returned to the National League Championship Series that year.

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Reynolds was signed out of San Diego City College by the then-Kansas City Athletics. He debuted at age 22, seeing action in eight games late in the 1963 season. From 1964-65, he slashed .237/.327/.311 for the A's, earning more regular playing time in left field along the way.

In 1966, Reynolds spent the entire season at Triple-A Vancouver, where he hit .248 with 11 home runs and 61 RBIs. He was selected by the New York Mets after the season in the Rule V draft, which yielded his longest full season in the majors — 101 games — in 1967.

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"The thing that I disliked is that I didn't play more," Reynolds said in a 2013 interview. "I was used mostly as a late inning replacement for Tommie Davis. I think we competed well with the league, we were just a little short on the pitching. Tom Seaver was our best ... he was .500 for an also-ran team."

Reynolds got plenty of playing time in 1968 — with the Mets' Triple-A affiliate. He slashed .319/.377/.460 for Jacksonville of the Independent League, then was taken back by the A's in the Rule 5 Draft.

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Reynolds set a career-high in games played (107) with the A's in 1969, slashing .257/.343/.308 in an outfield with future Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson.

The A's traded Reynolds to the Angels for cash in May 1970. He played the next two seasons in Anaheim, slashing .223/.289/.306 in 104 games.

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A Jan. 1972 trade sent Reynolds to Milwaukee for Andy Kosco. In 72 games with the Brewers, Reynolds slashed .200/.262/.300. He would go on to play six more seasons with the Brewers' Triple-A affiliates, retiring at age 37 after the 1978 season.

"It was a great feeling to be part of a historical game; to come back after the earthquake and sweep the Giants was awesome," Reynolds said of winning the 1989 World Series. "I was more excited for the players."

In addition to his major league coaching stops in Oakland and St. Louis, Reynolds was a minor league manager in the A's farm system.

Reynolds is survived by his wife, Penni, four siblings, two children, five grandchildren, and eight great-grandchildren.

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