| Greg Gross | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Gross with thePhiladelphia Phillies in 2011 | |
| Outfielder | |
| Born: (1952-08-01)August 1, 1952 (age 72) Goldsboro, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
| MLB debut | |
| September 5, 1973, for the Houston Astros | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 27, 1989, for the Houston Astros | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .287 |
| Home runs | 7 |
| Runs batted in | 308 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Gregory Eugene Gross (born August 1, 1952) is an American former professionalbaseballoutfielder andpinch hitter who played 17 seasons inMajor League Baseball (MLB), primarily for thePhiladelphia Phillies. He was previously the Phillies'hitting coach and a former manager for theReno Aces, theArizona Diamondbacks'Triple-A affiliate.
Gross is perhaps best remembered for his clutchpinch hitting abilities, particularly during the Phillies'1980 World Championship run. He holds the team’s record in career pinch hits, with 117.[1] Gross also ranks fifth on MLB’s all-time list in career pinch hits, with 143.[2] Gross holds the MLB record for pinch hit walks with 117.[3]
Born inYork, Pennsylvania, Gross graduated from Red Land High School inLewisberry, Pennsylvania.[4]
On June 4,1970, Gross was selected by theHouston Astros in the fourth round (79th overall) of the June Baseball draft.[5] He led the league in hits in 1970 while playing for Covington in theAppalachian League, batting .351. He also tied for the league lead in double plays by outfielders.
In 1971, Gross was promoted to theColumbus Astros of theSouthern League, where he played outfield and first base. In 1972, Gross played most of the season at Columbus, then was promoted to theOklahoma City 89ers, which was the Astros' AAA farm club. In 1973, Gross started the season with theDenver Bears, which by that point had become the Astros' new AAA farm club.
The Astros decided to call up Gross late in 1973. On September 5,1973, Gross made his MLB debut with the Astros, going 0-for-1 (ground out to third basemanDenis Menke) as a pinch hitter against pitcherPedro Borbon, which was the last out of the ninth inning in a game that went extra innings and ended in a 9-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at theAstrodome. Gross finished the season going 9-for-39, for a .231 average.
In 1974, Gross became the Astros' starting right fielder and leadoff hitter, playing in 156 games and batting .314. Gross was namedThe Sporting News' National League Rookie Player of the Year and finished second in the voting forNational League Rookie of the Year.[6] Gross also finished the season with a .393 on-base percentage, giving him one of the highest on-base percentages of any rookie since 1970. In 1974, Gross also set a major league record for most times caught stealing in a rookie season with 20. In 1975 and 1976, Gross continued to be a starting outfielder for the Astros, hitting .294 and .286, respectively. The 1975 season saw him reach base in 52 straight games. Nearly half of his hits (142) and walks (63) in the season came during the streak, which saw him collect 70 hits and 30 walks from June 25 to August 18. The streak tiedJimmy Wynn (1969) for the longest on-base streak in franchise history, a record that stands as of 2022.[7][8][9]
Gross was traded from theAstros to theCubs forJulio González at theWinter Meetings on December 8,1976.[10] In 1977, Gross hit his first major-league home run, connecting a total of five times while hitting .322 in 115 games.
After a busy 1978 season, Gross was traded by the Cubs on February 23,1979 to thePhiladelphia Phillies withManny Trillo andDave Rader forJerry Martin,Barry Foote,Ted Sizemore,Derek Botelho andHenry Mack. Gross established himself as a key platoon outfielder and first baseman for the Phillies, getting to play in the 1980National League Championship Series (he went 3-for-4—all pinch hits—with one RBI in four games), the1980 World Series (0-for-2 in four games), the1983 NL Championship Series (0-for-5 in four games with a run scored), and in the1983 World Series (0-for-6 in 2 games). Gross was an invaluable pinch hitter. In 1982, he led the league in pinch hits with 19.
Gross has said he had hoped to be a full-time player for the Phillies in the late 1970s and early 1980s, but the team just had too many other talented outfielders, namelyBake McBride,Greg Luzinski,Garry Maddox, andLonnie Smith. "I...didn't figure I should be playing part-time at that point in my career," Gross told theSan Diego Union-Tribune in an article that appeared on March 18, 1991. "But they had those three guys and I knew they should be playing ahead of me. Plus, they were winning and that changes your thinking a lot. Before, I was playing on second-division teams and we were out of it pretty early. But when you get your first taste of winning, when you're in the playoffs and the World Series, you want more of it."
In addition, Gross acknowledged in an interview in 2007 the difficulty of being a starting player when he was neither fast nor a power hitter. "The cycle that baseball was in back then, with the AstroTurf and everything, centered on the stolen base or the home run, and I did neither of those," Gross toldThe Patriot-News ofHarrisburg in an article that was published on April 8, 2007. "It was just a matter of survival. You made the best out of it. The big break for me was when I got onto a real good club."
Gross remained with the Phillies through the 1988 season, in which he hit just .203 in 133 at-bats but posted the unusual statistic of striking out just three times during the entire season. Over his entire career of 3,745 at-bats, Gross struck out just 250 times.
On April 5,1989, Gross rejoined the Houston Astros as a free agent, hitting .200 largely in a pinch-hitting role.[5] Despite his historic success as a prolific pinch-hitter, Gross struggled in 1989, hitting just .184 (7-for-38). In October 1989, as part of a rebuilding movement, the Astros told Gross and many other veterans—includingBob Forsch,Rick Rhoden,Dan Schatzeder,Terry Puhl andHarry Spilman—that they would not negotiate new contracts with them before the free agent filing period, which was to begin after the1989 World Series, if at all. On November 2, 1989, Gross filed for free agency. Gross had hoped to be invited to a major-league club for a tryout in 1990. After a lockout by the owners in early 1990, Gross never received a single tryout, and he wound up sitting out the 1990 season.
Gross again tried to extend his baseball career. On February 7,1991, theSan Diego Padres announced that they had invited Gross to spring training. Gross came to spring training at the recommendation of his old teammate and then-Phillies coachLarry Bowa, who had asked then-Padres managerGreg Riddoch to invite Gross to camp. "I love this game so much," Gross told theLos Angeles Times in an article that appeared on February 28, 1991. "I can't leave it alone. It's not the money. It's not the attention. It's just being around this game. And I'm not going to cheat myself from playing as long as someone will let me."
On March 30, 1991, theLos Angeles Times reported that Gross had made the Padres as a pinch-hitter. However, on April 5, 1991, the Padres cut Gross, choosing instead to signMike Aldrete to its final roster spot. The move ended Gross' major-league career. Several weeks later, there was reported interest in Gross by theBoston Red Sox, according to a May 14, 1991 article inThe Boston Globe, but nothing ever materialized.
"I've enjoyed my career, I really have," Gross told theSan Diego Union-Tribune in March 1991. "There've been frustrations, sure, but the good times and being at this level of the game outweigh any of the negatives. I wanted to play every day, sure, but it didn't work out for me. But I found that niche and it worked out. Probably, if I'd been an everyday player, I wouldn't have lasted this long. I'd rather have the longevity."
Both in 1986 and in 1989, Gross was called to the pitcher's mound during blowouts. On June 8,1986, Gross pitched the final two-thirds of the eighth inning in a 12–0 Phillies loss to theMontreal Expos. Gross gave up a double toAndrés Galarraga, and then struck outCasey Candaele andHerm Winningham to end the rout.[11] And on May 21,1989, Gross took the mound in the ninth inning of what wound up being a 17-5 loss by the Astros to thePittsburgh Pirates. In that game, Gross had relieved shortstopCraig Reynolds, who had pitched the eighth inning. In the ninth inning, Gross gave up three hits and two earned runs. However, he also struck outJosé Lind swinging.[12] "The worst part is how close you are to the batter after you throw the ball," Gross toldthe Sporting News in its June 5, 1989 issue. "I throw batting practice, but you've got the screen. I was looking for a way to sneak the screen out there."
After his baseball career ended, Gross worked as a color commentator for several games forSportsChannel Philadelphia in 1991. He dabbled in real estate and coached atMalvern Prep High School.[13] He returned to professional baseball on February 6,1995, when theColorado Rockies announced that Gross would make his debut as a professional coach with the Rockies' AANew Haven Ravens minor-league affiliate in New Haven, Connecticut. In 1995, Gross worked as a first-base coach for the Ravens, and then stayed with the club for the 1996 season as well. On October 24,1996, the Rockies promoted Gross to become the Rockies' roving minor-league hitting instructor. He served in that capacity in 1997 through 2000. Gross quit the Rockies at the end of the 2000 season to become a bench coach for thePhiladelphia Phillies in 2001. In 2002, Gross became the Phillies' hitting instructor. He remained the Phillies' hitting instructor through 2004.[14]
On January 3,2005, Gross became the hitting instructor for the Phillies' Class-ABatavia Muckdogs minor league team.[15] On December 22, 2005, Gross was named the 2006 hitting coach for the Phillies' high-AClearwater Threshers minor-league team.[16] On November 28,2006, Gross was named the hitting coach for the Phillies'Reading Phillies minor-league team.[17] Then, on December 13,2007, Gross was named the 2008 hitting coach for the Phillies' Triple-ALehigh Valley IronPigs minor league team.[18] On July 22, 2010, it was announced he would take over as hitting coach for the Philadelphia Phillies. On October 3, 2012, Gross was fired from his position of hitting coach by the Philadelphia Phillies when they decided not to renew his contract for the 2013 season.[19]
Gross joined theArizona Diamondbacks organization as the Triple AReno Aces hitting coach for the 2013 season.[20] In 2017, whenJerry Narron was named interim bench coach of the Diamondbacks, Gross became interim manager of the Aces.[21] He returned as manager for the 2018 season,[22] before being named as part ofChris Cron's coaching staff for the 2019 season.[23] Although expected to return for the 2020 season,[24] Gross essentially retired from coaching onceMinor League Baseball announced the season's cancellation due to theCOVID-19 pandemic.[25]
Gross is twice married and has two children with his first wife.[26][27] He lives inWest Chester, Pennsylvania.[28]
Gross is honored annually by the AGA with the Greg Gross Open (GGO) golf tournament held at the Anetsberger Golf Club inNorthbrook, Illinois.
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