| Pat Corrales | |
|---|---|
 Corrales with the Nationals in 2008 | |
| Catcher /Manager | |
| Born:(1941-03-20)March 20, 1941 Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
| Died: August 27, 2023(2023-08-27) (aged 82) Big Canoe, Georgia, U.S. | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| August 2, 1964, for the Philadelphia Phillies | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| September 21, 1973, for the San Diego Padres | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .216 |
| Home runs | 4 |
| Runs batted in | 54 |
| Managerial record | 572–634 |
| Winning % | .474 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Managerial record at Baseball Reference | |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
Patrick Corrales (March 20, 1941 – August 27, 2023) was an American professionalbaseballcatcher,manager, andcoach, who played inMajor League Baseball (MLB), from 1964 to 1973, primarily for theCincinnati Reds as well as thePhiladelphia Phillies,St. Louis Cardinals, andSan Diego Padres. He was the first major league manager ofMexican American descent.[1]
Patrick Corrales was born in Los Angeles on March 20, 1941.[2] He was a baseball and football star atFresno High School inFresno, California,[2] and a teammate of future major-league pitchersJim Maloney andDick Ellsworth.[citation needed] Anoffensive guard andlinebacker for the football team, he was named lineman of the year byThe Fresno Bee.[citation needed] After high school, he signed as an amateur free agent with the Phillies in 1959.[2]
Corrales made his major league playing debut at age 23 on August 2, 1964, with the Phillies. He pinch-hit for pitcherJohn Boozer in the fifth inning, grounding out against theLos Angeles Dodgers'Larry Miller in a 6–1 Phillies loss atConnie Mack Stadium.[3] His first career hit came the next year on June 15, 1965, in a 12–7 Phillies loss to theMilwaukee Braves atCounty Stadium when he singled in the eighth inning offTony Cloninger and later scored.[4] He had one of his best career games the next day when, in a 6–2 Phillies win over the Braves, he started at catcher and went 3–4 with his first major league home run (a two-run shot in the third inning againstDenny Lemaster).[5]
After the 1965 season, the Phillies traded Corrales,Alex Johnson, andArt Mahaffey to theSt. Louis Cardinals forBill White,Dick Groat, andBob Uecker.[6] He was a backup toTim McCarver during the 1966 season and spent the 1967 season in the minor leagues. Before the 1968 season, the Cardinals traded Corrales andJimy Williams to theCincinnati Reds forJohnny Edwards. Corrales served as a backup toJohnny Bench, before the Reds traded him to theSan Diego Padres on June 11, 1972, forBob Barton. With the Padres, Corrales was the backup toFred Kendall.[7]
In a nine-year playing career as a backup catcher, Corrales played in 300 games with 166 hits, four home runs, 54 runs batted in, and a .216 batting average. He appeared in one game of the1970 World Series for the Reds and batted once, grounding out for the final out of the series as the Reds fell in five games to theBaltimore Orioles.[2]
Corrales became a coach for theTexas Rangers in 1976. On the last day of the 1978 season, the Rangers firedmanagerBilly Hunter and named Corrales their new manager.[8][9] The Rangers fired Corrales after the 1980 season.[10]
The Phillies hired Corrales as their manager after the 1981 season.[11] On July 18, 1983, the Phillies fired Corrales, despite the Phillies having a 43–42 (.506) record and tied for first place with theSt. Louis Cardinals in theNational League East. Corrales had benchedMike Schmidt andPete Rose while confusing veteran players with his changes to the lineups.[12][13]
Two weeks after being fired by the Phillies, the Indians hired Corrales as their manager. They retained him for after the 1983 season with a two-year contract extension.[14] After the 1985 season, the Indians signed Corrales to a perpetual contract.[15] The Indians fired him in July 1987.[16] Corrales spent nine years as a major league manager and finished with an overall record of 572–634 (.474) with the Rangers, Phillies, and Indians.[17]
TheNew York Yankees hired Corrales as their first base coach for the 1989 season.[18] The Yankees fired their manager and most of their coaching staff, including Corrales, in August 1989.[19] The following month he joined theAtlanta Braves as ascout.[20] He served as the Braves' bench coach for nine years, and was withWashington Nationals for the 2007 and 2008 seasons, before being fired at the end of 2008 along with the majority of the Nationals' coaching staff. Shortly after being fired, he accepted a job as a special consultant to the Nationals. He resumed as bench coach in July 2009 afterJim Riggleman was appointed acting manager to replaceManny Acta. Corrales was once again appointed Nats bench coach in June 2011 by new managerDavey Johnson. Corrales replacedJohn McLaren, who had been reassigned to scouting duty.[21]
On November 5, 2012, Corrales was hired by theLos Angeles Dodgers as a special assistant to the general manager.[22]
Source:[17]
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Won | Lost | Win % | Finish | Won | Lost | Win % | Result | ||
| TEX | 1978 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.000 | Interim | – | – | – | |
| TEX | 1979 | 162 | 83 | 79 | .512 | 3rd in AL West | – | – | – | |
| TEX | 1980 | 161 | 76 | 85 | .472 | 4th in AL West | – | – | – | |
| TEX total | 324 | 160 | 164 | .494 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| PHI | 1982 | 162 | 89 | 73 | .549 | 2nd in NL East | – | – | – | |
| PHI | 1983 | 85 | 43 | 42 | .506 | Fired | – | – | – | |
| PHI total | 247 | 132 | 115 | .534 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| CLE | 1983 | 62 | 30 | 32 | .484 | Interim | – | – | – | |
| CLE | 1984 | 162 | 75 | 87 | .463 | 6th in AL East | – | – | – | |
| CLE | 1985 | 162 | 60 | 102 | .370 | 7th in AL East | – | – | – | |
| CLE | 1986 | 162 | 84 | 78 | .519 | 5th in AL East | – | – | – | |
| CLE | 1987 | 87 | 31 | 56 | .356 | Fired | – | – | – | |
| CLE total | 635 | 280 | 355 | .441 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
| Total | 1216 | 572 | 634 | .474 | 0 | 0 | – | |||
Corrales married Sharon Ann Grimes on September 24, 1960, and had four children. Sharon died from a blood clot soon after giving birth to the couple's fourth child in July 1969.[23] He married Heidyt Enedina Davis, May 28, 1970, in Jellico, Tennessee.[24]
Corrales was inducted as a member of the Fresno County Athletic Hall of Fame in 1980.[25][26]
Pat Corrales died at home inBig Canoe, Georgia, on August 27, 2023, at age 82.[27][28][29]
Pat Corrales, who spent more than 64 years in professional baseball as a player, manager and executive, most recently in the Dodgers' front office, and who was the first Major League manager of Mexican-American descent, passed away at his home in Big Canoe, Ga., on Sunday evening at the age of 82.
The Los Angeles Dodgers said Corrales died of natural causes Sunday night at his home in the north Georgia mountains. He had worked in the team's front office since 2012, serving as a special assistant to the general manager in his final role.
| Preceded by | Washington Nationals Bench Coach 2007–2008 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Washington Nationals Bench Coach 2009 | Succeeded by |