Tommy Joseph

Tommy Joseph
Joseph at the 2012 Eastern League All-Star Game
Baltimore Orioles
First baseman / Hitting coach
Born: (1991-07-16) July 16, 1991 (age 33) Phoenix, Arizona, U.S.
Batted: Right Threw: Right
Professional debut
MLB: May 13, 2016, for the Philadelphia Phillies
KBO: March 23, 2019, for the LG Twins
Last appearance
MLB: September 30, 2017, for the Philadelphia Phillies
KBO: June 27, 2019, for the LG Twins
MLB statistics
Batting average	.247
Home runs	43
Runs batted in	116
KBO statistics
Batting average	.274
Home runs	9
Runs batted in	36
Teams
As player Philadelphia Phillies (2016–2017) LG Twins (2019) As coach Seattle Mariners (2024) Baltimore Orioles (2025–present)

Thomas Richard Joseph (born July 16, 1991) is an American professional baseball coach and former first baseman, currently the assistant hitting coach for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2016 and 2017 and the LG Twins of the KBO League. Joseph is the only player in MLB history to play 2 seasons and hit at least 20 homers in each of those 2 seasons, but not play another season in MLB again.

High school

Joseph attended Horizon High School in Scottsdale, Arizona, where he played for the school's baseball team. A first baseman in his first three years of high school, Joseph became a catcher in his senior year.^[1] In 2009, he was named the Arizona high school player of the year.^[2]

Playing career

San Francisco Giants

The San Francisco Giants selected Joseph in the second round, with the 55th overall selection, of the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft as a catcher and first baseman.^[1] In 2010, Joseph was named a South Atlantic League all-star for his performance with the Augusta GreenJackets.^[3] He suffered a concussion during the 2010 season.^[4] The Giants invited Joseph to spring training in 2011.^[3] Joseph played for the Richmond Flying Squirrels of the Double–A Eastern League in 2012, and appeared in the All-Star Futures Game that year.^[5]

Philadelphia Phillies

On July 31, 2012, the Giants traded Joseph with Nate Schierholtz and Seth Rosin to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Hunter Pence.^[6] The Phillies assigned Joseph to the Reading Fightin Phils of the Eastern League. After the 2012 season, he was assigned to the Peoria Javelinas of the Arizona Fall League (AFL),^[7] and participated in the AFL Rising Stars Game.^[8]

Joseph played in only 36 games in the 2013 season due to a concussion.^[9] The Phillies added him to their 40-man roster on November 20, 2013, to protect him from being exposed to the Rule 5 draft.^[10] Joseph suffered a wrist injury in 2014 which limited him to 27 games played, and required season ending surgery.^[9] Joseph began the 2015 season with the Lehigh Valley IronPigs of the Triple–A International League, where he suffered his third concussion in May 2015. Due to the concussions, the Phillies converted him into a first baseman.^[4]

After posting a .347 average and a .611 slugging percentage in the first 27 games of the 2016 season, the Phillies promoted Joseph from Lehigh Valley to the major leagues on May 13, 2016.^[11] He hit his first major league home run on May 17.^[12] On June 1, Phillies manager Pete Mackanin announced his plans to give Joseph extended playing time at first base and keep the slumping veteran Ryan Howard on the bench.^[13] Joseph officially supplanted Howard as the everyday first baseman on June 10 and punctuated the move by hitting his sixth and seventh home runs of the season that day, with Mackanin calling Joseph "the real deal".^[14]

In 2017, Joseph batted .240 with a .289 on-base percentage.^[15] After the 2017 season, the Phillies acquired Carlos Santana to play first base.^[16]

On March 12, 2018, Joseph was designated for assignment.^[15]

Texas Rangers

On March 19, 2018, the Texas Rangers claimed Joseph off waivers.^[17] He was designated for assignment on March 29. He cleared waivers and was outrighted to the Double–A Frisco RoughRiders.^[18] He declared free agency on October 2.

LG Twins

On November 28, 2018, Joseph signed a one-year, $1 million contract with the LG Twins of the KBO League.^[19]

Joseph was waived by the Twins on July 9, 2019.

Boston Red Sox

On August 5, 2019, Joseph signed a minor league contract with the Boston Red Sox,^[20] and was assigned to the Gulf Coast League Red Sox.^[21] In 15 games split between the GCL Red Sox and Double–A Portland Sea Dogs, he slashed .263/.307/.386 with one home run and seven RBI.

Joseph did not play in a game for the organization in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.^[22] He became a minor league free agent on November 2, 2020.^[23]

Team Texas

In July 2020, Joseph signed to play for Team Texas of the Constellation Energy League (a makeshift 4-team independent league created as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic) for the 2020 season.

Coaching career

New York Mets

On March 8, 2021, Joseph was announced as the hitting coach for the St. Lucie Mets, the Low-A affiliate of the New York Mets. On January 6, 2022, Joseph was announced as the hitting coach for the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, the Double-A affiliate of the New York Mets.^[24]

San Francisco Giants

On March 8, 2023, Joseph was hired as the hitting coach for the Eugene Emeralds, the High-A affiliate of the San Francisco Giants.^[25]

Seattle Mariners

On December 7, 2023 Joseph was hired as the Seattle Mariners' assistant hitting coach for the 2024 season.^[26]

References

1. Garcia, Jose (June 9, 2009). "Giants nab Joseph; Blue Jays pick Barrett". The Arizona Republic. azcentral.com. Retrieved January 9, 2013.
2. Obert, Richard (June 12, 2009). "Giants' pick Joseph named Player of Year". The Arizona Republic. Archived from the original on February 16, 2013. Retrieved January 9, 2013.
3. Haft, Chris (February 23, 2011). "Home opener not a concern for rotation". MLB.com: News. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved January 9, 2013.
4. Breen, Matt (June 28, 2015). "Tommy Joseph moving to first base after concussions". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
5. Haft, Chris (July 8, 2012). "Giants catching prospect Tommy Joseph has solid day in All-Star Futures Game". SFGiants.com: News. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved January 9, 2013.
6. Crasnick, Jerry. "San Francisco Giants acquire Hunter Pence from Philadelphia Phillies, source confirms". ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved January 9, 2013.
7. Emerick, Tyler (October 17, 2012). "Joseph displays potential behind plate in Arizona Fall League". phillies.com: News. MLB Advanced Media. Retrieved January 9, 2013.
8. Mayo, Jonathan (November 2, 2012). "AFL Rising Stars Game is Major for prospects". MLB.com. Retrieved March 6, 2014.
9. "Tommy Joseph to have season-ending surgery". Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia. August 3, 2014. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
10. Zolecki, Todd (November 20, 2013). "Phillies add four prospects to 40-man roster". MLB.com. Retrieved July 17, 2015.
11. Gelb, Matt (May 13, 2016). "Phillies promote Tommy Joseph from triple A". Philly.com. Retrieved May 14, 2016.
12. Gelb, Matt (May 19, 2016). "Joseph hits first homer as Phillies beat Marlins". Philly.com. Archived from the original on August 18, 2016. Retrieved June 2, 2016.
13. Stark, Jayson (June 2, 2016). "Phillies to start Tommy Joseph in place of Ryan Howard for 3-4 days". ESPN. Retrieved June 2, 2016.
14. Putterman, Alex (June 10, 2016). "Joseph supplants Howard at first base". MLB.com.
15. "Phillies make room for Jake Arrieta by removing Tommy Joseph from roster". Philly. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
16. "Who's on first? Santana signing leaves Phillies' Joseph as odd man out". Delcotimes.com. December 21, 2017. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
17. The Associated Press. "Rangers claim 1B Tommy Joseph on waivers from Phillies". Dailyjournal.net. Retrieved March 19, 2018.
18. Adams, Steve (April 2, 2018). "Rangers Select Contract of Bartolo Colon; Tommy Joseph Clears Waivers". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
19. "LG Twins acquire ex-MLB 1B Joseph". The Korea Herald. November 28, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
20. "Red Sox Roster & Staff – Transactions". MLB.com. August 2019. Archived from the original on August 2, 2019. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
21. "Tommy Joseph Stats, Highlights, Bio". MiLB.com. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
22. "2020 Minor League Baseball season cancelled". mlb.com. Retrieved August 22, 2024.
23. Campbell, Brendan (November 2, 2020). "Former Red Sox utilityman Tzu-Wei Lin is now a minor-league free agent". bloggingtheredsox.com. Retrieved November 3, 2020.
24. "Reid Brignac Named St. Lucie Mets Manager Jerome Williams, Tommy Joseph and Jay Pecci round out coaching staff" (Press release). milb.com. March 8, 2021. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
25. "SF Giants bring back a couple off familiar faces as minor league coaches". aroundthefoghorn.com. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
26. "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved December 7, 2023.

External links

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors), or Retrosheet
• Tommy Joseph at Baseball Gauge