Floyd Rayford facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Floyd Rayford |
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| Third baseman / Catcher | |||
| Born: July 27, 1957 Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
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| debut | |||
| April 17, 1980, for the Baltimore Orioles | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| September 16, 1987, for the Baltimore Orioles | |||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Batting average | .244 | ||
| Home runs | 38 | ||
| Runs batted in | 117 | ||
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Floyd Kinnard "Sugar Bear" Rayford was born on July 27, 1957. He is a retired professional baseball player. He played for seven seasons in the Major Leagues. Floyd mostly played third base and catcher. He was also a "utility man," meaning he could play many different positions. He played four different spots during his time in the Major Leagues. Later, he worked as a batting coach for the Rochester Red Wings minor league team. Fans knew him as "Sugar Bear" because of his friendly personality and bigger build.
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Early Baseball Days
Floyd Rayford's journey in professional baseball started in 1975. He was drafted as a catcher right out of Manual Arts High School. This happened in the fourth round of the amateur draft. The California Angels baseball team picked him.
He spent five years, from 1975 to 1979, playing in the Angels' minor league system. In 1979, he played at the Triple-A level. This is just one step below the Major Leagues. He played for the Salt Lake City Gulls. In his first Triple-A season, he hit for a .294 average. He also hit 13 home runs while playing third base.
First Time with the Baltimore Orioles
After playing one season for the Gulls, Rayford was traded. He went from the Angels to the Baltimore Orioles. This trade also involved some money and another player, Larry Harlow.
In 1980, Floyd Rayford made his big debut in the Major Leagues. He played for the Orioles. He played in 8 games that season. Most of his time was spent with the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings. He stayed with the Red Wings for all of 1981. During that year, he played in the longest game in baseball history. He was the catcher for the 31st inning of that super long game! In 1982, he came back to the Major Leagues with the Orioles. But he only hit for a .132 average in 34 games.
Something interesting happened in 1982. When Cal Ripken Jr. started his amazing streak of 2,632 straight games, Rayford was the player Ripken replaced. Rayford had a day off in a doubleheader. Ripken started at third base instead of him. Floyd went back to Rochester in 1983. He had a great year, hitting .371 in 42 games for the Red Wings.
Playing for the St. Louis Cardinals
Floyd Rayford was traded again on June 13, 1983. This time he went to the St. Louis Cardinals. He was the backup third baseman behind Ken Oberkfell that year. He hit .212 in 56 games for the Cardinals.
Second Time with the Baltimore Orioles
Less than a year after trading him, the Orioles wanted Rayford back. They bought his contract from the Cardinals before the 1984 season. In his first year back with the Orioles, he mostly played as a backup catcher. His hitting got much better. His batting average went up to .256 in 1984.
In 1985, he shared time as the main third baseman. This was his best year ever! He hit for a .306 average. He also hit 18 home runs and had 48 runs batted in. These were all career highs for him. For the 1986 season, people thought he would become the main catcher. But his numbers dropped. He only hit .176 and was sent back to Rochester. He split the 1987 season between Baltimore and Rochester. He hit .220 in the Major Leagues. This was his last season playing in the big leagues.
Minor League Coaching Career
After his playing days, Rayford played parts of three more seasons. From 1989 to 1991, he played with the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons. He played in 81 games for them. During his last two seasons there, Rayford was a player-coach. This started his long career as a minor league coach.
Since 1990, he has coached eight different minor league teams. In 1996, he spent one season as a minor league manager. He managed the Batavia Clippers. He was also part of the Rock Cats' coaching staff starting in 2005.
