Mickey Bowers facts for kids

Mickey Bowers, born on February 27, 1949, in Maxton, North Carolina, is a retired American baseball player. He was also a scout, coach, and manager. His whole career in uniform was spent in minor league baseball. Mickey played as an outfielder. He threw and batted right-handed. He was about 5 feet 11 inches tall and weighed 175 pounds.

Early Life and First Game

Mickey Bowers went to Mount Vernon High School in Mount Vernon, Virginia. After high school, he attended Northern Virginia Community College. He started playing professional baseball in 1968. This was with the Philadelphia Phillies team organization.

One exciting moment in Mickey's career happened in his very first professional game. It was July 4, 1968. Mickey was 19 years old and playing for the Huron Phillies. He was chasing a foul ball in right field. He ran so fast that he crashed right through the fence! He came out of the hole in the fence without getting hurt. But he didn't catch the ball. People said he was "startled" but otherwise fine.

Playing Career Highlights

Best Season

Mickey Bowers had his best season in 1969 when he was 20 years old. He played for the Spartanburg Phillies. He hit the ball really well, with a .308 batting average. He also had 124 hits, 10 home runs, and 73 runs batted in. He scored 74 runs and stole 29 bases. He led his team in all these important hitting areas.

After that great season, his manager, Bob Malkmus, wrote about Mickey. He said Mickey needed to learn to follow orders better. He also mentioned that Mickey looked up to another player, Richie Allen. The manager wanted to make sure Mickey's attitude stayed positive.

Final Playing Years

Mickey played one more season with the Phillies organization. This was in 1970 with the Peninsula Astros. He was 21 years old. He led his team with 127 hits in 126 games. He also had 44 RBIs and a .272 batting average. He ended that season with a 12-game hitting streak. The Phillies released him after this season.

After leaving baseball, Mickey worked as a police officer for six years. He served in Washington, D.C. Then, he returned to baseball. He joined the Major League Baseball Scouting Bureau.

Coaching and Managing

Return to Baseball

In 1977, Mickey Bowers became a coach. He joined the Seattle Mariners' minor league system. He was 28 years old at the time. In 1978, he was coaching for the Alexandria Dukes. This was an independent team. In the last game of the season, on September 2, Mickey actually played! He hadn't played since 1970.

Even though he hadn't played in years, Mickey had two hits in three tries. He also made an amazing catch in the first inning. He robbed an opposing player of a double. The crowd of 1,577 people gave him a standing ovation.

Manager of the Year

Mickey coached for two seasons (1980–1981) with the Lynn Sailors. This team was in the Double-A Eastern League. In 1982, he became the manager of the Sailors. He led them to a great record of 82 wins and 57 losses. They won the North Division title.

In September 1982, Mickey was named the Eastern League Manager of the Year. He was the first Black man to receive this award in professional baseball. Some of the players he managed later became major league stars. These included Alvin Davis, Jim Presley, and Harold Reynolds.

Moving On

In 1983, the Seattle Mariners moved their Double-A team. It became the Chattanooga Lookouts in the Southern League. Mickey Bowers was the manager there. However, he was fired on May 30. The team had a record of 20 wins and 32 losses. He was replaced by Bill Haywood. Mickey and Bill had disagreed during spring training in 1982. The Lookouts finished the season with 68 wins and 75 losses. Future major league players like Mark Langston and Danny Tartabull played for them.

Images for kids

• 

  Mickey on January 3, 2017, in Fort Myers, Florida

• 

  Mickey as coach of the Lynn Sailors