The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
UAB Blazers Baseball Dugout Club
9/8/2001 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
The UAB Baseball Program will host the 2nd Annual Lead-Off Banquet on Thursday, January 31st, 2002 at The Club. Terry Francona, former manager of the Philadelphia Phillies and Birmingham Barons, will be the keynote speaker for the event. Francona currently serves as a special assistant in Player Development for the Cleveland Indians. Most recently, Francona managed the USA Baseball Team in the 2001 World Cup in Taipei, Taiwan. A silent auction and reception will begin at 6:00 P.M. with dinner and program following at 7:00 P.M.
Terry Francona was the manager of the Philadelphia Phillies in 1997-99 and of the Birmingham Barons in 1993-95. He was the youngest manager in Major League Baseball (37 years) when he took over the Phillies in 1997. Francona's Phillies improved the team's record in each of the 3 years he managed there, culminating in two 3rd place finishes. During his years as manager of the Barons he produced 1st and 2nd place finishes in the Southern Lea-gue. Francona was the manager when basketball star Michael Jordon switched to baseball for his memor-able 1994 season with the Barons.
A left-handed thrower and batter, Francona played for the University of Arizona and spent 10 seasons as a first baseman/outfielder in the major leagues, from late 1981 to early 1990. He played for the Montreal Expos, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnatti Reds, Cleveland Indians, and Milwaukee Brewers. He compil-ed a .274 batting average (474/1731), scored 163 runs, took 134 extra bases, and batted in 143 runs. He received 65 walks and had a 4.5 : 1 on base-to-strikeout ratio during his years as a MLB player.
Francona was Special Assistant for Baseball Operations for the Cleveland Indians during the 2001 season and, on November 13, 2001, was named the Texas Rangers Bench Coach for the 2002 season. He managed "Team USA" in the Baseball World Cup played in Taipei, Taiwan, in late 2001. Hence, Terry Francona is knowledgeable about the national and international baseball scene and is familiar with Birmingham through his former association with the Barons.
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Corporate Tables are available. For more information, call the UAB Baseball Office at 205-934-5181.
