Jeff Datz

Jeffrey William Datz
(Polar Bear)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 4", Weight 220 lb.
• School Glassboro State College
• High School Clearview Regional High School
• Debut September 5, 1989
• Final Game September 30, 1989
• Born November 28, 1959 in Camden, NJ USA

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Biographical Information

Catcher Jeff Datz was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 19th round of the 1982 Amateur Draft from Rowan University. Between 1982 and 1988 he gradually ascended through the Astros minor league and reached AAA. He joined the Detroit Tigers organization in 1989 and made his major league dubut that season, playing in seven games. Datz finished his playing career in 1990 with the Columbus Clippers in the New York Yankees minor league system.

In 1991 the Cleveland Indians hired Datz as an area scout for northern California and Nevada. He switched to scouting in New Jersey in the early part of 1993 before moving into coaching. Working his way up the Cleveland Indians' chain, Datz coached the Watertown Indians (1993) and managed Watertown (1994) and the Columbus RedStixx (1995) to the playoffs. His Canton-Akron Indians (1996) and Akron Aeros (1997) teams didn't make the playoffs. Datz led the Buffalo Bisons to the International League title in 1998, but finished 9th in 1999. After the 1996 season he managed the West Oahu CaneFires in the Hawaii Winter League. In 2000-2001, Datz was the Indians' Minor League Field Coordinator. Cleveland promoted him to the major league coaching staff in 2002. He started the year as bench coach before switching to third base in mid-July. Datz was the Indians' first base coach from 2003 through 2005. He began 2006 at third base, but returned to a bench coach position in late July where he remained through 2009.

Datz left Cleveland after the 2009 season and worked for a number of organizations in subsequent years. He was the bench coach for the Baltimore Orioles in 2010. In 2011, he moved to the Seattle Mariners where he was the third base coach under manager Eric Wedge. In 2013, he had to take some time off to undergo radiation therapy following the discovery of a cancerous tumor in his neck. Datz worked as a Mariners professional scout in 2014 before undertaking the same position with the New York Yankees in 2015 and 2016. Datz spent his final three seasons in professional baseball with the Atlanta Braves organization. He was a Minor League Catching Instructor in 2017 and the Braves Minor League Catching Coordinator in 2018-2019.

Year-by-Year Managerial Record

Year	Team	League	Record	Finish	Organization	Playoffs
1994	Watertown Indians	New York-Penn League	48-26	1st	Cleveland Indians	Lost in 1st round
1995	Columbus RedStixx	South Atlantic League	80-62	3rd	Cleveland Indians	Lost in 1st round
1996	Canton-Akron Indians	Eastern League	71-71	6th	Cleveland Indians
1997	Akron Aeros	Eastern League	51-90	10th	Cleveland Indians
1998	Buffalo Bisons	International League	81-62	1st	Cleveland Indians	League Champs
1999	Buffalo Bisons	International League	72-72	9th	Cleveland Indians