Rick Bosetti

Richard Alan Bosetti

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 185 lb.
• School Shasta College
• High School Anderson Union High School
• Debut September 9, 1976
• Final Game May 26, 1982
• Born August 5, 1953 in Redding, CA USA

BR page

Biographical Information

Rick Bosetti achieved a goal of urinating in the outfield of big major league park even though he spent most of his career playing in only one league -- the AL.

Better known for his glove (in seven seasons with four teams, he slashed just .250/.288/.338), Rick was a 1978 selection to the Topps All-Star Rookie Team, making a few appearances on the following leaderboards:

• 1979 American League Leader in Games Played
• 1978 Led American League outfielders in putouts
• 1979 Led American League Outfielders in putouts and assists

He first reached the majors with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1976 as a September call-up, hitting .278 in 13 games. On June 15, 1977, while playing in the minors, he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals along with Tom Underwood and Dane Iorg in return for Bake McBride and Steve Waterbury. He was called up to St. Louis at the start of August and hit .232 in 41 games, mainly as a defensive replacement (he had only 69 at-bats). He was traded again after the season, this time to the Toronto Blue Jays in return for Tom Bruno.

He was a starter in the outfield for Toronto in both 1978 and 1979. He barely qualified for rookie status the first year, given his previous experience in the National League and he had a decent season, hitting .259 in 136 games, which looks more impressive than it was, since he had little power and a poor on-base percentage. In 1979, he played all 162 games as Toronto's regular center fielder, hitting .260 with 8 homers and 65 RBIs. Those were his only two seasons as a regular, and his OPS+ was 81 the first year and 74 the second. On May 28, 1979, he set a Blue Jays record by collecting three outfield assists in a single game, a performance that would not be matched until 2025, when Addison Barger accomplished the same feat from right field.

Bosetti started to lose playing time in 1980 when Lloyd Moseby, who had been a top draft pick in the 1978 amateur draft, made it to Toronto. Moseby did not hit much either at first, but he was just as strong a defensive outfielder, and had a lot more potential. Rick hit just .213 in 53 games that year, then was sold to the Oakland Athletics on June 10, 1981 - just two days before the strike. He only played sparingly with the A's after the strike was resolved, going 2 for 19 in 9 games, but did see some action in the postseason, going 1 for 4 in 3 games. He then spent most of 1982 in the minors with the Tacoma Tigers of the Pacific Coast League, where he hit .322 in 101 games. He only appeared in 6 games for Oakland, however, going 3 for 15 and was let go at the end of the season, ending his playing career.

Rick became head coach at Simpson University in 2009.

Notable Achievements

• 1978 Topps All-Star Rookie Team

Related Sites

• Venezuelan League Statistics [1]