Tommy Sandt
Thomas James Sandt (December 22, 1950 – December 1, 2020) was an American Major League Baseball player and coach, as well as a minor league manager. An infielder, Sandt played for the Oakland Athletics in and . He threw and batted right-handed, stood tall and weighed . His professional playing career lasted all or parts of 15 seasons, and his MLB coaching tenure lasted for 16 years. He was the first-base coach of the 1997 world-champion Florida Marlins. Early life. Born in Brooklyn, Sandt graduated from Pacifica High School in West Garden Grove, California, in 1968. Career. He  was selected by Oakland in the second round of the 1969 Major League Baseball draft, and made his pro debut that season. His MLB playing career consisted of 42 games: one appearance on June 29, 1975, as a defensive replacement at second base against the California Angels, and 41 games as a utility infielder in 1976, when he spent the entire season on the Oakland roster. In the majors, Sandt batted .209 in 67 at bats, with his 14 hits including one double. In the field, he got into 29 games as a shortstop, ten as a second baseman, and  two as a third baseman. Sandt joined the Pittsburgh Pirates' organization in 1979 while still an active player. He then managed Pirate farm teams in the Eastern League and Pacific Coast League from 1982 to 1986, and was voted 1984's PCL Manager of the Year while managing the Hawaii Islanders. In 1987, he joined the MLB coaching staff of Pittsburgh manager Jim Leyland, and worked under Leyland for the next 13 years with the Pirates (through 1996), Marlins (1997–1998) and Colorado Rockies (1999). He then returned to Pittsburgh for a 2-year stint under skippers Gene Lamont (2000) and  Lloyd McClendon (2001–2002). Death. Sandt died December 1, 2020, in Lake Oswego, Oregon.