Brad Komminsk

Brad Komminsk (born April 4, 1961), is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He attended Shawnee High School in Lima, Ohio where he played basketball and baseball and was an all-state linebacker in football. He received athletic scholarship offers from Ohio State, Nebraska and Clemson.[1] On June 5, 1979, he was drafted by the Atlanta Braves with the fourth pick in the 1979 amateur draft and received a $70,000 signing bonus.[2]

Brad Komminsk
Outfielder
Born: (1961-04-04) April 4, 1961
Lima, Ohio
Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
August 14, 1983, for the Atlanta Braves
Last MLB appearance
October 5, 1991, for the Oakland Athletics
MLB statistics
Batting average.218
Home runs23
Runs batted in105
Teams

Komminsk was a highly regarded prospect in the Braves system. He appeared on the cover of Baseball America in 1981 and 1983 where he was described as a potential Triple Crown winner and as having the best tools in Minor League Baseball.[2] Hank Aaron described him as a "can't miss" prospect and compared him to future Hall of Famer Andre Dawson. Before ever reaching Major League Baseball (MLB), he was featured on ABC's Nightline and NBC's This Week in Baseball.[1] In 1984, the Braves went so far as to reject a trade offer from the Boston Red Sox which would have brought them future Hall of Famer Jim Rice in part because Boston asked for Komminsk in the deal.[3]

Despite a sterling record in the minor leagues, he never played well in the majors. Komminsk chalked it up to MLB coaches trying to change his mechanics so as "to be part of the Brad Komminsk project."[2] His Hall of Fame manager, Joe Torre, credited his failure to an asthma problem.[4] His Hall of Fame teammate and roommate Tom Glavine wrote that the pressure of high expectations may have hindered Komminsk to some extent.[5] In 2011, Baseball Prospectus included him in a list of the fifty most disappointing prospects of all time.[4] In 2015, Sporting News characterized Atlanta's selection of Komminsk over Andy Van Slyke as one of the five worst draft decisions in franchise history.[6]

Komminsk played parts of eight seasons in MLB. His best season came in 1989 with the Cleveland Indians. He only appeared in 100 or more games one time, a 106-game campaign with the Braves in 1985.[7] Komminsk spent a few seasons in the minors after his final MLB season in 1991, even playing professionally in Italy and for the independent Winnipeg Goldeyes of the Northern League.[2][8]

He last was the hitting coach of the Norfolk Tides, the Class-AAA affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Since the end of his playing days, Komminsk has been a minor league coach and manager with several teams, including the Kinston Indians.

Reference
  1. Tucker, Tim (February 28, 1982). "The heat is on Brad Komminsk". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Newspapers.com. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  2. Morris, Ron (December 22, 2017). "Where Are They Now?: Brad Komminsk". Baseball America. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  3. "Candelaria Calls Peterson an 'Idiot'". Washington Post. August 16, 1984. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  4. Goldman, Steven (4 March 2011). "The BP Broadside: The Most Disappointing Prospects of All Time, Part 3". Baseball Prospectus. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  5. Cafardo, Nick; Glavine, Tom; Maddux, Greg (2016). Inside Pitch: Playing and Broadcasting the Game I Love. Triumph Books. ISBN 978-1-63319-459-5. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  6. Fagan, Ryan (June 2, 2015). "Five worst MLB Draft misses for each franchise all-time". Sporting News. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
  7. "Brad Komminsk Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
  8. "Brad Komminsk Minor & Independent Leagues Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
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Preceded by
Bien Figueroa		 Bowie Baysox manager
2008–2010		 Succeeded by
Gary Kendall


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