Chuck Cottier
Quick Facts
Biography
Charles Keith Cottier (born January 8, 1936 in Delta, Colorado) is a former second baseman, manager, coach and scout in American Major League Baseball.
Cottier graduated from Grand Junction, Colorado, High School, where he lettered in four sports – baseball, basketball, football and wrestling. He was a good-fielding, light-hitting infielder during his nine-year big league playing career. He appeared in 580 games and compiled a lifetime batting average of .220 with 19 home runs with the Milwaukee Braves (1959–60), Detroit Tigers (1961), Washington Senators (1961–65), and California Angels (1968–69). Cottier batted and threw right-handed, standing 5 feet 11 inches (1.8 m) tall and weighing 178 pounds (81 kg). His playing career ended in May 1969 when he sustained an Achilles tendon injury as a member of the Angels. He began his minor league managing career in 1971.
Cottier was in his third season as the third-base coach of the Seattle Mariners when he was chosen to replace Del Crandall as Seattle's manager with 27 games left in the 1984 campaign. He led the team through the entire 1985 season and into the first 28 games of 1986. With the M's in sixth place in May 1986 with a record of 9–19, Cottier was fired and succeeded by interim manager Marty Martínez for one game before Dick Williams took over. His career major record as a Major League manager was 98–119 (.452).
Cottier also served as a coach for the New York Mets (1979–81), Chicago Cubs (1988–94), Baltimore Orioles (1995) and Philadelphia Phillies (1997–2000). He also served as a Major League scout for the New York Yankees. and a special assistant to the general manager for the Washington Nationals.