Derek Shelton

Derek Lee Shelton (born July 30, 1970) is an American professional baseball coach and former catcher. He was the hitting coach for the Cleveland Indians from 2005 until 2009, and the Tampa Bay Rays from 2010 until 2016. In 2016, he was hired as the quality control coach by the Toronto Blue Jays.

Playing career

Shelton was a minor league catcher in the New York Yankees organization in 1992 and 1993, playing alongside Derek Jeter and Mariano Rivera. Shelton played 46 games in his minor league career, and finished with a .341 batting average, one home run, and 19 runs batted in (RBI).

Managing career

Shelton managed Yankee minor league teams for three seasons, from 2000 through 2002. His teams achieved a .624 winning percentage, and he managed several future MLB players, including Robinson Canó, Dioner Navarro, and Chien-Ming Wang.

After spending five seasons as the hitting coach for the Cleveland Indians, he accepted a job with the Tampa Bay Rays at the same position after the 2009 season. The Rays fired him in September 2016. On December 12, 2016, the Toronto Blue Jays hired him as a quality control coach for the 2017 season.