Former Major League Baseball player Reggie Jefferson enters his first season on the University of South Florida coaching staff. A .300 career hitter in the majors, Jefferson was hired on Sept. 19, 2005 and will assume the role of hitting coach at USF.
Jefferson, 36, comes to USF after spending a year as the Triple-A hitting instructor for the Florida Marlins (Albuquerque Isotopes ? Pacific Coast League). During the 2005 season, the Isotopes set franchise records in home runs (183), runs (795), hits (1,396) and RBI (749). Prior to his stint with the Florida Marlins organization, Jefferson was a guest instructor at the Tampa Bay Devil Rays spring training camp in 2004.
“I think that we are very fortunate to have someone with Reggie’s qualifications,” said Cardieri. “He’s a guy that had such a stellar major league career and has, as recently as this year, been a Triple-A hitting coach. Reggie is a great person. He has great people skills and I think he’ll do very well.”
Jefferson spent nine seasons in the Major Leagues, playing for four different teams. Drafted straight out of high school by the Cincinnati Reds in the third round of the 1986 entry draft, Jefferson spent the 1991 season with five different clubs (Cincinnati, Cleveland and three of their minor league affiliates). He was called up in May of that year by the Reds and collected his first major league hit on May 19, 1991 ? a home run off of San Diego’s Andy Benes. Jefferson was traded to the Cleveland Indians in June of 1991, spending three seasons with the Tribe. In 1994, he was traded to the Seattle Mariners where he hit .327 with eight home runs and 32 RBI. Jefferson signed as a free-agent with the Boston Red Sox in April of 1995. He spent five seasons with the Red Sox. Jefferson finished his major league career batting .300 with 72 home runs and 300 RBI in 680 career games.
In 2000, Jefferson played in Japan with the Seibu Lions, hitting .268 with 10 homers and 68 RBI.
“He had a very impressive career,” states Cardieri. “I think it’s going to be an opportunity for our players to learn a lot about the finer points of hitting.”
After retiring from professional baseball in 2001, he went on to earn a degree in business administration at USF in 2003.
“I’m ecstatic to be here and have this opportunity,” said Jefferson. “It’s something that during my playing career I always knew that I wanted to coach when I was done. So to have this opportunity to come back to the school where I got my degree from is a great opportunity for me.”
A native of Tallahassee, Fla., Jefferson went to Lincoln High School ? the same high school as USF right-hander Chase Lirette.
Jefferson and wife Kay have four children Shayna (14), R.J. (11), Jannay (6) and Jalen (3).
