Tim Leiper

Who is Tim Leiper?

Timothy Joseph Leiper is an American professional baseball coach and manager. In 2014, he will serve as first base coach for the Toronto Blue Jays, his first year in Major League Baseball after 29 years as a minor league player, manager and instructor.

Leiper, a former outfielder, had a 12-season minor league playing career in the farm systems of the Detroit Tigers, Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Mets and Kansas City Royals, batting .273 with 40 home runs in 1,166 games and 3,910 at bats. He batted left-handed, threw right-handed, stood 5 foot, 11 inches tall and weighed 175 pounds.

His coaching career began while he was still an active player: he spent part of the 1992 season as an assistant baseball coach for North Carolina State University. In 1996, Leiper became a coach in the professional ranks, in the Mets' organization. He moved up to managing in 2000 in the Montréal Expos' organization, working at the Short Season-A and Class A levels before his promotion to the Triple-A Ottawa Lynx of the International League in 2002. After Leiper guided the Lynx to 80 wins in 143 games that season, he spent one season as pilot of the Class A Sarasota Red Sox before returning to the Lynx in 2004, who were by then the Triple-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles. Leiper then spent four seasons in the Pirates' system, including three as skipper of the Double-A Altoona Curve, before joining the Florida Marlins in 2009. In 2010, he managed the Jacksonville Suns, the Marlins' Double-A affiliate, where he led them to the 2010 Southern League championship. He then served as the Marlins' roving minor league defensive coordinator in 2011 and 2012. In 2013, he was senior advisor for minor league operations for the Blue Jays before his promotion to manager John Gibbons' staff for 2014.