George Lombard

Who is George Lombard?

George Paul Lombard is a former Major League Baseball outfielder.

Lombard was drafted in the second round by the Atlanta Braves in the 1994 Major League Baseball Draft, the same year that he graduated from The Lovett School in Atlanta. He played for the Braves, Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Devil Rays and Washington Nationals. Lombard, a celebrated high school running back, had initially committed to play for the Georgia Bulldogs before changing his direction toward baseball.

He was the first American baseball player to hit a home run in China during the MLB China Series on March 15, 2008.

During the 2008-2009 offseason, Lombard signed a minor league contract with the Cleveland Indians.

On July 4, 2009 Lombard was released by the Indians. He spent 2010 as the hitting coach for the Lowell Spinners, Short-Season A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, and served as manager of the Rookie-level Gulf Coast Red Sox in 2011–2012. His teams compiled a 61–59 overall record, with the 2012 edition winning the GCL's South Division. In December 2012, Lombard was promoted by the Red Sox to roving outfield and baserunning coordinator throughout the team's minor league farm system.