Howie Freiling, Appreciated That - 11

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Two seasons into his pro playing career, Howie Freiling wasn't ready to quit, he told The Philadelphia Daily News in July 1989.

The Dodgers cut him that spring and offered him a coaching job, The Daily News wrote. Freilling declined

"I appreciated that, but I still wanted to play," Freiling told The Daily News.

Freiling soon caught on with the Mets and played the year at AA Jackson. He returned to the field the next year and briefly saw AAA. But that's as far as Freiling got as a player.

He then started his coaching career. Frieling has gone on to be a coach and a scout. Among the players he coached in the minors was a young Jose Reyes.

Freiling's career in baseball began in 1987, taken by the Dodgers in the eighth round of the draft out of the University of North Carolina.

Freiling started with the Dodgers at single-A Vero Beach and rookie Great Falls. He hit .264 in 59 games. He then returned to Vero Beach for 61 more games in 1988, where he hit .243.

He arrived with the Mets at Jackson for 1989. He hit .277 in 115 games. He then ended his career  in 1990 at Jackson and AAA Tidewater. He played 13 games at Tidewater and hit .167.

Freiling then immediately went into coaching. He served as a coach at single-A Columbia for 1991, then short-season Pittsfield in 1992. He moved to manager at Pittsfield in 1993.

He went on to serve as coach at AAA Norfolk for 2000, then spent that September in Flushing. He declined a spot at the World Series in favor of being with his pregnant wife.

Freiling managed at AA Binghamton for 2001 and 2002. He coached Reyes there in 2002.

"I think he's the real deal," Freiling told The Middletown Press in July 2002. "There really isn't anything he can't do. It's just a question of being consistent, gaining more experience and letting him grow up a little bit."

Freiling soon turned Mets scout, then joined the Phillies as scout in 2008. He continued with the Philies in 2015.
1990 Minor League Tally
Players/Coaches Featured:3,142
Made the Majors:1,140-36.3%
Never Made Majors:2,002-63.7%-X
5+ Seasons in the Majors: 473
10+ Seasons in the Minors:282

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