Johnson, Tosca inducted into Portland Sea Dogs Hall of Fame
August 26, 2005 - Eastern League (EL1)
Portland Sea Dogs News Release
Portland, Maine- The Portland Sea Dogs and UnumProvident have announced that Charles Johnson and Carlos Tosca are the first inductee's into the Portland Sea Dogs Hall of Fame. The announcement was made prior to Friday's Sea Dogs game against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays) at Hadlock Field. Throughout the 2005 season, Sea Dogs fans have had the opportunity to vote-in the inaugural members of the Sea Dogs Hall of Fame. To be eligible for the Sea Dogs Hall of Fame, players must have debuted with the Sea Dogs at least ten years ago. Each season one player and one non-playing personality will be inducted into the Sea Dogs Hall of Fame.
On the inaugural ballot for players were Charles Johnson, Billy McMillon, Edgar Renteria, and Jay Powell. Non-playing nominees on the ballot include Carlos Tosca, Bob Ganley, and John Boles.
Charles Johnson was the first Sea Dogs superstar. He hit the first two home runs in Sea Dogs franchise history in their inaugural game on April 7, 1994. His second home run was a game winning 14th inning blast to give Portland a 2-1 victory over Reading in the inaugural game. From that moment on, Johnson became a Sea Dogs icon. In the inaugural season, 1994, Johnson hit .264, with 28 home runs and 80 RBI. His 80 home runs led the league in 1994 and were the most hit by an Eastern League catcher since Tony Pena hit 34 in 1979. He was named to the 1994 Eastern League Post-season All-Star Team. Charles Johnson also became the first player in Sea Dogs history to hit a home run over the Hadlock Field scoreboard. In the twelve year history of the Portland Sea Dogs only thirteen home runs have been hit over the scoreboard.
Charles Johnson was named to both Baseball America's and USA Today's Minor League All-Star teams in 1994. He also has the distinct honor of being the first Marlins minor leaguer to reach the major leagues. Johnson received his first taste of the big leagues when he was called up for four games in 1994. In those four games, he went 5-11, a .455 average, and hit a home run off Curt Schilling in his second major league at-bat. After his brief stint in the majors, he returned to the Portland Sea Dogs, but he would not be away for long. Johnson became the Marlins everyday catcher in 1995.
In twelve major league seasons with the Marlins, Dodgers, Orioles, Rockies, and Devil Rays, Johnson had a .245 career batting average, hit 167 home runs, and owns a career fielding percentage of .993. He was the recipient of five gold glove awards. Charles Johnson represented the National League in both the 1997 and 2001 Major League Baseball All-Star games.
Carlos Tosca was the first manager in Portland Sea Dogs history. He held the post for three seasons, the longest tenure in team history. In his three years as skipper of the Sea Dogs he posted a 229-195 record, a .540 winning percentage, the second highest in franchise history. He led the Sea Dogs to consecutive playoff appearances in 1995 and 1996. He was selected as the manager of the 1995 National League Affiliate All-Stars for the Double-A All-Star Game. The Florida Marlins also honored Tosca with their Carl Barger Player Development Person-of-the-Year award. He was named the 1996 Eastern League Manager of the Year and was also tabbed by Baseball America as their overall Minor League Manager of the Year.
In 1998, Tosca got his first big league coaching job as the bench coach for the Arizona Diamondbacks, a post he held through the 2000 season. In 2001 he managed the Braves Triple-A team in Richmond before returning to the big leagues as Toronto's third base coach in 2002. Midway through the 2002 season, Tosca took over the managerial duties for the Toronto Blue Jays. As a big league manager Tosca posted a 191-191 record before being replaced during the 2004 season.
Tosca returned to the Diamondbacks in 2005 as Arizona's third base coach. Tosca has 17 years of experience as a Minor League manager in which he has had 12 winning seasons including six first place finishes.
Both Johnson and Tosca will be presented with a Hall of Fame plaque. A banner of each Hall of Fame member will be hung in the Hadlock Field concourse. A Sea Dogs Hall of Fame section will also be added to the Sea Dogs website (www.seadogs.com). The Portland Sea Dogs Hall of Fame is presented by UnumProvident.
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