Willie Bloomquist

Willie Bloomquist
Willie Bloomquist
	Bloomquist with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2011
	Utility player
	Born: November 27, 1977 (age 46); Bremerton, Washington, U.S.
	Batted: Right Threw: Right
MLB debut
	September 1, 2002, for the Seattle Mariners
Last MLB appearance
	June 28, 2015, for the Seattle Mariners
MLB statistics
Batting average	.269
Home runs	18
Runs batted in	225
Teams
	Seattle Mariners (2002–2008); Kansas City Royals (2009–2010); Cincinnati Reds (2010); Arizona Diamondbacks (2011–2013); Seattle Mariners (2014–2015);
Title
	Coaching career
Current position
Title	Head coach
Team	Arizona State
Conference	Big 12
Record	90–81
Annual salary	$370,000
Biographical details
Alma mater	Arizona State
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
2022–present	Arizona State
Head coaching record
Overall	90–81
Tournaments	NCAA: 0–0
Accomplishments and honors
Awards
	Pac-10 Player of the Year (1999); Baseball America All-American (1999); ASU On Deck Circle Most Valuable Player (1999); Dean Short Award

Willie Paul Bloomquist (/ˈbluːmkwɪst/; born November 27, 1977) is an American baseball coach and former utility player, who is the current head baseball coach of the Arizona State Sun Devils. He played college baseball at Arizona State for coach Pat Murphy from 1997 to 1999 and played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 14 seasons from 2002 to 2015. In 2021, he returned to his alma mater, Arizona State.

The Seattle Mariners selected Bloomquist in the third round of the 1999 MLB draft. He played 14 years primarily an outfielder and shortstop, with Seattle from 2002 to 2008, the Kansas City Royals from 2009 to 2010, the Cincinnati Reds in 2010, the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2011 to 2013 before returning to Seattle from 2014 to 2015.

Early baseball career

High school

Bloomquist was All-State and all-league MVP in baseball at South Kitsap High School in Port Orchard, Washington and was an eighth round pick in 1996 MLB draft. He was a high school teammate with former MLB player Jason Ellison. He also played quarterback for South Kitsap. In his junior season, the team won the state AAA football championship ^[1]

College

He chose to accept a scholarship to Arizona State University. In 1998, Bloomquist tied a College World Series single-game record with five hits in a game with Long Beach State. He was honored as Pac-10 Player of the Year in 1999 and was named first-team All-American by Baseball America. He finished his college career with a .394 (256/649) average over three seasons and was named ASU On Deck Circle Most Valuable Player.^[2]

Professional career

Seattle Mariners

Bloomquist was drafted out of South Kitsap High School in Port Orchard, Washington by the Seattle Mariners in the eighth round (237th overall) of the 1996 MLB draft, but was not signed. He was drafted again by the Mariners out of Arizona State University in the third round (95th overall) of the 1999 MLB draft and signed.

The Mariners signed Bloomquist to a contract extension through the 2008 season worth $1,875,000, in 2006.^[3] On June 15, 2007, he hit an inside-the-park home run in Minute Maid Park. On June 26, 2007, Bloomquist hit a lead-off home run in the second inning—on what was his 1,000th career at-bat.

Kansas City Royals

On January 9, 2009, Bloomquist signed a two-year deal with the Kansas City Royals.^[4] He played in 197 games with the Royals over parts of 2 seasons, hitting .265.

Cincinnati Reds

On September 13, 2010, Bloomquist was traded to the Cincinnati Reds for a player to be named later, or cash.^[5] In 11 games with the Reds, he hit .333.

Arizona Diamondbacks

On January 18, 2011, Bloomquist signed a one-year contract with the Arizona Diamondbacks.^[6] He hit .266 in 97 games with the Diamondbacks in 2011 and re-signed with the team after the season.

Second stint with Mariners

On December 5, 2013, Bloomquist signed a two-year deal to return to the Seattle Mariners.^[7] On July 2, 2015, Bloomquist was designated for assignment, and shortstop Chris Taylor called up from the Triple-A Tacoma Rainiers to take his roster spot.

On March 11, 2016, Bloomquist announced his retirement on Twitter.^[8]^[9]

Coaching career

On June 11, 2021, Bloomquist was named the new head coach of the Arizona State Sun Devils baseball team.^[10]

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
Season	Team	Overall	Conference	Standing	Postseason
Arizona State Sun Devils (Pac-12 Conference) (2022–2024)
2022	Arizona State	26–32	13–17	8th	Pac-12 Tournament
2023	Arizona State	32–23	16–13	5th	Pac-12 Tournament
2024	Arizona State	32–26	17–13	5th	Pac-12 Tournament
Arizona State Sun Devils (Big 12 Conference) (2025–present)
2025	Arizona State	0–0	0–0
Arizona State:		90–81	46–43
Total:		90–81
National champion Postseason invitational champion Conference regular season champion Conference regular season and conference tournament champion Division regular season champion Division regular season and conference tournament champion Conference tournament champion

Personal life

Bloomquist is married and has four daughters, Natalie, Ava, Layla and Sydney. He is Roman Catholic.^[11]

References

^ Graham, Jeff (September 2, 2015). "Football 2014: South Kitsap's 1994 team surprisingly reached new heights". Kitsap Sun. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
^ "Willie Bloomquist". MLB.com.
^ "ESPN – Mariners sign Bloomquist to two-year, $1.875M deal". ESPN. November 27, 2006. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
^ "Royals sign Willie Bloomquist to two-year deal". Kansascity.royals.mlb.com. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
^ "Reds acquire Bloomquist from KC". Marksheldon.mlblogs.com. September 13, 2010. Retrieved October 6, 2011.
^ Gilbert, Steve (January 18, 2011). "Heilman returns to D-Backs with eye on rotation". MLB.com. Archived from the original on January 28, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2011.
^ "Willie Bloomquist rejoins Mariners". ESPN. December 5, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
^ "Willie Bloomquist on Twitter". Twitter. March 11, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
^ "Make Your Last Swing Your Best Swing". Twitter. March 11, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
^ "Willie Bloomquist Named Head Coach for Sun Devil Baseball". Arizona State University Athletics. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
^ Importance of Catholicism Hits Home for Diamondbacks Player, National Catholic Register. April 24, 2012

External links

Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors)
Baseball Prospectus (statistics)
Willie Bloomquist on Twitter

[1] Graham, Jeff (September 2, 2015). "Football 2014: South Kitsap's 1994 team surprisingly reached new heights". Kitsap Sun. Retrieved May 15, 2020.

[2] "Willie Bloomquist". MLB.com.

[3] "ESPN – Mariners sign Bloomquist to two-year, $1.875M deal". ESPN. November 27, 2006. Retrieved October 6, 2011.

[4] "Royals sign Willie Bloomquist to two-year deal". Kansascity.royals.mlb.com. Archived from the original on March 14, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2011.

[5] "Reds acquire Bloomquist from KC". Marksheldon.mlblogs.com. September 13, 2010. Retrieved October 6, 2011.

[6] Gilbert, Steve (January 18, 2011). "Heilman returns to D-Backs with eye on rotation". MLB.com. Archived from the original on January 28, 2011. Retrieved January 19, 2011.

[7] "Willie Bloomquist rejoins Mariners". ESPN. December 5, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2013.

[8] "Willie Bloomquist on Twitter". Twitter. March 11, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.

[9] "Make Your Last Swing Your Best Swing". Twitter. March 11, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.

[10] "Willie Bloomquist Named Head Coach for Sun Devil Baseball". Arizona State University Athletics. Retrieved June 11, 2021.

[11] Importance of Catholicism Hits Home for Diamondbacks Player, National Catholic Register. April 24, 2012

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