Brian Reed Doyle (born January 26, 1955 in Glasgow, Kentucky) is a former Major League Baseball infielder who played for the New York Yankees and Oakland A's. He played primarily as a second baseman. Although a reserve for most of his career, Doyle starred in the 1978 World Series for the World Champion Yankees that beat the Los Angeles Dodgers.
| Brian Doyle | |
|---|---|
 Doyle at an autograph signing in 2013. | |
| Infielder | |
| Born: January 26, 1955 Glasgow, Kentucky | |
Batted: Left Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 30, 1978, for the New York Yankees | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| May 24, 1981, for the Oakland Athletics | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .161 |
| Home runs | 1 |
| Runs batted in | 13 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Career
Doyle was drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 1972 amateur draft. Before playing a game for the Rangers he was traded to the Yankees along with Greg Pryor in exchange for Sandy Alomar.[1] Doyle joined the Yankees in 1978. He played parts of three seasons for the Yankees as a reserve infielder through 1980.
However, when Willie Randolph was injured for the 1978 World Series, Doyle filled in as the Yankee second baseman. In six World Series games, he batted .438 with seven hits in 16 at bats, one double, four runs scored and two runs batted ins, leading the World Series in batting average while helping the Yankees to their second straight World Series victory.
After the end of the 1980 season, Doyle was selected by the Oakland Athletics in the Rule 5 draft. He played for the Athletics in 1981, his last season in the Major Leagues. Doyle played 110 games in his career,
Personal
His brother, Denny, also played in the major leagues.
His twin brother, Blake, played only in the minor leagues before becoming a major league coach.
In 1978, Brian and his brothers founded Doyle Baseball, a baseball school.[2]
In the 1990s, Doyle was diagnosed with leukemia, and was later on diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease in 2015.[3]
Television
Doyle is mentioned in the Showtime series Billions, Season 1, Episode 3 "Yum Time" when hedge fund manager, Bobby Axelrod, gives trusty but untested trader, Donny, more responsibility by tripling his accounts saying "You're going to be our Brian Doyle" and continues to explain Doyle's .161 lifetime batting average and MVP like performance in the 1978 World Series.
References
- ^ "The Spokesman-Review - Google News Archive Search". Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ^ "Blake Doyle emerges as strong candidate for hitting coach job". Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- ^ FOX. "It's easier to win a World Series than get Social Security disability". Retrieved June 12, 2016.
External links
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference
- ESPN video