Tim Wallach

Timothy Charles Wallach (born September 14, 1957), nicknamed "Eli", is an American former professional baseball player and coach.

Wallach played for the United States national baseball team in the 1978 Amateur World Series.

His stat-line in the series was .395/.455/.763, while having 14 runs and runs batted in (RBIs), both being the second-most in the series.

The United States finished second to Cuba in the tournament.

Wallach led the Titans to its first Division I title at the College World Series in Omaha in 1979, was named to the all-tournament team, and won the Golden Spikes Award.

He was an All-American and named the Sporting News College Player of the Year.

He played seventeen seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a third baseman, most notably for the Montreal Expos from 1980 to 1992.

A five-time All-Star, Wallach excelled as an offensive and as a defensive player, winning 2 Silver Slugger Awards and 3 Gold Glove Awards.

In addition to the Expos, he also played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and California Angels and coached for the Dodgers and Miami Marlins.

Wallach was born in Huntington Park, California, grew up in Tustin in Orange County, and attended University High School in neighboring Irvine.

There he played on the school's lower-level baseball team during his freshman and sophomore years before being promoted to the varsity team for his last two years.

Wallach was not drafted by a major league team out of high school.

He enrolled at Saddleback College and transferred to California State University, Fullerton to play college baseball for the Cal State Fullerton Titans.

Wallach made his major league debut at the age of 22 on September 6, 1980, against the San Francisco Giants after replacing Ron LeFlore at left field.

In his first plate appearance in the top of the 5th inning, he was walked, but in his second plate appearance in the 8th, he hit a home run.

In Game 1 of the 1981 National League Division Series, he went 1-for-2 with a double and a walk while scoring a run.

In the other four games that he appeared in, he went hitless.

1982 was Wallach's first full-time season, when he hit .268 with 28 home runs, 31 doubles, and 97 RBIs in 158 games.

He slightly regressed the following year, hitting .269 with 33 doubles, 19 home runs, and 70 RBIs in 156 games.

Wallach earned his first All-Star Game honors in 1984 and 1985; in the latter season he earned his first Gold Glove and the Silver Slugger awards.

He regressed a bit the next season, playing in 134 games while having 112 hits, 22 doubles, 18 home runs and 71 RBIs with a .233 batting average, although he led the league in being hit by pitch with 10.

Wallach played in 133 games for the Dodgers, getting 106 hits (his lowest since having 112 in 1986), with 19 doubles, 12 home runs and 62 RBIs with a .222 batting average.

In 1987, Wallach was named to the All-Star Game again while winning his second Silver Slugger Award and finishing fourth in Most Valuable Player voting, doing so in 153 games while setting career highs with a .298 batting average, 123 RBIs and 42 doubles, with the latter leading the major leagues.

He regressed a bit the next season, hitting .257 with 32 doubles, 12 home runs and 69 RBIs in 159 games, although he did win his second Gold Glove.

He rebounded in 1989, being named to the All-Star Game, playing in 154 games and hitting .277 with 13 home runs, 77 RBIs and a league-leading 42 doubles.

He continued his success in 1990, earning his fourth and final All-Star Game appearance, playing in a career high 161 games and hitting .296 with 37 doubles, 21 home runs and 98 RBIs, as well as winning the Gold Glove for the third and final time.

He was named team captain prior to the 1991 season, being the first team captain in franchise history.

He regressed in production in his final two seasons with the Expos, playing in 301 combined games while having a total of 250 hits, 51 doubles, 22 home runs and 132 RBIs while hitting under .230 both seasons.

On December 24, 1992, he was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Tim Barker.

In the strike shortened 1994 season, he played in 113 games (out of 114 that the Dodgers played), having 116 hits, 21 doubles and 23 home runs (his highest since having 21 in 1990) with 78 RBIs and a .280 batting average.

He played in just 97 games for the Dodgers in 1995, having 87 hits (his lowest since having 50 in 1981) with 22 doubles, nine home runs and 38 RBIs and a .266 batting average.

He appeared in the team's postseason run, playing in each game of the NLDS.

He went 1-for-12, with no RBIs as the Dodgers were swept in three.

After the season ended, he signed as a free agent with the California Angels.

He played in 57 games with the team, having 45 hits, seven doubles, eight home runs and 20 RBIs with 47 strikeouts on a .237 batting average.

Wallach and Brett Pill (September 6, 2011) are the only two players from Cal State Fullerton to hit a home run in their first at bat.

Wallach appeared in four other games in that season.

He appeared in 71 games in the following season, hitting .236 with 4 home runs and 13 RBIs in 71 games.

He appeared in the Expos' only postseason run while in Montreal, appearing in five games.

He finished 18th in MVP voting.