Ivanon Coffie's only trip to the major leagues came while playing for Bowie, so when the Baltimore Orioles offered him another shot this spring with the Class AA Baysox, he was quick to agree.
"I'm just happy to be back here," said Coffie, who rejoined the team May 28 and has played nearly every day since at third base. "This is the team I made it to the big leagues with, so I think it's a good place for me to start again."
Coffie is hitting a team-high .316 through 30 games and 98 at-bats, with seven doubles, five home runs and 20 RBI. He also has 21 walks against 14 strikeouts, the team's best ratio. His slugging percentage (.541) and on-base percentage (.443) are also the team's best.
"I still think Coffie has a chance to make it back to the big leagues," Baysox Manager Dave Trembley said. "He's a line drive left-handed hitter, and the ball makes a little different sound coming off his bat than other guys."
Coffie played 23 games with the Orioles in 2000, hitting .217 in 60 at-bats, getting called up from Bowie. One of the first games he played third base in Baltimore was the first major league start of John Parrish's career.
"Yeah, Class of '96, baby," said Parrish, referring to the year both signed. Parrish is also back in Bowie, remaking himself into a closer after missing last season with an injury. "It's great to have him back here. He's a rock at third, and he's hitting great."
He spent all of 2001 in the minors before being traded to the Chicago Cubs for a player to be named later that offseason.
He failed to make the Cubs' roster, and instead struggled for Class AAA Iowa, hitting .239 with seven home runs before being released after the season. But the valleys of the past two years might be the reason for his success in June.
"One of the big things about guys who are up and then come back is that they get a wakeup call and appreciate the position they are in a lot more," Trembley said.
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