Johnny Lane Oates (January 21, 1946 – December 24, 2004) was an American professional baseball catcher, coach, and manager, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles, Atlanta Braves, Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, and New York Yankees from 1970 to 1981. During his playing career, He was a light-hitting player who was valued for his defensive skills and played most of his career as a reserve player. It was as a big league manager that Oates experienced his greatest success, when, under his leadership, the Texas Rangers won three American League Western Division titles.\n', '

Born in Sylva, North Carolina, Oates graduated from Prince George High School in Prince George, Virginia, before going on to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg. He was selected by the Baltimore Orioles as their first round pick in the 1967 Major League Baseball Secondary Draft.\n', '

He began his professional baseball career with the Bluefield Orioles and then the Miami Marlins in 1967 at the age of 21. After two seasons with Miami, Oates moved up to the Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs in 1969 where he hit for a .288 batting average in 66 games. He continued his climb up the minor league ladder in 1970, playing for the Triple-A Rochester Red Wings before making his major league debut with the Baltimore Orioles at the age of 24 on September 17, 1970. Oates was not on the post-season roster for The Orioles that won the 1970 World Series. Oates returned to the minor leagues in 1971, playing another season with Rochester where he posted a .277 batting average along with a respectable .364 on-base percentage.\n', '

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