From Charlotte Slugger to Tampa Bay Hitting Coach
Chad Mottola had a year to remember with the Charlotte Knights in 1999. After signing with the Chicago White Sox as a free agent for the 1999 season, Mottola ended up in Triple-A with the Knights — the first year the club was affiliated with the White Sox. It was a special year all around.
As the 1999 season brought a new affiliate to Fort Mill, SC for the Knights — the organization brought a bevy of talented veterans. Mottola was one of the top offensive players in the International League in 1999 during his one and only year with the Knights.
A native of Augusta, GA, Mottola hit .321 (164-for-511) with 95 runs scored, 32 doubles, four triples, 20 home runs, 94 RBIs, and 18 stolen bases with the Knights in 1999. An IL Midseason All-Star, Mottola finished 10th in batting average, second in games played (140), tied for seventh in runs scored, fifth in total bases (264), and tied for seventh in RBIs.
Along with sluggers Luis Raven (33 home runs), Mario Valdez (26 home runs), and Tilson Brito (.318 batting average), Mottola added to the team’s solid offensive punch. The strong play led the Knights to an 82–62 record under manager Tom Spencer and a spot in the postseason.
The Knights finished second in the IL South Division and earned the wild card. From there, they played extremely well in the postseason — en route to their first Governors’ Cup win since 1993.
Charlotte beat the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons three games to two and then beat the Durham Bulls to earn the championship.
2ND ANNUAL TRIPLE-A WORLD SERIES
The Knights lost the winner-take-all, one-game Triple-A World Series matchup against Vancouver 3–2 from Las Vegas, NV.
KNOTE WORTHY
The Knights won the Governors’ Cup in 1993 and 1999 — both years with a new major league affiliate (Indians in ’93 and White Sox in ‘99).
MORE ON MOTTOLA
In 2000, Mottola continued his impressive numbers in Triple-A — this time with Syracuse. He hit .309 with a league-best 33 home runs and 102 RBIs en route to winning the International League’s Most Valuable Player Award.
During his 16-year professional career as an outfielder, he played in 1,800 games in the minors and 59 games in the majors over parts of five seasons with the Reds (1996), Blue Jays (2000 & 2006), Marlins (2001) and Orioles (2004).
INTERNATIONAL LEAGUE HALL OF FAME
On January 28, 2020, Mottola was elected to the International League Hall of Fame in the same class as Chipper Jones and Johnny Neun. Mottola spent nine seasons in the IL with six different franchises and finished with 152 home runs and 570 RBIs over that span (935 games).
TAMPA BAY RAYS HITTING COACH
The 2020 season is the fourth full season (fifth overall) for Mottola as the hitting coach of the Rays. He was named as hitting coach on September 6, 2016, replacing Derek Shelton — filling the role for the last 24 games of the season.
Overall, the 2020 season is the 29th for Mottola in professional baseball and seventh in the Tampa Bays’ system.
Mottola’s Rays face the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2020 World Series, which gets underway with game one on October 20.
