{{short description|American baseball player and manager (born 1961)}} {{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}} {{Infobox baseball biography |name=Gary Varsho |position=Outfielder |image=1987 Iowa Cubs - Gary Varsho (cropped).jpg |caption=Varsho {{circa}} 1987 |bats=Left |throws=Right |birth_date={{Birth date and age|1961|6|20}} |birth_place=Marshfield, Wisconsin, U.S. |debutleague = MLB |debutdate=July 6 |debutyear=1988 |debutteam=Chicago Cubs |finalleague = MLB |finaldate=October 1 |finalyear=1995 |finalteam=Philadelphia Phillies |statleague = MLB |stat1label=Batting average |stat1value=.244 |stat2label=Home runs |stat2value=10 |stat3label=Runs batted in |stat3value=84 |teams= ;As player *Chicago Cubs ({{mlby|1988}}–{{mlby|1990}}) *Pittsburgh Pirates ({{mlby|1991}}–{{mlby|1992}}) *Cincinnati Reds ({{mlby|1993}}) *Pittsburgh Pirates ({{mlby|1994}}) *Philadelphia Phillies ({{mlby|1995}}) ;As manager *Philadelphia Phillies ({{mlby|2004}}) ;As coach *Philadelphia Phillies ({{mlby|2002}}–{{mlby|2006}}) *Pittsburgh Pirates ({{mlby|2008}}–{{mlby|2010}}) }}
'''Gary Andrew Varsho''' (born June 20, 1961) is an American former professional baseball outfielder, manager, and coach, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, and Philadelphia Phillies.<ref name="bbrefvarshomaj">{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/v/varshga01.shtml|title=Gary Varsho Stats|date=2019|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Baseball-Reference.com|access-date=July 8, 2019}}</ref>
==Baseball career== ===As player=== Varsho was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the fifth round (107th overall) of the 1982 June draft as a second baseman and made his MLB debut with the Cubs on July 9, 1988. His first major league hit came off Ed Whitson on July 9, 1988, against the San Diego Padres. After being traded to the Pirates, Varsho connected off the Cubs’ Shawn Boskie for his first big league home run on July 2, 1992, at Wrigley Field.
Varsho appeared for the Pirates in the 1991 and 1992 National League Championship Series; in three postseason games (all as a pinch hitter), he singled twice in three at bats, and spent one defensive inning in right field.
Primarily an outfielder, Varsho played 14 years of pro baseball, including eight seasons in the major leagues ({{by|1988}}–{{by|1995}}).
===After playing=== Varsho was the Phillies bench coach ({{by|2002}}–{{by|2006}}) and was interim manager for the last two games of the {{by|2004}} season,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/managers/varshga01.shtml|title=Gary Varsho Managerial Record|date=2019|publisher=Sports Reference LLC|work=Baseball-Reference.com|access-date=July 7, 2019}}</ref> after Larry Bowa was fired. Varsho was fired as the Pirates’ bench coach on August 8, 2010. In {{by|2012}}, he became a professional scout for the Los Angeles Angels.<ref>{{cite book|title=Baseball America 2015 Directory|editor1-last=Leventhal|editor1-first=Josh|year=2015|publisher=Baseball America|location=Durham, NC|isbn=978-1-932391-56-5|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/baseballamerica20000unse_g7e4}}</ref> Since {{by|2016}}, Varsho has served in the same capacity for the Pirates.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/pirates/team/front-office|title=Front Office Directory | Pittsburgh Pirates | Baseball Operations|date=2019|publisher=Major League Baseball|work=mlb.com|access-date=July 8, 2019}}</ref>
==Personal life== In 1979, Varsho graduated from Marshfield High School in Marshfield, Wisconsin, after which he attended University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, where he received a bachelor's degree in physical education in 1989.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/team/coach_staff_bio.jsp?c_id=pit&coachorstaffid=123664|title=Manager and Coaches | Pittsburgh Pirates | Gary Varsho|date=2010|publisher=Pittsburgh Pirates|work=Pirates.com|access-date=November 23, 2010}}</ref>
Varsho and his wife, Kay, have three children: daughter Andie, born 1991; daughter Taylor Varsho-Krueger, born 1994; and son Daulton, born 1996, who is a professional baseball outfielder for the Toronto Blue Jays.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mlb.com/player/daulton-varsho-662139?stats=career-r-hitting-minors&year=2019|title=Daulton Varsho Stats, Fantasy & News|date=2019|publisher=Major League Baseball|work=mlb.com|access-date=July 8, 2019}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{baseballstats|mlb=123664|espn=2068|br=v/varshga01|fangraphs=1013373|brm=varsho001gar|retro=V/Pvarsg001}} {{baseball-reference manager|varshga01}} *[https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/faa1186a Gary Varsho] at SABR (Baseball BioProject) *[https://www.baseball-almanac.com/players/player.php?p=varshga01 Gary Varsho] at Baseball Almanac *[http://pittsburgh.pirates.mlb.com/team/coach_staff_bio.jsp?c_id=pit&coachorstaffid=123664 Gary Varsho] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110605035920/http://pittsburgh.pirates.mlb.com/team/coach_staff_bio.jsp?c_id=pit&coachorstaffid=123664 |date=2011-06-05 }} Pittsburgh Pirates Bio
{{S-start}} {{Succession box | title = Pittsburgh Pirates Bench Coach | before = Jim Lett| years = 2008 - 2010 | after = Jeff Banister}} {{s-end}}
{{Philadelphia Phillies managers}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Varsho, Gary}} Category:1961 births Category:Living people Category:Baseball players from Wisconsin Category:Buffalo Bisons (minor league) players Category:Chicago Cubs players Category:Cincinnati Reds players Category:Indianapolis Indians players Category:Iowa Cubs players Category:Los Angeles Angels scouts Category:Major League Baseball bench coaches Category:Major League Baseball outfielders Category:Major League Baseball right fielders Category:Midland Cubs players Category:People from Marshfield, Wisconsin Category:Philadelphia Phillies managers Category:Philadelphia Phillies coaches Category:Philadelphia Phillies players Category:Pittsfield Cubs players Category:Pittsburgh Pirates coaches Category:Pittsburgh Pirates players Category:Pittsburgh Pirates scouts Category:Quad Cities Cubs players Category:Reading Phillies managers Category:Salinas Spurs players Category:University of Wisconsin–Oshkosh alumni Category:Wisconsin–Oshkosh Titans baseball players Category:20th-century American sportsmen