THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Tuesday, July 4, 1995 TAG: 9507040521
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C6 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Short : 37 lines
Virginia Beach's Trey McCoy will join the Norfolk Tides, just their third local player since 1972, when they return from a two-game trip to Charlotte on Wednesday.
McCoy, 28, a righthanded power hitter out of First Colonial High School and Virginia Tech, was signed by the Mets for the Tides from the Laredo club in the Mexican League. McCoy, released earlier this season by the Chicago White Sox, had played six games with Laredo, hitting .350 with one home run.
McCoy, a first baseman, is a favorite player of Tides manager Toby Harrah, who worked with McCoy the past two seasons as the Texas Rangers' minor league hitting instructor.
McCoy had one of his finest seasons last year, a .306 average, 15 home runs and 67 RBIs, for Triple-A Oklahoma City and gave Harrah's tutelage much of the credit.
The Rangers' ninth-round draft choice in 1988, McCoy spent his career in that organization until he was traded last April to Chicago after playing in nine games for Oklahoma City.
But McCoy mysteriously was released before playing even one game for Triple-A Nashville.
He will be the first local player with the Tides since Virginia Beach's D.J. Dozier, who played in 1991 and 1992. The first area player was Billy Scripture, who played from 1970 to 1972.
McCoy, who has never played in the major leagues, is a career .294 hitter with 106 minor league home runs. by CNB