John Shoemaker (born August 18, 1956) is a former minor league baseball player who is currently manager of the
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes.
Shoemaker attended
Waverly High School and the
University of Miami before he was drafted in the 35th round of the
1977 MLB Draft by the
Los Angeles Dodgers. He was also drafted in the 6th round by the
Chicago Bulls in the
1978 NBA draft. He played in the Dodgers minor league system, primarily as a second baseman, from 1977 to 1980, making it all the way up to AAA before retiring to become a coach after the 1981 season. Has been part of the Dodgers organization since 1977.[1][2] The Dodgers named him "Captain of Player Development" in 2015 as recognition of his "continual demonstration of superior teammate behavior" according to the Dodgers head of player development,
Gabe Kapler.[3] At the end of the 2015 season, he was awarded with the
Mike Coolbaugh Award presented by
Minor League Baseball to the person "who has shown outstanding baseball work ethic, knowledge of the game and skill in mentoring young players on the field."[4][5] He was also named to the
Southern League Hall of Fame in 2016.[6]