(13th overall) of the 1979 Major League Baseball Draft. A month earlier at the NFL draft in early May, he was taken in the fifth round (132nd overall) by the Denver Broncos, but opted for a career in baseball. He signed with the Tigers in June 1979 and received a $150,000 signing bonus. Leach spent the 1979 season with the Tigers' Class A farm club in Lakeland, Florida; he appeared in 48 games and compiled a .304 batting average and .402 on-base percentage and had 23 RBIs in 168 at bats. In 1980, Leach was promoted to the Tigers' Class AAA team in Evansville, Indiana, where he had a .272 batting average and .386 on-base percentage with 58 RBIs in 430 at bats. After batting .386 for Evansville during April 1981, Leach was promoted to the Tigers' roster, making his major league debut in late April 1981. He appeared in 54 games and compiled a disappointing .193 batting average in 83 at bats. Leach remained with the Tigers for two more seasons, principally in a backup role with batting averages of .239 in 1982 and .248 in 1983; the Tigers released him on March 24, 1984, and was signed by the Toronto Blue Jays less than two weeks later. Leach spent April 1984 and most of the 1985 season with the Triple-A Syracuse Chiefs of the International League. He was promoted to Toronto and remained on their roster through 1988; his best season was 1986, with a .309 batting average in 110 games. Leach concluded his major league career with the Texas Rangers in 1989 and the San Francisco Giants in 1990. During a road trip with Texas in May 1989 to New York, Leach disappeared. The Rangers filed a missing persons report, and Leach reappeared a day later. After a positive drug test in late July 1990 at age 33, Leach was placed on the 60-day disqualified list in August and agreed to enter drug rehabilitation. In March 1991, the Giants asked waivers on Leach for the purpose of giving him an unconditional release. Later years In 2008, Leach was elected to the Michigan Sports Hall of Fame. See also Michigan Wolverines football statistical leaders References External links 1957 births Living people American expatriate baseball players in Canada American football quarterbacks Baseball players from Ann Arbor, Michigan Baseball players from Flint, Michigan Baseball players suspended for drug offenses Detroit