Photo: Greg Hernandez from California, CA, USA / CC BY 2.0 (source: Wikimedia Commons)
My Take
Billy Bean's story sits with me for reasons that go beyond the box score. Born in Santa Ana in 1964 and a Loyola Marymount product, he played outfield for the Tigers, Dodgers and Padres, and notably spent 1992 with the Kintetsu Buffaloes in Japan, which is the detail that always catches my eye. A real well-traveled career. He passed away in August 2024, which gives looking back at him a more reflective weight. I tend to think of him as someone who experienced baseball on two continents, and that Nippon Professional Baseball chapter makes his journey feel bigger than the stats alone.
Overview
William Daro Bean (May 11, 1964 – August 6, 2024) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as an outfielder for the Detroit Tigers (1987–1989), Los Angeles Dodgers (1989), and San Diego Padres (1993–1995), as well as the Kintetsu Buffaloes of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) in 1992.
Summary adapted from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
1. Profile
- Name (English)
- Billy Bean
- Name (Japanese)
- ビリー・ビーン (1964年生の外野手)
- Reading
- びりー・びーん (1964年生の外野手)
- Born
- May 11, 1964 – August 4, 2024
- Zodiac / Chinese zodiac
- Taurus / Dragon
- Origin
- Santa Ana, California, United States
- Blood type
- Private
- Height
- 184 cm
- Agency
- Private
- Occupation
- baseball player
2. Background
- Elementary school
- Private
- Junior high
- Private
- High school
- Santa Ana High School
- University
- Loyola Marymount University
3. Relationships
- Spouse
- Private
- Children
- Private
- Parents
- Private
- Siblings
- Private
4. Personality
Motto
Private
6. Links
Baseball player — see all → · More people from United States →
7. About this entry
Tags
- Last updated
- 2026-06-02
Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public items are marked "Private / Unknown". English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.