Amateur career Presley played baseball through the Dixie Youth association, leading his team to the organization's "World Series" in 1974. He graduated from
Escambia High School (EHS) in 1978. On October 8, 2010, Presley was inducted into the EHS Sports Hall of Fame during halftime of an EHS football game along with former
Dallas Cowboys Hall of Fame
running back Emmitt Smith and other EHS alumni.
Professional career The Seattle Mariners drafted Presley in the fourth round of the June MLB draft in
1979. Presley made his pro debut at the age of 17 for Seattle's Single A team, the
Bellingham Mariners. Drafted as a
shortstop, Presley converted to
third base in the minor leagues. This improved his odds, as while Presley was having his struggles in the minors with his bat, Seattle in 1982 drafted
Spike Owen in the first round of the
1982 draft and fast-tracked him to the majors. While Presley showed power, hitting more than 20 homers many times, his
batting average suffered. In 1984, as a member of the Triple-A
Salt Lake City Gulls, Presley had one of his best seasons as a pro, batting .317 with 13 home runs. This earned him a summertime call-up to the majors, essentially to take over third base, which was being held down by veteran
Larry Milbourne. Seattle had looked at
Darnell Coles for the position, but he could never stay healthy long enough. Along with shortstop Owen and power-hitting
first baseman Alvin Davis, Seattle had the makings of a strong infield. after a
steal by
Rickey Henderson In 1985, the Mariners finished in last place, but Presley provided power with 28 home runs and a .275 batting average. In 1986, he was selected to the All-Star team, but he did not see any action at third base behind
Wade Boggs and
Brook Jacoby. That season, Presley became the second player in MLB history to hit two walk-off grand slams in the same season, following
Cy Williams in 1926. In 1987, both his power numbers (24 home runs, and batting average of .247) dipped. Presley also had a career-high 107 RBIs and led the American League in assists by a third baseman. In January 1990, Seattle traded Presley to the
Atlanta Braves in exchange for pitcher
Gary Eave and minor league infielder Ken Pennington. Presley was only in Atlanta for one season and signed with the
San Diego Padres as a
free agent in 1991. He only appeared in 20 games for San Diego and then was on the move again, signing with the
Texas Rangers. Presley never played at the major league level for Texas, instead playing for their Triple-A farm club, the
Oklahoma City 89ers. While playing for Seattle, Presley set the team record for most home runs hit by a third baseman, later surpassed by
Kyle Seager. He also held the franchise record with 8
walk-off hits, since surpassed by
Mitch Haniger. ==Coaching and managing career==