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Donald James Cooper (born January 15, 1956) is an American former professional baseball pitcher who spent his career in Major League Baseball (MLB) in parts of four seasons with the Minnesota Twins (1981–1982), Toronto Blue Jays (1983) and New York Yankees (1985). He was the pitching coach for the Chicago White Sox from July 22, 2002, until the end of the 2020 season. Under his tutelage, both Mark Buehrle and Philip Humber pitched perfect games (with the former also getting a no-hitter), Lucas Giolito pitched a no-hitter, and the White Sox won the 2005 World Series. On October 12, 2020, Cooper and the White Sox parted ways after 32 seasons with the organization at various levels.
Cooper played for the Twins in 1981 and 1982, before being traded to the Toronto Blue Jays for Dave Baker on December 10, 1982. On March 13, 1984, Cooper was traded to the Yankees for outfielder Derwin McNealy.
Cooper signed with the Oakland Athletics for the 1986 season, appearing only in the minor leagues. In 44 MLB games (three starts) spread over four seasons, Cooper compiled a 1–6 record with a 5.27 ERA.
Cooper became the White Sox pitching coach in July 2002, replacing Nardi Contreras. With the departure of Ozzie Guillén on September 26, 2011, and Joey Cora on September 27, 2011, Cooper became the 38th manager of the White Sox, filling the role for the final two games of the 2011 season before yielding the position to Robin Ventura.
Cooper was one of the longest tenured pitching coaches in MLB. He told the Chicago Sun-Times in 2018, "I love being part of young people’s lives helping them achieve the dreams they’re dreaming about. That’s what I’m into.’’
Cooper, along with White Sox manager Rick Renteria, were fired on October 12, 2020, after an early playoff exit in the American League Wild Card Series against the Oakland Athletics.
Cooper and his wife have a son and two daughters. They make their home in Brentwood, Tennessee.
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