After three seasons bouncing between the Yankees and Syracuse (International League), Whitfield was traded to San Francisco, where he played fairly regularly in the outfield from 1977 to 1980, batting between .285 and .296 each year. In 1981 he departed for Japan, and smacked 85 HR in three seasons with the Seibu Lions before returning in 1984 to log three more seasons as a reserve for the Dodgers.
