Hoya Baseball 2020

[DanMcQ]

[Nevada Hoya]

Appropriate to have another Thompson in the athletic department.

[RusskyHoya]

Worth calling out, especially on this week of all weeks: www.baseballamerica.com/stories/diversity-in-the-dugout-is-still-a-rarity-in-college-baseball/

In addition to a scarcity of minority coaches in college baseball, there typically aren’t many in youth and high school baseball either. Eastern Kentucky coach Edwin Thompson didn’t have a black baseball coach until he got to Howard, an HBCU.

...

It will take an even longer time to convert those minority players into a more diverse coaching pool. Solving the underlying problem is the only way to get true long-term gains, but there are some things that can be done in the short term. Eastern Kentucky coach Edwin Thompson would like to see baseball adopt a mentorship program like the one that exists in the American Football Coaches Association and the first-year mentorship program the ABCA already provides. Young coaches looking to break into the field would be paired with experienced coaches to help them through challenges in their career.

Thompson is also starting to provide a more active mentorship at Eastern Kentucky. He looks for minor leaguers who are finishing their playing careers and either don’t know what they want to do next or want to get into coaching. He brings them in for a year as a student assistant—like many schools do with their former players—and introduces them to the business. Thompson believes the program could be expanded and MLB teams could partner with schools to direct their former minor leaguers into the system.

“I’ve got a bunch of former minor leaguers who want to come to school and figure out how to be a coach,” he said. “If it doesn’t work out, maybe they go back in their community and be a high school coach or a travel coach. Just increase the numbers in coaching.”

[RusskyHoya]

[RusskyHoya]

[RusskyHoya]

Recruiting continues apace...