Newport Gulls Coaching Staff to Return in 2013
Published on January 29, 2013 under New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL)
Newport Gulls News Release
NEWPORT, R.I. - The entire coaching staff from the 2012 NECBL champion Newport Gulls will be back to defend their title in 2013. Manager Mike Coombs is back for his ninth season at the helm and will be assisted by hitting coach Al Leyva and pitching coach Kevin Long for the third consecutive year. The new addition to the coaching staff for the 2013 season will be Frank Holbrook, a former Gull who joins the staff as an assistant coach.
Mike Coombs, the winningest coach in NECBL history during the regular season since taking over as the Gulls as field manager in 2005, has compiled an impressive 226-107 career regular season record and owns a 31-15 career postseason record, leading the Gulls to three NECBL titles (2005, 2009 and 2012) during his tenure.
In 2012, Coombs guided the Gulls to the best record in the NECBL, going 31-10 during the regular season. The Gulls went 6-1 during the postseason, sweeping the Danbury Westerners to win their fifth Fay Vincent Sr. Cup, the most collected by any franchise in league history.
Coombs said he is excited to be at the helm once again - a position he has held for nearly a decade.
"It's always a pleasure to come back and be the manager of the Newport Gulls," said Coombs. "It's a privilege. I never take it for granted."
"We are striving for excellence," Coombs continued. "Every team that is in this league wants to win it all and I've been fortunate to be in an organization that gets great players. [General Manager] Chuck Paiva gets outstanding players, they surround me with outstanding coaches and baseball people, and it's our job as a coaching staff and as an organization to keep everyone in the right frame of mind all summer, and that leads to success."
"They way people treat me in Newport is wonderful," said Coombs. "I couldn't ask for a better second home than Newport. I love coming back for that reason. The baseball is great, the players and coaches are great. Being a part of the Newport Gulls family is something special."
Al Leyva returns for his third consecutive summer with the Gulls as the team's hitting and third base coach. Prior to coaching for Newport, Leyva racked up six years of experience in the NECBL as a manager and assistant coach with the North Adams SteepleCats, Middletown Giants and Manchester Silkworms. Leyva is currently in his fifth season as head coach at Damien High School in California.
Under Leyva's guidance, the Gulls led the NECBL in runs scored, doubles, on base percentage (.422) and ranked second in batting average (.313) and slugging percentage (.503) last season.
Kevin Long is likewise back for his third season as the Gulls pitching coach. Long's pitchers have recorded the best team ERA in the NECBL in each of the last two seasons (2.59 in 2011 and 3.96 in 2012).
"I've had these two assistant coaches [Long and Leyva] for the past two summers and they really go the extra mile for these kids," said Coombs. "I fully trust what Al is doing with our hitters and what Kevin is doing with our pitchers."
The new addition to the Gulls coaching staff is Frank Holbrook, who joins the club as a volunteer assistant coach. Holbrook, Newport's opening day starter last season, went 3-0 with a 5.82 ERA in 10 appearances (one start). Holbrook, who resides in nearby Middletown, R.I., is currently a senior at Wheaton College.
The Gulls, which moved to Newport's historic Cardines Field in 2001 after two seasons as the Rhode Island Gulls in Cranston, have since become the NECBL's most successful franchise, winning five championships in New England Collegiate Baseball League play ('01, '02, '05, '09 and '12). In addition to their accomplishments on the field, the Newport Gulls led the NECBL in attendance by a wide margin in 2012, averaging 2,126 fans per game.
Following the 2012 season, the Newport Gulls were ranked No. 1 nationally by Perfect Game USA in its final rankings of summer collegiate baseball teams.
New England Collegiate Baseball League Stories from January 29, 2013
- Newport Gulls Coaching Staff to Return in 2013 - Newport Gulls
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