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Pacific Coast League

Albuquerque's Griffin Named 2014 PCL Sports Turf Manager of the Year

August 22, 2014 - Pacific Coast League (PCL1) News Release


ROUND ROCK, Texas - Casey Griffin, the Director of Field Operations for the Albuquerque Isotopes, has been named the Pacific Coast League's 2014 Sports Turf Manager of the Year, league president Branch Rickey announced today.

The award was voted on by the 16 field managers in the PCL and is not just based on the overall quality of the playing surface, but also includes criteria such as pregame setup, field marking, professionalism of the grounds crew, along with grading in eight other categories.

After working four years in the golf course industry, Griffin gained interest in sports turf to follow his passion for baseball. The native of Salem, Oregon, spent time on the Class-A Short Season Eugene Emeralds' grounds crew, before pursuing a Bachelor's Degree in Horticulture with an emphasis in Turf Management at Oregon State University. At OSU he tended to the athletic facilities primarily working on the baseball, softball and soccer fields. Once he completed his degree in 2008, Griffin moved to Albuquerque to join the Isotopes' staff.

The 2014 season marks his second as the Isotopes' head groundskeeper and the second-straight year that he has finished among the top-three finalists in the league for the award, having earned Presidential Commendation in 2013 for his work. That same season while under his care, Isotopes Park was named the Professional Baseball Field of the Year by the Sports Turf Mangers Association (STMA).

"We have so many extraordinary playing surfaces in the Pacific Coast League that I think many of our sports turf managers would be worthy of this award," Rickey said. "That makes Casey's achievement, in my mind, all the more special."

Following Griffin in this year's top-three finalists were Andy Beggs of the El Paso Chihuahuas at second place, and last year's winner Eric Blanton of the Reno Aces placing third.

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