Rogues Hire New General Manager
January 7, 2015 - West Coast League (WCL)
Medford Rogues News Release
MEDFORD, OR - The Medford Rogues today announced the appointment of Ian Church to the position of General Manager of the Medford Rogues and of Harry & David Field. Church takes the reins from former GM Chuck Heeman, who left the team in December to accept a position with the City of Yuma, Arizona.
Church, 33, comes to Medford after playing baseball for and graduating from Stetson University and spending six years as a minor league player. After his playing career, Church put his focus on the overall development of baseball players, their athleticism, and their preparation to compete. He has successfully opened two indoor athletic training facilities: ProSwing of Port Chester in Westchester, NY and most recently Pro Performance Athletics in Mount Pleasant, SC. Church is married to Viktoria and they have a one-year-old son, Vladi, and the family is in the process of moving to Medford.
As a player, Church starred in 2006, belting 31 home runs for the Frontier League's Kalamazoo Kings and was named Baseball America's "Independent Player of the Year," Frontier League MVP, Frontier League All Star Game MVP, as well as winning the league's All-Star Game Home Run Derby Contest. He has also played in the Mexican Pacific League with Los Algodoneros de Guasave, spent four years with various Northern League teams and played high-A ball in the Florida State League with the St. Louis Cardinals organization.
"I'm so excited to be named the General Manager of Rogue Nation," Church said. "It has always been a dream of mine to be a part of such an outstanding organization. Gary and Chuck have done such a fantastic job building the stadium and infrastructure of the business. With the continued support of the fans and local community, I know we can grow Rogue Nation and continue to positively impact the local economy and grow together."
Gary Gelinas, President of the Rogues' ownership group, CSH International, expressed his satisfaction in bringing Church aboard.
"We are excited to bring Ian on board as GM of the Rogues and management of the stadium," Gelinas said. "Chuck has created a strong business and because of that we are able to hire someone of the quality of Ian, he comes highly recommend. He has passion, excitement, he comes from the baseball world and most of all he is a quality family man. He will bring creative ideas, help find new revenue streams, continue to make the Rogues the thing to do in the summer, while he builds to bring a title to Rogue nation! We look forward to having Ian in the market within the next few weeks, we welcome him, his wife and son to Medford."
Season tickets and other ticket plans are on sale now by calling the team at 973-2883 or e-mailing info@medfordrogues.com.
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