Pippins Boast All-Local Coaching Staff for 2016
February 20, 2016 - West Coast League (WCL)
Yakima Valley Pippins News Release
YAKIMA, Wash. - Complementing the team's all-locally raised front-office staff, the Yakima Valley Pippins' coaching staff will also be comprised of all Valley residents in 2016.
Jaime Cortes, a Toppenish High School graduate who played college baseball at Yakima Valley Community College and Lewis-Clark State College and is currently the director of advising at Heritage University in Toppenish, will join the team as an assistant coach, General Manager Jeff Garretson said.
Cortes, who rounds out manager Marcus McKimmy's four-member staff, replaces Jacob White, who accepted an assistant coaching job at Emporia State last year. Also returning is pitching coach Bob Wells for his third stint with the team, and Eric Hull, who joined the team prior to the 2015 season.
"Every successful coach I know, at any level, has always told me that you're only as good as your assistant coaches," McKimmy said. "We've had some very good players in our short history here, even the league MVP, but you don't have to look very far to see that we have the best collection of assistant coaches and baseball minds in the West Coast League on our staff. The addition of Jaime just shows that the organization is constantly trying to be great, not just good, in all facets of our baseball operations."
After graduating from Top-Hi in 1998, Cortes played one summer for the Yakima Beetles, then two years at YVCC under coach Bob Garretson Jr. He walked on at LCSC in 2002 and played for coach Ed Cheff, and started his coaching career there as a student assistant from 2004 to 2005. His coaching career also includes stints with the Beetles' Junior team, the Bellevue Baseball Club's 13-U select team, Eisenhower High School, Toppenish High and the Central Washington Baseball Club.
Cortes earned his master's of education in organizational leadership from Heritage in 2014. He also works part time as a personal trainer. He lives in Zillah with his wife, Cristal, and 2-year-old daughter, Aria.
"The move to an all-local coaching staff is something I'm very excited about," McKimmy said. "If we could field a championship roster that was all from Yakima, we would. This is the next best thing. The hiring of Coach Cortes to the organization will pay immediate dividends for our players. He has incredible energy, has great baseball IQ, and will be really good with our catchers."
Having all-local front office and field staffs is something Garretson also is proud of.
"We're still very much in growth mode in just our third season, and having a front office and coaching staff that lives here year-round is very important for our long-term success," Garretson said. "We're highly visible during our summer season, of course, but we spend more time working with and connecting with the people and businesses in the Valley when we're not in season. This is just another step that helps us establish deeper ties to the community."
Having an all-local front office, which includes ticket sales and service manager Andy Jones and retail manager Ashley Steffens in addition to Garretson and McKimmy, has allowed the Pippins to implement new practices such as Tickets for Kids, a ticket-donation program in which Valley businesses can purchase hot dog/drink combination tickets that will be matched by an equal number of tickets from the Pippins and distributed through local agencies that work with underprivileged children in the area.
"It's an avenue for businesses and the Pippins to reach out and provide kids who may not be able, for whatever reason, to experience the family-friendly and fun atmosphere that we try to build at the stadium," Garretson said. "We want everyone to have the opportunity to experience Pippins baseball."
The Pippins open the 2016 season at Wenatchee on June 3. Yakima Valley's home opener is slated for Monday, June 6, at 7:05 p.m. against 2015 West Coast League champion Bend, Ore. Season tickets and ticket mini plans are available for purchase at Hunky Shaw's Team Shop, 12 S. Second St. in the historic Larson Building in downtown Yakima. Ticket packages also can be purchased by calling 509-575-4487 or online at pippinsbaseball.com.
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West Coast League Stories from February 20, 2016
- Pippins Boast All-Local Coaching Staff for 2016 - Yakima Valley Pippins
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