General Managers: 2011

Wednesday, July 20, 2011

General Managers Photos - Current

DANIELLE DRONET Owner, President - Newark Bears - Newark, New Jersey

JORG BASSIACOS - Executive Vice President and General Manager - Worcester Tornadoes - Worcester, Mass.- Canadian/American League.

STEVE DESALVO, General Manager - Mississippi Braves - Pearl, Mississippi - Southern League - Affiliate Atlanta, Braves

STEVE DESALVO, General Manager -Mississippi Braves - Pearl, Mississisppi and Norm Coleman. Affiliate Atlanta Braves.

TODD RAHR, President/General Manager - Boise Hawks - Boise, Idaho. North West League. - Affiliate Chicago White Sox since 2001.

PAUL BARBEAU, President and General Manager - Great Lakes Loons - Midland, Michigan. Affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2007. They are in the Midwest League.

PAT DAY, General Manager - Lansing Lugnut - Lansing, Michigan -Midwest - Affiliate - Toronto Blue Jays since 2005

ZACH BUREK, General Manager- Lakeland Flying Tigers - Lakeland, Florida. - Florida State League - Affiliate Detroit Tigers since 1967.

BEN JONES, General Manager - Kinston Indians - Kinston, North Carolina - Carolina League. Affiliate of the Cleveland Indians since 1987.

CHUCK BROCKETT, General Manager Burlington Bees - Burlington, Iowa - Midwest League. - Affiliate Kansas City Royals since 2001.

DAVE ECHOLS, General Manager - Charleston RiverDogs - Charleston, South Carolina - Southern Atlantic League. - Affiliate New York Yankees since 2005.

CHRIS BITTERS, General Manager - DelMarva Shorebirds - Salisbury, Maryland - Affiliate Baltimore Orioles since 1997.

MONTY HOPPEL, Midland RockHounds General Manager has been named Baseball America's2010 Executive of the Year. RockHounds - Midland, Texas - Affiliate Oakland Athletics since 1999.

GEOFF BROWN, General Manager - Lakewood BlueClaws - Lakewood, New Jersey - Affiliate Philadelphia Phillies

TED TORNOW, General Manager -Clinton Lumber Kings - Clinton, Iowa Midwest League 2010 Division Championa - Affiliat Seattle Mariners

MARK SEAMAN, General Manager - Hickory Crawdads - Hickory, North Carolina - South Atlantic League - Affiliate Texas Rangers

GREG COLEMAN, President - Erie SeaWolves - Erie, Pennsylvania. Affiliate Detroit Tigers since 2001 - EASTERN LEAGUE

MIKE MELEGA, General Manager- Tulsa Drillers - Tulsa, Oklahoma. They have been an Affiliate of the Colorado Rockies since 2003

BRIAN SHALLCROSS General Manager - Bowie Bay Sox - Bowie, Maryland. They have been an Affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates since 1999.They are in the Eastern League.

JIM HOLLAND, General Manager Princeton Rays - Princeton, W. Virginia. Affiliate of the Tanpa Bay Rays since 1997.

DAVE ROSENFIELD, General Manager - Norfolk Tides - Norfolk, Virginia. They have been an Affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles since 2007.

PETE LAVEN, General Manager - Arkansas Travelers- Little Rock, ARK --Affiliate Los Angeles Angels

KURT LANDES, General Manager - Lehigh Valley IronPigs - Allentown, PA. T AAA Affiliate - Philadelphia Phillies.

CAL BURLESON, Vice President & General Manager of the Indianapolis Indians located in Indianapolis, Indiana. They are an Affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates. This is Cal's 37th year with the Indians.

BILL PAPIERNIAK is the General Manager of the Richmond Squirrels located in Richmond, Virginia. They have been an Affiliate
of the San Francisco Giants since 2003.

RANDY WHITAKER is the General Manager for the Harrisburg Senators located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in the Eastern League. They have been an Affiliate of the Washington Nationals since 2005.

JOSH OLERUD GM - Potomac Nationals - Woodbridge, Virginia
Carolina League - Affiliate Washington Nationals since 2005

ANDY SHEA General Manager - Lexington Legends - Lexington, Kentucky. - South Atlantic League - Affiliate of the Houston Astros since 2001

MIKE NUTTER President/GM Fort Wayne TinCaps - Fort Wayne, Indiana -Affiliate San Diego Padres since 1999

BEN JONES General Manager - Kinston Indians - Kinston, North Carolina - Carolina League. - Affiliate Cleveland Indians since 1987.

MIKE BIRLING - General Manager - Durham Bulls - Durham, North Carolina - International League - Affiliate Tampa Bay Rays since 1998.

STEVE GLINER, - Vice President/General Manager - Fort Myers Miracle - Fort Myers, Florida. - Florida State League - Affiliate Minnesota Twins since 1993.

Thursday, July 7, 2011

PBEO.com

PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

Professional Baseball Employment
Opportunities (PBEO®) is the official
employment service of Minor League
Baseball,™ the governing body of The
Minor Leagues.™
The PBEO program was established in
1994 to continue Minor League Baseball’s
effort to provide a year-round placement
service for their member clubs and to
Major League Baseball. When a member
club needs an employee, the club will
contact PBEO via PBEO.com to post a
position or perform a search of all qualified
registrants in the databank.
If you are looking for a job in baseball,
PBEO is the right place! From internships
on up, you can find it on PBEO.com.

FOR MORE INFORMATION OR TO REGISTER, PLEASE VISIT
PBEO.com

Monday, April 18, 2011

Minor League Ballparks

PARKVIEW FIELD Fort Wayne TinCaps - Fort Wayne, Indiana

WHITAKER BANK PARK Lexington Legends - Lexington, Kentucky

HISTORIC GRAINGER STADIUM Kinston Indians - Kinston, North Carolina

HAMMOND STADIUM Fort MyersMiracle - Fort Myers, Florida

Hammond Stadium and the Lee County Sports Complex are recognized as one of Baseball America's Top 5 Spring Training facilities, home of the Minnesota Twins. The complex features:

• Picturesque confines featuring a Churchill Downs appeal on the outer facade
• Affordable concessions with an expanded menu - TV monitors at each stand so you never have to miss any action
• Nightly suite rentals

Ballpark Fun Spots
• Beer Garden - A gathering spot before, during and after the game. Located on the left-field side concourse.
• Fountain Plaza - A picturesque setting by the beautiful waterfall fountain near the stadium entrance.

ONEOK FIELD Tulsa Drillers - Tulsa, Oklahoma

ONEOK Field is located in the historic Greenwood District of downtown Tulsa. Built over a 16 month period, ONEOK Field is the newest addition to the downtown landscape. The art deco style architecture of the ballpark pays tribute to Tulsa's professional baseball past, the Greenwood District and the City of Tulsa. ONEOK Field offically opened on April 8, 2010 and saw the Corpus Christi Hooks defeat the Tulsa Drillers 7-0.

HARBOR PARK Norfolk Tides - Norfolk, Virginia

Harbor Park, with its outstanding view and sound design, is one of the finest baseball facilities in existence. The ballpark is located in downtown Norfolk on the Elizabeth River, and was opened in 1993. The Tides christened their new home on April 14th of that year with a 2-0 victory over the Ottawa Lynx.

THE DIAMOND - Richmond Flying Squirrels - Richmond, Virginia

The Diamond serves as the home venue for the Squirrels as they represent the San Francisco Giants in the Eastern League.
Prior to the 2010 season, The Flying Squirrels committed more than two million dollars to renovate The Diamond. These included 3164 state-of-the-art fold down seats.and new scoreboard.

JACKSON FIELD at THOMAS COOLEY LAW SCHOOL STADIUM - Lansing Lugnuts - Lansing, Michigan. Is ocated in downtown Lansing. Previously known as Oldsmobile Park after its largest sponsor, Oldsmobile, the General Motors automobile line that was discontinued in 2004.

COCA-COLA PARK - Lehigh Valley IronPigs - Allentown, Penn.

Named Ballpark Digest’s “Ballpark of the Year” in 2008, Coca-Cola Park continues to be received with an unmatched level of excitement and fanfare in the Lehigh Valley and is surely one of the best new minor-league ballparks built in recent years.

The park features the largest scoreboard in the minor leagues; has a Coca-Cola bottle that shoots fireworks after the National Anthem or an IronPigs home run.

METRO BANK PARK - Recently renovated home of the Harrisburg Senators - Harrisburg, PA

. Metro Bank Park features new seating areas complete with chair-back seats. Twenty-one corporate suites, featuring their own private seating areas and three dugout suites next to the visitors dugout. Metro Bank Park also hosts an all-new Kids Zone, more concession areas with more food options, and more restrooms throughout the stadium and a state-of-the-art video system.

Friday, March 25, 2011

Read complete interviews with GM's Published in Baseball Digest

Copy and past link in browser

http://www.baseballdigest.com/2011/03/21/norm-colemans-gm-conversations-cal-burleson/

Cal Burleson - Indianapolis Indians - Indianapolis, Indiana

When link opens, click my byline to read all interviews with General Managers

http://www.baseballdigest.com/2011/04.17/Norm Coleman’s GM Conversations: Randy Whitaker

Randy Whitaker is the General Manager for the Harrisburg Senators located in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania in the Eastern League. They have been an affiliate of the Washington Nationals since 2005.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Comments from GM's about this blog.

Cal Burleson, GM - Indianapolis Indians
Norm-thank you so much for the opportunity to be interviewed by Baseball Digest. You did a very thorough job with the piece. Truly one of the highlights of my baseball career. Best regards, Cal Burleson

Mike Nutter, President - Fort Wayne TinCaps
"By the way, I just went to your site-very nice".

Bill Papierniak, General Manager - Richmond Flying Squirrels
"Your GM blog is great – I’m sure that many people are interested in knowing a little about the people that are coming up with promotions both locally and throughout the country. I enjoyed reading it".

Thursday, March 17, 2011

What advice would you give a young person considering a career in baseball?

Watch for my email book - How to get a job in baseball.
email me: normcoleman36@hotmail.com

MIKE BIRLING, GM - Durham Bulls - Durham, No. Carolina

You must be a passionate, determined, and competitive person to succeed in this business. Also, you must get practical experience as early as you can. Nothing helps more than being a part of it on some level and continuing to learn. People skills and selling skills will be what takes you to high levels or what keeps you from breaking into sports.

PAUL BARBEAU, GM - Great Lakes Loons - Midland, Michigan

For any young man or woman considering a career in baseball, I would recommend they accept an internship or seasonal position first to learn about the opportunities available and to determine if they really enjoy working in the sport. I would also suggest working in sales to deliver a measurable impact to the team.
Finally, try to work for an organization with a history of developing their employees for future growth.

ANDY SHEA, GM - Lexington Legends - Lexington, Kentucky

Whether or not it is job in MLB or MiLB, I would say any or all experience one gets in sales is beneficial. That is the name of almost everything we do and almost every position we have on our staff.

As an intern or any other position, get a feel for what it feels like to work and be on your feet for seventy plus hours per week. Many people think since they love baseball, they will be good at working in baseball. What they do not realize is the tremendous hours we work and that most of that time is on our feet waling around the ballpark.

TODD RAHR: GM - Boise Hawks - Boise, Idaho

If you want to be rich in terms of dollars, this isn't the industry for you. If you want to be rich in terms of life experience, you can't beat a life in sports. Especially on the minor league level where you are heavily involved in the day-to-day operations and aren't just a "cog in the wheel".

DAVE ECHOLS GM - Charleston RiverDogs - Charleston, South Carolina

Get as much experience volunteering, interning if possible and get exposed to all facets of the game to see if this is truly what you want to do for a career; make sure you learn how to sell, do not lose sight of having fun.

MIKE MELEGA, GM - Tulsa Drillers - Tulsa, Oklahoma

Get as much experience as you can in any job that allows you to work with customer service and or sales. The ability to work with different kinds of people is essential in the business as is the ability to sell tickets and sponsorships.

If I had to do it over again, I would have probably taken a spring semester off in college to do an internship with a club prior to graduation and lined myself up for a December graduation so I could start with a team full time in January.

JIM HOLLAND, GM - Princeton Rays - Princeton, New Jersey

Use any college electives they may have toward classes that are communications based. I would push diversity in college course content and one thing that people often overlook that would help a minor league team, would be someone that could help build sales while at the same time being an accomplished computer graphics artist of which there is a short supply

MIKE NUTTER, President and GM Fort Wayne TinCaps - Fort Wayne, Indiana

You can succeed in the industry with a great work ethic and passion for your job and career. I would say to embrace sales as sales are a part of almost everyone’s responsibility that we have on staff. Get going in your career early. There is a lot of demand to work in sports so make sure that you are working for a team if you have the opportunity. There are over 180 minor league teams in the US and certainly hundreds of other opportunities out there. Gain as much experience as you can prior to graduation through internships, volunteering, etc

KURT LANDES, GM - Lehigh Valley IronPigs - Allentown, Pennsylvania

Male or female, I would encourage them to do a number of internships to make sure they want to be involved in the game. It is a lot of hard work and hours away from family and friends; this is not a job for everyone. But, the relationships with fans, sponsors, staff and colleagues are what makes it so enjoyable

CAL BURLESON, GM - Indianapolis Indians - Indianapolis, Indiana

My advice would be to attend a university that has a sports administration program and take advantage of the opportunity to get a good education combined with as much practical experience as you can.

BILL PAPIERNIAK, GM - Richmond Squirrels - Richmond, W. Virginia

I would tell them to get an internship with a team while in college (if possible) and make sure that the internship allows real learning opportunities and not just “busy work”. Call or email as many teams as it takes (go to the Winter Meetings as well) to get your foot in the door with an internship. Once you have an internship – work hard and demonstrate that you will do whatever it takes to be a successful team player.

RANDY WHITAKER, GM - Harrisburg Senators - Harrisburg, PA

Make sure you know what you are getting into before you commit to it. I’ve never worked so hard at something in my life. It’s worth it, but it is a very difficult job. Or as Todd "Parney" Parnell (ex GM, Richmond Squirrels) says: “It’s not a job, it’s a lifestyle.”

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Gen. Mgrs. comments on their favorite ballparks to watch a game.

Ben Jones - GM - Kinston Indians - Kinston, North Carolina

Durham Bulls Athletic Park. It does not get any better for me that seeing a game in Durham, North Carolina. I grew up in Raleigh, NC and was always a huge fan of the Bulls growing up. I love what the city has going on around the park and once inside, the overall fan experience is great.

Mike Nutter - President - Fort Wayne TinCaps - Fort Wayne, Indiana

Wrigley Field. I remember the first time going there when I worked for the Kane County Cougars. My dad and I attended together and I still remember walking out into the seating bowl for the first time and getting chills. It is an awesome scene to watch a game.

Andy Shea GM- Lexington Legends - Lexington, Kentucky

Citizens Bank Park. I love the atmosphere, love the center field open/concessions area with a ton of really popular Philly foods, and you just can’t beat Philly fans.

Cal Burleson GM , - Indianapolis Indians - Indianapolis, Indiana

PNC Park in Pittsburg: I have seen a lot of games there, it is a great place to watch a game. I also saw the Pirates play in Forbes Field and Three Rivers Stadium.

Bill Papierniak, GM Richond Squirrels – Richmond, Virginia

Wrigley Field. it was absolutely awe inspiring from Wrigleyville to the ivy walls to the crowd (it didn’t hurt that I had the chance to walk out onto the field ad take in the whole atmosphere before the game)

I have enjoyed many MiL stadiums from Durham Bulls, Raleigh, NC (Athletic Park) to Lakewood Blue Crabs, Lakewood, NJ (First Energy Park) to Myrtle Beach Pelicans, Myrtle Beach, SC (BB&T Coastal Federal Field) to Lehigh Valley IronPigs, Allentown, PA (Gwinnett Stadium) etc. They all had something special about them.

Randy Whitaker, GM Harrisburg Senators- Harrisburg, PA

I really like the antiques. The nostalgic feel of a game in an old stadium is really special. Municipal Stadium in Hagerstown, Maryland, home of the Hagerstown Suns is a simple ballpark, but gives you that sense that you are watching a game from the fifties.

The same could be said for Bowman Field, home of the Williamsport Crosscutters in Williamsport, PA. Old but well preserved and quaint.

Of the newer parks, other than my own, I enjoyed Coca-Cola Park, home of the Lehigh Valley IronPigs in Allentown, PA and Richmond County Bank Ballpark, home of the Staten Island Yankees, Staten Island, NY- (for the view).

Monday, March 7, 2011

General Managers Photos

JOSH OLERUD GM - Potomac Nationals - Woodbridge, Virginia
Carolina League - Affiliate Washington Nationals since 2005

MIKE TORREZ, GM - Newark Bears - Newark, New Jersy - Atlantic League
Mike, won 2 games for the World Series Champions New York Yankees in 1977. He also pitched for the Red Sox, Orioles, Athletics, Cardinals, Expos and Mets in an 18 year career from 1967 - 84.

NEWARK BEARS BRAINTRUST Mike Torrez, GM, Ron Karkovice, VP, player development, Tom E. Cetner, Owner, CEO, Tim Raines, Mgr and Jim Leyritz. pitching coach.