Boston Red Sox Announce Coaching Staff for 2008 Portland Sea Dogs

Saturday

08Dec2007

Saturday, December 8, 2007 at 01:36PM

MLN Newswire – mlntherawfeed.com - Portland, Maine - The Boston Red Sox have announced the coaching staff for the 2008 Portland Sea Dogs. Arnie Beyeler will return to manage the Sea Dogs and will be joined by returning pitching coach Mike Cather and
new hitting coach Dave Joppie. Russ Morman who had served as
Portland's hitting coach for the past four seasons will serve as the
hitting coach at Triple-A Pawtucket in 2008. Trainer Brad Pearson will
also return. Mike Hazen, Boston's Director of Player Development, made the announcement.

The 2008 season will be Beyeler's eighth season as a minor league
manager and second with the Portland Sea Dogs. In 2007, Beyeler led the
Sea Dogs to a 71-72 record and the Sea Dogs third straight playoff
appearance. Beyeler has a lifetime managerial record of 431- 419
(.507). The 43 year-old served as the hitting coach in 2006 for the San
Diego Padres Double-A affiliate, the Mobile BayBears. In the fall of
2006 he served as a coach under former Sea Dogs manager Todd Claus with
the West Oahu CaneFires in the Hawaiian Winter Baseball League.
Previously he spent three years managing in the Texas Rangers
organization, where he led the Stockton Ports to the California League
playoffs in 2003 and 2004.

The 2008 season will mark Beyeler's fifth season in the Red Sox
organization. Prior to joining the Sea Dogs in 2007, Beyeler managed
Boston's New York-Penn League team, the Lowell Spinners, in 2000 and
2001 and skippered the South Atlantic League Augusta Green Jackets in
2002. While in the Red Sox organization he managed current Red Sox
players Manny Delcarmen, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Kevin Youkilis. Prior to
his time with the Red Sox, Beyeler spent three years coaching in the
Yankees organization including two seasons with the Eastern League
Norwich Navigators (1998, 1999). From 1992-1996, he served as an area
scout for the Detroit Tigers.

As a player, he was a middle infielder in the Tigers system from 1986 to
1991 reaching as high as Triple-A Toledo in 1991. In 584 minor league
games over six seasons, he batted .254 with 69 stolen bases. His best
season came in 1987 where he hit .285 in 127 games at Single-A
Fayetteville.

Beyeler is a graduate of Wichita State with a degree in communications.
He earned all-conference and all-region honors during his stint with the
Shockers. He also has a degree from Lamar (CO) Community College.
Beyeler resides in Ponte Verda Beach, Florida.

Mike Cather, 37, returns for his second season as the pitching coach for
the Portland Sea Dogs and third season in the Red Sox organization.
Cather spent the 2006 season as the pitching coach for the Single-A
Wilmington Blue Rocks. Previously, he was a private instructor for
youth, high school, college, and professional pitchers from 2001-2005.
Cather appeared in 75 Major League games over three seasons with the
Atlanta Braves posting a 5-6 record with a 3.42 ERA. He was originally
drafted by the Texas Rangers in the 41st round of the June 1993 amateur
draft.

Dave Joppie, 41, has spent the past two seasons as the Red Sox Class
High A hitting coach, serving as the Lancaster JetHawks hitting coach in
2007 and with the Wilmington Blue Rocks in 2006. Last season with the
JetHawks Joppie led the team to a California League best .296 team
average. The team also led the league in home runs (217) and hits
(1,081). Previously Joppie managed the Florida Marlins Single-A team in
Kane County in 2004 and 2005. In 2004 he led the Kane County Cougars to
an 83-56 record and Western Division Championship. He was selected as
the Midwest League Manager of the Year and Baseball America's Class Low
A Manager of the Year. Joppie has 13 seasons of professional baseball
coaching experience, the 2008 season will be his third in the Red Sox
organization. The Grand Rapids, Michigan native is an NCAA Division II,
III, and NAIA basketball official.

Brad Pearson will return for a second season as the trainer for the
Portland Sea Dogs and sixth in the Red Sox organization. In 2006,
Pearson served as the trainer of the Single-A Wilmington Blue Rocks.
Previously, he held the same role with the Single-A Greenville Bombers
in 2005 and the Single-A Augusta Green Jackets in 2004. Pearson gained
athletic training experience as an intern for the Red Sox Fort Myers
Rookie League team in 2001. Pearson has also served as the Head
Baseball Athletic Trainer at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst
(2002-2003) and at Holy Cross College in Worcester (2000-2002). The
Ludlow, Vermont native attended Springfield College and earned a degree
in Athletic Training in 2000.