Dayton Dragons of Midwest League Announce 2010 Coaching Staff

DAYTON, OH —The Dayton Dragons announced their 2010 coaching staff today, as assigned by the Cincinnati Reds.
 
Manager Todd Benzinger and pitching coach Tony Fossas will return for their second seasons with the Dragons.  Former Major League All-Star outfielder Ken Griffey, Sr. will join the Dragons field staff as hitting coach.  Tyler Steele will return for his second season as athletic trainer.
 
Benzinger made his professional baseball managerial debut with the Dragons in 2009.  Despite a slow start, the Dragons improved dramatically over the course of the year and finished just one game short of qualifying for the Midwest League playoffs.  
 
Benzinger, a Cincinnati-area native who now resides in West Chester, played for the Reds from 1989-’91 and was the first baseman on the Reds 1990 World Series champions.  Benzinger recorded the final out of the series when he caught Carney Lansford’s foul pop to end game four and complete the Reds’ sweep.
 
 “I am very happy to be returning to Dayton,” said Benzinger.  “Last season was a great experience for me in my first year as a manager and I look forward to the opportunity to fully apply what I learned.  The Dayton situation is a great environment with great fans and a terrific front office staff to work with.”
 
Griffey brings legendary credentials to the Dragons dugout.  He is a member of the Reds Hall-of-Fame, three-time National League All-Star and Most Valuable Player of the 1980 Major League All-Star Game, former Major League hitting coach, and the right fielder on the Big Red Machine teams of the 1970’s that won World Series titles in 1975-76.  Griffey has served as a Special Assistant with the Reds in recent years and in this capacity has made several trips to Dayton to work with and evaluate the development of Dragons players.
 
Griffey enjoyed a 19-year Major League playing career from 1973-’91.  He played for the Reds for 12 years from 1973-’81 and then returned from 1988-’90.  He posted a career batting average of .296 and collected 2,143 hits.  
 
Griffey finished second in the National League in batting average at .336 in 1976 with a Reds club that won its second straight championship, sweeping the Phillies in the NLCS and then winning four straight games over the Yankees in the World Series.  He played in the All-Star Game in 1976, ’77, and ’80.  Griffey was a member of the Reds National League Western Division champions of 1973, ‘75’ 76’ and ’79 as well as the 1981 team that posted the best record in baseball but failed to make the playoffs in a strike year.  He hit over .300 five times with the Reds and generally hit second in the batting order between Pete Rose and Joe Morgan.
 
Griffey served as a Major League coach for the Reds from 1997-’01.  He is the father of 13-time Major League All-Star Ken Griffey, Jr., who ranks fifth on the all-time career home run list.  The two became the first-ever father and son teammates in the Major Leagues with Seattle in 1990 and connected on back-to-back home runs on September 14, 1990.
 
“We are thrilled to have Todd and Tony back with our organization and we welcome Ken to the Dragons,” said Gary Mayse, Dragons Executive Vice President/General Manager.  “Todd did a great job with us in 2009 and was a tremendous person to work with.  He was very good in the community and remains a popular name with baseball fans in the Dayton area.  We have known Ken for a number of years through his many visits to Dayton in his role with the Reds including participation in the Futures Game last spring.  We look forward to working with Ken and Tony in 2010.”
 
The 2010 season will be Fossas’ second year in Dayton.  Like Benzinger, Fossas began his professional baseball coaching career with the Dragons in 2009 and was instrumental in the development of several young pitchers.  They included Matt Fairel, who played in the Midwest League All-Star Game and was among the league leaders in several categories before being promoted to Sarasota.  Fossas enjoyed a 12-year Major League playing career that began at age 30 in 1988 with Texas.  Fossas pitched in 567 Major League games during his career.
 
The Dragons will open their 11th season in the Midwest League on April 8, 2010 against the Lansing Lugnuts at Fifth Third Field.

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