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Published On: January 4th, 2017

 

Former coach/manager Matt Passauer will not return for his fourth season with the team 

Willmar, Minn. – The Willmar Stingers have announced that 2016 field manager Matt Passauer will not return for the 2017 season with the team. Passauer, who is currently the Head Coach at East Georgia State College, has had increased responsibilities with his current position. He took over the Bobcats organization just over a year ago, and is now unable to return to Willmar. Passauer has notified the team that he needs to spend more time on recruiting and administrative duties at East Georgia State. 

Passauer began his time with the Stingers as the team’s pitching coach under manager Drew Saberhagen in 2014 and stayed in the same role during the 2015 campaign. As the pitching coach, Passauer oversaw one of the best staffs in the Northwoods League each season.

In 2014, the Stingers pitchers finished in the top-5 in the league in earned run average (3.81), earned runs (270) and batting average against (.250). The 2015 season saw even better numbers by the pitching staff, finishing second in the league in ERA (3.26), earned runs (227) and led the league in batting average against (.232).

Passauer took over the field managing duties for the 2016 season and the Stingers continued its success with his leadership at the helm. Passauer led the Stingers to 41 overall wins and a third consecutive playoff appearance, the team’s fourth post-season appearance in its seven-year history. Under his guidance, the team led the league in batting average (.292) and runs scored (462).

“I can’t begin to thank the Stingers players, front office, and especially the fans, for their outstanding support over the past three years,” Passauer said. “My time spent in Willmar will always be one of my favorite memories and be used as a building block for me during my coaching career.”

Going forward, the Stingers will look to fill the field manager vacancy in the upcoming weeks. The organization plans to have a manager hired by mid-February along with assistant coaches. In the meantime, the organization will continue to build the 30-man roster for the 2017 season.

“Matt is a tremendous guy and will always be woven into the fabric of the organization,” Co-owner Ryan Voz said. “It would have been nice to have him back, but now we seek candidates for our 8th season of Northwoods League baseball.”

If you would like more information on tickets for the 2017 season, or more information regarding this press release, please contact the Willmar Stingers front office at 320-222-2010 or visit www.willmarstingers.com.

The 2017 season of Stingers Baseball is presented by Marcus Construction. “From start to finish we’ll make your job easier and build a facility you will be proud of.”

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The Willmar Stingers are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 23-year-old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, more than 160 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM).  All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.willmarstingers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Stingers as your favorite team.