DICKINSON, ND- 2025 Big Sticks Field Manager, Kelby Coburn, has completed his search for assistant coaches for the upcoming season.

Matt Comnos- Cal State Bakersfield

Comnos is currently the Director of Baseball Operations for the Roadrunners of CSUB. Matt joins the Big Sticks staff in his 1st year, with a strong background in collegiate and junior college baseball. A standout pitcher at CSUB, Matt excelled on the mound during his senior season in 2023, leading the team in several key pitching categories, which led to him being the CSUB Male Athlete of the year and earned an All-Big West Honorable Mention recognition.

Before his time at CSUB, Matt played at Saddleback College, earning himself All-Orange Empire Conference honors. He also had a successful high school career at Capistrano Valley High School, helping lead the team to the 2018 Southern Section Division I Championship. With a passion for developing pitchers and sharing his knowledge of the game, Matt is dedicated to helping players refine their skills, improve their mental approach, and achieve their goals both on and off the field.

“Matt will be a great addition to our coaching staff,” stated Coburn. “He has played at a high level and is now coaching at the D1 level so I am excited for him to get to Dickinson and help our players continue to better themselves in the game of baseball.”

Daniel Rivera- Dickinson State University

Rivera is in his second year as the pitching coach for the Blue Hawks. Dan played two seasons for the Big Sticks and has coached in the Badlands for the last two seasons.

Prior to his time in Dickinson he attended Eastern Nazarene College where he obtained a degree in Business Marketing. He also attended Concordia Nebraska where he received his MBA.

During his playing career, he helped lead the lions to their first postseason appearance in over a decade while serving as the closer where he had a 3.13 ERA and had 39 strikeouts in 23 innings. During his time with the bulldogs he also pitched out of the bullpen for 2 seasons where they won a conference title and made 2 regional appearances. He also threw the 4th no hitter in Bulldogs history when he combined for a no-hitter in a start. Over the 2 years at Concordia, he pitched in 45 innings for the bulldogs and had 85 strikeouts. During his final season he lead the country in K/9 (18.3) where he had 43 strikeouts in 20.2 innings.

“Dan has played and coached for the Big Sticks so he will bring a lot of knowledge of how this organization works,” stated Coburn. “He has been through the summer grind so he knows how to keep the pitchers healthy and is very knowledgeable when it comes to pitching.”

The Big Sticks open the 2025 season at home on May 26th at 6:35pm against the Willmar Stingers. For advertising partnership opportunities or ticket information, please visit www.badlandsbigsticks.com. “Meet the Sticks” will be held at DCB&T Ballpark on Sunday, May 25th at 6:35pm.