Flynt was named the 2019 NWL Coach of the Year in his first year with the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters.

The Bismarck Larks announced Will Flynt as their 2020 head coach and field manager. Flynt is a former professional baseball player who played with the Boston Red Sox, Seattle Mariners and Baltimore Orioles organizations.

His baseball career lead him all over the United States, Netherlands, Mexico, Taiwan and Japan. He later worked as a coach in the Frontier League. He recently won the NWL’s Coach of the Year award in 2019 in his first year with the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters, earning a 46–26 overall record.

“I am very much looking forward to leading the Larks this coming season,” Flynt said. “I really enjoyed my experience in the Northwoods last year and I’ve heard Bismarck is second to none in fun and excitement at the ballpark. I’m also excited about bringing in a group of players that will go out every day and compete and hopefully have the best experience in their baseball careers. Opening day can’t come soon enough.”

“It was so important for us to find the right person for this position,” said John Bollinger, Larks general manager. “We wanted someone passionate about recruiting future stars to Bismarck and developing them, while also understanding the team plays a big role in enhancing our fun, family-friendly culture of the Larks. Will is a great fit for the role and I can’t wait to work with him.”

Flynt was primarily a pitcher in his professional playing years. He played all over the world from ages 23-35 in 1991-2003. Much of that time was spent in AAA minor leagues and foreign leagues. Over all these different levels of competition, he decided 97 wins and 85 loses over 279 games and 1559 innings. He knew how to fan the batter, totaling 1404 strike outs and a 3.70 ERA. He led four leagues in four different countries in strike outs. He set a strike out record in Taiwan.

“Being a player for so long helped me understand these guys,” Flynt said. “I’ll do what I can do to get those most out of my players. It’s about them. The only thing I want to press is that they work hard.”

Flynt began his coaching career 2005 as the pitching coach for the Florence Freedom and the next year he was the pitching coach for the Windy City ThunderBolts. After his time at Windy City, Flynt returned home to help amateurs develop their skills in the Cincinnati area at the Cincinnati Baseball and Sports Academy. In 2019, he had a very successful year coaching the Wisconsin Rapid Rafters in the NWL.

Flynt has already chosen one assistant coach for the Larks – Dallas Bohle. Bohle is a former baseball coach in the Prairie League.

“I really like Dallas. He’ll be my right-hand dude,” Flynt said. “He’s a people person. He’s so excited to be doing this.”

Flynt is currently giving youth pitching lessons in Indiana and may look to do the same at some point in Bismarck. He is also planning a trip to Bismarck to meet with fans before the end of the year. More details will come soon.

The Larks’ former head coach, Sean Repay, decided to focus his coaching efforts at his new position at Division I University of Toledo where he will be the assistant pitching coach. Repay’s duties at Toledo will require him to work within the Rockets’ baseball program year-round.

 

The Bismarck Larks are a proud affiliate of the Northwoods League, the proven leader in development of elite college baseball players. The Larks mission is to use FUN to make a difference in the lives of our families, businesses, players, and communities we serve. This is accomplished with a commitment to putting fans first and providing high quality family entertainment at affordable prices. In 2019, the Larks sold out 97% of all home game tickets at Bismarck Municipal Ballpark, home of Dakota Community Bank and Trust Field. The Larks were named Northwoods Organization of the Year in 2017 and 2018.

 

The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. The 25-year old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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, over 200 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (MIA). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.