George Horton on National Team
Oregon baseball head coach George Horton is now on the 2012 Collegiate National Team’s coaching staff, and it is a well-deserved honor for the Ducks skipper who has coached the team for three seasons. The former Cal State Fullerton manager will be the assistant coach for the national team, and new Tennessee coach Dave Serrano is entrenched in the manager’s spot.
It’s a high honor for Horton, but it is also one that the former 2004 College World Series champion earned. In just three seasons, 15 players from his team have been drafted in the MLB, and 14 players have been named to the all-conference team.
“We have long admired George’s work at Cal State Fullerton and Oregon, and we are excited to name him to a Collegiate National Team coaching staff,” said Eric Campbell, USA Baseball’s general manager of National Teams. “George’s energy and leadership will be a welcome addition to Dave Serrano’s staff.”
Serrano is certainly lucky to have a guy who once coached stars Joe Magrane, Dan Plesac, Roger Clemens, and Barry Bonds in various summer teams after he graduated from Cal State. George Horton helped the team make it to the CWS for the first time in school history in 1975, and he was on the team in the 1975 and ’76 seasons. During those two years, Horton was an All-PCAA selection.
The Oregon Ducks had a rough season when they were first reinstated, and Horton’s club went 14-42. However, he orchestrated a drastic turnaround in 2010, and the team went 40-24. Horton is a two-time National Coach of the Year who once produced 14 draft picks in the 2005 season. One of those players was first pick and current Toronto Blue Jays starter Ricky Romero. This furthered the notion that George Horton develops his players and allows them to succeed beyond their years in college. Four of his players have been first-rounders, and 100 student-athletes that he has coached have been selected in the MLB Draft.
“This is a tremendous day for the University of Oregon,” Athletic Director Pat Kilkenny said upon Horton’s hiring. “Baseball coaches of George Horton’s distinction and ability don’t come along very often, and his decision to come to Eugene speaks volumes about our commitment for Oregon baseball to become successful on a national level.”
The Ducks were 33-26-1, but they just missed out on the playoffs after a late charge that fell short. However, George Horton had a school-record eight players selected in the draft; Tyler Anderson became the first player in team history to get picked in the first round and end up as an All-American since 1972 (Dave Roberts). Horton has transformed this team over the years; there is no doubt in my mind that he fully deserves this position on the Collegiate National Team staff for 2012 and, hopefully, beyond.
“I am both honored and humbled to be selected by the USA Baseball organization to be on Dave Serrano’s staff for the Collegiate level USA Baseball team this coming summer,” said Horton. “What a tremendous privilege it will be to represent the USA and to be able to coach America’s finest baseball players.”
Source:
GoDucks.com
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