FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
November 14, 2000
For more information, contact
Bryan Dolgin, Director of Media & Public Relations, 843-918-6016
Braves Name Pelicans 2001 Field Staff, City To Honor Pelicans
MYRTLE BEACH, SC – The Atlanta Braves named the Myrtle Beach Pelicans coaching staff for the 2001 season, the Pelicans third season. Brian Snitker returns for his third season as the Manager, and Bruce Dal Canton returns for his third season as the Pitching Coach. Tommy Gregg will be in his first season with the Pelicans as their Hitting Coach, and Mike Graus returns for his third season as the team’s Athletic Trainer.
Brian Snitker, 45, enters his 25th season in the Braves organization and his 12th as a manager. Snit has compiled 167 wins and 112 losses during the past two regular seasons and a 7-and-3 record in the past two post seasons with the Pelicans. Each of his first two seasons in Myrtle Beach has resulted in winning the Carolina League’s Mills Cup Championship. Prior to joining the Pelicans in ’99, Snit had been a minor league player, roving instructor, coach and manager at many levels in the organization and had a coaching role for the Atlanta Braves in ’85 and ’88-’90. The Braves signed Snit as a non-drafted free agent catcher in ’77 after playing college baseball at the University of New Orleans. He played four minor league seasons before entering the coaching and managerial ranks. Brian and his wife Ronnie reside in Lilburn, GA with their two children, Erin and Troy.
Bruce Dal Canton, 59, has been a pitching coach within the Braves organization since 1982. His Myrtle Beach teams have won the Earned Run Average (ERA) title in each of the team’s first two seasons. The ’99 squad led the Carolina League with a 3.50 ERA. In ’00, the Pelicans 2.51 ERA was the lowest in professional baseball, their 27 shutouts were the most in pro baseball, they walked the fewest number of batters (382) in the Carolina League and recorded the most saves (43). Prior to joining the Pelicans in ’99, D.C.’s tenure in professional baseball began in ’66 and included an 11-year major league playing career (the ’75 & ’76 seasons were with the Braves), two seasons as a scout and 21 seasons as a coach at all levels, Single-A to the Braves. Bruce and his wife Helene reside in Carnegie, PA.
Tommy Gregg, 37, enters his first season as the Pelicans hitting coach and his third season coaching within the Braves system. Gregg spent the past two seasons with the Single-A Macon Braves in the South Atlantic League, the level just below the Pelicans. Prior to joining the Braves as a coach in ’99, Gregg spent nine seasons as a utility man in the Major Leagues with the Pittsburgh Pirates (’87-’88), Atlanta Braves (’89 – ’92, ’97), Cincinnati Reds (’93) and Florida Marlins (’95). Originally, the Pirates drafted Gregg in the seventh round of the 1985 draft out of Wake Forest University. Gregg was an All-ACC baseball player and played wide receiver as well as returned kicks for the football team. He was born in Boone, NC, but currently Tommy and his wife Tonya reside in Suwanee, GA.
Mike Graus, 33, enters his third season with the Pelicans and his ninth as an Athletic Trainer in the Braves organization. In addition to working with the Pelicans, Graus worked solely at the Single-A level with Macon (GA), Eugene (OR), Danville (VA) and Idaho Falls (ID) since ’93. In ’91, Graus earned a Bachelor of Science degree in education with a major in athletic training from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. In ’93, he earned a Master of Arts degree in education with a major in physiology at the University of Alabama-Birmingham. Mike and his wife Erica reside in Surfside Beach, SC.
MEDIA NOTE: The Myrtle Beach City Council will issue a proclamation honoring the Myrtle Beach Pelicans tonight at 7 PM at the Law Enforcement Center (1101 Oak Street) during the City Council Meeting. The Pelicans Manager Brian Snitker and members of the Pelicans front office staff will attend the event. The Pelicans won the Carolina League Championship in each of their first two seasons. The Back-2-Back Championship Celebration is tonight at Overtime Sports Café (1409 Hwy 17 South) in North Myrtle Beach from 6 PM to 9 PM.
INTERVIEWS: Brian Snitker will be available for interviews at the Law Enforcement Center prior to the City Council Meeting and/or later in the evening at Overtime Sports Café. Brian will be leaving the Law Enforcement Center immediately following the proclamation in order to get to the team’s championship celebration. Please call me, Bryan, for more info or to meet with him earlier in the day (843-918-6016).
Capitol Broadcasting Company, Inc. is a diversified communications company which owns and/or operates WRAL-TV, WRAL-Digital, WRAL-FM, Microspace, the North Carolina News Network, DTV Plus, Wolfpack Sports Marketing, and Capitol Sports Management in Raleigh, NC; WJZY-TV and WFVT-TV in Charlotte, NC; WILM-TV in Wilmington, NC; WRAZ-TV and the Durham Bulls Baseball Club in Durham, NC; and the Myrtle Beach Pelicans Baseball Club in Myrtle Beach, SC; Capitol Broadcasting Company also founded Local TV on Satellite in Raleigh, NC.
