MGoBlue.com Summer Sessions: Head Coach Rich Maloney
7/28/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
July 28, 2011
Each weekday in the month of July, MGoBlue.com will feature an interview with a U-M head coach. Thursday's (July 28) second interview is with baseball coach Rich Maloney, who discusses summer ball, expectations for next season, and manning a paper route.
What makes the summer in baseball so unique?
Some of our kids get the opportunity to play against some of the best players in the country. It's a great opportunity to improve and to compete. We have four players in the Cape Cod League, for example, we have some in the Northwoods League, and Logan McAnallen went to Alaska and actually pitched a no-hitter, which was encouraging. So I think the summer ball affords the opportunity for the players to play against student-athletes from other institutions and rub shoulders with them and re-juice their battery in preparation for coming back to school.
Why are the summer months so important to the development of the team?
I think it's the opportunity to be able to play so many games. The more experience you gain, the more opportunity you have to improve. The hope is that the kids are learning from their experiences and getting stronger so that when they come back we can be a better team.
Name one student-athlete on your team Michigan fans should watch for next season.
We have a couple freshmen coming in that we think can be impact players for us right away. We also think another guy from our returning team to watch for is Kolby Wood. He had to miss last year and has worked extremely hard, is a tireless worker, and he really wants to be our Friday night starter, and we really want him to be that. So we are rooting for him and believe that he is going to be totally healthy and are expecting him to do a great job for our team.
When looking ahead to next season, how do you feel about your team?
With the experience that was gained last year and the drive that last season has produced in all of us, I expect the team to compete at a very high level. I truly do. I really believe we can flip the seasons around and we're moving forward in a very positive way and believe in great things for our program and certainly this season.
What was your first summer job? And where?
My first summer job that I can recall, actually there were two jobs that I had during that period. One, I was a paperboy starting at the age of 13, and at that time you used to deliver to the houses from your bike. And I was the morning paperboy, so I would have to get the papers out at 5:30 in the morning every day, seven days a week. The Detroit Free Press, that was my paper. So that was one of my jobs. The other one was from a summer ball standpoint -- I coached tee ball through the rec department and that was the beginning of my coaching career, I guess. So those were some highlights of my early working days.
Do you or did you have any special travel plans this summer?
What we're going to do is pretty much lay low. We'll probably rent a cottage and just lay low as a family. We did have the wonderful opportunity, Kelle and I, to visit some of our players in the Cape, which was great. I think the kids were happy to see us, and on top of it we certainly were happy to see them and see them compete in a great league. So that was a great experience.
Past MGoBlue.com Summer Sessions
• Head Softball Coach Carol Hutchins (July 28)
• Head Men's Basketball Coach John Beilein (July 27)
• Head Women's Gymnastics Coach Bev Plocki (July 26)
• Head Men's Gymnastics Coach Kurt Golder (July 26)
• Head Ice Hockey Coach Red Berenson (July 25)
• Head Women's Tennis Coach Ronni Bernstein (July 22)
• Head Field Hockey Coach Marcia Pankratz (July 22)
• Head Women's Basketball Coach Kevin Borseth (July 21)
• Head Men's Lacrosse Coach John Paul (July 20)
• Head Wrestling Coach Joe McFarland (July 19)
• Head Women's Track & Field Coach James Henry (July 19)
• Head Women's Golf Coach Cheryl Stacy (July 18)
• Head Rowing Coach Mark Rothstein (July 15)
• Head Women's Swimming Coach Jim Richardson (July 14)
• Head Volleyball Coach Mark Rosen (July 13)
• Head Men's Soccer Coach Steve Burns (July 12)
• Head Women's Cross Country Coach Mike McGuire (July 11)
• Head Men's Cross Country Coach Alex Gibby (July 11)
• Head Women's Soccer Coach Greg Ryan (July 8)
• Head Men's Tennis Coach Bruce Berque (July 7)
• Head Men's Track & Field Coach Fred LaPlante (July 6)
• Head Water Polo Coach Matt Anderson (July 5)
• Head Men's Swimming & Diving Coach Mike Bottom (July 1)
