Coaches


• 2010 Baseball Coaches


Head Coach Tim Sinicki Deeply entrenched at Binghamton as the longest-tenured head coach, Tim Sinicki begins his 18th season at the helm of a Bearcats’ program that has skyrocketed. Sinicki has been named the America East Coach of the Year three times in the last five seasons (2005, 2007, 2009) as his Bearcats have become the perennial “team to beat” in the conference and have created waves around the Northeast region. After guiding BU to its third straight America East regular season championship in 2009, Sinicki engineered an historic postseason run that included the school’s first-ever baseball conference crown, NCAA appearance and NCAA victory. The Bearcats’ school-record 30th victory was memorable — an 11-6 win over George Mason in the NCAA Regional. The Patriots had entered the postseason with the second-highest win percentage of any team in the country (78%) and BU’s victory was just the third time in 14 years that the America East champion had produced an NCAA victory. Sinicki’s program owns a unique and unmatched achievement. Binghamton has increased its win total in each of the last six seasons — a feat no other program in the nation has accomplished. During that span, BU has also produced the best cumulative conference record of any America East team (78-50, 61%). In each of the last five seasons, a Binghamton player has been chosen for one of the major awards (Player, Pitcher, or Rookie of the Year) and 2009 was no exception with ace Murphy Smith earning Pitcher of the Year honors and freshman first baseman Dave Ciocchi notching Rookie of the Year accolades. Ironically, one of Sinicki’s best coaching campaigns didn’t result in individual honors, as his young 2008 squad won 15 league games to capture the team’s second straight regular season title. He had to replace six of eight position starters from a senior-laden 2007 squad and played the 2008 campaign with four starting freshmen — six starting newcomers in all. That team won a school-record 29 games and ultimately finished as runnerup at the America East Championship tournament. Strong pitching has always been a staple of Sinicki-coached teams. Twice in the last four years BU has produced the America East Pitcher of the Year (Zach Groh 2006, Murphy Smith 2009). In addition, seven pitchers have been named all-conference in that span. Smith was selected by the Oakland Athletics in the 13th round of the 2009 MLB Amateur Draft — one year after Jeff Dennis was tabbed by the Athletics. Former Sinicki lefthander Scott Diamond is quickly advancing in the Atlanta Braves organization. Diamond, who signed with the Braves in 2007, was named the Braves’ Pitcher of the Year for their 2008 Class A-Advanced Myrtle Beach team and finished the 2009 season with the Double-A Mississippi Braves. In all, 12 Binghamton player have signed professional contracts in the last four years. In addition to his team’s on-the-field success, Sinicki’s program has had unparalleled achievement in the classroom. The Bearcats have achieved a 3.0 or higher grade-point average in 17 of 20 semesters and have maintained the highest team GPA in the America East in six of the last eight years. Eleven players have been chosen to the America East Baseball All-Academic Team in the last four years. During the team’s transition to Division I, BU captured an ECAC championship in 2000 and earned runner-up conference honors in 2001. The program’s other ECAC crown came in 1997, when then-Division III BU went 26-10-1, registering the highest win percentage in school history (.716). Sinicki began his collegiate playing career as a freshman all-conference pitcher at Binghamton in 1985. One year later, he was named to the All-Region III team while pitching at nearby Broome Community College, where he was tabbed by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the Major League Baseball amateur draft. He finished his playing career at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, N.C., where the Catamounts captured back-to-back Southern Conference titles and competed in the NCAA Division I Championship both seasons. In two seasons, Sinicki compiled 15 wins, including a team-leading nine as a senior. He graduated from Western Carolina in 1988 with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. Tim resides in Vestal with his wife, Tina, and their children Allison, Tanner and Ashley.

Assistant Coach Ryan Hurba Ryan Hurba enters his fifth season as hitting coach and recruiting coordinator for the Bearcats in 2010. Under Hurba's tutelage, BU broke dozens of offensive team records in its 2009 championship season. The Bearcats set new marks for team batting average (.320), hits (548), runs (357), RBI (321) and triples (18). The team average of .320 was 26 points higher than the record set by the 2005 squad and a dramatic one-year improvement of 38 points. Three hitters earned all-conference recognition and cleanup hitter Corey Taylor was named to the ABCA All-Northeast second team. Rookie first baseman Dave Ciocchi made a huge splash with a .381 average, second team all-conference and Rookie of the Year laurels as well as Louisville Slugger and Ping! Freshman All-American honors. In the last three years, 12 Hurba hitters have earned all-conference honors, including two Rookies of the Year and one Player of the Year. Hurba came to Binghamton from Division II powerhouse Mount Olive College (N.C.) (2008 Division II National Champions), where he served as an assistant for two years. While at Mount Olive he coached four All-Americans and four future professional players. Three of those players signed as free agents, while one was an MLB draft pick. Hurba has also served as an assistant at Brevard Community College. There Hurba worked with head coach Ernie Rosseau, a former minor league hitting coordinator with the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets. Their Brevard team advanced to the Florida State Junior College tournament, finishing fourth in the state. Hurba coached five Brevard players who were drafted by MLB teams. Prior to heading into college coaching Hurba spent four years as the head coach at the oldest overnight baseball camp in the country, the Sho-Me Baseball Camp (Branson, MO). There he oversaw the entire on field summer program as well as their satellite camps in the off season. As an undergraduate player, he earned All-America honors at Oswego State in 1996. Hurba was a three-time all-region selection, three-time all conference selection and two-time ECAC all-star. In 2001, he was inducted into Oswego's Baseball Hall of Fame. He has also served as an associate scout with the Milwaukee Brewers and was head coach and league director of the Dunwoody Senior Baseball Developmental League in Georgia. Ryan resides in Endwell, NY with his wife Carrie, and their daughter Kaylee. Assistant Coach Andy Hutchings Former collegiate standout Andy Hutchings begins his fifth season as an assistant coach in 2010. A Binghamton-area pitcher who concluded his college career with the Bearcats in 2004, Hutchings earned his bachelor's degree in human development from the University in 2005. After an outstanding two-year stint at College of Charleston, Hutchings transferred to Binghamton for his senior season and helped the 2004 Bearcats more than double their win total from the previous year. A 2002 pre-season All-American for Charleston, Hutchings returned home to Broome County, where he was an all-state selection for Binghamton High School in the late 1990s. He was drafted in the 27th round by the Houston Astros in 2000, was used as a set-up man at Charleston as a junior. He posted a 2-2 record with a 2.91 earned run average in 16 appearances. The previous year, Hutchings was one of the top closers in the nation. He saved a school-record 12 games (ranked fifth in nation) and earned second team All-Southern Conference honors. Hutchings then pitched in the prestigious Cape Cod League, averaging 13.1 strikeouts per nine innings with a 2.25 ERA. He sat out the 2002 college season with a minor shoulder injury. Out of high school, he played one season at Alfred State, going 8-2 with a 2.06 ERA. Hutchings played professionally with the New Jersey Jackals of the Can-Am League. Andy and his wife Sarah reside in Binghamton.

> Assistant Coach Ed Folli Longtime area high school coach Ed Folli enters his fourth season as an assistant in 2010. Folli brings three decades of baseball experience to the program, having achieved regional and state acclaim as head coach for nearby Union-Endicott High School. In 17 seasons as head coach of the Tigers, Folli captured eight sectional, three regional and two state championships while amassing a 275-93 overall record. The two-time state coach of the year is the winningest baseball coach in school history. He also served as an assistant football coach for a U-E program that won two state titles. Folli was a standout player for Springfield College before graduating with a bachelor’s degree in education in 1973. He was a member of three nationally-ranked teams, earned All-New England honors and was named to the school’s All-Decade Team (1970-79). He has also served as the batting practice pitcher with the Double-A Binghamton Mets for the past two seasons Ed and his wife Wendie have two sets of twins; E.J. and Mike and Megan and Ty.



Copyright © Binghamton University. All rights reserved.