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| PC: WLWT Cincinnati |
Bradenton, Fla - The SCF baseball team will be adding a new member to their coaching staff as they bring in former MLB third baseman Chris Sabo for the 2023-24 season. Sabo joins the Manatees after spending the last four seasons as the head coach for the University of Akron (2018-22) in Akron, Ohio. Sabo brings a wealth of experience for the Manatees from the MLB level alongside a collegiate level.
A native of Detroit, Michigan, Sabo began his baseball career Detroit Catholic Central High School in Novi, Michigan where he was a three-sport athlete playing golf and hockey as well as baseball. He was listed as one of the area's best baseball players where he earned all-state honors on two occasions while winning two 17-and-under national championships as a goalie in hockey before enrolling at the University of Michigan. While contemplating the choice of a career in hockey and baseball, Sabo ultimately decided to choose baseball for the Wolverines where they finished ninth in the 1981 NCAA College Baseball World Series before claiming a third place finish in the 1983 NCAA College Baseball World Series.
After three seasons with Michigan, Sabo declared for the 1983 MLB Draft and was selected in the second round by the Cincinnati Reds (1988-93). He spent the first five seasons in the minors before being called up to the Reds in 1988 where he was named the 1988 National League Rookie of the Year before winning the 1990 World Series with the Reds. He would make stops with the Baltimore Orioles (1994), Chicago White Sox (1995) and St. Louis Cardinals (1995) before playing a second stint and final season with the Reds where he would retire in 1996. Additionally, Sabo was inducted as a member of the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame in 2010.
After retiring from playing, he started his coaching career with the Reds' minor league teams, Billings Mustangs (now Independent) and Dayton Dragons (Single A) as a hitting coach, infielding instructor and talent evaluator and landed assistant coach positions with his alma mater Michigan, Xavier University and the University of Cincinnati, field manager for the Green Bay Bullfrogs (summer league) and head coach for IMG Academy before being named the 17th head coach for the University of Akron.
The Manatees look forward to focusing on the 2024 season with the addition of Sabo to the coaching staff.
