The Elon Phoenix baseball team is the interscholastic

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

team from

Elon University Elon University is a private university in Elon, North Carolina. Founded in 1889 as Elon College, Elon is organized into six schools, most of which offer bachelor's degrees and several of which offer master's degrees or professional doctorate d ...

Elon, North Carolina Elon () is a town in Alamance County, North Carolina, United States. It is part of the Burlington metropolitan statistical area. The population as of the 2020 census was 11,324. The town of Elon is home to Elon University. Elon began in 1881 as ...

. They are part of the

NCAA Division I NCAA Division I (D-I) is the highest level of College athletics, intercollegiate athletics sanctioned by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) in the United States, which accepts players globally. D-I schools include the major ...

Colonial Athletic Association The Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the NCAA's Division I whose full members are located in East Coast states from Massachusetts to South Carolina. Most of its members are public universi ...

. The team is led by head coach Mike Kennedy, who has been head coach since 1997. Elon plays its

home game In sports, home is the place and venue identified with a team sport. Most professional teams are named for, and marketed to, particular metropolitan areas; amateur teams may be drawn from a particular region, or from institutions such as sch ...

s at Walter C. Latham Park on Elon's campus.

History

1997–present

Mike Kennedy has been the head coach at Elon since 1997. He was a two-time Honorable Mention All-American catcher for Elon University between 1988–1990, and was later selected in the 9th round of the

1990 Major League Baseball Draft The 1990 Major League Baseball (MLB) Draft was held in June 1990. The draft placed amateur baseball players onto major league teams. 1,487 players were distributed to 26 teams. The draft consisted of first round selections, supplemental first ...

. He spent four seasons as Elon's

pitching coach In baseball, a number of coaches assist in the smooth functioning of a team. They are assistants to the manager, who determines the starting lineup and batting order, decides how to substitute players during the game, and makes strategy decisio ...

before becoming head coach. Kennedy was selected to serve as the pitching coach for the USA Baseball's Collegiate National Team during the summer. Prior to the 2010 season, Kennedy led Elon to 436 victories in his 13 years, and had led the team to 19 victories over teams ranked in the top 25 in the past 11 years. During the 2010 season, Kennedy led the Phoenix to back-to-back road wins against highly ranked

Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enro ...

as well as a home win against

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

and wins against Wake Forest and

NC State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The university ...

. The 2010 team made it past the SoCon Tournament and into the NCAA Regional rounds. On April 24, 2011, Kennedy won his 500th game at Elon as the Phoenix defeated

Georgia Southern Georgia Southern University (GS or Georgia Southern) is a public research university in the U.S. state of Georgia. The flagship campus is in Statesboro, and other locations include the Armstrong Campus in Savannah and the Liberty Campus in Hin ...

by a final of 9–0. Kennedy's program has won 40 or more games in three of the last seven seasons and boasts four

Southern Conference The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly ...

regular-season crowns. With each victory tallied, Kennedy adds to his record for the most wins by an Elon baseball coach that he set in 2003. In his 16 seasons, Kennedy has guided the Phoenix to 543 victories. In the last 14 seasons, Elon has had 22 victories over opponents ranked in the top-25. In his tenure, Kennedy has led his program to 49 victories over

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

opponents. In 2012, Kennedy led his Phoenix squad to yet another top-three finish in the SoCon as the maroon and gold went 33–26 overall and 20–10 in league action. Kennedy's teams have now posted at least 30 victories in each of their 13 official NCAA Division I seasons. At the conclusion of the season, two Elon players were selected in the

Major League Baseball draft The first-year player draft is the primary mechanism of Major League Baseball (MLB) for assigning amateur baseball players from high schools, colleges, and other amateur baseball clubs to its teams. The draft order is determined based on a lo ...

. Two Phoenix standouts were also recognized with All-Southern Conference accolades. Following the year, four Elon players were selected in the Major League Baseball draft and a fifth signed a free agent contract. Four members of the squad were also recognized with all-league accolades, including

John Brebbia John Fulboam Brebbia (born May 30, 1990) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the San Francisco Giants of Major League Baseball (MLB). He played college baseball for Elon University. The New York Yankees selected Brebbia in the 30th r ...

, who was chosen as the SoCon Pitcher of the Year. Infielder Sebastian Gomez was honored as a member of the Louisville Slugger Freshmen All-American Team.

Top Major League Baseball Draft picks in Elon's history

2019 –

George Kirby George Kirby (June 8, 1923 – September 30, 1995) was an American comedian, singer, and actor. Career Born in Chicago, Kirby broke into show business in the 1940s at the Club DeLisa, a South Side establishment that employed a variety-show ...

(Round 1, 20th overall by the

Seattle Mariners The Seattle Mariners are an American professional baseball team based in Seattle. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League West, West division. The team joined the American League ...

) 1971 – Gary Brown (Round 1, 21st overall by the

Chicago Cubs The Chicago Cubs are an American professional baseball team based in Chicago. The Cubs compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as part of the National League (NL) Central division. The club plays its home games at Wrigley Field, which is located ...

) 1981 –

Joey Hackett Joseph Glenn Hackett (born September 29, 1958) was a tight end in the National Football League. Biography Hackett was born on September 29, 1958, in Greensboro, North Carolina. His brother Dino Hackett also played in the NFL. College career H ...

(Round 4, 71st overall by the Texas Rangers) 2008 – Steven Hensley (Round 4, 132nd overall by the

) 2001 – Brad Pinkerton (Round 5, 149th overall by the

Anaheim Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

) 2009 – Chase Austin (Round 5, 158th overall by the

Florida Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

) 2001 – Scott Light (Round 6, 186th overall by the

Cincinnati Reds The Cincinnati Reds are an American professional baseball team based in Cincinnati. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division and were a charter member of ...

) 2010 – Jimmy Reyes (Round 7, 226th overall by the Texas Rangers) 1966 –

Dick Such Richard Stanley Such (born October 15, 1944) is a former pitcher and coach in Major League Baseball (MLB). A right-handed hurler who batted left-handed, Such stood tall and weighed . Playing career Born in Sanford, North Carolina, Such attende ...

(Round 8, 100th overall by the Washington Senators) 1992 – Aaron Cannaday (Round 8, 231st overall by the

Pittsburgh Pirates The Pittsburgh Pirates are an American professional baseball team based in Pittsburgh. The Pirates compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Founded as part of the American Associati ...

) 2019 – Kyle Brnovich (Round 8, 241st overall by the

Los Angeles Angels The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. Since 1966, the team ha ...

) 2019 – Ty Adcock (Round 8, 246th overall by the

) 1990 – Mike Kennedy (Round 9, 255th overall by the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (often referred to as the A's) are an American professional baseball team based in Oakland, California. The Athletics compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West division. The te ...

)

Major leaguers

Ted Abernathy Ted Wade Abernathy (March 6, 1933 – December 16, 2004) was an American professional baseball player and right-handed pitcher. He appeared in 681 games in Major League Baseball, 647 as a relief pitcher, for seven different clubs over all or part ...

* Ty Adcock *

Greg Booker Gregory Scott Booker (June 22, 1960 – March 30, 2019) was a professional baseball pitcher. He pitched in all or part of eight seasons in Major League Baseball, from 1983 until 1990. Booker's best season was probably in 1987. He made 44 appearanc ...

Tom Brewer Thomas Austin Brewer (September 3, 1931 – February 15, 2018) was an American professional baseball player. The right-handed pitcher appeared in 241 games over eight seasons (1954–1961) for the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball. He was ...

Cap Clark John Carroll "Cap" Clark (September 19, 1906 – February 16, 1957) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Philadelphia Phillies. Born in Snow Camp, North Carolina, Clark graduated ...

Bill Evans William John Evans (August 16, 1929 – September 15, 1980) was an American jazz pianist and composer who worked primarily as the leader of his trio. His use of impressionist harmony, interpretation of traditional jazz repertoire, block ch ...

* Bill Graham * Greg Harris *

Bunny Hearn Charles Bunn "Bunny" Hearn (May 21, 1891 – October 10, 1959) was a Major League Baseball pitcher, Major League scout, and minor league, semi-pro and college-level manager. Biography He was born on May 21, 1891, in Chapel Hill, North Caroli ...

* George Kirby *

Ed Sauer Edward Sauer (January 3, 1919 – July 1, 1988) was an American professional baseball player. An outfielder, he appeared in 189 Major League games in 1943–1945 and in 1949 for the Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Braves. He sto ...

Joe Winkelsas Joseph Winkelsas (born September 14, 1973) is a former right-handed professional baseball pitcher. He pitched parts of two seasons in Major League Baseball. Amateur career Winkelsas started his college career in 1992 at the University of South ...

References

# Calvert, S. (2009). "60 years and still going strong", Pendulum. #(2009). "Elon Baseball", Elon University Athletics. #(2009). "Elon University Team History", The Baseball Cube. {{Colonial Athletic Association baseball navbox 1900 establishments in North Carolina Baseball teams established in 1900

History

1997–present

Top Major League Baseball Draft picks in Elon's history

Major leaguers

See also

References