Posted:
Saturday, October 15, 2022
Seth Kenny - Director of Teams. Kenny is currently in his 12th year with Top Tier Baseball where he is the director of teams and started his 20-year coaching career as a pitching coach for the Danville Dans, Austin Peay State University, and Illinois State University from 2000-2008. Following his time at Illinois State, he returned to his role as pitching coach at Austin Peay, while also serving as the program as recruiting coordinator until joining Top Tier Baseball in 2010.
Coach Kenny will also be serving as the USA baseball 12U national team pitching coach for the second year in a row. He oversaw a Team USA pitching staff last year that held opponents to a .162 batting average against and struck out 33 batters in 21.0 innings pitched. In addition to his first stint as a national team coach in 2021, Kenny has coached at the 12U National Open, was a member of the 11U NTIS task force in 2017 and 2019, and was a 12U National Team Trials coach in 2018 and 2019.
Scott French – Director of Business Operations. Scott looks back through the decades and sees all the support his father and mother provided he and his sister when they were growing up in southern Indiana. “My parents never said no to anything I wanted to do in athletics,” says French, the Director of Business Operations for Top Tier Baseball. “My dad (Steve) was a coal miner and my mom (Pat) a dental assistant. Sports were a priority. “My dad gave me the opportunity to get better every day.”
In High School, French hit .568 as a junior in 1997 and a state-leading .586 as a senior and was MVP of the Indiana High School Baseball Coaches Association North/South All Star Series in 1998. French played at Ball State University (1999-2002) and was a .321 career hitter with a school-record 139 walks played mainly in the outfield and was used in relief and at first, helping his team to regular-season Mid-American Conference titles in 1999 and 2001. He was an assistant coach at BSU (2003-07) and holds a degree in Health and Physical Education/Fitness from Ball State.
Through Ball State he went to work for a Anderson-based training facility, working with the director of amateur scouting for the Chicago White Sox. French got the chance to instruct players from elementary to college. “It prepared me for what I’m doing now,” says French. “I was well-rounded. I like seeing kids that work hard grow and become something. An average athlete can do something in baseball through hard work and experience.” French says Top Tier teach the same concepts and talk about movement patterns with the youngest and oldest players. "Once it clicks, they can really take off."
“You can effect a 9-, 10-, 11-year old kid,” says French. “They just have more room to grow. We always tell parents, you have to be patient with it. It takes a lot more work than people think it does.” It ties in with the make-up and dedication of the player and his family. “That’s life. Baseball’s a frustrating game. It gets harder as you get older and it takes a certain mentality to play for a long time.”
