After greater than 17 years as a participant and coach within the Milwaukee Brewers group, Chuckie Caufield is switching baseball hats.
Final month, Caufield, a three-sport star at Ada Excessive College, accepted the place of particular advisor and roving hitting teacher with the Houston Astros.
“I’m very enthusiastic about this chance. It is positively an enormous promotion from what we had been doing earlier than,” Caufield advised The Ada Information. “That is positively an amazing alternative in my profession and once more, I am very excited a couple of greater position and this nice alternative that Houston is giving me. I’ll carry out coordination duties from AAA to the Dominican degree.”
Caufield spent the previous 5 years because the AA hitting coach for the Brewers.
“My favourite job has at all times been hitting coach, arising by way of the ranks within the minor leagues,” Caufield admitted. “This job offers you an incredible alternative to impression younger individuals of their careers to assist them obtain their final objective of taking part in within the huge leagues. It comes with some of the rewarding – witnessing one of many guys you have coached succeed. I’ve been very blessed to have coached many alongside my journey on this nice recreation.”
Caufield, an all-state baseball participant for the Cougars, has at all times identified a bit about hitting. As a pitcher and outfielder, Caufield led the Ada Excessive baseball group to a Class 5A state championship in 2001, hitting .417 and going 5-2 on the mound, together with a shutout within the state semifinals.
Caufield wasn’t precisely searching for one other gig. However sooner or later he acquired a name from the Milwaukee Brewers informing him that the Astros had been fascinated by speaking to him concerning the new place. So he determined to undergo that interview course of, which included discussions with prime Houston executives and Corridor of Famer Jeff Bagwell.
Caufield ends a relationship with the Milwaukee Brewers that spanned greater than 17 years.
“I’ll ceaselessly be grateful that Milwaukee gave me my first alternative in skilled baseball,” he mentioned. “Now I am excited to get my first group with my first new group and a special position to proceed to impression individuals.”
One of many individuals Caufield has in all probability affected probably the most is youthful brother Kyle Caufield, who’s the boys basketball coach at Ada Excessive College. So to say Chuckie is a proud huge brother is an understatement. He follows Cougar basketball from afar.
“I used to be so happy with my little brother as he continues to excel in his teaching profession. These intangibles of being an amazing chief with recreation instincts had been at all times there all through his taking part in profession as a degree guard Ada. He was at all times good at studying a mess of issues to realize an edge someplace,” Chuckie mentioned. “This goes again to after I was a baby. Regardless of being a extremely good athlete, he was at all times on the smaller facet so he needed to be a step forward within the competitors, however he performed much more than he really was,” he continued. “Understanding how onerous he is labored to get the place he’s in his profession makes me the proudest. I do know he’ll maintain going up so long as he does.”
Caufield mentioned he and Kyle discuss lots about Ada Excessive basketball.
“The best factor for me is how a lot he cares about his gamers individually. I actually take pleasure in listening to him discuss the kind of people he is teaching and how much group he will have every season,” Caufield mentioned.
Indubitably, Chuckie Caufield would be the largest Cougar basketball fan within the Houston Astros group. He believes this 12 months’s Ada group has the make-up to make a powerful run within the postseason.
“I’ve watched quite a lot of these guys over time and it has been actually cool to see how a lot they proceed to develop over time. These youngsters play onerous and signify themselves properly,” Caufield mentioned. “They’re very attention-grabbing to observe. Thank goodness you now have reside streaming. I can not wait to see how these guys end this season. I’d like to see them end on prime with a state championship.”