Scott Strickland (Triple-A), Shaun Meredith (Double-A), Chris Ball (Class A) and Tommy Tamaska (Short Season/Rookie) are this year’s classification winners in the annual Sports Turf Manager of the Year Awards, sponsored by the Sports Turf Managers Association (STMA).
Ball was also the Class A winner in 2007. He has won or shared the title of best sports turf manager in the Carolina League for the past four years for his work at the home of the Myrtle Beach Pelicans, BB&T Coastal Field.
Strickland has been in charge of Durham Bulls Athletic Park for the last six seasons. He has been with the Durham Bulls since 2004.
Meredith displayed his talents at Merchantsauto.com Stadium, home of the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, in winning the Double-A honor. He joined the Fisher Cats for last year, after working for State College in the New York-Penn League from 2006-08.
Tamaska has worked for the last year at the Carpenter Complex in Clearwater, Fla., home of the Gulf Coast League Phillies and where Philadelphia’s spring training operations are based.
The STMA provides educational opportunities and support so that sports turf managers can provide the best sports surfaces for all levels of play. Sports turf managers are experts on the field and partners of the game.
The four classification winners, who were selected from among 16 league winners, will receive their award at the Baseball Winter Meetings Awards Luncheon at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort near Orlando on December 6.
The league winners:
| LEAGUE | WINNER | CLUB |
| International | Scott Strickland | Durham Bulls |
| Pacific Coast | Chris Schlosser | Iowa Cubs |
| Mexican League | Ismael Cristobal Hernández | Monterrey Sultans |
| Eastern | Shaun Meredith | N.H. Fisher Cats |
| Southern | Ed Attalla | Jacksonville Suns |
| Texas | David Bicknell | Frisco RoughRiders |
| California | Justin Clarke | Stockton Ports |
| Carolina | Chris Ball | Myrtle Beach Pelicans |
| Florida State | Opie Cheek | Clearwater Threshers |
| Midwest | Mitch McClary | Fort Wayne TinCaps |
| South Atlantic | Greg Burgess | Greenville Drive |
| New York-Penn | Matt Neri | State College Spikes |
| Northwest | Adam Farrell | Spokane Indians |
| Appalachian | Blake Anderson | Greeneville Astros |
| Pioneer | John Barta | Billings Mustangs |
| Gulf Coast | Tommy Tamaska | Phillies |
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