We have personnel news today from the Delmarva Shorebirds (Low A; Sally League), the Norfolk Tides (Class AAA; International League) and the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters (summer collegiate; Northwoods League).
At Perdue Stadium, the Shorebirds introduced a new broadcaster, two ticket sales account executives and the promotion of two existing employees to new roles.
The Shorebirds are returning 14 front office staff members from last season, including general manager Chris Bitters, who will embark on his tenth season with the team in 2016.
“The addition of these new employees coupled with promotions to new roles will help us continue to grow Shorebirds baseball on the Eastern Shore,” Bitters said. “The staff we have assembled is excited to serve our loyal fans like never before in 2016.”
Brendan Gulick has been named the team’s new director of broadcasting. As the new voice of the Shorebirds, he will broadcast all 140 games on Fox Sports AM 960 and theshorebirds.com while also assisting in the team’s communications efforts. A native of Cleveland, Ohio and a graduate of John Carroll University, Gulick comes to Delmarva with a wealth of announcing experience. His past positions include freelance work with numerous colleges, and he is also currently serving as the play-by-play announcer for UMES basketball. Gulick also served as a broadcast and media relations assistant with the Dayton Dragons during the 2014 season.
Jaime Cutter and Jason Tremblay have been added to the staff as ticket sales account executives. In their roles, both are responsible for providing exemplary service to all current and potential group and ticket plan buyers.
Cutter, who will also serve as the primary contact for all birthday parties and the annual Field of Dreams days at the stadium, joins the team after serving as a P.J. Boatwright Intern with the United States Golf Association. A graduate of York College, Cutter has also interned for the Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League and Ripken Baseball.
Tremblay will oversee the team’s Scout Night presented by Dr. Susan Vickers at Seaside Smiles and baseball camps in addition to his ticketing duties. He is a 2013 graduate of Penn State, and joins the ‘Birds after serving as a group sales coordinator for the Camden Riversharks during the 2015 season. Tremblay’s baseball experience also includes serving as a gameday intern for the Williamsport Crosscutters in the summer of 2013.
Andrew Bryda, who has served as the Shorebirds’ group sales manager since 2014, was promoted to director of business development. In this role, he is responsible for building relationships with the team’s corporate partners and will oversee all non-Shorebirds events at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium. Bryda has worked for Delmarva since 2013, when he came on board as a ticket sales account executive.
Eric Sichau has been named the team’s director of community relations and promotions after serving as a ticket sales account executive since 2014. In addition to overseeing the Shorebirds’ many community programs such as Hit the Books presented by Dr. James M. Crouse’s The Brace Place and the Silver Sluggers ticket packages presented by Coastal Home Care, he also will be in charge of the team’s on-field promotions and gameday production. Sichau, a native of the Eastern Shore and a graduate of Salisbury University, has worked with the Shorebirds since beginning as an intern with the team in the spring of 2012. He has also been seen around Perdue Stadium as the team’s on-field host for the past four summers.
—–
In Norfolk, longtime Tides GM Dave Rosenfield is among the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame 2016 inductees. Rosenfield was Tides GM from 1963 (when the team was in the Carolina League) through 2011. He won four International League Executive of the Year Awards, and in 2004 he was named “King of Baseball” in Minor League Baseball. In 2008, he was inducted into the International League Hall of Fame. He’ll be inducted in a ceremony April 30 at the Renaissance Portsmouth-Norfolk Waterside Hotel in Portsmouth.
—–
At Witter Field, Cooper Perkins is the new Radio Broadcaster and Director of Media Relations for the Rafters. Last summer, Perkins served as the lead broadcaster for the Orange County Riptide in their inaugural season in the Southern California Collegiate League. In addition to handling the play-by-play duties for 41 games, he wrote press releases and spearheaded the advance of the team’s social media campaigns.
During the 2016 season, on top of calling all 72 Rafters games on AM 1320 WFHR with all home games additionally simulcast on live video steam, Perkins will act as the Rafters traveling secretary and media relations coordinator, while assisting with additional video, audio, and graphic projects this season.
“Cooper’s skill-set and summer-collegiate baseball experience will be a valuable asset to the Rafters organization this season,” said Rafters general manager John Fanta. “Rafters fans are going to love the energy he brings to every broadcast.”
Currently a junior at the University of Southern California, Perkins is majoring in Communications and minoring in Business. As a student, Perkins has worked extensively as a play-by-play voice for both AM 1560 KXSC, the school’s student radio station, and the Pac-12 Network’s online streaming of USC sports. Among the sports Perkins has broadcasted are women’s volleyball, women’s soccer, baseball and football. In the coming weeks, Perkins is set to take over play-by-play duties for KXSC’s coverage of USC men’s and women’s basketball, while transitioning into a new role as the voice of USC baseball in the spring.