We have some personnel news to pass along from the Reading Fightin Phils (Double-A Northeast), as the team announces two full-time hires to their front office staff.
Matt Koch is the new Rip it Baseballtown Charities Manager, and Stephen Thomas has been added as the R-Phils Director of Extra Events and Baseballtown Charities/Rip It.
Koch is a graduate of Lancaster Bible College where he studied Sport Management. This summer, he worked as an intern for the R-Phils in 2021 assisting in group outings and ticket sales. He also excelled in customer service and was impactful in boosting fan experience.
After the season, Koch was hired on full-time as the Rip it Baseballtown Charities Manager. He is in charge of running and operating the Rip It batting cage facility which is imperative to the progression of the sport in the greater Berks County area. Koch will work towards growing the business, including planning and marketing all of its assets like clinics and private lessons.
“Working here over the summer allowed me to see the kind of family atmosphere that I love out of a job,” Koch said in a press release. “I am excited to continue working with a team of awesome individuals to produce a phenomenal product for the fans!”
Thomas returned to the R-Phils this July and will serve as the Director of Extra Events and Baseballtown Charities/Rip It.
Thomas, a 2014 graduate of Albright College where he majored in Business Administration with concentrations in Marketing and Management, interned with the Reading Fightin Phils during the 2013 and 2014 seasons. He then was hired full-time and served as the Director of Extra Events when he left the R-Phils in 2018 to work at his alma mater as the Director of Advancement Events & Communication.
Thomas noted, “I enjoyed working in Baseballtown previously, so it made for an easy decision to return and be a part of such a great organization that provides so much to Reading and the Berks County community.”
Moving forward, Thomas will oversee the planning and execution of all extra events held at FirstEnergy Stadium and will be involved in supervising the operational side of all Baseballtown Charities programs and events.