Stompers manager honored

Sonoma Stomper Manager Takashi Miyoshi has been named the Pacific Association’s Manager of the Year.

When Miyoshi joined the Sonoma Stompers Baseball Club in 2015 as a bench coach, his role became much larger than anyone could have anticipated.

The Japanese born Miyoshi was brought in after spending time as a third-base coach with the Texas Air Hogs in the American Association where he had the opportunity to be part of a championship team. But Miyoshi sought out the opportunity to do what no other Japanese native had ever been given the chance to do in American professional baseball – a chance to manage.

In the middle of the 2015 season Miyoshi got his chance, and in his first full season as manager in 2016 he took his club to a Pacific Association Championship. The Stompers broke franchise records for the number of wins (47), and winning percentage (.603). Yoshi (as he’s called) also became the first manager in the history of the Pacific Association to lead a club to first half, and second half pennant in the same season.