The Associated Press is reporting that Winthrop has hired Clemson assistant Tom Riginos to become their new head baseball coach.

An initial announcement was made this morning that Winthrop had offered the position to Riginos, but the school has since announced that he is accepting the job.  Riginos has spent the past eight seasons working under coach Jack Leggett with the Tigers.  He was the team’s recruiting coordinator and associate head coach.  He also helped work with batting and play in the outfield, and helped lead the team to two College World Series appearances.

This will be the first head coaching opportunity for Riginos, but Winthrop athletic director Tom Hickman is confident Riginos will have no problem attracting high caliber recruits to the program.

Hickman fired former head coach Joe Hudak after 19 seasons with the Eagles.  They were 27-30 overall during his final season, while posting a 13-14 record within the Big South Conference.

SportsTalk continues through another stellar night as camp opens for the Panthers at Wofford.  The Braves lose another series to a divisional opponent and some recruiting news to wet your appetite.

• The Braves drop an afternoon game in D.C. but Mike Morgan says there is no reason to push the panic button.

Mike Morgan in tonight’s Braves Report.

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• Recruiting has some juicy nuggets for all of you recruit-nicks out there.

Thursday night’s Recruiting Report

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USC associate head baseball coach Chad Holbrook has withdrawn his name from consideration for the Winthrop head coaching job.  He was scheduled to interview with Winthrop on Thursday, but notified officials beforehand of his decision to withdraw.

USC is currently working on a new contract for Holbrook, which may include the title of Head Coach in waiting.

In the meantime, the search for a new pitching coach continues, as Louisville pitching coach Roger Williams withdrew his name from consideration Thursday.  Williams was considered a strong candidate for the job, and was interviewed by head coach Ray Tanner earlier in the week, but was not offered the job.  According to a source, Williams’ financial situation at Louisville is going to be improved, which is one of the reasons why he decided to stay where he is.

Two current candidates are former USC pitchers Kip Bouknight and Brett Jodie.  Both played for Tanner at USC.  According to a source, no current SEC or ACC pitching coaches are considered strong candidates for the job.  It does not appear, at this time, that Tanner is close to hiring his new pitching coach.

Tanner named Baseball America coach of the year

South Carolina head baseball coach Ray Tanner has earned Coach of the Year honors from Baseball America.

Tanner just completed his 14th year as head coach at the University of South Carolina leading the Gamecocks to a national championship and a 54-16 overall record. Tanner also recently earned National Coach of the Year honors from Collegiate Baseball.

On the way to the title at the College World Series, the Gamecocks became the first team ever to win six consecutive games in Omaha on the way to a national title, the first men’s national championship at the University of South Carolina. This past season’s trip was the fourth to the College World Series for Coach Tanner along with three consecutive trips from 2002-2004.

This is the second time  that Tanner has earned the award from Baseball America. He also earned the distinction after the 2000 season. He joins Augie  Garrido, Gene Stephenson, Skip Bertman and Dave Snow as two-time winners.  Under Tanner’s leadership, South Carolina owns the longest current streak of NCAA Regional appearances among the 12 SEC schools with 11 straight trips to the tournament dating back to the 2000 season. In that span, Carolina has eight NCAA Super Regional appearances (2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2010). South Carolina is one of only six schools in the nation to make at least eight NCAA Super Regionals in the last 11 years and one of only eight schools in the country to have reached the NCAA Regionals every season from 2000 to the present. The program’s 11-year total record of 522-217 is the fourth highest win total among NCAA Division I schools. South Carolina has 11 consecutive seasons of 40 or more wins.

The Gamecocks have also collected championships in the Southeastern Conference with regular season titles in 2000 and 2002 along with a SEC Tournament crown in 2004. Tanner’s last 11 teams have featured 20 All-America performers including senior right-handed pitcher Blake Cooper.

This past season was Tanner’s 23rd year as a collegiate head coach. At South Carolina, Tanner has a .692 winning percentage – the second highest in Southeastern Conference history. This past season, Tanner also reached a career milestone, recording his 1,000th career victory, as he became the fourth fastest active coach to reach that total.

Tanner has also gained valuable experience at an international level in his association with USA Baseball. He has served five stints with Red, White & Blue including his latest in 2003 as head coach for the USA National Baseball Team. At the helm of some of the top freshmen and sophomores in the country, Tanner’s club finished with a 27-2 record, the best record for a U.S. National Team (.931 winning percentage) and won a silver medal at the 2003 Pan American Games. He was named the U.S. National Coach of the Year for his work that season. Prior to his head coaching stint, Tanner served as an auxiliary coach for the 2000 Olympic Team under Tommy Lasorda that won a gold medal at the XXVII Olympiad in Sydney, Australia. He was also an assistant with the 1995-1996 USA teams under former LSU coach Skip Bertman that culminated in a bronze medal win at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, Ga.

Tanner also served alongside current Mississippi State coach Ron Polk on Bertman’s staff. Tanner’s first stint with USA Baseball came as an assistant coach to the national team in the summer of 1993.

The Midlands area will receive a big economic boost later this month when Lexington County hosts the 2010 Dixie Youth Baseball “O” Zone World Series Saturday, July 31 through Thursday, August 5 at the Lexington Sports Complex just off Highway #1 on Ball Park Road in Lexington.

Sixteen teams from 11 different states (240 players and coaches) including Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia will compete for the championship in this annual event. There will also be a host team from Lexington, S.C. The other four teams are runners up from these states. The “O” Zone World Series brings youth ages 11 to 12 to participate in the eight-day tournament.

“When we hosted this event in 1995, the tournament brought an estimated 40,000 people to town with a $4 million economic impact,” said James Thompson, league president. “We expect parents, grandparents, siblings, friends and other family members to travel to Lexington during the week-long World Series event. Hotels, restaurants and other local establishments are sure to see an increase in business,” he said.

Dixie Youth Baseball awarded Lexington Dixie Youth the host site for the 2010 games after a bid process that included trips to visit with Dixie Youth Baseball’s national directors in 2008. They had to ensure we had adequate lodging, restaurants, entertainment and ballpark facilities, Thompson said. LDYB officials also attended four other World Series events to fully understand the scope of the tournament.

“Our main focus is on these kids and that they have a truly memorable experience here in Lexington,” Thompson said. “It’s the small things – the attention to detail – that will hopefully leave good lasting memories for these families. We want them to leave with the ‘Wow’ factor.”

Lexington Town Councilwoman Kathy Maness, also a member of the planning committee, is thrilled that Lexington is able to host such a prestigious event. “This is a perfect example of how youth sports can be a good economic development tool,” she said.

Baseball fans will enjoy a home-run derby July 30 at 2:00 at the Lexington Sports Complex. Admission to the derby is $1 per person with all proceeds going to the Dixie Youth Scholarship Fund. Winners of the derby will be awarded their trophies at the opening ceremonies later that evening.

Opening ceremonies will be held Friday, July 30 beginning at 7 p.m. at Lexington High School Football Stadium. The event is free to the public. After the parade of teams, fans will enjoy brief remarks from local officials, a special musical performance, and keynote address by Jonny Thompson, head coach of the 2010 Class 4A South Carolina High School Championship White Knoll High School baseball team. Members of the National Championship South Carolina Gamecock baseball team have also been invited as special guests of the event (but are unconfirmed at this time).

World Series baseball games will begin at 3 p.m. Saturday, July 31. The South Carolina and local Lexington County team will take the fields at 8 p.m. against Alabama and North Carolina respectively.

SportsTalk kicks off another week as July rolls around meaning that football is closing in.  The Mid-Summer Classic’s roster were named today and recruiting made an appearance.

• Mike Morgan talked about the All-Star rosters and the Braves going to the game in tonight’s Braves Report.

Mike Morgan

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• Brett Jensen of WFNZ in Charlotte and SportsTalk contributor joined the program tonight to talk about former UGA AD Damon Evans and his resignation.

Brett Jensen of WFNZ in Charlotte

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• Chris Browning talked about the weekend of racing with Junior’s Nationwide win and Kevin Harvick’s win at Daytona on Saturday night.

Darlington President Chris Browning

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• Kevin Harvick won on Saturday and talked about it after his win.

Weekend Winner Kevin Harvick

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• Recruiting includes a commitment to the USC baseball team.

Monday night’s Recruiting Report

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• Chad Holbrook, associate head coach of national champions USC,  joined the show tonight in studio to talk about the season, next year, and the character of this year’s team.

Chad Holbrook

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• Georgia A.D. Damon Evans spoke at a press conference tonight after his arrest for DUI.  Hear what he had to say.

Georgia Athletic Director Damon Evans

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While in Auburn for the  baseball regional, I stopped over for a look at the new Auburn Arena which will open this fall.  It’s located just across the street from the football stadium.  Here’s one look at the arena from the front.

Auburn is spending more than 92 million dollars on it’s new building which will seat 9600 fans.  It also will include a two-court practice facility and the basketball coaches offices.  There also will be 12 court level luxury suites.

Here’s a second view from the front side of the building. 

Friday is here and SportsTalk rolls on as does the NFL Draft.  Coach Callahan joined the show and there was draft talk, braves talk, and recruiting.

• The Braves Report with Mike Morgan addressed the Braves inept offense early in the season.  They take on the Mets this weekend, another club struggling to find their stroke.

Mike Morgan

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• CJ Spiller was introduced today as the newest Buffalo Bill.  Here is what he said.

Buffalo Bill RB CJ Spiller

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The Clemson baseball team rolled over Georgia for the second straight night winning Wednesday night at Doug Kingsmore Stadium 14-6.  After the game Tiger head coach Jack Leggett and second baseman Mike Freeman talked with reporters.

Jack Leggett

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Mike Freeman

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