Orem Owlz: Teaching is most important to Kotchman
Katofsky has the numbers to back up the assertion.
Though he toils in the relative anonymity of the Pioneer League, Kotchman is the winningest active manager in minor league baseball. And now the Owlz's skipper, who has embarked on his 30th year of managing in the minors, has surpassed yet another magnificent milestone — 1,500 all-time victories. Entering the season, Kotchman needed 10 wins to reach the 1,500-victory plateau, which he accomplished after his team battled back to defeat the Ogden Raptors in 10 innings last Friday night.
While it's a big deal to people in the Owlz organization, Kotchman downplays the milestone.
"Right now, it doesn't have any real meaning. It's something for other people," Kotchman said. "I don't want to sound boring, but I'm just doing my job."
That's spoken by a man who also has 1,275 losses on his ledger. When pressed about the milestone, Kotchman deflected the praise to others.
"It means, first of all, you had a lot of great players. Second, it means scouts had to find those players. Third, it means your player development people did their jobs. I've had a great staff. (Pitching coach Zeke Zimmerman) has been with me about 10 years. The key to any club is pitching and he's a master at it. You are who you surround yourself with."
It's somewhat ironic that Kotchman is being recognized for win No. 1,500 when Kotchman's job isn't primarily to win games — it's to develop players for the major leagues. That's something he's done amazingly well. Over the years, Kotchman has managed Roger Clemens, Devon White, Dante Bichette, Garret Anderson, Troy Percival, Ervin Santana, Joe Saunders and Howie Kendrick, to name just a few.
Nevertheless, during his 30-year managing career, Kotchman has done plenty of winning. Prior to landing in Utah County as the manager of the Provo Angels in 2001 (the Angels moved to Orem in 2005), Kotchman spent 11 seasons in Boise of the Northwest League, where his teams won four league titles. With Kotchman at the controls, the Provo Angels/Orem Owlz have won league championships in 2004, '05 and '07. They claimed division crowns in 2001, '02, '03, '04 and '05.
Yet ask Kotchman which of his nearly 1,500 wins stands out most and the one that pops into his mind has nothing to do with a championship. His answer reveals volumes about his approach to baseball and to life.
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