Maryland RBI Names 19U AAU Elite Team Staff

Maryland RBI Baseball has announced its 2017 19U AAU Summer Team coaching staff.

Chris Cummings, a veteran Maryland youth baseball coach, will lead Maryland RBI as head coach again. He played baseball for Rochester Institute of Technology (1983-1984) and Eisenhower College (1980-1982) where he was a pitcher/outfielder.

“Once again, we’re extremely pleased with how the 19U Summer Team coaching staff came together for this summer,” said Mike Graham, Maryland RBI Baseball general manager. “Chris Cummings is a hard-nosed leader of young men, and has a proven track record bringing up college prospects. Outside of having Chris at the helm, we have an equally talented cast of coaches working with him again this summer. As always, our goals are very high, and this staff more than understands that expectation level.”

Cummings works principally as RBI pitching and bullpen coach. He mentors and trains the team's pitchers. He advises the manager on the condition of pitchers and their arms, manages the rotation, and serves as in-game coach for the pitcher currently on the mound. He manages and directs the battery. In addition, Cummings serves as batting practice pitcher, base coach, outfield instructor, infield instructor, and baserunning instructor.

Cummings was honored as Maryland AAU Baseball Coach of the Year in 2015.

Cummings will be joined in the dugout by assistant coaches Jim Hoyer, with several years of coaching with Maryland RBI Baseball and another veteran Maryland youth baseball coach.

"Jim Hoyer is one of the more instinctive guys in the game and has a gift in the way he teaches players both defensively and offensively,” Graham said.

Hoyer played college baseball for Penn State University (1985-89) and professionally for the Utica Blue Sox (1989) in the MiLB New York-Penn League as an outfielder. Coach Hoyer serves as outfield coach, batting practice pitcher, and first base coach.

Ray Albaugh rounds out the staff. He serves as team manager, director of baseball operations, assistant coach, bench coach, and statistician and assists with gameplans.

Since 2011, the Maryland RBI coaching staff led the team to the AAU wood bat state championship in 2014, 2013 and 2012 and the AAU Mid-Atlantic Wood Bat League and Washington Nationals Youth Baseball Academy League regular season titles in 2015.

The staff was named the Maryland AAU Baseball Coaching Staff of the Year in 2015. In the past eight years, Maryland RBI received an MD/AAU record-setting number of five consecutive AAU National Championships invitation-only or automatic bids. Maryland RBI advanced to the AAU Super Showcase/National Championships and underclassmen No. 5 final ranking in 2013, and played in three Mid-Atlantic regional championship games in the last six years.

For more information on the Maryland RBI 19U Summer Team, visit www.mdrbi.com and follow https://twitter.com/MarylandRBI.