Derrick May Named 2021 Manager for Keys Inaugural Draft League Season

By: JJ Michalski

Frederick, MD- A diverse and experienced group of former players, coaches and instructors will manage the six founding teams in the inaugural MLB Draft League, Major League Baseball and Prep Baseball Report announced Monday.

The Frederick Keys will be led by Derrick May in 2021. May comes to the Keys with 15 years of coaching experience after a ten-year playing career with the Cubs (1990-94), Brewers (1995), Astros (1995-96), Phillies (1997), Expos (1998) and Orioles (1999). May was drafted No. 9 overall by the Chicago Cubs in the 1986 draft. He appeared in 797 MLB games boasting a .271 batting average with 52 home runs and 310 RBIs.

“I am honored to be picked to manage in the MLB Draft League and excited that I have an opportunity to make an impact on the lives of aspiring professional players on the field and off,” May said. “As I look back when I first started my professional career, I wished I knew the things I know now. So, to pass along the things I’ve learned that could potentially impact players' futures is very gratifying to me.”

After retiring in 1999 May joined the Palm Beach Cardinals (Low-A St. Louis) for the 2005 and 2006 seasons. From 2007 through 2010 May served on the staff of the Springfield Cardinals (AA St. Louis). He became the St. Louis Cardinals Minor League Hitting coordinator in 2011. May started with the Major League squad in 2016 as an assistant hitting coach. He joined the Colorado Rockies organization as an instructor for the 2017 season.

“I am excited that I will have the opportunity to work with the future of Major League Baseball, teaching them what it’s like to prepare like a professional/Major League player on the field, and how having a solid routine and plan in place can greatly impact their chances for success,” May said.

Joining May will be Coco Crisp (Mahoning Valley Scrappers), Delwyn Young (State College Spikes), Jeff Manto (Trenton Thunder), Jedd Gyorko (West Virginia Black Bears), and Billy Horton (Williamsport Crosscutters.) More info on managers of the MLB Draft League can be found below.

Managers for the MLB Draft League, which is powered by Prep Baseball Report, were selected by MLB Draft League President Kerrick Jackson.

“We are very excited to have this group of quality managers for the MLB Draft League,” Jackson said. “Each of these men has played and/or coached at a very high level of professional baseball and will be a huge asset to every young man that will be fortunate to play in our League.”

“Their involvement is also an indication as to not only the quality and direction of our League, but also the quality of instruction that each player in the League will receive on their road to the Big Leagues.”

Dave Ziedelis, General Manager of the Keys, is pleased to bring major league experience to lead the Keys.

“This is a great opportunity for players to get a high level of instruction while being scouted prior to this year’s draft,” Ziedelis said. “We hope Derrick will bring a winning culture to Frederick, one that will allow our fans to appreciate a fun and exciting baseball experience at Nymeo Field.”

The Keys season is slated to start on May 24 with a trip to Trenton. Play will open up at Nymeo field on May 26 with a two-game set against West Virginia.

The MLB Draft League season will consist of 68 games, 34 home and away for each club. The first 42 games will be played between Opening Day and July 8, when the league breaks July 9-14 for the MLB Draft, which is to be held July 11-13. Play will resume July 15, with the championship game being played Aug. 15.

To view the full Keys schedule, visit https://www.mlb.com/mlb-draft-league/frederick/schedule/may.

Coco Crisp, Mahoning Valley Scrappers

During his 15-year career in Major League Baseball, Crisp, whose actual first name is Covelli, recorded a .265 batting average with 877 runs scored and 495 extra-base hits, including 308 doubles, 57 triples and 130 home runs in 1,586 games between the Cleveland Indians (2002-05, 2016), Boston Red Sox (2006-08), Kansas City Royals (2009) and Oakland Athletics (2010-16). Crisp led the American League in stolen bases (49) in 2011, racking up 309 total steals in his career.

A veteran of 43 postseason games, Crisp was a member of the 2007 World Series Champion Red Sox and returned to the Fall Classic with the Indians in 2016. After announcing his retirement, the 41-year-old coached the Shadow Hills High School (Indio, Calif.) baseball team for two seasons before joining the Oakland Athletics’ radio broadcast team as a game analyst in 2019. He currently serves as a bench coach at Cerritos College (Norwalk, Calif.).

Delwyn Young, State College Spikes

Young, 38, has deep bloodlines in baseball. His father, Delwyn Young Sr., played Minor League baseball from 1981-1994, and his uncle, Selwyn Young, also played in parts of five Minor League seasons from 1981-1995. Young’s grandfather, Fate Young, served as a Major League scout for more than four decades.

As a player, Young was twice drafted by the Atlanta Braves (31st round, 2000; 29th, 2001) but opted not to sign on both occasions, ultimately beginning his career in 2002, after the Dodgers had selected him in the fourth round. He went on to play in parts of five Major League seasons with the Dodgers (2006-08) and Pittsburgh Pirates (2009-10), compiling a .258 average with 17 home runs and 37 doubles in 344 games. After playing for Triple-A Lehigh Valley (Philadelphia Phillies) in 2011, Young spent the next five seasons playing for the Camden Riversharks (2012-13) and Sugar Land Skeeters (2014-16) in the Independent Atlantic League. Since completing his playing career, the Los Angeles, Calif. native held coaching positions with the Kingsport Mets (2018) and Brooklyn Cyclones (2019). He also serves as an instructor for the Skeeters.

Jeff Manto, Trenton Thunder

Manto, 56, was a member of the Philadelphia Phillies’ Lakewood BlueClaws coaching staff in 2001 and led the team to a 69-70 record as manager the following year. In addition to his work as the Major League hitting coach for the Pittsburgh Pirates (2006-07) and Chicago White Sox (2012-13), Manto has also served as the Minor League hitting coordinator for both the White Sox (2008-11) and Baltimore Orioles (2013-19).

Manto played in parts of nine seasons in the Major Leagues, spending time with the Cleveland Indians (1990-91, 1997-99), Philadelphia Phillies (1993), Baltimore Orioles (1995), Boston Red Sox (1996), Seattle Mariners (1996), New York Yankees (1999) and Colorado Rockies (2000) following his selection by the California Angels in the 14th round of the 1985 Draft. In 289 career games, the Temple University product recorded a .230 average while totaling 35 doubles, 31 home runs and 97 RBI.

Jedd Gyorko, West Virginia Black Bears

Gyorko, 32, played the 2020 Major League season with the Milwaukee Brewers, hitting nine home runs in 42 games. Originally a second-round pick by the San Diego Padres in the 2010 Draft, Gyorko has compiled a .245 average with 121 home runs, 111 doubles and 370 RBI in 846 career games with the Padres (2013-15), Cardinals (2016-19), Dodgers (2019) and Brewers (2020). He finished sixth in the National League Rookie of the Year voting with the Padres in 2013, when he paced all Major League rookies in home runs (23), extra-base hits (49) and total bases (216), and hit a career-high 30 home runs with the Cardinals in ‘16.

A Morgantown, W.V. native, Gyorko still holds several West Virginia University offensive records from his Mountaineers tenure (2008-10), ranking first in program history in extra-base hits (113), batting average (.404) and home runs (35-tied). He also recorded a .409 average or higher as a freshman and sophomore and hit 19 home runs as a junior in 2010, tying the program’s single-season record. In 2020, Gyorko was inducted into the Mountaineers’ Sports Hall of Fame.

Billy Horton, Williamsport Crosscutters

Horton, 47, held several Minor League coaching positions in the Giants’ system from 2012-19, working exclusively with the organization’s Arizona Rookie League affiliates. Horton led the AZL Giants Orange squad to a winning record in his first year as manager in 2018, following a six-year stay on the AZL Giants’ coaching staff (2012-17) that included an AZL championship in ‘13. In 2019, Horton served as the AZL Giants Orange’s fundamentals coach.

Prior to coaching, Horton played collegiately at Spring Hill College (Mobile, Ala.) and then played for six different Independent league teams in his four-year professional career, finishing with the Cook County of the Frontier League in 1999. He participated in Spring Training with the Chicago White Sox that year and with the Los Angeles Angels in 2000.

Information and statistics on MLB Draft League managers were gathered by Mike Rosenbaum / Senior Prospect Analyst. For more information on the Keys, contact [email protected] or at 301 815-9915