“A Self-Made Coach”: How Chad Comer Got His Start in the Rangers’ Backyard
University of Texas at Arlington assistant coach Darin Thomas called a skinny freshman into his office shortly before the start of the 2007 season. A late offseason addition to a veteran roster, the local kid from Mansfield had gone through the wringer in his first year of college, warding off
University of Texas at Arlington assistant coach Darin Thomas called a skinny freshman into his office shortly before the start of the 2007 season. A late offseason addition to a veteran roster, the local kid from Mansfield had gone through the wringer in his first year of college, warding off mononucleosis and bronchitis; losing, not gaining, the “freshman 15.”
“You look tough,” quipped Thomas. “But it’s good... you’ve lost a lot of baby fat.”
Thomas then had the task of telling Chad Comer he wasn’t going to play much, if at all, in Comer’s first year at UTA. There were guys ahead of him who were soon going off to other things, and quite frankly, weren’t fully focused on college baseball. A rough year was ahead.
“It was an invaluable learning opportunity with a group that didn’t handle struggles well,” said Comer. “I saw how not to do things. It made me want to be a leader down the line.”
As the Mavericks scuffled to a 17-39 record, Comer spent the spring season traveling on road trips, catching bullpens and with pitching coach Jay Sirianni. Once next fall came around, he seized his opportunity. Comer went on to become a three-time all-Southland Conference honoree, the unquestioned anchor of UTA’s program until his graduation in 2010.
Copious amounts of film study and strict conditioning kept Comer ahead of the curve. Sometimes, he and Sirianni were the curve, experimenting to create catching drills, “90 percent” of which Sirianni, now the head coach at Sam Houston State, still uses to this day.
“He made himself into one of the best catchers I’ve had,” said Sirianni, who coached Astros’ 2024 first-round pick Walker Janek for three years. “Being a team guy, helping others improve, making himself into a productive player — it was fun to be a part of his career.”
“Jay and I really gelled well; we became an extension of one another,” said Comer. “Half the things I was bringing up to ask him, he was about to ask me.”
By the time he was a senior, Comer had the authority to call every single pitch of a game from behind the plate, a rarity in this age of college baseball. While the rest of UT-Arlington's catchers switched to a numbers system, where each pitch is signaled in from the dugout by a three-number sequence, he remained the outlier.
“He could always talk to a pitcher, fix issues, and call pitches to their strengths,” remembered Thomas. “They always respected the heck out of him because of how much he cared and how much he worked”
"[His teammates] had respect for him but they also had fear – they didn’t want to let him down,” said Sirianni. “He held the entire pitching staff accountable... I just stayed out of the way.”
Former Braves Minor League catcher Chad Comer has been named 2025 manager of the Hub City Spartanburgers. Comer has spent the past two seasons as manager of the Rangers’ Hickory Crawdads. The team will play in a new stadium in Spartanburg, S.C. (Tom Priddy/Four Seam Images) pic.twitter.com/tG5NpWUQu8
— Tom Priddy (@tpriddy) January 7, 2025
After two years playing in the Braves minor league system, Comer returned home to Arlington. With a desire to get back to coaching, but unsure how to do so, he went back to Thomas, now the Mavs’ head coach, who didn’t have a job for him. At least, not directly.
"He told me ‘You can work with our catchers, but I can’t pay you,'” reminisced Comer. “’Or you can work on the grounds crew, make a little money, and help with practice.’”
After a year of tending to infields, UTA pitching coach Jon Wente got a call from the Rangers; they were looking for a younger minor league catching coach. Wente passed Comer's info always linked with the local college, they were hunting for a Comer's first coaching interview was with the team he grew up rooting for. The Mavericks played midweek games at then-Globe Life Park when the big-league club was on the road. Comer wouldn’t have to touch a rake this time around.
“Whether it was the grounds crew, putting yourself in front of people who could get him a job, or using UTA’s Rangers connections, he’s made himself into a self-made coach,” said Sirianni. “He’s had to work the same way he has as a player to get the best out of his career.”
About the Hub City Spartanburgers
The Hub City Spartanburgers, the High-A affiliate of the Texas Rangers, will embark on their inaugural season in April 2025. The team’s home opener at Fifth Third Park is slated for April 15, 2025. For more information on the Spartanburgers, visit milb.com/hub-city. For information about tickets to any of Hub City’s 66 home games, call 864-658-4206 or email: tickets@hcspartanburgers.com For media inquiries, email: iunsworth@hcspartanburgers.com. Follow along with the Spartanburgers on social media.
Orioles' Honeycutt joins The Show Before the Show
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Red Sox prospect rips double THROUGH Fenway-esque scoreboard
Red Sox No. 4 prospect Franklin Arias, an infielder for High-A Greenville, REALLY didn’t want to let visiting Asheville score any runs in the top of the eighth inning on Friday night. With runners on first and second base in the bottom of the fourth, Arias showed he apparently held
April's hottest hitting prospects -- one for each organization
The Minor League season is a month old and several of the game's best hitting prospects are off to fast starts. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony is tearing up Triple-A (just like he did at the end of last year), Padres shortstop Leo De Vries is leading the High-A Midwest
Check out the best -- and wackiest -- Minor League promos happening in May
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast coming LIVE to a Somerset this June
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
New ballparks highlight 2025 MiLB road trip stops
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Minor League Baseball partners with TruGreen
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- TruGreen, the nation's leading lawn care treatment provider, is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Minor League Baseball that includes activations across all 120 clubs, a makeover of the home dugout in each market, sponsorship of select MiLB team grounds crews, and a new initiative called
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between