John Thomas Kotchman (born August 14, 1954 in Grafton, North Dakota) is a scout and a manager in the farm system of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim of Major League Baseball.
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Tom Kotchman attended high school in Seminole, Florida, and played baseball at Chipola Junior College in Florida and Georgia Southern University. He was signed by the Cincinnati Reds in 1977 and played two seasons (1977-78) in their farm system at the Class A level. A third baseman, he threw and batted right-handed, stood 6'1" (185 cm) tall and weighed 180 pounds (82 kg).
The 2008 season marked Kotchman's 30th consecutive year as a minor league manager. He began his career in 1979 at age 24 with the Auburn Redstars in the Short-Season Class A New York- Penn League. The Auburn franchise lacked a Player Development Contract and was designated a "co-op" team, receiving its players on loan from multiple major league organizations. After one season there, Kotchman became manager of teams affiliated with MLB organizations. He spent 1980-81 in the Detroit Tigers system, as skipper of the Bristol Tigers of the Rookie-level Appalachian League in 1980, then the Macon Peaches of the full-season Class A South Atlantic League in 1981. He then spent 1982-83 as pilot of the Boston Red Sox' Class A Florida State League franchise, the Winter Haven Red Sox.
In 1984, he joined the Angels' farm system. From 1984-86, he was manager of their Class A California League farm clubs, the Redwood Pioneers, based in Rohnert Park, California, and the Palm Springs Angels. Success there led to a promotion to the Angels' Triple-A Edmonton Trappers affiliate in the Pacific Coast League, where he also spent three seasons (1987-89). In 1990, Kotchman assumed his current role, as a Florida-based scout and manager of the Angels' Short-Season Class A or Rookie-level teams in the Northwest League and the Pioneer League. He skippered the Boise Hawks of the NWL for 11 seasons (1990-2000) during which time the Hawks never finished lower than second place and never compiled a losing record. Since 2001, he has managed in the Pioneer League with the Provo Angels (2001-04) and the Orem Owlz (since 2005). Through 2010, he had compiled a career managerial record of 1,623 victories and 1,363 defeats, a winning percentage of .544, with eight league championships, including Orem's '09 Pioneer League title.[1]
In 2008 Kotchman was one of the inaugral inductees into the Professional Baseball Scouts Hall of Fame.[2]
He is the father of current MLB player Casey Kotchman and his daughter Christal Kotchman was on the College of Charleston softball team.