Rich Dorman - Baseball Coach - Grand Canyon University Athletics

Rich Dorman

Title:
Pitching Coach
Years at GCU:
fourth
Email:
rich.dorman@gcu.edu
Phone:
602-639-8416

Rich Dorman is in his fourth season as the Lopes’ pitching coach in 2020. He was hired in July of 2016 after spending the previous eight seasons coaching in the Seattle Mariners organization.

In Dorman's three seasons overseeing the Lopes pitching staff, the team ERA has improved each season. In 2019, led by a starting rotation of Kade Mechals, Pierson Ohl and Jack Schneider, GCU posted a 4.16 ERA that was the program's second-best mark in its 14 Division I seasons. Mechals was an All-WAC first team selection and all-region pick as starting pitcher, and Ohl was the conference's Freshman of the Year. GCU’s 3.02 ERA during WAC play not only led the conference, it was the WAC's third-best mark in the last five years.

In his first two years on the staff, the Lopes posted a perfect 16-0 mark in conference series. GCU won a pair of WAC regular season titles, featuring a 39-9 record in conference play. In 2017, Dorman's staff posted a 3.57 ERA during conference play, leading the Lopes to wins in their final nine weekend series of the season. The staff ERA in conference play ranked third in the WAC.

GCU had two pitchers selected in the first 10 rounds of the 2018 MLB Draft and had a third pitcher sign as a free agent immediately following the draft. Right-handed pitcher Jake Wong became GCU's highest draft pick since Tim Salmon (1989), going in the third round (80th overall) to the San Francisco Giants. Mick Vorhof went to the New York Yankees in the ninth round. Ethan Evanko later signed a contract with the Philadelphia Phillies. Mechals was a 40th-round pick of the Miami Marlins in the 2019 draft.

During his time with the Mariners, Dorman worked with and molded some of the best young arms in the game. Under his tutelage, eight players (to date) have reached the major leagues including Taijuan Walker and James Paxton.

Dorman’s journey through the Mariners coaching ranks began with two separate two-year stints as the pitching coach of the Everett AquaSox (Single-A Short Season). The AquaSox’s pitching staff ranked in the upper-half of the Northwest League in team ERA in three of Dorman’s four seasons with the club. Under Dorman’s guidance, Everett’s pitching staff led the NWL with a 3.22 ERA in the 2010 season en route to claiming a league championship.

Sandwiched between the pair of two-year stints in Everett, Dorman spent the 2011 season with the Clinton LumberKings (Single-A). In the 16-team league, Dorman’s pitching staff ranked second in total strikeouts (1,166 total; 8.6 per nine innings).

In 2014, Dorman transitioned to the Mariners’ Peoria Complex to lead the pitching staff of the Arizona League Mariners for two seasons. In this role, he had the chance to develop and mentor the newly-drafted Mariners’ talent as they adjusted to professional baseball.

In his final season coaching in the Seattle Mariners organization, Dorman returned to Clinton, Iowa for another season as the pitching coach of the LumberKings. Dorman’s staff finished with a team ERA of 3.12, second in the Midwest League. His club led the league in saves (50).

The Oregon-native spent time at both Oregon State University in Corvallis, Ore. and Western Baptist College (now Corban University) in Salem, Ore. At Western Baptist in 2000, Dorman recorded 81 strikeouts on the year, a mark which ranks third in school history.

Dorman began pitching during his third year of collegiate baseball, playing catcher in high school and community college.

The right-handed pitcher was selected in the 13th round of the 2000 MLB Draft by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, the 376th overall selection. Over the next nine seasons, Dorman played for 13 different teams at various levels, ranging from Rookie League to Triple-A, spanning geographically from Tacoma, Wash. to Jupiter, Fla. His professional career included stints with the Tampa Bay, Florida and Seattle organizations.

Dorman’s top season statistically came in 2003 when he posted a 2.73 ERA over 38 appearances for two different Mariners’ affiliates. Dorman logged a 6-2 record on the hill while striking out 102 batters in 82.1 innings.

Dorman’s playing career professionally consisted of over 800.0 innings of work with a 52-43 record, a 3.80 ERA and 784 strikeouts. He made 60 appearances at the Triple-A level, accumulating 211.0 innings of work.

Dorman was born on September 30, 1978 in Medford, Ore. He is married to his wife, Cathy, and the couple has two children, Alexa Anne and Blake William.