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University of Minnesota Athletics
Three Former Gophers Coach in State Tourney
6/21/2016 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Three former University of Minnesota Gopher baseball players coached in the Minnesota High School Baseball State Championship, Monday at Target Field. Bobby DeWitt and Terry Steinbach were on the bench for Wayzata while Tim Loberg coached for Champlin Park. The state championship between the two teams saw Wayzata come out on top, 9-1, for its first state title.
DeWitt led the Wayzata baseball team to a 23-3 season record and a No.1 seed with Steinbach as his assistant coach. DeWitt played for the Gophers from 1996 to 2000 appearing out of the bullpen with a 6-2 record. He pitched 71.3 innings in 53 appearances along with posting a 2.95 ERA and accumulating 47 strikeouts.
Steinbach, a two-time all-Big Ten catcher, played for the Gophers from 1981-83. He left the University of Minnesota with a career batting average of .375, a Gopher record. Steinbach is also second in total bases, RBIs, home runs and third all-time in single-season RBIs. Steinbach went on to play a combined 14 years in Major League Baseball with the Oakland Athletics and Minnesota Twins. He won one World Series with Oakland in 1989 and appeared in three All-Star games, being named All-Star Game MVP in 1991.
Tim Loberg, an assistant coach, helped lead Champlin Park to a 24-4 record and a third seed in the state tournament, where the Rebels upset No. 2 seed Woodbury. Loberg played for the Gophers in 1977 and posted a .313 batting average with five home runs, 21 RBIs and eight stolen bases.
