GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - Head Coach Kevin Tidey of the Davenport University baseball program is pleased to announce the hiring of Brent Gates as assistant coach. Gates will specialize in hitting and infield duties and also serve as recruiting coordinator for the program. He will take over the position held by Drew Huard, who will be taking an assistant coach position at NCAA Division I Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan.
"Coach Huard did a tremendous job for us over the last five years," said Tidey. "We are super happy for him in this next step of his career and wish him the best."
Huard helped build a program that would win back-to-back GLIAC regular season and tournament titles in 2021 and 2022. The Panthers also qualified for the NCAA postseason during both of those seasons including the first appearance in school history in 2021.
Gates steps in and the program will not miss a beat. He spent seven seasons in Major League Baseball with the Oakland Athletics, Seattle Mariners, and Minnesota Twins. He played in 685 career games and batted .264 in his career with 279 RBI. Among his accomplishments, he was sixth in the American League Rookie of the Year voting in 1993.
Gates has coached at Grand Rapids Christian High School and lifted that program to new heights. The Eagles won the MHSAA Division 2 State Championship in 2023 giving Gates his third state championship overall and the squad also finished as the state runner-up in 2022. They posted a .806 winning percentage over the past two seasons and Gates has the most state titles of any Grand Rapids area coach.
"We are excited to add coach Gates to our staff," explained Tidey. "With him making a full career change to a college baseball coach, he will be fully invested in our program and also do a great job as recruiting coordinator. His career in baseball speaks for itself. He is a proven winner, but most importantly he can relate to players and build lasting relationships. It will be exciting to see our program reach an even higher level."
After his major league career, Gates opened up the Frozen Ropes Training Facility and was owner from 2000-03. He spent one season as manager of the West Michigan Whitecaps in 2001, a single A affiliate in Grand Rapids of the Detroit Tigers. He was the fourth manager in franchise history.
Gates was inducted into the Grand Rapids Sports Hall of Fame in 2006 and began a high school coaching career in 2008 with Grand Rapids Christian. He guided the team to unprecedented success capped off by three straight MHSAA Division II State Championship game appearances and state titles in 2012 and 2013.
In 2015, he was inducted into the University of Minnesota Athletic Hall of Fame. He also served as a professional scout with the Tampa Bay Rays from 2014-16.
