Dustin Bothwell, Head Coach/Owner
Dustin has been involved with baseball in south Orange County since playing baseball for North Mission Viejo Little League. He continued to play at Capistrano Valley High School and went on to win a state championship at Saddleback College. When his playing career came to an end his coaching career began. He began coaching at College of the Redwoods while completing his bachelor’s degree in Recreation Administration at Humboldt State University. He returned to Orange County to pursue a master’s degree in physical education at Azusa Pacific University and to coach at Chapman University. He currently resides in Aliso Viejo, with his wife, Sunny, and three boys, Drake (13), Deegan (10), and Declan (8), and has been coaching at Saddleback College since 2015. In 2016, as the pitching coach, he led the staff to the lowest ERA in the state, the team had earned the number one ranking in the state, and we won the second conference championship in school history. He currently directs the Program Assisting Student-athlete Success (PASS) at Saddleback College
BRIAN BENNETT,
Head Coach/Private Instructor
BB iis the President of the Core Catching Board of Directors and Head of
Baseball Instruction. Brian went to Indio High School in Indio, CA. He graduated in 1985 as a three year letter athlete and two all-league selections. The 1986-1987 season at San Bernardino he played on a 33-13 team who won League then Regionals and found themselves in the California State Championships in San Jose, CA. During the June 1986 free agent draft Brian was picked up by the Houston Astros Baseball Club where he ultimately signed in 1987. Brian had the privilege of playing professional baseball in the Houston Organization for 5 1/2 seasons. His relentless challenge for responsibility and preparation is the foundation for the players Brian works with today.
JOSH KEITHLY,
HEAD COACH/PRIVATE INSTRUCTOR
Josh went to high school at Capistrano Valley High School where he
played 1B/3B. He received a scholarship to play collegiately at Pacific University while earning a Bachelor Degree in Exercise Science. He also played in the NBC summer collegiate World Series in 2014 with the Arvada Colts. His career continued professionally overseas in Germany and Switzerland for the next three years. For the past two years he has been an assistant varsity coach at Saddleback Valley Christian High School.
Kent Burckle - Head Coach
2014, San Clemente High School
– Second team All – CIF Southern Section
– Second team All – County
– MVP of his team in his senior year
– 2014 North/South All – Star game
– Left the program as the record holder in batting average after leading the league in hitting
2015, Loyola Marymount College
– Played in 21 games up the middle while hitting .269
2016, Saddleback College
– Hit .331, had 17 RBI’s, 26 runs, 5 steals in 35 games
Orange Empire Conference Champions
Daniel Harris,
Head Coach/Private Instructor
2014, Capistrano Valley High School
– Played 2 seasons on the Varsity Baseball Team
– Won South Coast League Title in 2014
2016, San Jose State
– Made 4 appearance and 3 starts
– 0 -1 with a 4.30 ERA in 14 2/3 IP
– Help opponents to a .224 batting avg
– Season was cut short due to injury
2017, Saddleback College
– Made 13 starts among his 14 appearances as a freshman
– Went 5-6 with a 1.65 ERA in 76 1/3 IP
– Struck out 46 with only 19 walks
– 1st Team All Conference in 2018
BRETT AUERBACH
Brett is an assistant coach during his off season. He is currently in the
minor leagues with the San Francisco Giants. He played locally for Tesoro High School before being recruited to continue his career at Saddleback College. He earned first team all conference, at different positions, each of his first two years while leading the team in numerous offensive categories, Although he was drafted he opted to continue his career at the University of Alabama. The accolades continued at Alabama and he signed as a free agent following the 2020 draft.