2016 Baseball Coaches
Gamble, a well-known figure in the local baseball community, will rely on his extensive playing and coaching background to build the Mustangs into a championship contender immediately. After a successful high school career at Sterling Heights High School, Gamble made a stop at St. Clair County Community College before winding up at Spalding University (Ky.) to finish out his collegiate career. During his days at Spalding – a then-NAIA school in Louisville – the two-year starter was tabbed All-American Honorable Mention, All-Conference and All-Region for his play behind the plate. Gamble helped lead Spalding to a fifth place finish in the NAIA World Series in 2005.
From there, Gamble played professionally for five years with the Mid-Missouri Mavericks (2005), Rio Grande Valley White Wings (2007 & 2009), Laredo Broncos (2007), Traverse City Beach Bums (2008), and the Bay Area Toros (2008). Halfway through his professional career, Gamble returned to his alma mater, this time as an assistant, as the hitting and catching coach. Gamble’s responsibilities ranged from on-field coaching to the overall recruitment for the program from 2007-09. Gamble returned home to the southeast Michigan region after his professional career ended in 2009.
Since then, Gamble has rebuilt his name locally in the baseball community through various coaching roles and individual instruction. Most recently, Gamble was responsible for the turnaround of the Lake Shore High School baseball program. The Shorians toppled two of the state’s Top-10 teams since Gamble’s arrival and were ranked in USA Today’s Michigan Top-20 in March 2013.
The successful coaching job was due in part to Gamble’s role at 2SP, an elite athletic performance facility located in Madison Heights. Since 2011, Gamble has helped over 75 student-athletes to achieve their dreams of playing baseball at the collegiate level through his 2SP work. As 2SP’s elite baseball instructor, Gamble will bridge the 17,000 square foot facility into the day-to-day operations of Marygrove’s baseball program. Giving Marygrove baseball players access to 2SP is key for the early success of the program to Gamble.
“My relationship with the great ownership of 2SP, combined with the support of Marygrove’s administration, will allow for this program to form into a championship contender quickly,” said Marygrove’s new head coach. “The combination my playing and coaching careers, plus the facilities and support we are gaining, are all big reasons Marygrove Baseball will come out of the gates and be competitive year one.”
“The outreach and support that I’ve received since arriving on-campus has been overwhelming,” continued Gamble. “Having 17 recruits on campus in two days, plus another 10 in the days that followed, shows the belief in this program I share with the baseball community and incoming players. To see recruits and their parents having excitement on their faces after a campus visit is something that will never get old in this program. Our program goals for the first season will be the same as our goals in season 10 – to win and develop young men on and off the field! There is a ton of talent in the metro Detroit area that is untapped for unexplained reasons. It’s our goal as a program to find these players and put everyone on notice that we are here now and will be here for a long time.”
“We will win,” relayed Gamble. “Above all else, our team will take care of business in the classroom. Very few college student-athletes move on to the next level so we will build young men to be leaders in the classroom and the community. Additionally, the student-athletes considering Marygrove should know we just don’t want to have a team for the sake of having a team. We want to win and will do so with the quality of student-athlete that is already stepping onto Marygrove’s campus to play next year.”
Want to be a part of the historic first years of Marygrove baseball? Interested student-athletes can fill out a recruit form here. Looking to stay connected to Marygrove athletics and the newly-formed baseball program? Follow the Mustangs on twitter at twitter.com/MGroveBASEBALL.
Coach Richard Hinkle enters his second year as pitching coach for the newly-formed Marygrove baseball program in 2016. Hinkle, a southwest Nebraska native, graduated from Cambridge High School (Neb.) in 2003 where he lettered in basketball, football, and track. After graduation, Hinkle attended McCook Community College (Neb.), playing baseball for the Indians during his freshman season before transferring to play for the Peru State College Bobcats (Neb.) the following year. Hinkle went on to play three seasons for the Bobcats and was honored as a MCAC Scholar-Athlete two years in a row and was also named Daktronics-NAIA Scholar Athlete – an academic award his current pitching staff will be eligible for as members of the NAIA. Hinkle graduated from Peru State with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education (K-12) in 2008.
Hinkle started his coaching career in the summer of 2006 when he took the helm of the senior legion team in his hometown of Cambridge. He would go on to coach the seniors team in 2007 before taking over the senior legion team in nearby McCook in 2008 – a year in which he was selected to coach the league’s all-star game. The coaching experience, combined with the all-star game appearance, led Hinkle back to his first stop during his collegiate playing days, McCook Community College, where he assumed the title of pitching coach in 2008. Hinkle spent four seasons at McCook Community College, traveling to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada to coach in the Western Major Baseball League with the Edmonton Prospects during his tenure. Hinkle completed his Master’s degree in Health, Physical Education & Recreation from Emporia State University (Kan.) in 2012.
