Doug Delett enters his 8th season with the Utica Blue Sox and his 5th season as the team’s head coach. Delett was the pitching coach for the Blue Sox from 2016-2018, while also being promoted to associate head coach in 2018, before getting the nod to become the Utica skipper in 2019 and has a managerial record of 109-65-1. During Delett’s tenure on the Blue Sox coaching staff, the team has only had one losing season and has compiled a record of 183-134-1 while making the playoffs five times in that seven-season span. The Blue Sox have reached the postseason in each of Delett’s first four seasons as head coach.
The 2023 Blue Sox finished with the second-best record in the PGCBL under Delett’s direction as they went 28-13, the team’s best winning percentage since joining the PGCBL in 2013. The Blue Sox rallied around Delett and went on a second half tear that began on the 4th of July with a walk-off win over Watertown. They would walk it off again two days later against the 25-1 Amsterdam Mohawks, who had entered that game with a league-record 16-game win streak. The day after that, they got their third consecutive walk-off win in the opening game of a doubleheader against Watertown, a 1-0 victory. They would go on to win nine more in a row and Delett would earn his 100th career win as manager on July 17 in the 10th of those 12 consecutive wins, a 6-3 Blue Sox victory over the Lumberjacks in the first game of a doubleheader in Boonville. The Blue Sox would defeat their archrivals, the Mohawk Valley DiamondDawgs, in walk-off fashion in the East Division semifinals by a score of 3-2 at Murnane Field and then pushed the Mohawks to the brink in the East Division final in Amsterdam. Trailing 2-1 in the 9th and down to their final out, Delett’s tenacious team never relented, getting three straight hits to tie the game at 2 and send the game to extras, where they would ultimately fall 3-2 in 10 innings. Five of Delett’s players earned All-PGCBL honors for 2023 as Andre Demetral and Benny Partridge were named 1st Team All-PGCBL, while Kyuss Gargett, Will Shannon, and Norris McClure were all named 2nd Team All-PGCBL. Delett also presided over Will Shannon breaking the franchise’s single-season RBI record that had stood for a dozen years.
In 2022, Delett’s team set a then-PGCBL record for the longest win streak in league history by winning 14 straight from June 13-29. The Blue Sox finished in 2nd place in the West Division with a 27-19-1 record and defeated the Auburn Doubledays 7-1 at Murnane Field in the division semifinals before falling to the Batavia Muckdogs on the road in the division final.
After the PGCBL canceled its 2020 season due to the pandemic, Delett led the 2021 Blue Sox to the Central Division title with a 24-17 record, beating out the Auburn Doubledays in a tight race that came down to the final day of the season.
Delett’s first season as the head man in 2019 for the Blue Sox was a more than successful one, capturing the PGCBL West Division crown with a 30-16 record. The Blue Sox went on an eight-game win streak from July 5-14 with the last of those wins coming in walk-off fashion against the Geneva Red Wings to take over first place in the division for good.
During Delett’s tenure as the team’s pitching coach, he played a pivotal role in the development of several future pro pitchers, including future big leaguers Louie and Gus Varland, as well as Jared Solomon.
Delett is a Utica-area native, graduating from Whitesboro High School in 1977. While at Whitesboro, he garnered a First-Team Central Oneida League selection in his senior year.
From there, Delett made the short trip down the road to Mohawk Valley Community College. During the 1978 season, he was a part of a MVCC squad that concluded the year as the 3rd ranked team in New York State.
Delett remained local following his college days, playing for the Utica Blue Sox from 1981-83 in the New York-Penn League as an independent organization. During his years with the Blue Sox, actor/comedian Bill Murray was one of the club’s owners.
Delett’s rookie season in Utica was a special one for the now Blue Sox head coach, getting the ball as the starting pitcher on opening day in 1981 against the Little Falls Mets. Two weeks later, he threw a complete game against the same Mets team, only surrendering four hits.
After his playing days were over, Delett became the coach of the freshman team at JFK High School in Utica in 1984.
Delett made his return to coaching the game as an instructor 13 years ago, before returning to his former stomping grounds of Murnane Field as the pitching coach in 2016. Delett is the lead instructor at the Blue Sox Academy during the winter season.
Luke Schulte is in his second season with the Blue Sox as the pitching coach and his first as the 3rd base coach. He was born and raised in Morristown, NJ.
Schulte attended Morristown High School from 2014-2017 and played for their baseball team all four years. In his junior year, his high school team won the state sectional title and we state runners-up. During his senior year, Schulte hit .355 and slugged .484 while also registering a 2.76 ERA on the mound as a two-way player.
After graduating from Morristown, he moved on to County College of Morris. After one season, he was named Captain of the team. During his freshman year, Schulte hit .500 and had a 12.49 K/9, which ranked him 30th in the country. After his sophomore year he won the Joe Maugeri Award for hard work, selflessness, leadership and integrity.
After two years at County College of Morris, Schulte transferred to Utica University. His first year was cut short due to Covid, and in his senior year Schulte suffered a torn labrum. However, he could not stay away from baseball and became a coach.
In his four years as a member of the Utica University coaching staff, the team has steadily improved their record each year. They have also been the best offensive team and appeared in the conference finals two of the past three years. During that span, the team has seen the first ever back-to-back All-Region player, the first All-Region Pitcher and the first major award winner in the conference. Schulte is in his first season as the recruiting coordinator for Utica University.
Mike Macchione is entering his first year as a Blue Sox coach this summer. He will be taking over catching coach duties, while also bringing a significant amount of experience to this year’s club.
Many Blue Sox fans may recognize Coach Macchione because he has been a staple in the local community for 50 plus years. Born and raised in Utica, Macchione attended Proctor High School and graduated in 1965. During his time at Proctor, he was a member of the baseball team and played catcher. At this time, he also spent two years playing legion baseball for Adrean Post, the beginning of nearly a lifetime spent with Adrean and legion baseball. Macchione also spent time playing with former big league outfielder Dave Cash who, most notably, was a three-time all-star with the Philadelphia Phillies, as well as Pittsburgh Pirates 3rd round pick Richard Grimaldi.
After graduating high school, Macchione enlisted in the Air Force where he was stationed in Guam, Okinawa, Thailand, and Westover Air Force Base in Massachusetts. Once he returned, he briefly played in the Utica municipal league before kickstarting a long and impressive coaching career.
In 1971, Coach Macchione suited up as the head coach for Adrean Post, a position he would hold for 52 years. This impressive feat was even further exemplified by his dedication to his team and his love of the game. Under Macchione, Adrean won many league titles including an especially impressive playoff run in the early 1990s when his team was a game away from the Legion World Series. Macchione built a thriving legion baseball program that consistently won 20-25 games a year.
In the past few years, Macchione has taken up an administrative role with the Adrean club, while also becoming the New York State Legion Baseball Chairman. This role has allowed Macchione to help guide legion baseball and spark up interest in future generations of ballplayers.
Off the field, Coach Macchione has been married to his high school sweetheart for 52 years. He and his wife still live in Utica, and are the proud parents of 3 children, a son and two daughters. Macchione is quite proud of his children, his oldest daughter is a deputy assistant, his son is an art director, and finally his youngest daughter works freelance social media work.
Macchione looks forward to the upcoming season. He feels that it represents a great opportunity to stay in the game, while also allowing him to coach at the collegiate level, something that he enjoys. Coach Macchione is an exciting addition to this years’ staff because of his experience and love of the game, nonetheless he is a local coach who has contributed significantly to baseball in the area.
James Roeschlaub is in his first season on the Blue Sox coaching staff. He will primarily coach infielders and outfielders while also serving as the 1st base coach.
Roeschlaub hails from Auburn, NY and graduated from Auburn High School in 2018. He then went on to play at Cayuga Community College before transferring to Utica University during the pandemic. He was a mainstay on the Pioneers’ pitching staff from 2021-23, striking out 138 hitters in 33 games there (27 starts) and allowing only seven home runs in 133 innings.
Roeschlaub is now in his first year on the Utica University coaching staff as an assistant coach alongside fellow Blue Sox coach Luke Schulte.
Nate Zambri enters his first season on the Blue Sox coaching staff, mainly as a bench coach and sharing infield/outfield coaching duties with James Roeschlaub.
Zambri is a native of Little Falls, NY and was a three-year member of the varsity baseball team at Little Falls High School.
He has had plenty of baseball experience since then, having worked as an instructor at the Blue Sox Academy since 2021, as well as playing one year of collegiate baseball in 2023 at Mohawk Valley Community College in Utica. In 2022, he made three appearances out of the bullpen for the Boonville Baseball Club, going 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA and five strikeouts in 5.1 innings pitched.
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