FROSTBURG, Md. – The Frostburg State University baseball program, under the direction of head coach Anthony Williams, has announced coaching staff additions for the 2022 season.

The newest hire on Coach Williams' staff is Alfonso Reda, who will join the Bobcats as a graduate assistant coach. Reda is coming off a five-year career in professional baseball as a catcher, having played most recently for the West Virginia Power of the Atlantic League during the 2021 season. He also spent seasons with the Texas Airhogs of the American Association after previous stints in the Atlantic League with the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs and the Somerset Patriots. Reda also spent a year overseas playing in Italy. A Montgomery, NY native, Reda played and coached collegiately at Misericordia University under head coach Pete Egbert, graduating with a bachelors degree in Business Administration. He will pursue a masters degree from FSU in Sport Management while focusing his coaching duties on working with the catchers and hitters.

From Coach Williams: "We searched all summer to find the right guy for this position, and with Al playing professionally it forced us to have some patience in the hiring process. We firmly believe we got the right guy and it was worth the wait to get him to campus. Al has a tremendous feel for the game as both a player and a coach and has a natural ability to teach and communicate. They say catchers make great coaches and I've had good fortune with that in past hirings, so we are excited for Al and ready to get to work."

Returning to the Bobcat coaching staff in 2022 are pitching coach Dean Peterson and assistant coach Larry Williams.

Peterson returns for his second season in charge of the pitching staff. A former ninth-round pick of the Boston Red Sox out of Allegheny College, Peterson spent five seasons in minor league baseball before a career in the United States Secret Service. After returning to the field, Peterson made stops at Smithsburg High School, Messiah College, as well as his alma mater.

On Peterson, Coach Williams stated, "I was very fortunate to have had the chance to hire Dean. Not only because of his background and experience but because of his commitment, loyalty, and leadership. He's the type of guy who has your back and wants the very best for our student-athletes and our program and does an excellent job leading our pitching staff on a daily basis."

Rounding out Coach Williams' staff is his father, assistant coach Larry Williams. The father-son combination is rare amongst college coaching staffs, but the elder Williams has been a part of the staff since head coach Williams' arrival in the fall of 2019. He spent a number of years in professional and collegiate baseball, most recently as an assistant at UMBC from 2013-2018 where he helped coach the Retriever infielders and hitters, on their way to a 2017 America East Conference championship and NCAA tournament appearance.

"My father has been a baseball lifer, a former professional player in the Pirates & Indians organizations, as well as countless coaching and scouting stops along the way. Myself, our staff, and our players benefit from getting to lean on his baseball and coaching wisdom, it makes a huge impact on our program. From a recruiting standpoint, he has been invaluable to us and obviously knows what he is looking for from a talent perspective. It has been a great thrill to coach with my father and I look forward to hoisting a Mountain East Conference trophy with him one day soon."

The FSU baseball coaching staff brings a ton of experience, especially at the collegiate and professional ranks, with Head Coach Williams spending five seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates working in video & advance scouting, while also serving as the head coach at Division III Pitt-Greensburg and Division II Clarion University prior to returning to Frostburg State in the fall of 2019 as the Bobcats made the transition to NCAA Division II.

Frostburg will open the 2022 season February 18-20 with a series against Bluefield State in Beckley, W. Va.