Cougars unveil veteran skipper, former Minnesota Twins pitcher George Tsamis as franchise’s next manager

Kane County Cougars owner Dr. Bob Froehlich has one question for American Association of Professional Baseball players searching for an opportunity.

Who wouldn’t want to play for new Cougars manager George Tsamis?

“That’s what I want to know,” Froehlich said. “I want to know: Who in their right mind does not want to come play for George in Kane County? Literally, it’s the best of both worlds. We’ve got the best manager, we’ve got a great facility, great demographics, unbelievable atmosphere that’s going to even be more energized when George puts that team on the field – that’s there for one reason: That’s to win.”

“I think we caught lightning in a bottle. There’s no doubt in my mind.”

The Cougars, after a difficult offseason that saw its minor league baseball affiliate relationship end with the Arizona Diamondbacks and MLB, are triumphantly turning a new page into their next chapter within the AAPB.

Leading the way is Tsamis, who managed the St. Paul Saints of the American Association for 18 seasons. The Saints most recently arose to become the AAA affiliate of the Minnesota Twins, a move that meant Tsamis was out of a job.

Tsamis became the Cougars’ 21st manager in franchise history on Tuesday.

Tsamis, a former 1989 draft choice of the Twins, competed at the big leagues for one season in 1993 before beginning his managerial career. As a big-leaguer, Tsamis pitched in 41 games for the Twins, amassing 30 strikeouts.

Tsamis has won over 1,000 games as an independent league skipper, reaching 950 managerial wins with the Saints last September. The Saints most recently won an American Association championship in 2019.

“In my opinion, George is clearly the [Greatest of all Time] of minor league baseball managers,” Froehlich said.

Tsamis said the hiring process emerged with the Cougars within the last 10 days.

“I love it. First of all, I’m not the most exciting guy in the world: I don’t golf, I don’t fish, I don’t hunt,” Tsmais said of being a manager for nearly 20 years and counting. “This is all I do. I love doing it. I really missed it these last six months when I was not in the league anymore. You realize how much you miss it. This is all I want to do.”

“When we get off this [Zoom call], I’m going to go call this shortstop I’m trying to get,” Tsamis continued. “I love putting together the team. That’s half the fun of doing this job. People have asked me ‘Hey, you ever looking to get with a major league organization?’ I love this. This is what I want to do...I want to put the team together, and then I want to go out there and win games.”

The Cougars have yet to sign any player to the official roster, nor are there managerial staff hirings yet.

Joshua Schaub, Commissioner of the AAPB, joined the zoom press conference to welcome the Cougars franchise to the league.

“We were honored to bring them on board and give them a membership,” Schaub said. “For Dr. Bob and his staff, we put [them through] a true rigorous vetting process and we’re very happy with the results of that process. We’re very happy to have them on board.”

The American Association was founded in 2005, a combination of former members of the Northern and Central Leagues to form the Association. In the fall of 2020, the Association became a partner league with Major League Baseball.

“A lot of our teams have been around for a very long time,” Schaub said, referencing many of the Association’s teams dating back to at least 1993. “What you have in the American Association is an extremely stable league of operators, facilities and cities.”

“...It is not just eyewash,” Schaub continued. “It’s a major partnership and major relationship [with MLB] as part of One Baseball. That, the American Association becomes a part of the greater baseball landscape in America.”

Once the Cougars were dropped by MLB, Froehlich said the franchise was contacted by several leagues, including the American Association.

“It took about 30 seconds to analyze all the options and realize there’s one league that’s really, it’s a AAA league,” Froehlich said. “They don’t call the MiLB partner leagues by classifications, but all you got to look is: look at the quality of the facilities, look at the quality of the owners...the American Association is really the AAA of MLB Partner Leagues.”

“We knew right away, if we we’re going to play in 2021, we knew where we wanted to play,” Froehlich continued.

One big difference, Schaub says, that fans will notice with affiliated baseball and MLB partner leagues: “The fact we play to win and lose.”

“We go out every night trying to win ball games. We want to develop players to a certain extent, but the reality is: George’s job and other managers out there...is to win ball games at all costs. That’s going to be a significant contrast to what you’ve seen in the past.”

“We play to win in the American Association. Our players play for Kane County. They chose to be in Kane County, just like George chose to be in Kane County...they’re not trying to move up a level; they’re not competing against their teammates for the next roster spot, they’re there to win and perform and win baseball games for the fans in Kane County,” Schaub continued.

The Cougars will open their season May 18 and host 53 home games at Northwestern Medicine Field this season.

“Kane County Cougars fans, I would say this to you: This is your team,” Tsamis said. “You’re going to love this team. You’re going to see those AAA [and] AA players every night. You’re going to see 95-miles-per-hour one night. You’ll see 90-miles-per-hour another night. You’re going to see 420-foot homers. You’re going to see all of this.”

“The competition [and] rivalries in this league, it’s great,” Tsamis said.