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A lot can be said for consistency in coaching staffs. Over the past six seasons, head coach Loren Hibbs has been able to keep his main staff in tact and look to hitting and pitching coaches Bo Durkac and Brandon Hall, helping keep the program stable and enabling the improvements that this club has seen in recent years.
Bo Durkac, a former All-Metro Conference third baseman at Virginia Tech, is in his seventh season as a member of the Charlotte coaching staff under Loren Hibbs. His main responsibilities are as hitting instructor, infield/outfield defensive instructor and recruiting.
In the six previous seasons Durkac has served as hitting coach, the 49ers have batted a combined .309 and averaged 7.27 runs and 3.26 extra base hits per game. The 49ers set the school record for team batting average in 2008, finishing at .333 for the season, which was 11th-highest in the nation. The Niners had over 700 hits in back-to-back seasons for the first time in school history and had the second-most hits in a season in 2008, with 720. Following a tremendous offensive year in 2007, the Niners still managed to continue to improve statistically in 2008 in batting average (by 12 points), home runs (+21) and slugging percentage (by 24 points). They also were statistically better in on-base percentage (by 20 points) and walks (+63) and down in strikeouts.
Charlotte has hit over 100 doubles in a season for five straight seasons, one shy of the club mark of six from 1995-2000. In 2007, the 49ers set the team record for triples in a season (33). 2007 saw an increase over the 2005 numbers in hits (+105), runs (+22), RBI (+37) and HR (+7). The team hit 10 points better in average and 20 points better in slugging and set the team record for fielding percentage (0.966), which was equaled in 2008. Over the past six years under Durkac's tutelage, the Niners have seen steady increases in runs, hits, batting average, RBI and slugging percentage.
Durkac finished his professional baseball career with the Long Island Ducks of the Atlantic League in September of 2001 after playing for Sonoma County in the Western Baseball League that summer. He played with the Taichung Agan in the Taiwan Major Leagues in March and April of 2001. Before playing in Taiwan, he played three seasons in the Western Baseball League for the Chico Heat.
In 1999, he made the Western League all-star team as a member of the Heat. In addition in 1999, he played for Team USA in the XIV International Cup in Sydney, Australia. Durkac also played in the California League for an Arizona Diamondbacks farm team in 1996 and 1997. In 1995, he spent his first pro season with the Adirondack Lumberjacks in the Northeast League.
Prior to his professional career, Durkac was a two-time All-Metro Conference third baseman at Virginia Tech. During his three seasons with the Hokies, he hit .360 with a school-record 60 doubles. He was an ironman, playing all but two innings in his final two collegiate seasons. In 1993, he was the Metro Conference Newcomer of the Year as he led the conference in hitting at .423. He played his freshman season at North Carolina.
"Bo is very knowledgeable about the game of baseball," Charlotte coach Loren Hibbs said. "He knows what it takes to be successful at this level. He has a great way of communicating with our players. Bo and Brandon give our program two young guys who are working tirelessly to take our program to the next level. I have complete confidence in him to do what needs to be done for our program to be successful."
The Kittanning, Pa., native graduated with a liberal arts and sciences degree from Virginia Tech in 1995. He has authored two books on baseball: "2001: A Baseball Odyssey" and "How to Become a Professional Baseball Player." He also contributed a semimonthly column on Baseball America's website for two years.
