The Mercy Health Sports Medicine Power Hour airs every Wednesday afternoon from 5:00 – 6:00 pm. Hosted by Jon Russell of 98.3 WLCS and former high school and college football coach Mike Taylor, the Mercy Health Sports Medicine Power Hour this week (January 22nd) will feature MuskegonCommunity College baseball Coach Cal Pohlman.
We may have a foot of snow on the ground but baseball season is right around the corner and Mike and Jon will be asking Coach Pohlman about the Jayhawks chances this spring.
The 2013-14 season will be Coach Pohlman's16th year as head coach of the Muskegon Community College Jayhawks. He owns a record of 475 & 293. His 2007-2008 Jayhawk squad won the school's first Conference Championship and the 2009-2010 squad broke 21 school records including a record 44 wins. Last year's squad finished 2nd in the conference with a 34 & 15 record. He was born and raised in Saginaw Michigan. Pohlman threw 7 no hitters at Saginaw Douglas MacArthur High School. He then moved on to Central Michigan University; his career there was highlighted by defeating South Carolina on a no-hitter and in the Regional and defeating Big Ten Champion Iowa on a 3-hitter. He was drafted in the 9th round by the Milwaukee Brewers and spent two years in the minors before his career ended because of an arm injury. Coach Pohlman spent one season as a volunteer coach at CMU before becoming the head coach at Chesaning High School. His teams won seven conference championships. His best team was 32 & 7 and they set many state records. He left Chesaning to become the assistant baseball coach at Miami Universityin Oxford, Ohio. His primary responsibility there was working with the pitchers. Starting with an 8 man pitching staff Coach Pohlman built a pitching staff of 24 pitchers after 4 years. Four of his pitchers were drafted, including Scott Sauerbeck and Dave Swartzbaugh. In 2011 Garrett Bolt, who pitched for Pohlman at MCC, was drafted by the LA Dodgers.
Coach Pohlman spent 12 years at Fruitport High School before retiring. He spent 4 years as Varsity Baseball Coach. Three of those teams were conference champs. His high school record over 18 years was 351 wins and 145 losses. In 2002 Coach Pohlman was elected to the Michigan High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. In 2009 he was selected to the CMU Hall of Fame as part of the 1971 National Runner-ups. His resume also includes coaching football, basketball and he was also an athletic director. He has spoken at many clinics and camps. He is supported by his wife of 38 years, Deb, a retired teacher. He has 2 children; his daughter Karli is a teacher at Muskegon Public Schools and she is married to Jason Baldus, who works at the Newaygo Intermediate School District. His son Carey is married to Cara and they are both teachers in Gastonia, North Carolina. He is also the proud grandpa of Karina and Jackson Baldus.
