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Mike Zirelli will begin his fourth season as the Bronco pitching coach after taking over the duties mid-way through the 2004 campaign. He is also in his second year as the team's recruiting coordinator and the 2008 season will mark his sixth year with the program after serving as the team's Director of Baseball Operations in 2002. Continuing his duties from the 2005 season, Zirelli will tutor the Bronco pitchers and assist both O'Brien in recruiting. Zirelli has already been an instrumental part of the Bronco recruiting efforts as he has been involved with the process throughout his time with the program. Along with his time at Santa Clara, Zirelli has also coached in the two most prestigious collegiate summer leagues in the country. Zirelli was the pitching coach for the Yarmount-Dennis Red Sox of the Cape Cod League in 2004, helping to lead the Red Sox to the league championship. During the summer of 2003, he also mentored the pitchers for the Mat-Su Miners in the Alaska Baseball League. A graduate of Cal Poly, Zirelli played for the Mustangs from 1996-99. While on the San Luis Obispo campus, Zirelli established himself as one of the best collegiate pitchers ever to have put on a Cal Poly uniform. He was an All-Big West performer and a Freshman All-American. He also earned Player of the Decade recognition from Cal Poly in 1999. Following his time with the Mustangs, the San Francisco Giants selected Zirelli in the 23rd round of the 1999 Major League Baseball amateur draft. During his time in their minor league system he played for the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, the Bakersfield Blaze and the San Jose Giants. Despite his time in the minor league, Zirelli found time to return to Cal Poly and eventually earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Kinesiology in 2002. A Bay Area native, Zirelli was selected as the Santa Clara County player of the year while playing high school ball at St. Francis. He was named a high school All-American at the AAU Junior Olympics in Knoxville, Tenn., where his team claimed the Bronze Medal in 1993. He also earned Player of the Year honors for both the Central Coast Section and the Western Catholic Athletic League. Zirelli is married to the former Amanda Martin, and the couple welcomed their first child, Zack, on Dec. 17, 2006. The family resides in San Carlos, Calif. |
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