University of Tennessee Athletics
Photo by: Kyle Zedaker/Tennessee Athletics
UT and College Baseball Community Mourn the Loss of John Altobelli
January 27, 2020 | Baseball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- The University of Tennessee and the entire baseball community is mourning the loss of John Altobelli, who was one of the top coaches at the junior college level with Orange Coast College.
Altobelli, along with his wife, Keri, and daughter, Alyssa, were passengers in the tragic helicopter crash that also took the lives of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter, Gianna, and four others on Sunday morning in Calabasas, Calif.
Numerous members of the Tennessee coaching staff knew Altobelli well, including head coach Tony Vitello and pitching coach Frank Anderson.
"John was a great human being and an incredible baseball man with a mile-long list of contributions to the game," Vitello said. "John's family, as well as the families of the others lost in the accident, will be in our thoughts and prayers during these difficult times."
Along with his duties as head coach at Orange Coast College, Altobelli was also on the coaching staff for the Brewster Whitecaps in the famed Cape Cod Summer League from 2011-14, spending the 2011 season as an assistant before taking over as head coach in 2012. Former UT pitchers Drew Steckenrider (2011), who is now a reliever with the Miami Marlins, and Andrew Lee, who is currently in the Washington Nationals organization, both played for Altobelli in Brewster.
"Coach Altobelli was a great man who cared for every guy that had the privilege to play for him," Lee said. "He coached and taught in a way that made everybody want to pull on the same rope, which is hard to achieve in a league with so much talent. John helped many of us on our journey to becoming men and I'm deeply saddened to hear this tragic news. My thoughts prayers go out to his family and the families of everyone involved."
Altobelli was set to begin his 28th season as the head coach at Orange Coast College, where he was the longest tenured baseball coach in school history. Just one season ago, Altobelli and was named the Pacific Association Division's ABCA National Junior College Coach of the Year after he guided the Pirates to the California State Championship.
During his tenure as head coach at OCC, Altobelli posted a 705-478-4 record and helped lead the program to eight appearances to the state finals, four state titles and seven Orange Empire Conference Championships. His four state baseball championships are tied for the third-most in the history of California Community College baseball.
"John was a great guy and a fantastic baseball coach who did so much for college baseball," Anderson said. "My thoughts are with his family."
Altobelli is survived by a daughter, Alexis, and a son, J.J. Altobelli, who is a scout for the Boston Red Sox.
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Altobelli, along with his wife, Keri, and daughter, Alyssa, were passengers in the tragic helicopter crash that also took the lives of NBA legend Kobe Bryant, his daughter, Gianna, and four others on Sunday morning in Calabasas, Calif.
Numerous members of the Tennessee coaching staff knew Altobelli well, including head coach Tony Vitello and pitching coach Frank Anderson.
"John was a great human being and an incredible baseball man with a mile-long list of contributions to the game," Vitello said. "John's family, as well as the families of the others lost in the accident, will be in our thoughts and prayers during these difficult times."
Along with his duties as head coach at Orange Coast College, Altobelli was also on the coaching staff for the Brewster Whitecaps in the famed Cape Cod Summer League from 2011-14, spending the 2011 season as an assistant before taking over as head coach in 2012. Former UT pitchers Drew Steckenrider (2011), who is now a reliever with the Miami Marlins, and Andrew Lee, who is currently in the Washington Nationals organization, both played for Altobelli in Brewster.
"Coach Altobelli was a great man who cared for every guy that had the privilege to play for him," Lee said. "He coached and taught in a way that made everybody want to pull on the same rope, which is hard to achieve in a league with so much talent. John helped many of us on our journey to becoming men and I'm deeply saddened to hear this tragic news. My thoughts prayers go out to his family and the families of everyone involved."
Altobelli was set to begin his 28th season as the head coach at Orange Coast College, where he was the longest tenured baseball coach in school history. Just one season ago, Altobelli and was named the Pacific Association Division's ABCA National Junior College Coach of the Year after he guided the Pirates to the California State Championship.
During his tenure as head coach at OCC, Altobelli posted a 705-478-4 record and helped lead the program to eight appearances to the state finals, four state titles and seven Orange Empire Conference Championships. His four state baseball championships are tied for the third-most in the history of California Community College baseball.
"John was a great guy and a fantastic baseball coach who did so much for college baseball," Anderson said. "My thoughts are with his family."
Altobelli is survived by a daughter, Alexis, and a son, J.J. Altobelli, who is a scout for the Boston Red Sox.
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