After a short stay in the minors with both the-then Cleveland Indians and Houston Astros organizations as a slick-fielding middle infielder, Marc DelPiano knew he wanted to stay in baseball.
He began a career in coaching with the same Auburn team he wrapped up his playing days for, and then made a move to the Texas Rangers organization, where he served as both a coach (with Erie and Hudson Valley) and a scout. The Rome, NY native then joined the Montreal Expos, where he worked as a scout, and then headed over to the-then Florida Marlins where he ultimately worked his way up to both Director of Player Development and Director of International Scouting.
The former University of Tennessee standout — he was also a teammate of fellow advisory board member Bobby Heck at Broward CC — earned his first World Series ring in 2003 with the Marlins, but it wouldn’t be his last.
DelPiano spent three years as a special assignment scout for the Boston Red Sox — again earning a World Series ring in 2007 — after that before a lengthy stint with the Pittsburgh Pirates as special assistant to the GM, a role he filled until 2015, when the Marlins brought him back as a vice president of player development.
Lost in the shuffle of an ownership change in Miami, DelPiano was quickly scooped up by the Yankees, for whom he’s worked as a scout ever since. He’s played a critical role in some of their recent successes, and was featured in Forbes as a result, with a story taking a look at the due diligence he did on adding veteran Corey Kluber, who went on to throw a no-hitter for the Bronx Bombers last year.
“You’re always trying to figure out what a guy is now and what he could be,” DelPiano told Forbes. “You’re always trying to be very calculated. I’ve never felt comfortable just winging it. You try to think through things logically, and he did well in the benchmarks that were important to us.”
DelPiano has incredible value in all the benchmarks that matter to the New Balance Baseball Future Stars Series as well, and president and CEO Jeremy Booth was quick to sing the praises of an over three-decade long career in pro ball that’s seen him fill nearly every imaginable role.
“Delp’s done pretty much everything you can ask in a career,” Booth said. “A world champion himself, he’s been involved in all things needed to build a championship roster year in and year out. He’s ahead of his time in player development and the proof is in who’s come through during his time leading PD departments. He’s a mentor who cares about the game going forward, and the passion for respecting it and what it means to be a winner in it is second to none.”
