Skipper Pat Listach led Smokies to 2007 Southern League playoff wildcard berth
By Rennie Leon / smokiesbaseball.com
SEVIERVILLE, Tenn. – Former Tennessee Smokies field manager Pat Listach was named by the Chicago Cubs today as its bench coach for the 2011 season. Listach, who arrives to Chicago after two seasons as the third base coach for the Washington Nationals, will also serve as Chicago’s infield coach.
While with Tennessee in 2007, Listach led the Smokies to a 73-65 overall record and a wildcard playoff berth in the Southern League North Division Series. Tennessee would lose a best-of-five series against the Huntsville Stars, 3-games-to-2. Listach led the Smokies to the top of the league in many offensive categories that year: batting average (.271), hits (1270), runs (636) and league-low 879 strikeouts.
2011 will mark Listach’s 12th season in professional coaching. Prior to his arrival to the Nationals, he served nine seasons as a minor league coach or manager in the Cubs organization. As a player, Listach played six seasons as an infielder with the Milwaukee Brewers (1992-96) and Houston Astros (1997), and was the 1992 American League Rookie of the Year.
