Hempstead, NY – Frank Catalanotto, a Long Island native who enjoyed a 14-year Major League Baseball career, has been named the 15th head baseball coach at Hofstra University, it was announced today by Hofstra Vice President and Director of Athletics Rick Cole Jr.
Catalanotto played 14 major league seasons with the Detroit Tigers, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, Milwaukee Brewers, and New York Mets, and spent two years (2019, 2020) as the head coach of the New York Tech baseball program. He led the Bears to their first-ever Division II College World Series appearance in his first season, winning a program record 37 games.
“Today is a very exciting day for the Hofstra University baseball program,” said Cole Jr. “It is not every day that you can hire someone with the track record of Frank Catalanotto to lead your program. Frank has proven to be a success in everything he has done in the baseball world and we look forward to that carrying over into our program as well.”
“I could not be happier about the opportunity to build something special at Hofstra,” said Catalanotto. “I was fortunate to have some success at the Division II level and am really excited to take on the challenge of competing in the Colonial Athletic Association with the Pride. I would like to thank President Rabinowitz and Rick Cole Jr. for allowing me to have this opportunity and welcoming me into the Hofstra family. I cannot wait to get started.”
In his first season at the helm, Catalanotto led the Bears to the aforementioned College World Series appearance and a #13 national ranking at the end of the season. The squad captured the school’s first-ever East Region title and reached the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1983. For his efforts that season, Catalanotto was named the American Baseball Coaches Association East Region and Eastern College Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. NYIT had eight players earn postseason East Coast Conference honors following the 2019 campaign.
In 2020, Catalanotto had the nationally-ranked Bears off to a solid start to the season as they had nine wins in their first 14 games before the COVID shutdown occurred. New York Tech was ranked #24 nationally when the season ended.
Catalanotto appeared in 1,265 major league games. He posted a .291 career average and .357 career on-base percentage. He saw action at five positions – left field, right field, first base, second base and third base – and served as a designated hitter during his MLB tenure in which he compiled 1,113 hits.
During the 2001 season, as a member of the Rangers, Catalanotto hit .330 and finished fifth in the American League in batting average. In 2000, Catalanotto set Rangers records for consecutive at-bats with a hit (10) and plate appearances reaching base (13). He then set the Blue Jays record for hits in a nine-inning game, with a 6-for-6 performance on May 1, 2004, against the Chicago White Sox.
In addition to his major league career, Catalanotto played for Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009.
Catalanotto starred at Smithtown East High School on Long Island and signed a letter of intent to attend Seton Hall University. However, after being selected by the Tigers in the 10th round of the 1992 MLB Draft, he opted to forgo college and sign a professional contract.
After retiring in 2010 following a stint with the Mets, Catalanotto remained active in the game, serving as lead hitting instructor at Baseball Heaven in Yaphank. He also coached with Team Italy in the World Baseball Classic in 2013 and 2017 and has assisted with running youth baseball camps in Toronto for the Blue Jays as well as in Germany, Spain, and Italy.
Catalanotto is president of the Frank Catalanotto Foundation, an organization dedicated to raising awareness and aiding with the early intervention of vascular birthmarks. He is also the honorary chairperson of the Vascular Birthmarks Foundation.
A 2011 inductee into the Suffolk Sports Hall of Fame, Catalanotto is also a founding member of the Italian American Baseball Foundation, an organization dedicated to the future of Italian American baseball in the United States and Italy. He is also the author of Heart and Hustle and the owner of Proven4 Sports Supplements.
Catalanotto resides in St. James, New York, with his wife, Barbara. The couple has four daughters – Morgan, Camdyn, Karson, and Gracyn.
Frank Catalanotto Coaching Year-by-Year
2019
NYIT
37-16
NCAA Division II World Series
2020
NYIT
9-5
Season shortened due to COVID-19
Career
46-21/Two years
