CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The first practice of the 2025 Tom Sox season began the same way it did in 2024. Head Coach Randy Tomlin sat down with me for an interview to be featured as the first episode of On Deck with the Tom Sox.
Only this time, there is an added piece of hardware in the picture.
“It was really a no-brainer,” Tomlin said of the decision to come back to the organization, making him only the second multi-season head coach in franchise history.
Charlottesville posted a Valley League-best 26-13 record last year during the regular season, landing the Tom Sox the number one overall seed in the postseason. Thanks in large part to the consistent strong support from the community at Charlottesville High School, the team also posted a 19-5 record at home (including playoffs).
The Tom Sox had six all-star selections, along with seven postseason award recipients in 2024. Tomlin said that success stems from encompassing buy-in from players, incorporating styles from individual college programs with the message of summer baseball, and using talent to work as a team rather than a group of individuals.
There are plenty of challenges when playing over 40 games over the span of two months. According to Tomlin, those include getting a group of student-athletes to come together as a group and finding an identity within that group.
“One thing I want these guys to understand too is that, yeah, you’re here to play for a summer, but we don’t want you to think like that,” he said. “We want you to be here to play for something.”
Tomlin, the reigning VBL South Division Coach of the Year, also has fond memories of the 2024 Valley Baseball League Championship Series, when the Tom Sox beat the Purcellville Cannons in three games. He noted that the perseverance and trust in each other are what ultimately led that team through ups and downs throughout the season.
In addition to select returning players from the championship roster, Tomlin is bringing his son, Coy, back onto the coaching staff.. Coy loves nothing more than baseball. He is beloved by all the players, staff, and fans of the Tom Sox for the infectious energy that he brings on a daily basis.
“If you spend just a couple minutes with him, it’s easy to see his love for the game, love for life,” Randy said. “He just loves being out here in spite of his own challenges. Coy loves life.”
Four key aspects of Tomlin’s playing career have also impacted his approach to coaching: his experience at Liberty University in the 1980s contrasting with the changing landscape of college athletics today, getting chosen in the 18th round of the 1990 MLB Draft, playing in three National League Championship Series, and dealing with injuries towards the end of his career.
Coming from the small town of Amherst, VA, he was simply happy to be on the field and play a game that he loves. Regardless of NIL or the transfer portal, Tomlin is more focused on the technology available for players when dealing with injury and improved performance.
The process of the MLB Draft taught him patience. He was not even expecting to get drafted until the phone rang, he said.
A big stage such as the NLCS, which Tomlin pitched in three times as part of Pittsburgh’s dominant rotation, helped develop his coaching philosophy that emphasizes self-confidence and a will to win.
Injuries played a detrimental role in the latter years of Tomlin’s playing days, forcing him to retire nine years after getting drafted. Both mental empathy and physical sympathy are still used by Tomlin in his coaching tactics due to these experiences.
Joining Tomlin’s staff in Charlottesville this summer are Thomas Abell, Joey Davis, Jim Darin and Chris Glaize.
“Our staff is going to come committed every day to [the players], to the organization, you know, and for every game to go out and help these guys be the best they can be, and go out and try to win the game,” Tomlin said.
To win championship number five in season number ten for the Tom Sox would mean a great deal to Tomlin, as well as the organization. To do so will require focus on each play, each pitch, and each swing at a time, playing into the concept of always improving and remaining a cohesive unit.
“I expect us to at least play and have a chance there at the end to be able to [win the VBL championship] again,” Tomlin said.
Randy Tomlin spent time with Ben Rekosh, the host of On Deck with the Tom Sox, going into the 2024 season. That episode can be found here.
To listen to the full conversation with Head Coach Randy Tomlin, subscribe to On Deck with the Tom Sox, the official podcast of the Charlottesville Tom Sox. Hosted by Ben Rekosh, it can be found on all major podcast platforms and YouTube. New episodes are available the morning of every home game.
