East End Little League's Tom Otis Named Little League Coach of the Year

Tom Otis isn’t your typical Little League coach.

From setting up Google docs for parents to see who will or won’t be at practice, from including walk-up music when kids come to the plate, to hooking up a GoPro camera behind the backstop and editing hours of film to create highlight reels for players, Otis clearly goes above and beyond his duties as a coach within East End Little League.

Because of that, a group of parents of his players nominated him for the fourth annual Little League Coach of the Year Award. It was announced several weeks ago that he had won the award, and he was given the award this past Saturday just prior to a game at the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania.

Sponsored by Lance Sandwich Snacks, the Positive Coaching Alliance and Little League, one Little League baseball coach and one Little League softball coach are awarded, along with a $5,000 prize to use for their local Little League program, each year.

All nominees must have been active coaches associated with an affiliated Little League baseball or softball program, with at least three years of coaching experience. The award recognizes coaches that exhibit positive qualities of leadership and inspire kids to be the best they can be. Examples of leadership include showcasing honorable sportsmanship, demonstrating respect for other teams and athletes, always having a positive attitude in the face of challenges, and more. Examples of inspiring Little Leaguers include being a positive role model, encouraging Little Leaguers to be involved in their community, being a positive role model to Little Leaguers both on the field and within the community, and more.

Hannah Moeller, a softball coach from the Spring Hill Little League in Spring Hill, Tennessee, was winner of the same award in the Challenger Division, Little League’s adaptive program for players with physical and intellectual challenges.

Otis, a Quogue resident and part of the management team at Otis Ford in the village, said he had no idea he was nominated for the award until about a month and a half ago, when he received an email from one of the participating sponsors. In that email, he was asked to follow through with a background check, which he questioned at first, but went along with. He then heard from East End Little League President Bill Dawson, who confirmed that everything was legitimate.

“Only one baseball coach and one softball coach is selected each year by Little League to receive this award. Out of every little league throughout America, this year’s baseball coach of the year comes from a small village out on the East End of Long Island — truly remarkable!” Dawson said. “I was informed in an email there were a record-breaking number of submissions this year, however [his] nomination stood out to us as a coach who inspires winning both on the field and off the field.”

Dawson said the award was a “once-in-a-lifetime special tribute for Tom,” and he is truly grateful for his efforts and is really proud that Otis is an East End Little League coach.

“This is an honor that casts a special light on our league as a whole,” he said. “This award is not possible without his team’s parents’ initiative; it speaks volumes of their appreciation, and for that I am grateful. Stepping up to volunteer is a responsibility that takes time and effort. We have many talented and outstanding coaches in our baseball and softball programs, and all of our volunteers offer players the chance to play and grow in a variety of ways, and I hope this moment might also inspire others to want to make a difference by signing up to coach in the future.”

Denise Rowland was just one of the many parents who went to bat for Otis. She said it was certainly a collaborative effort of fellow parents to make sure Otis was at the top of the list. Being a coach herself, Rowland said witnessing Otis in real time on the field is a treat.

“Tommy was made for an award like this. He lives, eats and breathes baseball,” she said. “He’s like a big kid, but more than that, he’s very, very good with each child. He gives every single kid a nickname, gives them a walk-up song, puts the GoPro on the backstop so that at the end of each practice the kids can watch what they’re doing in slo-mo. It’s incredible the amount of time he puts in making sure the boys are psyched about the sport while also feeling confident and everything remains positive with no regard to competition. He’s super motivational and that makes the kids love this sport. He goes above and beyond.”

When Otis found out he had won a few weeks ago, he was told that he would be invited to attend a Little League World Series game in Williamsport on August 19, which just so happened to be two days prior to when his wife Kim was expected to give birth to their third child. Otis was willing to give up the award if it meant not being able to show up for the ceremony, but organizers reassured him that whatever happened would be fine, that they would figure something out, even if it meant doing it virtually.

Thankfully, Kim had their third son, August, on August 14, which allowed Tom and their two older sons, Thompson, 7, and Winston, 6, to attend the game along with other family members, friends and others from East End Little League. Once the game was wrapping up, Tom and his two sons were back on the road on Sunday to be back with their wife and mother and newborn son and brother.

“We did a photo shoot, then from there we went down under the stadium where we met former Major League ballplayer Todd Frazier,” Otis explained of his day. “We did a short interview session, and then from there we went onto the field prior to the game and threw out the first pitch.

“I threw a strike, even though my catcher was the miniature version of what Hannah was throwing to,” he chuckled. “I literally had half the strike zone to work with.”

In addition to his role as Little League coach and league board member, Otis also volunteers his time as a first lieutenant in the Quogue Fire Department and teaches fire education in local schools. He is also involved in other charitable organizations, including East End Hospice and the Parent Teacher Association at Quogue School. As a coach of young children, Otis’s philosophy is to keep it fun while ensuring the players improve their skills. He balances training with games that incorporate technique to help kids learn the fundamentals of baseball and have a blast doing it.

“What’s nice about my level that I coach is that we don’t even keep score. We’re just having fun,” he said.

Otis added that when he began coaching three years ago, he didn’t do it to get any sort of recognition. It was, instead, to have fun with his sons and their teammates.

“I do this because I love it,” he said. “And the funny thing about this is we have so many other great coaches in this league. I am on the league board, and so I spend a lot of time with all of them, and there are so many other coaches who would be deserving of this. So I’m really thinking of this as a team award.”