Salem hires Tgettis as baseball coach

Jim Tgettis, whose baseball coaching career has included stops at Classical and St. Mary’s en route to over 300 wins, will coach a new team this spring.Salem High has made Tgettis the successor to Mike Ward as its baseball coach, athletic director Scott Connolly said on Monday.”It was very clear to me that they’re building something special at Salem High School, and it’s very exciting to me to be a part of it,” said Tgettis, who met with last year’s Witches players a week ago.”The knowledge and experience he brings to Salem High School, and his baseball background, are a plus,” Connolly said.At St. Mary’s, Tgettis coached the Spartans to Division 3 state titles in 1987 and 1988 during a career that spanned 13 seasons (1981-93) and included a 46-game undefeated streak from 1987-89 and a perfect 25-0 year in 1988.”Any time you can have a team go 25-0, at any level, that’s a significant achievement,” Tgettis said.In addition, his 1983 Spartan team lost just one game and won an EMass title.Tgettis subsequently coached at Classical from 1996 until his retirement after the 2007 season. He led his Rams to one Northeastern Conference championship and guided Classical to a playoff berth every year but two, including his first 10 seasons there.Now, the Lynn resident will coach his new team against two Lynn squads – Classical and English – this season.”I’ve been through situations in my coaching career where we played other Lynn teams – certainly in the (Nipper) Clancy (Tournament),” Tgettis said, adding, “I had those mixed feelings. You want to see someone do well. You want your team to do well. It’s a little bit of mixed emotions. Usually, things work out, and you move on.”About 20 candidates sent resumes after Salem opened up its coaching position. Eleven of them qualified for interviews by a five-person committee, which included a student, a teacher, and a parent.”We kind of covered all our bases,” Connolly said.Ward, who coached the Witches for seven seasons, was also part of the committee.”He stepped down as coach,” Connolly said. “He left on very good terms.”Principal Dave Angeramo received three names in the final cut: Tgettis, Peabody assistant Seath Bedard, and former North Shore Spirit player B.J. Weed.”Jim was our choice,” said Connolly, who cited Tgettis’ experience running clinics as an additional factor in his favor.This is Connolly’s first year as athletic director, and Tgettis is his first hire.”It was a very professional type of process,” Connolly said. “We’re happy with the outcome.”