The 2014 season is the fifth year for former major leaguer Scott Sobkowiak as an assistant coach for the Lewis baseball program. His primary focus is as Lewis' pitching coach.
Sobkowiak has had a pitcher earn All-Great Lakes Valley Conference honors each of his four seasons at Lewis.
Sobkowiak had the 2013 Flyers' staff in top form as they led the nation in ERA for over a month at the start of the campaign. Headlining the pitching staff for the Flyers were Tom Helwich and Matt Frahm. Helwich picked up a second straight All-GLVC honors as he led the team with 10 wins and a 1.95 ERA with 72 strike outs in 97.0 innings pitched. Frahm collected All-GLVC honors as well as NCAA Midwest Regional All-Tournament Team accolades after he tossed a complete game in the 5-4 victory against Ashland on May 18 to keep Lewis' post season dreams alive. Frahm put together a 2.83 ERA with 56 strikeouts in 82.2 innings pitched in 2013.
In 2012, the Lewis pitching staff was anchored by Tom Helwich and Pat Lahey. Helwich led Lewis in wins with seven. Helwich threw four complete games, including a two-run performance in the GLVC Tournament over Indianapolis. Lahey finished the 2012 season with a 2.37 ERA. He led the nation in fewest walks per nine innings by walking just six batters on the season. Lahey took home All-GLVC Second Team honors for a second consecutive season.
Sobkowiak's 2011 pitching staff held a team ERA of 3.88, the lowest for a Flyer team in 11 seasons. Lewis allowed the fewest runs (184) and walks (121) in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. Individually Matt Frahm compiled a 1.25 ERA in 19 appearances with seven saves. Lahey compiled an 8-3 record with a 3.53 ERA to earn All-GLVC Third Team honors.
Sobkowiak made an immediate impact on the Lewis pitching staff in his initial saeson of 2010. The staff ERA dropped to 5.03, fifth in the Great Lakes Valley Conference and the lowest for a Lewis team since 2006. Lewis recorded a stingy 3.31 walks per game, third in the conference. Sobkowiak helped Joe Scumaci earn Daktronics All-Region First Team and become Lewis' first All-GLVC First Team pitcher since 2000. Scumaci led the GLVC in strikeouts with 94 and ranked 13th in the nation in strikeouts per nine innings (11.33). Twice in 2010 Scumaci fanned 13 batters in a game.
A stand out at the University of Northern Iowa, Sobkowiak's earned All-Missouri Valley Honorable Mention honors in 1997. Sobkowiak's 213 career strikeouts and 210.2 career innings rank fifth and seventh respectively all time in Panthers history. Rounding out his collegiate experience Sobkowiak played in the prestigious Cape Cod summer league, as well as spending a portion of the ’97 summer with Team USA competing internationally.
After his junior season the Atlanta Braves selected Sobkowiak in the seventh round of the 1998 Major League Baseball amateur draft. His selection was just the fourth in Northern Iowa history. With the Atlanta Braves organization Sobkowiak enjoyed a meteoric rise to success and appeared at all levels (A,AA, AAA) including a short stint in the “Bigs” in 2001. Following the ’99 season Sobkowiak was named the number one pitching prospect in the entire organization. He was invited to four Major League spring trainings and spent three years on the 40-man roster. Sobkowiak’s MLB career included action in the highly touted Arizona Fall League and also a season of winter ball in Puerto Rico. Sobkowiak’s career with the Braves was cut short due to injury.
Following his time with the Braves organization, Sobkowiak saw action in the Frontier League, Atlantic League and Taiwanese Professional Baseball League. Sobkowiak played baseball in over 40 states and six different countries over the course of his nearly 10-year professional and collegiate career.
After his playing career was over Sobkowiak went back to college and obtained his Bachelors Degree from Northern Illinois University in the winter of 2008. Sobkowiak has also since obtained a Masters Degree in Organizational Leadership from Lewis University in December of 2012.
In 2008 Sobkowiak took a position with Professional Baseball Instruction of Illinois. He conducted over 500 private lessons and coached several elite travel teams with PBI before accepting the position at Lewis University in August 2009.
Sobkowiak, a 1995 graduate of Montini Catholic High School and currently resides in Downers Grove with his wife Angie and their two children James and Joslyn.
