Former D-backs Manager Leads Arizona Wildcats to Super Regionals

Chip Hale, who managed the Diamondbacks in 2015 and 2016, has led the University of Arizona to its first Super Regional berth in four years.

Sep 17, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale (3) looks on from the dugout prior to the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

Former Arizona Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale is running a successful program at the University of Arizona. The Wildcats defeated the Cal Poly Mustangs 14-0, sweeping the Eugene Regionals, and will advance to the Super Regionals. They play the winner of North Carolina and Oklahoma.

Hale, 60, was the team's manager for the 2015-2016 seasons, where the Diamondbacks went 148-176. Following a disappointing 2016 season, which started with lofty preseason expectations and ended with 93 losses, the organization enacted sweeping changes. Hale, along with general manager Dave Stewart, were let go and replaced by Mike Hazen and Torey Lovullo.

Before serving as the manager, Hale was a minor league manager in the organization. In seven seasons, he worked his way up the ladder from Rookie Ball to Triple-A. After leading the Tucson Sidewinders to a franchise-record 91 wins, Hale was added to Bob Melvin's coaching staff as the third base coach and infield instructor ahead of the 2007 season. He spent three seasons in that role before moving on.

Hale bounced around different coaching jobs, experiencing baseball's ultimate success as a bench coach with the Washington Nationals in 2019. He spent one season with the Detroit Tigers before getting hired by the University of Arizona, his alma mater, to replace the outgoing Jay Johnson. Johnson had left Tucson to accept the Louisiana State head coaching role.

With the Wildcats headed to their first Super Regional under Hale, they are just two wins away from advancing to the College World Series for the first time in four years.