Bio

Battle Jr. enters his first season as a member of the Ducks organization. The former outfielder joins the Flock after serving as manager of the State College Spikes in the MLB Draft League each of the past two seasons. Under his guidance, the team posted a combined record of 79-73, including a league-best 41-37 mark during the 2024 campaign. State College reached the MLB Draft League Championship game in 2025 and led the circuit with a 4.12 team ERA. Battle Jr. served as the team’s hitting coach in 2023 before taking over as skipper.

The 40-year-old was originally drafted by the New York Yankees in the third round of the 2003 amateur draft out of high school. After being diagnosed with B-cell lymphoma in his ribs and undergoing six months of chemotherapy treatments, he went on to play 14 seasons of professional baseball. The Georgia native spent six seasons (2003-08) in the Yankees organization, where he earned 2005 South Atlantic League All-Star Game MVP honors. He also played six seasons of independent baseball, including 42 games with the York Revolution of the Atlantic League in 2014.