Angels Major League Pitching Coach Eyes A Post-Career Future In Golf

Barry Enright makes throwing from the mound and hitting from the fairway look easy.

Years ago, a popular Saturday Night Live skit featured comedians Dan Aykroyd and Gilda Radner hilariously arguing about Shimmer – dessert topping or floor wax? Turned out, it was both.

With Barry Enright, the question is pitching coach or professional golfer? As unlikely as it seems, the answer is both.

The 38-year old retired Major League pitcher is in his rookie season as head pitching coach for the Los Angeles Angels, a position he secured after serving as an assistant pitching coach and minor league pitching coordinator for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Off the diamond, he packs his competitive fire in a golf bag and heads to the course, where he is considered one of the very best baseball athletes – current or retired – to tee it up. A scratch golfer, in 2020 he won his first professional tournament, the Outlaw Tour TPC Champions Classic, beating a field of pros and winning in a 6-hole playoff.

It is not surprising that he excels at two seemingly distinct sports. Patience, problem-solving and self-awareness are key attributes that contribute to success on both the mound and the tee. Pitchers and golfers stand alone and need an ability to conquer adversity and pressure. The balls may be different, but the goal is the same in each sport – perform to win.

The well-traveled right-hander, drafted in 2007 by the Diamondbacks, had Major League stints with Arizona in 2010 and 2011, and the Los Angeles Angels in 2012 and 2013. His most successful season was 2010 when he started 17 games for the D-backs and went 6-7 with a 3.91 ERA.

Following the 2013 season, he signed minor league deals with Philadelphia, the Dodgers, San Diego, Colorado and was then re-signed by the Diamondbacks as a free agent in July 2018, retiring in 2019.

His return to the D-backs was a job interview of sorts, while he pitched a little in Triple-A and Double-A ball.

“Essentially, they were bringing me back just to test me, like how I was around the guys and, you know, would I be available to coach? And they put that on my plate going into that off season and into 2019,” he recalled.

“It was a great first place to start.” he said of his first minor league coaching assignment with the D-Backs Advanced A Hillsboro Hops in Oregon. “It was a growth year for me to kind of recalibrate on my processes, my beliefs and philosophies.”

Canelo on the mound

Throughout his professional career, Enright spent off-seasons pitching in Winter Ball, notching nine seasons in Mexico and Venezuela and compiling a 29-18 record. He played primarily for the storied Naranjeros de Hermosillo of the Mexican Pacific League (LMP), where fans gave him the nicknames of “Canelo” (Cinnamon) and “Barba Roja” (Red Beard). He cemented his place in Naranjeros history by winning the MVP award from the 2013-14 LMP championship, the team’s 16^th.

“Playing for Hermosillo gave me back my love for the game,” he said. “Honestly, I truly, truly appreciate the people there – the organization and especially the fans. I don’t think they’ll ever understand how much life they brought back into baseball for me.”

His Winter Ball experiences give him an enviable advantage in working with Spanish-speaking pitchers, an edge that transcends language.

“I don’t say I speak fluent Spanish, but they can understand me,” he said. “I see their world. I’ve visited them in their homes. Just to be able to spend time with them, understand their upbringings, what they go through, and that when they come here, it’s not always the same.”

He explained, “They go from being a big fish in a small pond over there and they become a small fish in a big pond here. And so I understand and sympathize with that, but still challenge them in good ways.”

Paying it forward

In developing his guiding principles as a pitching coach, Enright has had some notable mentors, none more respected than D-Backs pitching coach and guru Brent Strom, his boss and mentor for the past two seasons.

The first characteristic the 75-year old Strom looks for in a pitching assistant/coordinator is passion for the job. Following that is a constant effort to improve and an openness to new ideas and growth.

Of Enright he said, “I think there’s two things that a guy like Barry has that are exceptionally good. He’s highly competitive, as obviously you can know by his golf, but he also has an open mindset and he’s a willing learner.”

Strom, who is known to live and die with every pitch and every out, is also notorious for his 3 am calls and texts to coordinators to discuss an idea that just came to him.

Said Enright, who was on the receiving end of many such early morning communications, “He just spends tireless hours putting time into each guy, and that’s how he shows he cares.”

The time spent with Strom made Enright feel qualified to step into the Angels head job.

“Getting to be around him and gather information and feel ready for this has been pretty special in preparing me to hopefully do my best to impact these guys in a small way in their careers and their futures.”

In their shoes

Enright’s own pitching philosophy is still evolving, but is based on fundamentals, relationships, and trust. He’s a fan of relevant data, but also appreciates pitching as an art.

“There is data and there’s science behind it, but it’s still an art,” he insisted. “You’re still dealing with human beings in the box each and every day.”

The fact that he has stood in his pitchers’ shoes is a key to his ability to establish relationships with them. He vividly recalls the positive and negative self-talk when unable to execute on the mound.

“You’re able to draw on some of those experiences in your own life and different things that I’ve gone through that kind of relate,” he said of establishing trust with his pitching corps. “I still feel it with you, like through the good, through the bad, through the ugly. I’m in the trenches with you.”

And his pitchers know that it wasn’t that long ago when Enright had his own struggles.

“When you’re out there, make a bad pitch, I’ve done that too. And I know how naked you feel out on that mound on a national level. And we’re going to work through it. I’ve felt all the things 100%.”

Said Angels manager Ron Washington, “You know, the thing that impresses me the most about Barry is how much he cares about those guys he’s working with. He loves them and he’s with them through the good times and he’s with him through the bad times. And that’s the sign of a tremendous coach right there.”

He added, “He stays in the process that he’s created, and he’s learning and growing all the time. I just tell him, ‘Keep giving them the wisdom. Keep giving them the knowledge. Keep giving them the work. Keep giving them the tools to go out there and be the best they can be.’ And he does that diligently. They have taught him well on the other side (in a nod to Strom and the Diamondbacks).”

Angels angst

It’s been a challenging season for the Angels. Injuries to key players, like three-time MVP Mike Trout and closer Robert Stephenson have contributed to landing them near the bottom of the AL West, already double-digits behind the first-place Seattle Mariners and well below .500.

The team pitching ranks near the Major League cellar in ERA (4.79), Strikeouts (580), and WHIP (1.36). The offense has also struggled and consistency remains an issue.

None of this is news to Enright, who probably won’t be enjoying another magical year like he did with the 2023 D-Backs on their World Series run. But he remains optimistic about chances of improvement. There are bright spots, including young José Soriano, a converted reliever who pitched brilliantly against the Diamondbacks in June.

Enright enjoys working with the young Dominican.

“It’s kind of been like a blank canvas for me to be able to listen and learn, talk and see how he ticks, and then be able to challenge him on doing different things with his command,” he explained.

“And you see guys continuing to grow,” he said of his staff. “You know, it might be a step back and then hopefully two forward.”

The other field of dreams

Obviously, Enright is 100% focused on the Angels right now, but when the season ends he’ll be hitting fairways and greens, playing more pro tournaments and maybe even some Monday qualifiers.

In a Barstool Sports tournament, he’s even competed at iconic Pinehurst No. 2, site of the 2024 U.S. Open Championship.

It’s not a great leap of faith to envision the name Enright next to the most successful former MLB players to take up competitive golf – Mark Mulder, John Smoltz, Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine immediately come to mind.

And when he turns 50, watch for Enright at PGA TOUR Champions Qualifying School (Q-School).

“So I have 12 more years to prepare for that,” he said with a smile.