The O’Fallon Hoots, proud members of the Prospect League, announced the hiring of Matt Brown as the team’s manager for the 2024 summer season. Brown joins the Hoots in the summer while also serving as the head varsity baseball coach at Parkway South High School.
“I am excited for Matt to return as the Hoots manager in 2024,” Hoots General Manager David Schmoll said. “Matt did a great job for us in 2021, leading the team to the playoffs. He is someone with a strong baseball background, both playing and coaching, and he believes in what we are building here in O’Fallon. I’m looking forward to him leading our team back to the top of our division and bringing the playoffs to O’Fallon.”
Brown echoed Schmoll’s excitement.
“I’m honored to return as Manager of the Hoots in 2024,” Brown said. “This is a great environment to coach in, both from a player and fan perspective, and I’m going to do everything I can to help the team enjoy the best summer season possible.”
The St. Louis-native graduated from Vianney High School in Kirkwood, Missouri, where he was a three-time all-state selection and winner of the St. Louis Amatuer Baseball Hall of Fame’s 2013 Rising Star Award. Brown hit .400 with six homers and 40 RBIs as a senior, earning him the All-Metro Catholic League’s Player of the Year honor. Following high school, the bench boss went to the University of Arkansas for one year before transferring to play for the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Jefferson College Vikings for two years. Matt hit .378 with 15 homers and 65 RBI to help the Vikings to their 10th consecutive Midwest Community College Athletic Conference (MCCAC) title in 2016, while also locking in his second straight NJCAA All-Region 16 distinction. From there, the high school coach received a baseball scholarship to play for the Missouri State University Bears in 2017 and 2018. In his senior year, Brown hit a team-leading 14 home runs and earned all-conference honors. Matt’s successful college career led him to a three year professional baseball career in the Frontier League – playing one season with the Windy City Thunderbolts and two seasons with the Gateway Grizzlies. He was named manager of the Hoots in 2021 and led the team to a first half division title before falling in the first round. His team posted a 33-27 record en route to the first playoff berth in the history of the Hannibal/O’Fallon Hoots franchise.
