Round Rock Express coach continuing diverse, meaningful baseball journey

ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN) — When Demetre Kokoris attended the University of South Carolina, he thought a career in the front office of baseball may be in the future. He worked as a student manager for the Gamecocks baseball team and hasn't looked back from the coaching route since.

"I started right away like 22, 23 years old as a grad assistant at Cal State Fullerton. Now I'm 39, turning 40 this year. That's not scary at all," Kokoris said with a smile.

Now with the Round Rock Express as the bullpen coach, Kokoris is on his 17th stop of coaching and working in the sport he loves. From working in junior college baseball in Oregon to the Toronto Blue Jays organization, every stop has been valuable.

"Each stop along the way, there were opportunities to kind of master a different skillset," said Kokoris. "I think that's kind of what those levels demanded in order to have success."

Around his neck, Kokoris wears a Greek Orthodox cross necklace from two of his grandparents. His connection to Greece and his family from there is clear. That made the choice to become the pitching coach of the Greek National Baseball Team in 2021 an easy decision.

"To be able to represent not only myself, but for my family and my grandparents especially or just the church in general that I grew up in, it's a super special thing for me," said Kokoris.

Kokoris coached with Greece in the 2021 European Championships in Turin, Italy.

With the Express, he works with a lot of pitching data and helps the development of the pitching staff. Now working at the Triple-A level and being able to guide pitchers that can be called up to a first-place MLB team is meaningful for the southern California native.

"I always bring this appreciation to the yard because I didn't play in college," said Kokoris. "I didn't play professionally so I feel very blessed to be here every day that I show up."

Kokoris also works a lot on the mental aspect of pitching and helping players on the mound deal with focusing on execution. He has helped the Express to a 52-34 record.