For the second time in three seasons, the Hoptown Hoppers are searching for a midseason replacement at the manager position after the team and Grayson Crawford mutually agreed to part ways Friday.
Crawford was named the pitching coach at Austin Peay earlier this week after spending the 2018 season as a volunteer assistant coach with the Governors.
A media release from the Hoppers said Crawford was going to spend the rest of the summer focusing on his new position and spending time with his family. Crawford has missed a handful of Hopper games in the past two weeks while on recruiting assignments for Austin Peay.
Crawford was 89-47 in his first stint with the Hoppers from 2012-14, winning the OVL title in 2012. The Hoppers entered Friday with a record of 19-11 and a three-game lead in the Ohio Valley League West standings. Crawford was 108-58 in his time as Hoppers’ manager.
The Hoppers will be coached the rest of the season by assistants Nick Walker and Matt Read.
In 2017, David Weber resigned 18 games into the season when he, like Crawford, was promoted within the Austin Peay coaching tree. Weber’s replacement, Kierce Kimbrel, led the Hoppers to a 14-8 record the remainder of the season and an OVL West Division title.
