Pincavitch is starring in dual role Player-coach key to Jacks staff

ORONO – Practice what you pitch.

This variation of an age-old adage should be written in big, bold letters, framed, and mounted on the wall of Kevin Pincavitch’s office – if he had one – because they are the words he must live by daily.

As a pitcher for the Bangor Lumberjacks, Pincavitch is already accustomed to performing a job that has the rare distinction of being one in which the public not only watches him work, it pays for the privilege.

If that wasn’t already enough to make him self-conscious, he also happens to be a player-coach. As Bangor’s pitching coach, he’s responsible for helping all his pitchers perform at their peak level. So when he tells one of his pitchers it’s best to do something a certain way, or it’s bad to do something else, he unintentionally turns the spotlight on himself.

If Pincavitch’s charges are told to do, or not do, something a certain way, he takes on the added responsibility of leading not only through communication, but by example as well.

“I think it’s better for him to be able to do it like that because he’s not one of those guys who can just say ‘Well, when I played, I did this and that,'” said pitcher-utility player Matt Tindell. “He’s one of those guys who can tell you what you’re doing wrong and then go out and set an example with you watching him.

“He’s been pitching for 14 years and he knows his stuff. You’ve got to back up what you say and he does that,” Tindell added.

Judging from Bangor’s team statistics, Pincavitch has been making successful pitches, both on and off the mound, all season. Through Saturday, Bangor was second among eight teams in the Northeast League in pitching with a staff ERA of 3.36 and seven complete games, and first in shutouts with six.

Manager Kash Beauchamp attributes Pincavitch’s success as an assistant coach to his intense competitiveness and the easy method of communication he has with his players.

“He has a very high baseball IQ and is really smart in general,” said Beauchamp. “He can really translate what’s in his mind and relay it to someone else like a teacher.”

That’s appropriate, considering the Norristown, Pa., native is also an assistant baseball coach at Mapletown High School in Greensboro, N.C.

The 5-foot-10, 180-pound Pincavitch seems to inspire a strong mix of loyalty and respect from his pitchers.

“Ultimately, one day a week I’m thinking about myself because I’m on the hill, but the other six, I’m all about the other guys,” Pincavitch said. “I told my pitchers I’m not here for me. If I can’t pitch, I’m going to shut it down, but I’m not going anywhere. I’m not trying to get out of here. My job is to get them out of here and into affiliated baseball. That’s what I want to do.”

Despite having to overcome an injury that prematurely ended his 2001 season and required him to undergo off-season shoulder surgery that kept him off the mound for almost two seasons, Pincavitch shows no signs of slowing down.

Pincavitch is 3-1 with a 3.50 ERA. The 33-year-old righthander has accumulated 39 strikeouts while issuing only seven walks in 43 2/3 innings.

His coaching production is even more impressive than his on-field endeavors.

“Pinky’s helped me a lot on my command and location of my pitches,” said righthander Jerry Long, No. 3 in the league with a 1.30 ERA. “Each outing, I get more and more comfortable with each pitch, and I’m starting to get command of each pitch.”

Teammate Tim Rall, who trailed Long for two weeks, is now No. 1 with a 1.00 ERA and 4-0 record.

The staff’s success under Pincavitch is no surprise to Beauchamp, who played with him in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ minor league organization.

“The thing I like about him is his competitiveness. He’s got a Roger Clemens-type demeanor and he refuses to lose,” Beauchamp said. “We’re a lot alike. That’s why he’s kind of always endeared himself to me.”

Pincavitch, who was coached by Burt Hooten, Claude Osteen, and knuckleballer Charlie Hough (yes, he can throw the knuckler too), isn’t ready to think about ending his playing career, but he certainly has a lofty, long-range goal he wants to accomplish long after he hangs up his glove: coaching in the big leagues.

“I think I have the skills to teach pitching and I would love to get into affiliated baseball and the big leagues,” Pincavitch said. “I don’t think that’s out of my future. We’ll have to see what happens.”