Bio

Amarillo College assistant baseball coach Garrett Cobb set out on his collegiate journey in 2016 with his sights set on developing into the best version of himself on the diamond and to one day return home to give back through the sport he has dedicated his life to.

And when Amarillo College decided to revive its baseball program in 2022, the timing proved to be perfect.

Cobb played his final season of college baseball in 2021 at West Texas A&M University and preceded to join head coach Brandon Rains as an assistant at Amarillo College for the Badger baseball team’s inaugural season.

“When I found out they were going to start baseball here, I knew I had to jump in the middle of it. I had to find a way to get in and be a part of Amarillo College baseball,” he said.

The former Canyon pitcher under coach John Doan and Wade Williams began his coaching career during his final seasons as an athlete with the Buffaloes. Cobb provided private instruction, was a coach for Off-Speed Athletics travel teams, and developed a unique velocity training program for pitchers based on Total Kinetic Output’s (TKO) model.

“It’s a velocity training program, very similar to Driveline that has been altered in some aspects. It helps to increase velocity while maintaining health and utilizes Rapsodo to develop the various aspects of a good pitcher,” Cobb said. “The more I coached and studied Driveline stuff, it works but it certainly had room for improvement. That’s why I pulled together some of the Driveline aspects and what I learned during my time playing and I implemented the TKO program that’s a part of driveline. When we established it here in Amarillo, I took it and put my own twist on it.”

In his first year as a coach at Amarillo College, Cobb played a significant role in molding pitcher Braylen Timmins into a Western Junior College Athletic Conference first-team selection and converting outfielder Reece Frantom into one of the Badgers’ most successful pitchers.

Frantom went from very little experience on the hill in high school to recording the Badgers’ lowest ERA during the 2023 season. The 6-foot-3 right hander earned honorable mention all-conference honors via 36 strikeouts and a 3.86 ERA in 42 innings on the mound.

As for Timmins, the lefty struck out 82 batters in 53 1/3 innings – a staggering 13.84 strikeouts per nine innings average.

Cobb hopes to continue develop Badger pitchers and athletes so they can reach their full potential en route to a four-year program.

“I want to do what I can to help this program because I know what this program is going to be,” he said. “I love to see the kids succeed. I’m going to help the athletes progress the best I can and work hard to ensure each of them reach their potential.”

In Cobb’s first year as an assistant, seven Badger players earned all-conference honors in the WJCAC.

Sydney Ward was named to the WJCAC first team after hitting 21 home runs – tied for eighth most in the country in the NJCAA during the regular season. Additional honorable mention selections outside of Frantom were Dayton Farrar (infielder), Jan Avila (infielder), Grant Watkins (infielder), and RJ Garcia (catcher).

Collegiate Career

The former Region V Junior College native, Big 12 pitcher, and Lone Star Conference champion arrived to Amarillo College with a well-rounded foundation for coaching success due his diversity of experiences during his time as a collegiate athlete.

Cobb learned valuable lessons and philosophies from each program he was a part of and is now passing it forward to the Badger baseball program.

“Having gone off and collected all this knowledge from these coaches and bringing it back here, I feel like it’s going to be very beneficial for Amarillo College baseball,” he said. “I knew that I wanted to go off and find out who I was and build who I was, mold who I wanted to be, mold who I am now as a coach, and return to help the Amarillo area thrive.”

At Seminole, Cobb was taught by NJCAA Hall of Fame skipper Llyod Simmons, who went on to be a scout with the Kansas City Royals.

“I really looked up to him, his style of coaching, philosophy. He’s a mentor and I still talk to him today about our team,” he said.

Cobb spent his second collegiate season at Cisco and was reminded of his love for the game.

“Seminole taught me the grit and grind and how to be a junior college baseball player,” he explained. “Cisco reminded me a little that baseball is still fun. It’s not all blood, sweat, and tears. Coach (David) White at Cisco did a good job helping me remember that.”

The 6-foot-4, right-handed pitcher finished his time at Cisco with a 3-0 record and 33 strikeouts before becoming a Red Raider.

Cobb’s time in Lubbock is one his fondest memories from his playing days as he tallied the lowest ERA of the Red Raider pitching staff in the fall of 2018 and threw in their annual Red & White series.

“I learned a lot coming into the new statistical era of baseball from Tim Tadlock and Matt Gardner and a lot of the business side of baseball,” he said.

After a year at Texas Tech, Cobb attended West Texas A&M and played for Matt Vanderburg for two seasons while completing his bachelor’s degree.

During his time with the Buffaloes, Cobb was enlightened on the statistical ERA of baseball that was on the rise and team unity.

“While I was there, they did a good job of having good team comradery,” he said. “I found a passion for the data that led to getting Rapsodo and Driveline certified. It was the new wave and everybody was starting to do it.”

Personal

Garrett Cobb was born October 19, 1997.  He is married to Randall native Jordan Cobb. The couple has a daughter and son, Carter and Carson Cobb. Garrett graduated from West Texas A&M University with a bachelor’s degree in sports and exercise science while Jordan received a bachelor’s degree in general studies. Jordan is the athletic coordinator at Randall Junior High and is the head coach of the girls basketball team.