REGINA — The Regina Red Sox are making a change at field manager less than a year after winning the Western Canadian Baseball League championship.
Red Sox general manager Gary Brotzel announced Friday that the team had decided to part ways with manager Rye Pothakos, who was in the midst of his 11th season in the Regina dugout.
Assistant coach Brayden Cobb takes over field manager duties for the remainder of the WCBL season.
“We appreciate Rye's efforts and everything he has done for our organization,” Brotzel said in a social media statement announcing the change. “After evaluating where our team is today and where we believe it is capable of going, we felt a change in leadership was necessary to provide our players and our club with the best opportunity to move forward. These decisions are never easy, particularly during the season, but we believe this is the right step at this time.
“The organization thanks Rye for his commitment and contributions to the Regina Red Sox and wishes him all the best in his future endeavors.”
The Red Sox have had a less-than-stellar run thus far in the WCBL this season and have found themselves fighting for a playoff spot over the last few weeks. They currently have a 15-23 record and are in the fourth and final spot, a half-game ahead of Weyburn and 12 ½ games behind first place Moose Jaw.
The change comes after Pothakos led Regina to a 29-27 record in 2025 before getting red hot in the playoffs, leading to the Red Sox defeating the Sylvan Lake Gulls in three games in the WCBL championship final.
Cobb was a member of the Regina crew that won the Senior League Baseball Canadian Championship in 2015 and 2016, advancing to the Senior League World Series both years. A fifth-year Business major at the University of Regina, Cobb coached with the Regina Athletics baseball program before joining the Red Sox as an assistant coach in 2024.
