First Pitch Dinner to Honor Lehmann
12/16/2025 2:50:00 PM | Baseball, Owl Club
Former Owls catcher serves as Dodgers Bench Coach
Former Owl catcher and three-time World Series champion coach Danny Lehmann will be the featured guest at the 2026 Rice Baseball First Pitch Dinner on Friday, January 30.
Doors to the R Room will open at 5:45 for a cocktail hour and silent auction, with the program beginning at 7 p.m. All proceeds from the event benefit the Rice Baseball program. Tables for the event are available at three levels of support, ranging from $1,000 to $5,000, with single tickets priced at $100.
Owls' head coach David Pierce will provide a preview of the 2026 Owls, and Lehmann, who handled Pierce's pitchers for three seasons, will describe his journey from behind the plate at Reckling Park to the dugout at Dodger Stadium, where he serves as manager Dave Roberts's bench coach.
A standout catcher for the Owls from 2005-07, Lehmann was a key component of the Owls' runs to the College World Series in 2006 and 2007 and was named to all-tournament teams for both the Conference USA and NCAA Regional in 2007. He was drafted by Minnesota in the 8th round of the 2007 draft and played in the Twins system through 2013.
After a season playing for the independent Sugarland Skeeters, he joined the Dodgers in 2015 as their Advance Video Scout.
He was promoted to Game Planning and Communications coach in 2018, and after a season as a special assistant in 2019, he returned to Game Planning and Communications in 2020 as the Dodgers captured the World Series. He was promoted to Bench Coach in 2023, and on May 6 of that year, he stepped in as interim manager for Roberts as the Dodgers defeated the Padres 2-1. The following season, the Dodgers again captured the World Series and then repeated as champions this past fall.
Two weeks after the First Pitch Dinner, the Owls will open their 2026 season by hosting Northwestern in a three-game series at Reckling Park and season tickets for the 2026 season are currently on sale.
Doors to the R Room will open at 5:45 for a cocktail hour and silent auction, with the program beginning at 7 p.m. All proceeds from the event benefit the Rice Baseball program. Tables for the event are available at three levels of support, ranging from $1,000 to $5,000, with single tickets priced at $100.
Owls' head coach David Pierce will provide a preview of the 2026 Owls, and Lehmann, who handled Pierce's pitchers for three seasons, will describe his journey from behind the plate at Reckling Park to the dugout at Dodger Stadium, where he serves as manager Dave Roberts's bench coach.
A standout catcher for the Owls from 2005-07, Lehmann was a key component of the Owls' runs to the College World Series in 2006 and 2007 and was named to all-tournament teams for both the Conference USA and NCAA Regional in 2007. He was drafted by Minnesota in the 8th round of the 2007 draft and played in the Twins system through 2013.
After a season playing for the independent Sugarland Skeeters, he joined the Dodgers in 2015 as their Advance Video Scout.
He was promoted to Game Planning and Communications coach in 2018, and after a season as a special assistant in 2019, he returned to Game Planning and Communications in 2020 as the Dodgers captured the World Series. He was promoted to Bench Coach in 2023, and on May 6 of that year, he stepped in as interim manager for Roberts as the Dodgers defeated the Padres 2-1. The following season, the Dodgers again captured the World Series and then repeated as champions this past fall.
Two weeks after the First Pitch Dinner, the Owls will open their 2026 season by hosting Northwestern in a three-game series at Reckling Park and season tickets for the 2026 season are currently on sale.
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