Coastal Alabama South in Bay Minette didn’t have to leave the county to find its next head baseball coach. On Monday, the Coyotes announced JD Pruitt, who just led Spanish Fort to a Red Map trophy as state runners-up, as their newest skipper.

“With an impressive track record and a wealth of experience, Coach Pruitt brings a winning mentality and a passion for the game that will take the Coyotes to new heights,” the announcement release said. “Coach Pruitt's journey to Coastal Alabama has been defined by his dedication and commitment to the sport.”

The Alabama Sports Writers Association had recently named Pruitt the Class 6A coach of the year after the Toros battled to the state finals with 2-1 series victories over McAdory, Saraland and Stanhope Elmore in addition to a sweep of Northridge in the second round. It was Spanish Fort’s first trip to the state championship series since 2014 and the Red Map trophy served as the Toros’ first since 2013.

He was the second coach of the year named at Spanish Fort after Barclay Kercher took the honor on the softball diamond. Now, both coaches will not be leading the teams they represented this year as Kercher will switch roles with assistant coach Jonathan Rasberry in the Toro dugout.

The 2023 Coastal Alabama roster featured three players from Spanish Fort, two of whom just played their freshman seasons. Former Toros Keegan Hamp and Hayden Hill have another year of junior college eligibility and Caleb Hayles was listed as a sophomore on this spring’s roster.

The Coyotes had one named to the Alabama Community College Conference’s All-South District (Parker Tubb) and two more named to the All-South Division (Joe Thomas and Trace Goforth).

Pruitt’s work on the diamond this year won’t come only on the south Alabama fields but also as part of USA Baseball’s coaching staff. This summer, he’ll serve as an assistant coach for the 13U/14U Athlete Development Program. Last year he was named a Task Force Member to help the player selection process for the 15U and 16U national teams.