Johnny Narron named manager of Brewers affiliate

By Steve Roush
Published in Sports on December 19, 2006 1:47 PM

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The Milwaukee Brewers named Johnny Narron manager of their Pioneer League team in Helena (Mont.) on Friday.

Narron, a Goldsboro native and the brother of Cincinnati Reds manager Jerry Narron, served as the advanced rookie league team's hitting instructor this past season. He replaces Eddie Sedar, who will be Milwaukee's first base coach in 2007.

Narron, 55, who joined the Brewers organization in 2003 after serving six seasons as an associate scout with the Atlanta Braves sytem, also managed Helena in 2004 and was the team's hitting coach in 2003. He has also served as a hitting instructor for the West Virginia Power, Milwaukee's low class-A affiliate, and the Brevard County (Fla.) Manatees of the Florida State League.

"My strength is the hitting side, but I also enjoy the managing side," Narron said Monday. "My goal is to one day be a major league hitting coach or be a minor league hitting coordinator, but I want to do anything I can to help the Milwaukee Brewers organization."

Narron, a 1970 graduate of Goldsboro High, went on to play baseball at East Carolina before playing minor league baseball in the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox organizations from 1974-78.

In 2004, Narron led Helena to a 39-37 record as the Brewers won the first half of the Pioneer League's Northern Division, but lost in the first round of the playoffs.

"There's a lot of responsibility to managing and coaching in the minor leagues, a responsibility I take very seriously," said Narron, who still resides in the area and runs a hitting school in the offseason with his brother. "It is my duty to give the players what they need to grow and advance as ballplayers. My job is to help them succeed, which helps the organization succeed."