Miki Kawahara - Head Technical Director
Coach Kawahara graduated with his degree in Human Kinetics from the University of British Columbia. While in college he was an academic All-Canadian playing for the Douglas College Royals (NWAACC) and the UBC Thunderbirds (NAIA). After finishing his playing career, Miki remained in British Columbia until 2007.
During that time he helped coach the Coquitlam Red Legs to back-to-back Regional Championships in the BC Junior Premier Baseball League.
In Canada, Miki has coached at the 2007 BC Provincial Camp, 2008 & 2009 Alberta Spring Training, 2008 & 2009 Canada Cup (Team Alberta 17U), and the 2008 & 2009 Alberta Prospects (Head Coach). As a head coach for the Babe Ruth Calgary travel program he has taken the Blues all over the Pacific North West. His international experience includes playing in Japan and Australia as well as coaching in Venezuela in 2010. A Level 3 baseball coach with the NCCP, Miki is also a Certified Strength & Conditioning Coach (NSCA), and a Sport Conditioning Specialist (TCI).
Troy Lamb - Lead Technical Director
Coach Lamb has an extensive coaching background that has deep roots in youth sports. Starting in Bow Ridge Little League as a teenager, Troy worked his way through the coaching system to play a large role in various Babe Ruth clubs here in Calgary and he is now coaching within Babe Ruth Calgary. Troy is driven to empower each athlete to strive to reach their baseball goals while also helping them to develop into well rounded athletes and baseball players.
Derrick McPherson - Technical Director
Derek McPherson is both a high performance coach and former college player originally from Revelstoke, BC. Graduating in Moose Jaw, SK in 2000, Derek was a member of the Moose Jaw Cardinals Midget AAA program that won both the 2000 Sask Baseball Provincials and Saskatchewan Summer Games and earning a berth in the 2000 Baseball Canada National Championship. As a player, he attended both PBA (2001) and VIU (2002-2003) in the Canadian College Baseball Conference (CCBC) before earning a scholarship to Paris Junior College (DI NJCAA) in Paris, TX in 2004. During his collegiate career, Derek was named 1st Team All-Conference with VIU in 2002 & 2003, named team captain at Paris Junior College in 2004, and played his summer ball with the Moose Jaw Miller Express of the Western Canadian Baseball League (WCBL).
After his playing career was over, Derek was fortunate enough to be a part of PBF’s inaugural year as an assistant coach with Jim Lawson here in Calgary. From there, Derek has coached with multiple associations throughout Western Canada - most recently with the Central Okanagan Minor Baseball Association (COMBA) in Kelowna, BC as both Technical Director and Head Coach of their Sun Devils 18U College Prep program beginning in 2018. Derek was able to experience great success within the program, reaching the Final Four Provincial Tournament in back to back years and sending 13 players to college programs all across North America between 2018 & 2020.
Additionally, Derek was a part of the group responsible for designing and opening The Yardhouse Indoor Baseball Facility in Kelowna, serving as it’s General Manager prior to moving back to Calgary in 2021. He currently serves as a coach with Babe Ruth Calgary’s Premier Program.
Alex Morissette - Technical Director
Alex grew up playing minor baseball in Calgary before being drafted by the Babe Ruth Calgary Giants in 2011. After playing 4 years for the Babe Ruth Giants and aging out, he immediately jumped into coaching for the Giants and has been coaching in Babe Ruth Calgary since 2015. After becoming NCCP level 1 qualified, Coach Morrissette was a major part of the Zone 3 coaching staff who took home gold at the 2019 Alberta Zones tournament.
Coach Morrissette is also a Technical Director with the Babe Ruth Calgary. Alex is a full-time coach with the National Sport Academy, and works closely with the academy's outfielders and hitters. Alex has also taken on a major role with the Diamondawgs Training Facility, working closely with both 12-13 year olds and the 14-18 year old age groups.
Cliff Carlson - Assistant Technical Director
Cliff has a diverse background in youth athletics, development and sports. As a youth Cliff started playing baseball with the Continental West Little League which is now called Rocky Mountain Little League. As a coach, Cliff worked his way through Rocky Mountain Little League coaching many League Teams and All-Star Teams along the way. In 2016, Coach Carlson made the transition over to Babe Ruth Calgary Baseball and began coaching in what was at that time, called the Single A Division. From there Coach Carlson moved into coaching Babe Ruth AA and then AAA Club Teams and was also the Club Manager of the Dodgers for 2 years. In addition to coaching within the Babe Ruth League, over the years Cliff has also continued to coach a variety of Babe Ruth Travel Teams.
Cole Bingleman - Assistant Technical Director
Cole was drafted in 2017 by the Babe Ruth Pirates. While playing in his final year in Babe Ruth Tier 1 he was also coaching in Tier 4. Cole won Tier 4 Coach of the year in 2021 and Tier 2 Manager of the year in 2022 and 2023. Coach Bingleman has coached various travel teams. Most recently he took the 14 year old travel team to the Babe Ruth World Series in 2024.
Don von Hollen - Technical Director
With over 30 years of playing experience and extensive coaching credentials, Don von Hollen specializes in catching development and has coached at the provincial level on multiple occasions. As the founder of Canuck Catching, he has facilitated technical training for coaches and associations across Alberta. Don continuously researches modern techniques to enhance his coaching methods and has developed a comprehensive catching development model that includes a catching manual used in high-performance clinics for catchers.
Coaching Philosophy:
Don believes in using baseball as a tool to build character, focusing on discipline, leadership, and resilience. His coaching goes beyond the technical aspects of the game, helping athletes develop skills that translate to success both on and off the field.
Noah Carlson - Technical Director
Noah first joined Babe Ruth at age 13, playing both house league and travel ball each year in the league, after his time in Babe Ruth was up he went on to play one year at the Univeristy of Calgary. After Noah’s playing days were over he started coaching in the fall of 2022, ranging from tier 3 up to tier 1 in both the fall and spring seasons. Noah has also coached travel teams in the past two summers most recently the AAA Blues.
