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Doc Kennedy begins his ninth season at Villanova and will serve as the team's hitting coach for the sixth straight season in 2006. He was previously the school's pitching coach in his first three seasons on the Main Line.
The Wildcats have been on the rise offensively, increasing their run total in four consecutive seasons. In 2006, Villanova averaged 6.4 runs per game, the highest figure in Kennedy's reign as hitting coach. The Wildcats batted .296 as a team and produced a .389 on-base percentage for the season. Senior Jeremy Hunt had one of the most prolific seasons by a Villanova hitter in recent memory in 2006, batting .385 with 15 homers, 56 RBI, a .481 on-base percentage and .743 slugging percentage. Hunt was hitting .286 on April 13 before closing the season by hitting .512 (42-for-82) over his last 23 games.
Kennedy brings a lifetime of baseball experience to the Villanova program. He coached for four summers with the Harwich Mariners in the prestigious Cape Cod Summer League. Before coming to Villanova, Kennedy was the head baseball coach at Phoenixville High School for 20 years. The school's playing field was named in Kennedy's honor during a dedication ceremony in 2000.
A well-known baseball mentor in the area, Kennedy coached nine players who were drafted during his tenure at Phoenixville. The most well-known of his draftees is Mike Piazza, who has been an All-Star player for the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets. Piazza was the 1993 National League Rookie of the Year and the MVP of the 1996 Major League Baseball All-Star Game.
Kennedy played his collegiate baseball at West Chester University, graduating with a Bachelor's Degree in 1963. He went on to earn a Master's Degree in Educational Administration from Villanova in 1968. Kennedy currently resides in Phoenixville, Pa. with his wife Mary Ann.
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