Jim Filbin is the new coach of the Sedona Red Rock High School varsity baseball team.

“He’s a young guy who can communicate with our kids and we picked him because he seems to be able to connect with the students,” Sedona Red Rock High School athletic director Pedro Ortega, Sr. said.

“We moved out here in September to kind of step away,” Filbin said of himself and his girlfriend, Jade Romero. “I was working as a sales rep in Chicago. I wasn’t loving what I was doing. I was coaching for a couple years with a travel team that was put on hold once I got promoted at the sales job. But ultimately, wanted to explore out west, and wanted to take some time to focus on our mental and physical wellbeing, and I wanted to get back into coaching. So I thought that this could be a good opportunity.”

Filbin played baseball throughout his childhood but said he “never found much success at the high school level,” an outcome he attributed to being “underdeveloped” as a six-foot tall senior weighing 140 pounds. Filbin graduated from Elmwood Park High School, his hometown’s school, in 2012 before joining the U.S. Army as an infantryman from 2014 to 2017.

“Discipline is the first thing that comes to mind from my army experience,” Filbin said. “That’s another thing that I want to emphasize when I’m coaching. It’s not just about doing the right thing when no one is looking … It’s showing up every day with the want to get better and to be able to train even after a school day.”

After leaving the Army, Filbin enrolled at Triton College in River Grove, Ill., and played first baseman for the school.

“[Triton] is where I found a lot of success. I think just being older, a little more mature and physically grown,” Filbin said. “The game came pretty easy to me after that, and seeing the game from a different perspective as an older player was a big benefit to me.”

Filbin inherits a program that was not only winless last season but had to be canceled early due to the a lack of players, a fate that has also befallen the Scorpion girls’ soccer program for the last two Seasons.

“I talked to some of the kids when I stopped by the school last week … and some of the kids said that they have only been playing for a couple years,” Filbin said. “Some of them, even less experienced. My goal is to focus on the fundamentals and start slowly building confidence in the basics of the game. I’m excited about that because it’s a new team.”

The Scorpion baseball team’s last win on record was a forfeit on March 23, 2022, against North Pointe Preparatory. 

“I want to see progress, competitiveness, and to see kids enjoying the game,” Filbin said. “I want to get a couple wins this year, but that’s not really going to be the focus.”

A self-described “pretty good bass fisherman,” Filbin said that he has been looking for new local fishing holes to relax and that he and Romero have been enjoying discovering new local trails.

Filbin is also working to recruit an assistant coach for the team, ideally someone who loves baseball and can speak both English and Spanish.

“ Practice begins Monday, Feb. 10, season starts Wednesday, March 5,” Romero posted on Facebook. “Coaching experience [is] not required. Looking for someone with baseball experience and a sound knowledge of the game. Background check through the school will be required.”

An assistant coach receives a $2,205 stipend. Those interested in the position can contact Filbin at jimfilbin@yahoo.com.