John Thomas “Rocky” Coppinger
Inducted as part of the 2012 El Paso Baseball Hall of Fame Silver Anniversary Class
El Paso Baseball Hall of Fame Brother/Brother Duo Member
Selected All City and All District all 3 years of varsity competition at Coronado High School
Played for El Paso Baseball Hall of Fame coach Juan Orozco
T-Birds enjoyed 3 District and 2 Bi-District championships, 2 “Elite 8” appearances, 2 National top rankings, and a 1992 Texas High School State Playoffs Final 4 spot
Hit .487 as a sophomore with a 2.05 earned run average
Hit .536 with 13 home runs as a junior with a 1.25 earned run average
Hit .585 with 15 home runs as a senior with a 0.85 earned run average
Finished high school with a 25-4 pitching record
Turned down a scholarship to University of Nebraska to pitch Hill Junior College to a Conference Championship
Earned All American honors at Hill Junior College with a .465 batting average, led the Nation with 63 RBI’s and struck out 103 batters
Signed with the Baltimore Orioles
Recognized as the Orioles #1 prospect
Made his Major League debut in 1996 just 3 years after finishing his high school career
Pitched for the playoff bound Orioles and compiled a 10-6 record finishing fourth in the “Rookie of the Year” balloting
Played with the Orioles, Milwaukee Brewers and Oakland A’s before injuries ended his playing career
Coaches off-season high school level play
Elected in 2020 and Inducted into the El Paso Athletic Hall of Fame in 2021
20 years later when baseball people say the name “Rocky” everyone knows his last name is Coppinger – – legendary probably, memorable definitely
