Stephen Larkin Returns to Prospect League as Champion City Kings Manager

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio - Stephen Larkin, a Cincinnati, Ohio native, has been named the 2024 Field Manager for the Champion City Kings. Larkin brings a wealth of experience to the program as both a player and a coach.

Larkin played collegiately at the University of Texas which included an appearance in the 1993 College World Series. He was a 10th-round draft choice of the Texas Rangers in 1994 and was traded to the Cincinnati Reds in 1996. Larkin continued to play minor league baseball on various teams until the mid-2000s.

No stranger to the Prospect League, Larkin was an assistant coach for both the West Virginia Miners and the Chillicothe Paints. He was the Field Manager for the Cape Girardeau Catfish from 2019 through 2021 where he was named Prospect League Manager of the Year in both 2019 and 2021. His 2021 squad won the Prospect League Championship.

“I am thrilled to have Coach Larkin join our team here in Springfield,” stated Kings General Manager Ginger Fulton.  “I know I speak for our ownership when I say how excited we are for the upcoming season with Stephen at the helm.”

In addition to coaching summer collegiate teams, Larkin has coached baseball and football at Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati and has been a hitting instructor at several private baseball academies and camps. Currently, he is a hitting instructor for MLB International, served as the third base coach in the 2023 Baseball United Dubai All-Star Showcase, and is a camp instructor and gives individual lessons for the Reds Urban Youth Academy.

The Champion City Kings 2024 home opener is Friday, May 31, and fireworks nights are set for June 7 and July 26. Season tickets are on sale now.