Updated January 10 2017
After eight seasons as general manager of the Asheboro Copperheads, David Camp is stepping down and handing the daily operation of the team over to Max Kaufmann, who has served as assistant general manager for the past two seasons and has been involved with the team since 2013.
Kaufmann, a 25-year old native of Asheville, interned in Asheboro in 2013. He returned the next May after graduating from North Carolina State University with a degree in Sports Management and a minor in Spanish. He managed the team’s concession operation at McCrary Park in 2014 and was also involved in facility and game-day operations. He was promoted to an assistant GM position following that season and has continued to coordinate the concession operation in addition to performing other team duties.
Camp, 65, joined the team in the fall of 2008 after having spent 15 years in private business following a career of more than 20 years in newspapers. He has been associated with the Copperheads for their entire 18-year history, serving as official scorer and webpass broadcaster prior to joining the team full-time in 2008. While he is relinquishing his GM role, Camp will continue to work with the team on a part-time basis.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time as general manager of the Copperheads,” he said. “I simply decided it was time to pass the GM duties on to someone much younger, with more youthful energy and ideas. Plus, it was just a good time for me for a lot of personal reasons. While I’m still reasonably healthy, I wanted to be free to do some things that I really haven’t had time to do for many years. I know Max is going to do a fantastic job. He is very deserving of this opportunity. I couldn’t be happier for him.
“The team’s ownership – Ronnie, Doug, Steve and Mike Pugh – have been a pleasure to work for and with and I’m deeply grateful to them for giving me this opportunity eight years ago,” added Camp, a UNC-Chapel Hill alum and a native of Shelby who came to Asheboro in 1978 as sports editor of The Courier-Tribune. “I love the Copperheads and hope to be able to continue to make some positive contribution to the organization going forward.”
“I am excited to move into this new role, and hope to be able to continue to sustain success as David has for so many years,” said Kaufmann. “I certainly have some big shoes to fill, but fortunately I have been able to work under David for four seasons now. It will also be nice to know that while he steps back from working every day, he will still be around for me to bounce ideas off of him and ask him any questions I may have. I want to thank the Pugh family for giving me this opportunity, and hope to someday bring them that elusive CPL Petitt Cup title.”
“I am proud of what we’ve accomplished,” Camp added. “We’ve had a pretty good run on the field, winning more regular season games than any other West Division team and all but two teams (Edenton and Peninsula) in the entire Coastal Plain League since 2010. We’ve been West Division regular season champs, have won several first or second-half titles and were the CPL Organization of the Year in 2013. I do regret that we haven’t won the Petitt Cup championship. That’s something I really wanted to do for our fans and the Pugh family. We’ve had a couple of teams that were good enough to do it, but we just haven’t gotten any breaks in the post-season. Still, I think we’re on the right path and that it will happen soon rather than later, maybe even in 2017.”
The Coastal Plain League is the nation’s premier summer collegiate baseball league. Celebrating its 22nd season in 2018, the CPL features 16 teams playing in Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The CPL has had over 1,450 alumni drafted and 111 of those – including 2011 AL MVP and Cy Young winner Justin Verlander – make their Major League debut; while another notable alum – Russell Wilson – won Super Bowl XLVIII. For more information on the Coastal Plain League, please visit the league website at www.coastalplain.com and follow us via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Snapchat @CPLBaseball..Contact:Asheboro Copperheads
Phone:(336) 460-7018