Ben Orloff

{{short description|American baseball coach and shortstop (born 1987)}}

{{Infobox college coach

| name = Ben Orloff

| image = File:Ben Orloff at the bat (4881001732) (cropped).jpg

| alt =

| caption = Orloff (right) batting for the Tri-City ValleyCats in 2010

| current_title = Head coach

| current_team = UC Irvine

| current_conference = Big West

| current_record = {{winpct|203|97|record=y}}

| contract =

| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1987|4|26}}

| birth_place = Simi Valley, California, U.S.

| death_date =

| death_place =

| alma_mater =

| player_years1 = 2006–2009

| player_team1 = UC Irvine

| player_years2 = 2009

| player_team2 = Greeneville Astros

| player_years3 = 2009–2010

| player_team3 = Tri-City ValleyCats

| player_years4 = 2011

| player_team4 = Lexington Legends

| player_years5 = 2012

| player_team5 = Lancaster JetHawks

| player_years6 = 2012–2013

| player_team6 = Corpus Christi Hooks

| player_positions = Shortstop

| coach_years1 = 2016–2018

| coach_team1 = UC Irvine (asst)

| coach_years2 = 2019–present

| coach_team2 = UC Irvine

| admin_team1 =

| admin_years1 =

| overall_record = {{winpct|203|97|record=y}}

| tournament_record = NCAA: 5–4

| championships =

Big West (2021)

| awards =

Big West Conference Player of the Year (2009)
All-American (2009)
Brooks Wallace Award (2009)
Big West Coach of the Year (2021)

| coaching_records =

}}

Ben Orloff (born April 26, 1987) is an American baseball coach and former shortstop, who is the current head baseball coach of the UC Irvine Anteaters. He played college baseball at UC Irivine for head coach Mike Gillespie, where he won the Brooks Wallace Award, as the nation's best college shortstop. He has also played in the World Baseball Classic, for the Israeli national baseball team, before pursuing a professional baseball career for the Houston Astros organization from 2009 to 2013. He retired on June 12, 2013, and became an assistant coach for the UC Irvine.{{cite web|url=http://articles.dailypilot.com/2013-06-18/sports/tn-dpt-sp-0619-uci-baseball-orloff-shine-20130618_1_assistant-coach-associate-head-coach-shine|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130627211245/http://articles.dailypilot.com/2013-06-18/sports/tn-dpt-sp-0619-uci-baseball-orloff-shine-20130618_1_assistant-coach-associate-head-coach-shine|url-status=dead|archive-date=June 27, 2013|title=Orloff joining 'Eaters coaching staff|work=Daily Pilot|access-date=October 14, 2014}}{{cite web|url=http://articles.dailypilot.com/2013-06-12/sports/tn-dpt-sp-0613-uc-irvine-baseball-orloff-20130612_1_colorado-rockies-first-base-brooks-wallace-award|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130719230422/http://articles.dailypilot.com/2013-06-12/sports/tn-dpt-sp-0613-uc-irvine-baseball-orloff-20130612_1_colorado-rockies-first-base-brooks-wallace-award|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 19, 2013|title=Orloff retires in minors|work=Daily Pilot|access-date=October 14, 2014}}

High school and college

Orloff attended Simi Valley High School in Simi Valley, California, where he played for the school's baseball team as a shortstop, winning the California Interscholastic Federation championship in his junior year.{{cite web |last=Jorrey |first=Kyle |url=http://www.simivalleyacorn.com/news/2005-03-11/Sports/034.html |title=Ben Orloff: standing tall at shortstop |work=Simi Valley Acorn |date=March 11, 2005 |access-date=February 18, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150725063023/http://www.simivalleyacorn.com/news/2005-03-11/Sports/034.html |archive-date=July 25, 2015 |url-status=dead |df=mdy-all }} He then enrolled at the University of California, Irvine (UC Irvine), where he played college baseball for the UC Irvine Anteaters baseball team in the Big West Conference (BWC). He began his freshman season as a second baseman, but became the team's starting shortstop later in the year. He led the nation in sacrifice hits as a freshman, but struggled with a .217 batting average. He improved his hitting in his sophomore season,{{cite web|first=Barry |last=Faulkner |url=http://articles.dailypilot.com/2007-04-20/sports/dpt-orloff20_1_anteaters-david-eckstein-college-baseball |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150725065811/http://articles.dailypilot.com/2007-04-20/sports/dpt-orloff20_1_anteaters-david-eckstein-college-baseball |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 25, 2015 |title=Orloff one Eck of a shortstop |publisher=Daily Pilot |date=April 20, 2007 |access-date=February 18, 2013}} as he finished the year with a .324 average.{{cite web|url=http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/baseball/news?slug=kr-orloffuci042809|title=UC Irvine's Orloff much more than a player|first=Kendall|last=Rogers|work=Rivals.com|date=April 28, 2009|access-date=February 17, 2013}}

After his junior year, in which Orloff had a .344 batting average, the Colorado Rockies drafted Orloff in the 19th round of the 2008 Major League Baseball draft, but he chose to return to college for his senior year. In the 2009 season, Orloff had a .358 batting average and was named the BWC player of the year as the Anteaters won their first BWC championship in school history. Orloff received further recognition, as he won the Brooks Wallace Award as the nation's top collegiate shortstop, and received first-team All-America honors from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and third-team All-American honors from Collegiate Baseball. Orloff also set school records for career hits (280), runs scored (178), and games played (241).{{cite web|date=June 12, 2009 |url=http://articles.dailypilot.com/2009-06-12/news/dpt-sporloff061309_1_anteaters-ben-orloff-college-world-series |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140914062000/http://articles.dailypilot.com/2009-06-12/news/dpt-sporloff061309_1_anteaters-ben-orloff-college-world-series |url-status=dead |archive-date=September 14, 2014 |title=Orloff gets top accolade |publisher=Daily Pilot |access-date=February 18, 2013}}

Professional career

The Houston Astros drafted Orloff in the ninth round of the 2009 Major League Baseball draft, and he signed. He suffered from elbow tendinitis in 2009, while playing for the Tri-City ValleyCats of the Class A-Short Season New York–Penn League (NYP).{{cite web|url=http://www.timesunion.com/news/article/A-conversation-with-ValleyCats-2B-Ben-Orloff-564873.php |title=A conversation with ... ValleyCats 2B Ben Orloff |publisher=Times Union |date=July 4, 2010 |access-date=February 18, 2013}} Returning to Tri-City in 2010, Orloff led the team with a .307 batting average and 52 runs scored. He was named to the team's most valuable player and was recognized as a member of the NYP's all-star team.{{cite web|author= Ed Weaver |url=http://www.troyrecord.com/articles/2010/09/11/sports/doc4c8b0fc0804fc942190501.txt |title=Orloff selected as Cats' MVP |publisher=troyrecord.com |date=September 11, 2010 |access-date=February 18, 2013}} He played for the Lexington Legends of the Class A South Atlantic League in 2011,{{cite web|author= Herald-Leader Staff Report |url=http://www.kentucky.com/2011/09/03/1867794/orloffs-bases-loaded-single-sends.html |title=Orloff's bases-loaded single sends Legends past Sand Gnats | Lexington Legends |publisher=Kentucky.com |date=September 3, 2011 |access-date=February 18, 2013}} and the Lancaster JetHawks of the Class A-Advanced California League{{cite web|url=http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120428/A_SPORTS/204280335 |title=Stockton bats fall silent again on road |publisher=Recordnet.com |date=April 28, 2012 |access-date=February 18, 2013}} and Corpus Christi Hooks of the Class AA Texas League in 2012. He returned to Corpus Christi in 2013, and retired 41 games into the season.

Orloff, who is Jewish, played on the Israeli national baseball team during the qualifying round of the 2013 World Baseball Classic.{{cite web|url=http://www.jewishbaseballnews.com/its-here-team-israel-reveals-its-roster/|title=It's here: Team Israel reveals its roster|date=September 14, 2012|first=Scott|last=Barancik|work=Jewish Baseball News|access-date=February 17, 2013}} Orloff did not play in the opening game of the qualifier,{{Cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/wbc/2013/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2012_09_19_isrint_rsaint_1&mode=box|title=Israel vs. South Africa at Roger Dean Stadium - Wednesday, September 19, 2012|website=Major League Baseball|access-date=November 17, 2021}} or in the final game.{{Cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/wbc/2013/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2012_09_23_espint_isrint_1&mode=box|title=Spain vs. Israel at Roger Dean Stadium - Sunday, September 23, 2012|website=Major League Baseball|access-date=November 17, 2021}} Orloff's only appearance was as the starting second baseman in the second game, batting ninth, and going 0 for 3 and leaving 3 men on base.{{Cite web|url=http://mlb.mlb.com/wbc/2013/gameday/index.jsp?gid=2012_09_21_isrint_espint_1&mode=box|title=Israel vs. Spain at Roger Dean Stadium - Friday, September 21, 2012|website=Major League Baseball|access-date=November 17, 2021}}

Coaching career

In 2013, Orloff rejoined UC Irvine's baseball team as an assistant coach.{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/socal/daily-pilot/sports/tn-dpt-sp-0720-orloff-uc-irvine-coach-20130719-story.html|title=Orloff's return lauded|date=July 20, 2013|website=Daily Pilot|access-date=November 17, 2021}} Head coach Mike Gillespie retired after the 2018 season, and Orloff succeeded him as head coach.{{cite web|last=Foley |first=Brian |url=http://www.collegebaseballdaily.com/2018/02/15/uc-irvine-coach-mike-gillespie-to-retire-after-2018-season-ben-orloff-name-replacement/ |title=UC-Irvine coach Mike Gillespie to retire after 2018 Season; Ben Orloff named Replacement |publisher=College Baseball Daily |date= February 15, 2018|access-date=2020-02-07}} In his third season with the Anteaters, Orloff lead the team to the Big West Conference championship, winning Coach of the Year in the conference.{{cite web |url=https://bigwest.org/news/2021/6/2/mens-baseball-big-west-announces-baseball-all-conference-team.aspx |title=Big West Announces Baseball All-Conference Team |date=June 2, 2021 |publisher=Big West Conference |website=Bigwest.org |access-date=June 8, 2021}}

{{CBB Yearly Record Subhead

| name = UC Irvine Anteaters

| conference= Big West Conference

| startyear = 2019

| endyear =

}}

{{CBB yearly record entry

| championship =

| season = 2019

| name = UC Irvine

| overall = 37–17

| conference = 17–7