Instructors

Meet your leaders

Our staff takes pride in making sure that the Baseball & Softball Players of Western New York are being taught how to not only play the game at a very competitive level but how to learn and have fun while doing it. We will work as hard as we can every single day to make sure the needs of your son are daughter are met. Whether ifs for 1-on-1 training, team training or strength & conditioning, we are here to help every one of you get better. Welcome to the Hot Corner Baseball Academy family!

Ronnie Bernick

Director of Player Development

Ronnie is in his 3rd Year at Hot Corner Baseball Academy. Since opening Hot Corner in 2016, he has trained, coached and developed 200+ players into College Baseball & Softball and has trained 7 MLB Draft Picks, highlighted by his most recent Draft Pick, Charles Mack, taken in the 6th Round of the 2018 Draft by the Minnesota Twins. In November 2018, he opened Hot Corner Performance Center in Lockport, NY to increase the strength development of all Baseball & Softball players in the area. In the last year, he has helped the New York Yankees with scouting in WNY. That has helped open the door to be a part of the coaching staff for the East Coast Pro scrimmage games at the Rogers Centre in Toronto, ON, as well as on the coaching staff for the High School Rivalry Game held at Fenway Park between the Yankees and Red Sox. Most recently, Ronnie has been named a scout for Team USA NTIS in WNY.

From 2011-2014, he was a member of the Canisius College Golden Griffins Baseball Program where they took home Championships in 2013 (Tournament) & 2014 (Regular Season). He graduated in May 2014 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Health & Physical Education. Following his tenure with the Griffs, he spent the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 seasons as an Assistant Baseball Coach at Niagara University in Lewiston. With the Purple Eagles, Ronnie worked with the Hitters and Base Runners. In each of his 2 seasons, they increased their base stealing totals, run production, batting average, and on-base percentage. He is also a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association.

Personal Accolades:

Bachelor of Science Degree

Concentration in Health & Physical Education

2012 & 2013 MAAC All-Tournament Team Selection

2013 MAAC Tournament Champion

2013 2nd Team All-MAAC (Shortstop)

2014 MAAC Regular Season Champion

2014 1st Team All-MAAC (Utility)

Help with Scouting (WNY) — New York Yankees

Scout (WNY) — Team USA NTIS

Katelyn Bernick

Director of Softball Player Development / PR

Katelyn is in her 3rd Year at Hot Corner. She is currently the Head Junior Varsity (JV) Softball Coach at Williamsville East High School. In the last 3 years, we have seen Katie develop and train girls to reach their highest goals and milestones. We have seen over 170 players reach the Collegiate Level in baseball and softball and Katie has been a big part of that.

Katie had a standout career at Niagara-Wheatfield High School, where she led the Falcons to the 2011 State Playoffs. Her softball career continued at Niagara University, where she was a 4 year started in Center Field. She is a part of the American Baseball Coaches Association.

Personal Accolades:

2012 – 2015 MAAC All-Academic Teams

Sam Cumbo

Director of Performance Development

Sam’s passion for physical development began during his own athletic career. Sam played multiple sports in high school but ultimately fell in love with baseball. Training was always important to him, but it wasn’t until college that he realized what he had been missing. After learning about the physiology of human movement and going through hands-on movement assessments and corrections, he noticed how much he had left on the table during his career.

Sam was the only one from his college baseball team on a mandated stretching program from the athletic training staff due to excessive movement restrictions that were left unaddressed from the previous strength and conditioning program. With little success to regain motion, he began to hit the books (or more accurately, he hit the laptop) to learn. After creating his own program designed to clear out his limitations, Sam’s vertical jump went up 7 inches (22in to 29in) within the following year.

His passion now is to help athletes achieve their maximal performance through a well-rounded sports performance program that leaves no stone unturned on their path to greatness.