The Hall of Fame Class of 2024 for the Virginia Baseball Coaches Association includes former Arlington coach Del Norwood.
The late Norwood, a native of Maine, came to Virginia after a professional career as a player and manager. In nearly 30 seasons (1959-89) at Washington-Lee High School, now named Washington-Liberty, Norwood’s teams won 19 district and 14 regional titles with an overall record of 384-180.
In addition to coaching the W-L team, Norwood was known for working hours to improve the school’s baseball field at Quincy Park. Many have tried to name the field in his honor.
Prior to coaching at W-L, Norwood pitched in the minor leagues for the Red Sox and Senators organizations from 1950-59, winning 14 games in a season twice. After that, he occasionally coached in the minors for the Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Royals.
Norwood, a member of the Virginia High School Hall of Fame (1992), Arlington Sports Hall of Fame (1998) and the Washington-Liberty Sports Hall of Fame (2002), died in 2003.
One of his sons, Scott Norwood, played football and soccer at James Madison University and was a place-kicker in the National Football League for the Buffalo Bills. Another son, Steve Norwood, played baseball at the University of Virginia and in the minors for the Milwaukee Brewers. His daughter, Sandra, was a multi-sport standout in high school.
Norwood is the fourth baseball coach from Northern Virginia to be chosen for the Virginia Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame. He joins former high-school coaches Ron Tugwell (West Springfield) and the late Bob Menefee (Robinson) , along with former George Mason University coach Bill Brown.
Photo via Jose Francisco Morales/Unsplash
