The Wolverine: Covering University of Michigan Football and Sports
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WHERE ARE THEY NOW? he retired from the minors to coach in the San Diego Padres' organization. In 2014, he took on a job scouting for the Los Angeles Angels. "Oddly enough, a former Wolver- ine, Hal Morris, who had a great ca- reer at Michigan and in the majors, reached out to me and became my boss for the An- gels," Fetter said. "As a pro scout, we build databases for our club so that they are best pre- pared for an op- ponent when they see them or if we want to trade for a guy. I had 17 minor league teams and three major league clubs. "I wouldn't trade that experience for the world. It al- lowed me to see thousands of players. You see day in and day out what makes the good ones good and the guys that don't achieve, what holds them back. You certainly see the game from a differ- ent perspective and I think that will help me as a coach." Fetter met his wife, Jessica, in the fall of 2013 and while they made the exhaustive travel schedule he was on work, there was a desire to change career arcs before starting a family. "I give Jessica a lot of credit be- cause she didn't know what she was getting into but ultimately grew to love the game," Fetter said. "She has been fully supportive of no matter what I wanted to do, but I knew after talking to a bunch of the scouts, the time away from your families is very tough, and if we have a child in the near future, it'd be too much to put on her shoulders to raise a child on her own for half the year." Having played f o r M a l o n e y a t M i c h i g a n , F e t - ter jumped at the chance to join his former coach's staff at Ball State, and while signing on so late in the calendar is not ideal, the job is. " W h e n C o a c h M a l o n e y c a m e calling, it was the right time for our family and it was the career change I wanted to make," he said. "I've been thrown into the fire, but it's been a good experience so far. "The greatest part is not having to prove myself as a person to my new employer; Coach Maloney and I have always had a great relationship." Fetter 's coaching career has just begun and he does not know what the future holds, but he knows what the end goal is. "Michigan is a place where if that was ever on the table, I would do everything in my power to get that job and stay there the rest of my life," he said. ❏ After serving as a scout for the Los Angeles Angels for two years, Fetter (pictured with his wife, Jessica) joined Rich Maloney's coaching staff at Ball State in January. PHOTO COURTESY CHRIS FETTER