Biography
Born: April 19, 1960 in East Meadow NY
Married: Kathy Daltas on December 11, 1983
Has three children: Frank III, Brittany, Kaley
Has four grandchildren: Micah, Kyla, Theodore, Daniel
Frank grew up in East Meadow, NY playing many sports along with baseball. He was offered a scholarship to attend St. Johns University where he compiled a record of 26-2 with a 1.67 ERA… on May 21, 1981 pitched in what is known as the greatest college game ever played against Yale’s Ron Darling, which was written about in “The Web of the Game” by Roger Angell. He was drafted that year by the Minnesota Twins in the second round.
Frank quickly moved into the big leagues and on June 6, 1982 pitched his first game against the Baltimore Orioles and Dennis Martinez . He became a permanent part of the starting rotation for the next 7 years. While in Minnesota he was dubbed “Sweet Music Viola” and led the Twins to their first World Series victory in 1987 and was name the World Series MVP. The following year in 1988 he compiled a 24-7 record and was named the American League Cy Young Award winner. He was named the starting pitcher in the 1988 All Star game and was the winning pitcher of record in that game.
Traded to the New York Mets on July 31, 1989 for five players, Viola went on to pitch 3 years in his home town. He was named to two All Star Teams (1990, 1991) and had a 20-12 record in 1990.
Frank signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox in 1992 and went on to pitch two plus seasons before an almost career ending injury that required Tommy John Surgery in 1994. He came back to pitch bits and pieces of 1995/96 with the Cincinnati Reds and Toronto Blue Jays before retiring in 1996 with a 176-150 record, 3.73 ERA, and 47 WAR.
Frank went on to do Radio and Television for ESPN. He was the Head Baseball Coach at Lake Highland Preparatory School for five years and led them to compete in their first State Championship game in 2003. He went on to become the pitching coach for the New York Mets in their Minor Leagues for 8 years. In 2013, The Savannah Sand Gnats team won the Southern League Championship. He helped develop many pitchers throughout the Mets Minor League system including: Jacob deGrom, Noah Synderguaard, Steven Matz, Michael Fulmer, Seth Lugo.
Frank and his wife Kathy, a horse trainer, currently reside in North Carolina and Florida. His children all competed in sports: son Frank III played in the MiLB for 5 years, daughter Brittany was a 2012 Olympian in the sport of diving, and daughter Kaley was an NCAA Division I Volleyball player for Winthrop University. He is currently the Pitching Coach for the High Point Rockers of North Carolina who are a part of Independent Baseball League. He keeps himself busy coaching, doing baseball camps & speaking engagements, playing golf, and traveling to visiting his children and grandchildren.
Playing & Coaching Career Stats + Highlights
Playing Career
Was selected in the first round of the 1982 draft by the Minnesota Twins. Appeared in 421 games with 420 starts in over 15 years.
Minnesota Twins (1982-89)
New York Mets (1989-91)
Red Sox (1992-94)
Cincinnati Reds (1995)
Toronto Blue Jays (1996)
Had a career 176/150 win/loss record with a 3.73 ERA. He required Tommy John surgery in 1996 that ultimately led to his retirement.
Notable awards
World Series MVP in 1987
American League Cy Young in 1988
3-time All Star 1988, 1989, and 1991
Coaching Career
After spending eight seasons working in the New York Mets organization, former Major Leaguer Frank Viola joined the Rockers with a wealth of knowledge and experience. His tutelage paid dividends for the Rockers in 2019, who led the league in ERA, WHIP, placed second in fewest walks-per-nine, and sent three relievers to the Atlantic League All-Star Game.
Served as Binghamton Rumble Ponies pitching coach in 2018. Under his direction, five pitchers had stints in the big leagues. His staff ranked second in the league in least amount of walks and third in strikeouts. As one of Viola’s pitchers, Justin Dunn's improvement in AA landed him on the Top 100 Prospect list.
Viola spent four years with the Las Vegas 51's (2014-17). He was instrumental in development of:
Pill 4-3, 3.47 ERA
Montero 0-2, 2.48 ERA in 2017
Ynoa 12-5, 3.97 ERA
Sewald 5-3, 3.97 ERA
Verrett 2-0, 1.50 ERA in 2016
Syndergaard 3-0, 1.82 ERA
Matz 7-4, 2.19 ERA in 2015
deGrom 4-0, 2.58 ERA in 2014.
Had pitchers amongst the Pitching Leaders in the Pacific Coast League all four years. Viola also spent two years with the Savannah Sand Gnats (2012-13). Was instrumental in the development of
Matz 5-6, 2.62 ERA
Ynoa 15-4, 2.72 ERA
Bowman 4-0, 2.64 ERA
Cessa 8-4, 3.12 ERA
Gsellman 2-3, 3.72 ERA in 2013
Bradford 4-5, 2.47 ERA
deGrom 6-3, 2.51 ERA
Montero 6-3, 2.92 ERA
Pill 3-4, 2.61 ERA
Fulmer 7-6 2.74
Verrett 3-4, 3.06 ERA in 2012.
His pitching staff was second in ERA, second in WHIP, and led the league with the least amount of walks in 2013, all while winning the South Atlantic League Championship.
In 2012 Savannah’s pitching staff led the league in ERA, least amount of walks, and WHIP. Viola was named 2013 Coach of the Year in the South Atlantic League. Viola first joined the New York Mets Organization in 2011 and served as pitching coach for the Brooklyn Cyclones. Both Fulmer and deGrom have earned MLB honors: Fulmer (Rookie of the Year in 2016, All Star in 2017) and deGrom (All Star Team in 2015, 2018).