Main Office Contact Information

Peter B. Freund is the CEO of Diamond Baseball Holdings (DBH), a Silver Lake portfolio company which owns and operates affiliated Minor League Baseball (MiLB) teams throughout North America. Prior to joining DBH, Freund worked in the Office of the Commissioner of Baseball, helping guide the transition of Major League Baseball’s affiliates while spearheading the formation of the MLB Draft League.

Freund is a minority owner of the New York Yankees and has owned and operated Minor League Baseball teams for more than a decade. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH and served as the Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Rippowam Cisqua School in Bedford, NY, a coeducational independent day school for grades pre-kindergarten through nine, which he also attended. He also serves as a trustee at the Berkshire School in Sheffield, MA.

Phillips was born in Sumter, S.C. and has lived in Charleston since he was a child. Phillips earned a B.S. degree in Industrial Management from Clemson in 1985. After obtaining his MBA from UNC in 1988, Phillips began work with Carolina Eastern, a Charleston-based company that markets and distributes fertilizers. In 1995 Phillips became President of Carolina Eastern and has continued to hold that office to this day. Phillips is active among the Charleston community, serving on the board of Porter-Gaud School and Palmetto Agri-Business Council. In addition to serving in the community, Phillips has a minority partnership interest in various baseball clubs. He is married to Kathryn Pearce Phillips with whom he has four children.

Echols has guided the RiverDogs through some of their most successful seasons since being named general manager in 2004. He led the staff in hosting the highly successful 2004 and 2012 South Atlantic League All-Star games, and has twice earned SAL General Manager of the Year honors. Under his guidance, the RiverDogs have been named recipients of MiLB national awards for excellence in promotions, marketing, and sustained excellence. And, in 2016, the RiverDogs won the inaugural Patriot Award, given to the Minor League team that best exemplifies outstanding support of the military branches and engagement with veterans.

He's a member of the Rotary Club of Charleston, the Executive Association of Greater Charleston, and the boards of the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce and Trident Technical College. He was a founding member and vice president of the Palmetto Military Support Group, and currently serves as an Air Mobility Command Civic Leader.

From 2002-04 Echols served as GM of the Brockton (Mass.) Rox and was named Northeast League Executive of the Year in 2003. The University of Dayton graduate has also worked for teams in Kinston, N.C., and Columbus, Ohio. Echols is active in community affairs and resides on Johns Island with his wife, Debra, and son, Logan.

Abzug, a native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was named the Assistant General Manager of the Charleston RiverDogs in 2013 after spending the previous four seasons with the Burlington Royals of the Appalachian League. With Burlington, Abzug was named the 2012 Appalachian League Executive of the Year and helped increase the Royals' sponsorship sales by 80 percent in two years. Attendance also rose 23 percent in Burlington under Abzug's leadership.

A graduate of Purdue University, Abzug spent two years as an intern with the Cedar Rapids Kernels of the Midwest League. Abzug currently resides in Mount Pleasant with his wife, Jess, and their daughters, Joanna and Hazel.

Lange began his career in baseball with the Charleston RiverDogs in October 2001, having joined the sales staff after two years with the historic Francis Marion Hotel in downtown Charleston. During his career, he received 2013 South Atlantic League Sales Executive of the Year honors in his tenth season as Assistant General Manager before his promotion to Vice President.

Originally from LaPorte, Ind., Lange has been in Charleston since 1996. He continues to serve on the Board of Directors for the local chapter of the March of Dimes. He married the former Melissa LaPlaunt on Dec. 31, 2007, and they reside in West Ashley with sons Wrigley, Hayden, and Maddux.

Taken with the first overall selection in the June 1994 Minor League Mascot Draft, Charlie has been an integral part of the RiverDogs since their inception. He was the first high school mascot taken with the first overall selection in the storied history of the Mascot Draft, as part of the inaugural season of RiverDogs baseball in 1994. Charlie has helped the RiverDogs become one of the most popular attractions in the Lowcountry, moving into Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park in 1997.

Charlie has witnessed many of the RiverDogs greats pass through the Lowcountry from his time in Charleston. His favorites to don the RiverDogs uniform include B.J. Pupton, Andy BARKett, Aubrey Ruff, and Rob Ruffsnyder. He is an active member of the Lowcountry community, and attends numerous events year round.

Chelsea's been bringing spunk to the Lowcountry since joining the RiverDogs in the early 2000's. She is credited with coming up with the RiverDogs Dog Day concept in a promotional meeting in 2014, deciphered by the rest of the front office after three hours of charades. Her favorite hobbies include watching the RiverDogs hit home runs, long walks on Folly Beach, and digging for her lost bone on the Riley Park warning track to the chagrine of the grounds crew.

A native of Miami, Fla., Stickney has been with the Goldklang Group since 2000 when she ran the Veeck Promotional Seminar. She joined the RiverDogs as Director of Special Events in 2003, coordinating a number of fundraising and community events for the club before transitioning to her current role as business manager in 2008.

Prior to joining the RiverDogs, Stickney spent time working for the National Association of Baseball Leagues and the Hickory Crawdads, another club with membership in the South Atlantic League. She currently resides in Mt. Pleasant with her husband, Jeff, and three children: Miles, Travis, and Sydney.

Audrey joined the RiverDogs front office in March of 2024. She was previously the Assistant Volleyball Coach at the University Of North Carolina Asheville. Audrey received a Bachelor's Degree in Biology in 2022 while playing for her university’s volleyball team and will complete a Master's Degree in Organizational Leadership this year.

In her free time, Audrey enjoys spending time with her husband, Vince, and their dachshund (Winston), fostering dogs, and spending her weekends around the country coaching a travel volleyball team.

Knapinski joined the RiverDogs in March of 2024. Prior to arriving in the Holy City, he spent four years as Manager, and later Director, of Operations with the Midland Rockhounds, Double-A affiliate of the Oakland Athletics. Knapinski also worked in Jupiter, where he handled Cardinals and Marlins spring training and minor league operations, the California Winter League in Palm Springs and the Futures Collegiate Baseball League in Connecticut.

Originally from Neenah, Wisconsin, he graduated from Ohio Norther University in 2015 with a degree in sport management. When not at The Joe, Knapinski enjoys golf, sporting events, blackjack and Milwaukee Bucks basketball.

Kevin took over as the RiverDogs' head groundskeeper heading into the 2019 season after working on the field crew for the Minnesota Twins for the previous four seasons at Target Field. Prior to his Big League stint, the Minnesota native worked as the Assistant Field Superintendent with the San Antonio Missions of the Double-A Texas League. Kevin is the team's biggest advocate for beards, and along with his grounds-keeping brethren, reminds you to stay off the grass.

If you are in the ballpark while a game is not in progress, there is a good chance you will spot his sidekick Charlotte patrolling the field and searching for someone to play fetch with.

Following a year-long hiatus, Josh Shea returned to the RiverDogs in the 2019 offseason after being named the club's Vice President, Food & Beverage. Shea returned to the Lowcountry after serving as the F&B Director for six years (2013-2018) previously with the club. The Clemson grad spent the 2019 season as the Food & Beverage Director in Augusta (Class-A, South Atlantic League) where he revamped the GreenJackets' concession operations in their second year at SRP Park. His development of the RiverDogs Culinary Camp has proven to be a successful addition to the camp programs for the team, and been a growth opportunity for both the campers, as well as the staff.

A native of Abbeville, SC, Shea previously gained culinary experience as the catering chef at Tidewater Catering, spent time at Triangle Char & Bar in West Ashley and Halls Chop House in downtown Charleston while also working as a personal chef prior to his first stint with the RiverDogs. Along with his Clemson education, he has also earned an associate's degree from the Culinary Institute of Charleston.

A native Charlestonian and a graduate of St. Andrew's Parish High School, Linhart joined the RiverDogs prior to the 2018 season as the office manager. She is a licensed real estate broker and brings over two decades of experience in the industry in both residential and commercial real estate before her first tenure in baseball.

Linhart resides in the Charleston area with her husband, Corey, and her Spring Spaniel, Beauregard. She is the proud mother of four children, Choral, Ethan, Luke, and Conrad, all pursuing careers and is an active parishioner at St. Mary of the Annunciation.