Phillip Cebuhar finished his fourth season at Charlotte in 2025 as the team’s hitting coach. Cebuhar came to the Queen City after spending three seasons as a graduate assistant with the top-ranked Arkansas Razorbacks, where he assisted with offensive and hitting operations, worked with advanced scouting and data/analytics, field duties, and other day-to-day operations.

Charlotte’s power at the plate was on display again in 2025, with the Niners hitting 79 home runs for the sixth-most hit in a single season in program history. That included a stretch of 15 consecutive games leaving the yard in the middle of the season, which tied with the final 15 games of the 2023 NCAA Regional team for the longest stretch of consecutive games with a home run since the turn of the century. Cody Gunderson began the year with a 34-game on-base streak under Cebuhar and led the team with two separate 14-game hitting streaks in 2025. His on-base streak was aided by being hit by a pitch 11 times, part of a season total of 70 for the Green and White for the third-most times being hit by a pitch in a single season. Cebuhar also had a full-circle experience in 2025 as he got to go back to his home state for a weekend series at No. 4 Arkansas and was responsible for Charlotte’s side of the plate meeting with his former boss, Dave Van Horn, before Sunday’s finale that weekend.

Cebuhar’s approach to hitting has helped the Niners improve their power totals across the board, hitting 65 home runs in the 2024 season for the eighth-most in a single campaign in program history. Those home runs included a go-ahead grand slam by Carson Bayne in the ninth inning at No. 9 East Carolina to beat the Pirates and three consecutive solo home runs in the bottom of the ninth to walk-off Memphis – two of Charlotte’s four wins in 2024 when trailing in the seventh inning or later. Cebuhar’s tutelage helped catcher Kaden Hopson sign with the Los Angeles Angles as a free agent after the draft, making it five batters to reach the professional ranks since he arrived in the Queen City.

Cebuhar built on a successful first season in the Queen City in 2022 and improved the team’s power numbers even more in 2023. The team hit 103 home runs in 2023, the second-most in a single season and just the second time the Niners have crossed the century mark. CLT drew the second-most walks in a single season after the record-setting year his first season with the team and took the seventh-most total bases and 10th-most RBIs. The season culminated in the first-ever Conference USA Tournament Championship and a berth in the NCAA Regionals, where CLT knocked out host and No. 4 National Seed Clemson.

Cam Fisher had one of the best individual seasons in program history in 2023 under Cebuhar, setting a record with 30 home runs on the season and leading the country in the category heading into Regionals. He also tied the program record for most walks in a season and ended with the second-highest slugging percentage, third-most total bases, fifth-highest on base percentage, and eighth-most RBIs. In two years hitting under Cebuhar, Fisher tied the program record for career home runs and has the second-highest career slugging percentage and fourth-best OBP in CLT baseball history.

In his first season with the Niners, Cebuhar helped Charlotte have one of its best offensive seasons in program history. The Green and White set a record for the most walks in program history with 371, which was the most in the country heading into Regionals. The 49ers had multiple offensive categories rank in the top-five for a single season in 2022, including 489 runs (third-most), 99 home runs (then second-most), 455 RBIs (third-most), .469 SLG% (fourth-highest), 66 HBP (third-most), .415 OBP (fourth-highest), and a +181 run differential (tied for third-best). Charlotte also hit 10 grand slams this season, which is believed to be a program record.

CLT also set the program record for most home runs in a game with eight at Marshall and scored a total of 50 runs in the three-game series with the Thundering Herd – setting a program record for most runs scored in a three-game series and Conference USA series. Charlotte hit a program-record 10 doubles earlier in the season in one game against Western Illinois and matched the program benchmark by drawing 17 bases on balls in a single game against UTSA. In the Conference Tournament, the Niners set a C-USA record for the largest margin of victory in a tournament game with a 22-0 victory over Middle Tennessee.

Outside of working with the 49ers, Cebuhar has also spent time in the Cape Cod League with the Orleans Firebirds as the team’s hitting coach in 2022 and with the Indians/Guardians Organization in the Dominican Summer League in 2019 as an assistant hitting, catching, base coach, and player analyst. With Orleans, Cebuhar helped coach 10 draft picks – including Charlotte’s own Nate Furman and Jake Cunningham, and helped the Firebirds reach the playoffs in the Cape Cod League – the premier summer ball league. Other draft picks selected out of Orleans under Cebuhar’s tutelage include Jacob Wilson (1st Round, 2023), Luke Keaschall (2nd Round, 2023), Travis Honeyman (3rd Round, 2023), Connor Burns (5t Rounds, 2023), Brock Roden (5th Round, 2023), Kevin Sim (5th Round, 2023), Bennett Lee (6th Round, 2023), and Nik McClaughry (10th Round, 2023). While in the Dominican with the 2019 DSL Indians, Cebuhar worked with Jorge Burgos and Dayan Frias – current minor-leaguers in the Guardians’ system and current MLBer in Cleveland, Angel Martinez.

Cebuhar on Joining the Niners

“Charlotte is a special place. An exciting, forward-thinking program that places an emphasis on player development for our student-athletes. The opportunity to work under Coach Woodard and for this staff is tremendous. I can’t wait to get to know our guys and get to work on the pursuit of a championship! I can’t thank Dave Van Horn and the University of Arkansas enough for the opportunity to spend the last three seasons on the staff. It was my honor.”

Cebuhar on Being Named Hitting Coach

“I hope to build off the success of these hitters by complimenting their strengths. Adding some dynamic design to practice, creating a holistic and explosive approach to the offensive game.”

Woodard on Cebuhar’s Addition

“Our coaching staff believes that we have landed one of the brightest young hitting coaches in college baseball from Arkansas in Phillip Cebuhar. Phillip comes from an elite Arkansas program that has held the reputation for many years now of being one of college baseball’s leaders in player development.  He has spent the previous three years working underneath one of the great head coaches in our game, Dave Van Horn, and alongside one of college baseball’s best hitting coaches in Nate Thompson. We are excited for Phillip to bring his experiences, combined with his individual skill sets and personality to our program. In only a few days in working with our hitters, I have both seen and felt some tremendous energy at the field.”

Players Drafted/Signed Under Cebuhar: 4

Nate Furman, 2022 (Cleveland – 4th round)

David McCabe, 2022 (Atlanta – 4th round)

Cam Fisher, 2023 (Houston – 4th round)

Jake Cunningham, 2023 (Baltimore – 5th round)

Kaden Hopson, 2024 (Los Angeles Angels – FA)

Logan Poteet, 2025 (Chicago Cubs – 17th round)

Personal Information
Full Name Phillip Michael Cebuhar
Born : August 3rd 1996
Hometown : Fayetteville, AR
High School : Har-Ber High School
College : Arkansas – Fort Smith, 2018; Arkansas, 2020
Email: pcebuhar@uncc.edu

Coaching Experience

University of Arkansas – Graduate Assistant 2018 – 2021 

Cleveland Indians – DSL Minor League Coach 2019

Oreleans Firebirds – Hitting Coach – 2022

Charlotte – Assistant Coach / Hitting Coach 2021 – Present

Postseason Experience

2019 College World Series

2021 SEC Champions

2021 Super Regional (Fayetteville, Ark.)

2023 Conference USA Tournament Champions

2023 NCAA Regional (Clemson, S.C.)