The University of Alabama at Birmingham Athletics
Staff Directory
- Title:
- Athletics Sports Coordinator
- Email:
Justin Kaplan joined the UAB softball staff as the Blazers’ Athletics Sports Coordinator in September 2026, where he plays a key role in player development and analytics.
Kaplan brings extensive experience in player development, recruiting and coaching at the youth, club and international levels.
Prior to joining UAB, Kaplan spent three years as an assistant coach and director of player development for the Birmingham Thunderbolts 18 Premier. In that role, he worked with players from across the country while helping develop one of the nation’s premier travel softball programs.
Kaplan previously served as the head coach and recruiting coordinator for Birmingham Thunderbolts Premier 2024-Kaplan from 2019-23. He built the program from the ground up and oversaw all recruiting efforts. During his tenure, every player on his roster earned a Top 100 national ranking, including multiple players ranked among the top five nationally. Several of his players went on to compete at some of the nation’s top collegiate programs.
Kaplan also brings extensive international coaching experience to Birmingham. Since 2023, he served as an assistant coach and director of player development for Israel’s U18, U19 and U22 women’s national softball teams. In 2023, he helped guide Israel’s U18 team to its highest-ever finish at the European Championships in Prague.
In addition, Kaplan was involved with USA National Softball since 2018. He served as the head coach of the Region 5 12U team at the All American Games each summer since 2018 and as the director of Alabama’s High Performance Program, which serves as a pipeline to the USA National Softball Teams.
