The
San Diego State Aztecs baseball
: ''For information on all San Diego State University sports, see San Diego State Aztecs''
The San Diego State Aztecs baseball team is the college baseball program that represents San Diego State University in the National Collegiate Athletic As ...
program is a
baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding ...
team that represents
San Diego State University
San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) syste ...
in the
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athlete, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic sports, ...
's
Mountain West Conference
The Mountain West Conference (MW) is one of the collegiate athletic conferences affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) (formerly I-A). The MW officially began operations ...
. San Diego State has had eight head coaches since the program began competing in 1926.
Profiles
John Hancock
John Hancock, who led the team for the 1926 season, is the first recorded coach of San Diego State.
Lee Waymire
Lee Waymire was San Diego State's second coach, serving for the 1927 season.
Harold G. Brucker
Harold was the first coach to remain more than one year, coaching the Aztecs in 1928 and 1929.
Morris Gross
After failing to field a team in 1930,
Morris Gross
Morris H. Gross was an American basketball player and coach, baseball coach, and college athletics administrator. He served as the head basketball coach at San Diego State University from 1929 to 1942, compiling a record of 190–85. Smith was a ...
coached the Aztecs in 1931 and 1932.
Charles R. Smith
After again failing to field a team in 1933, 1934, and 1935,
Charles R. Smith took the program over, becoming the first San Diego State coach with an extended tenure. Smith coached the Aztecs from 1936 through 1964, with a three-year interruption from 1943 to 1945 during which time no team was fielded.
Lyle Olsen
Lyle Olsen succeeded Smith, coaching the Aztecs from 1965 through 1971.
Jim Dietz
Jim Dietz coached the Aztecs for 31 years, from 1972 through 2002. His record of 1230–751–18 makes him one of the
winningest college baseball coaches of all time. Dietz coached a number of players who went on to successful
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL) ...
careers, including
Bud Black
Harry Ralston "Bud" Black (born June 30, 1957) is an American professional baseball manager and former player who is the manager of the Colorado Rockies. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a pitcher from 1981 through 1995, most notably ...
and
Tony Gwynn
Anthony Keith Gwynn Sr. (May 9, 1960 – June 16, 2014), nicknamed "Mr. Padre", was an American professional baseball right fielder, who played 20 seasons (1982–2001) in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres. The left-handed h ...
. He took the position at San Diego State in 1971 a week after accepting and then turning down an offer to coach basketball at Lewis–Clark Normal School—now
Lewis–Clark State College.
Tony Gwynn
A native of
Long Beach, California
Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California.
Incorporate ...
, and an alumnus of San Diego State,
Tony Gwynn
Anthony Keith Gwynn Sr. (May 9, 1960 – June 16, 2014), nicknamed "Mr. Padre", was an American professional baseball right fielder, who played 20 seasons (1982–2001) in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the San Diego Padres. The left-handed h ...
returned to coach his alma mater after the end of his 20-year
Hall of Fame career. Gwynn was hired in the fall of 2001 to replace Dietz following the 2002 season.
The Aztecs' home field was renamed
Tony Gwynn Stadium
Tony Gwynn Stadium is the home field of the San Diego State University Aztecs college baseball team. In addition, the San Diego Surf Dawgs of the independent Golden Baseball League used the park as their home field.
Stadium history
The original ...
in his honor in 1997.
Mark Martinez
Mark Martinez took over as head coach after Tony Gwynn died from cancer in 2014.
Notes
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References
{{San Diego State Aztecs baseball coach navbox
San Diego State Aztecs baseball
: ''For information on all San Diego State University sports, see San Diego State Aztecs''
The San Diego State Aztecs baseball team is the college baseball program that represents San Diego State University in the National Collegiate Athletic As ...
San Diego State Aztecs head baseball coaches
San Diego State Aztecs
The San Diego State Aztecs are the sport, athletic teams that represent San Diego State University (SDSU). San Diego State currently sponsors six men's and eleven women's sports at the varsity level.
The Aztecs compete in NCAA Division I (NCAA D ...
*
San Diego State baseball coaches