Baylor Baseball Coach Steve Rodriguez Announces Resignation
Kaye, David
David_Kaye at baylor.edu
Mon May 30 12:15:10 CDT 2022
BAYLOR ATHLETICS COMMUNICATIONS – May 30, 2022
Baylor Baseball Coach Steve Rodriguez Announces Resignation
Rodriguez compiled 197-146 record over seven seasons
For more information contact: David Kaye, 254-709-5147, David_Kaye at baylor.edu<mailto:David_Kaye at baylor.edu>
WACO, Texas – Baylor Head Baseball Coach Steve Rodriguez announced today that he is stepping down from his position, after leading the Bears for seven seasons. His 197-146 record marks the third-most wins of any head coach in program history.
“While a decision of this magnitude is never easy, I am at peace with it,” said Rodriguez. “Seven years is a long time at one place, and now it is time for a new voice to lead the Baylor Baseball program. I will forever be grateful to the outstanding young men who have played for me. I am just happy that I was able to help young men achieve their own goals of playing professionally, that our program helped young men find faith and that I have built lifelong friendships with players for my entire career. I wish every one of them the very best on the field and in life. My family and I wish Baylor the very best and will always cherish our times as Baylor Bears.”
The 2017 Big 12 Coach of the Year, Rodriguez led the Bears to three-straight NCAA Regional appearances (2017, 2018, 2019), as well as their first Big 12 Tournament title in program history (2018). BU finished in second place in the Big 12 standings with a 14-8 conference record in 2019, the Bears’ best finish since their most recent regular-season Big 12 Championship in 2012.
“We are grateful for Steve’s time at Baylor over the past seven years and for his commitment to our student-athletes, our university and to Preparing Champions for Life,” said Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Mack Rhoades. “On behalf of Baylor University, I want to thank Steve and his family for their service, and we wish him, his wife Kim and their two children, Julia and Nolan, the very best as God directs their next steps. We have a world-class university and incredible momentum in Baylor Athletics, and I am confident we will identify and recruit a tremendous new head coach.”
Baylor reached the 30-win mark in four of Rodriguez’s six full seasons with a high mark of 37-21 in 2018. Rodriguez was named 2017 Big 12 Coach of the Year in his second season leading the program, as the Bears earned a berth in the 2017 NCAA Houston Regional and finished in fourth place in the Big 12 with a 34-23 mark. The following season, the Bears defeated TCU in extra innings to win their first Big 12 Tournament title and advanced to the 2018 NCAA Stanford Regional. BU won its first NCAA Tournament game since 2012 and finished with a 37-21 record, which trails only the 49 wins in 2012 as the Bears’ most victories in the last 17 seasons.
BU made its third-consecutive postseason appearance with a trip to the 2019 NCAA Los Angeles Regional and placed second in the Big 12 with a 35-19 mark, its highest Big 12 finish since winning the regular-season conference title in 2012. The Bears were off to a 10-6 start in 2020 before that season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and BU followed with a 31-20 record in 2021 and 26-28 mark in 2022.
Eight Bears earned All-America honors during Rodriguez’s tenure, beginning when Troy Montemayor became Baylor’s first All-American in five seasons when he was honored in 2017. Cody Bradford (2018), Shea Langeliers (2018, 2019), Kyle Hill (2019), Davis Wendzel (2019), Luke Boyd (2021), Jared McKenzie (2021) and Andy Thomas (2021) also earned All-America recognition under Rodriguez’s leadership.
The Bears have had 12 players selected a total of 14 times in the MLB Draft since Rodriguez took over in 2016, including a trio of first-round picks over the last two drafts. Daniel Castano (2016, 19th round), Montana Parsons (2017, 24th round), Kameron Esthay (2017, 26th round), Montemayor (2018, 25th round), Langeliers (2019, first round), Wendzel (2018, 37th round; 2019, first round), Bradford (2019, sixth round), Hill (2019, 10th round), Josh Bissonette (2019, 31st round), Nick Loftin (2020, first round), Thomas (2021, fifth round) and Boyd (2019, 38th round; 2021, 17th round) all went on to professional careers after being selected in the MLB Draft.
Baylor players earned a total of 52 All-Big 12 honors over six full seasons with Rodriguez at the helm, as well as the 2017 Big 12 Newcomer of the Year (Parsons), 2018 Big 12 Pitcher of the Year (Bradford) and 2019 Big 12 Player of the Year (Wendzel). The Bears also had a pair of Big 12 Scholar-Athletes of the Year, with Richard Cunningham honored in 2017 and Kyle Hill selected in 2019.
Rhoades has launched a national search for the next Baylor baseball head coach and will not make any comments on prospective candidates or on the search process.
STEVE RODRIGUEZ AS BAYLOR BASEBALL HEAD COACH
Year Overall Record Big 12 Record (Finish) Postseason
2016 24-29 10-14 (6th)
2017 34-23 12-12 (4th) NCAA Houston Regional (3rd)
2018 37-21 13-11 (5th) NCAA Stanford Regional (3rd)
2019 35-19 14-8 (2nd) NCAA Los Angeles Regional (3rd)
2020 10-6 N/A COVID-19 shortened season
2021 31-20 11-13 (t-5th)
2022 26-28 7-17 (8th)
Totals 197-146 67-75
BAYLOR ALL-TIME COACHING RECORDS
Name Years Overall Pct.
Steve Smith 1995-2015 (21) 744-523-1 .587
Mickey Sullivan 1974-94 (21) 649-428-6 .602
Steve Rodriguez 2016-22 (7) 197-146 .574
Dutch Schroeder 1962-73 (12) 196-165-1 .543
Morley Jennings 1928-39 (12) 120-78-2 .605
Frank Bridges 1920-27 (8) 95-73 .565
A.E. Jones 1946-50, 53 (6) 81-51 .614
Lloyd Russell 1940-41, 58-61 (6) 72-58-1 .553
Ralph Glaze 1910-13 (4) 54-27 .667
Boyd SoRelle 1954-57 (4) 48-45-1 .516
C.P. Mosley 1914-19 (6) 47-60 .439
L.F. Burleson 1906-08 (3) 25-34 .423
R.N. Watts 1903-04 (2) 13-18 .438
Lee Carroll 1905 (1) 12-7 .631
Vic Bradford 1951 (1) 10-10 .500
Chuck Devereaux 1952 (1) 9-6 .600
E.J. Mills 1909 (1) 9-12 .421
Floyd Crow 1942 (1) 8-8 .500
J.C. Ewing 1902 (1) 5-9 .357
Totals 1902-2022 2,394-1,758-12 .576
www.BaylorBears.com
--
David Kaye | Assistant AD for Communications
Department of Athletics | Baylor University
C: 254-709-5147
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