Bakich Named D1Baseball Coach of the Year
7/3/2019 11:34:00 AM | Baseball
OMAHA, Neb. -- University of Michigan baseball head coach Erik Bakich was named the D1Baseball.com National Coach of the Year, the organization announced Wednesday morning (July 3).
This award is the second for Bakich, as he earned the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) National Coach of the Year award on June 15 prior to the Wolverines' College World Series opener against Texas Tech.
In his seventh season at the helm of the Michigan program, Bakich guided the Wolverines to the eighth College World Series appearance in team history, which resulted in its third CWS Finals appearance and ended in a national runner-up finish.
Highlighted by a Super Regional victory at No. 1-seeded UCLA in Los Angeles, California, and a 3-0 start in the College World Series to advance to the finals, Bakich led the Wolverines to a 50-22 record -- the most wins by a Michigan team since 1987 -- and a 16-7 Big Ten record.
After starting 5-3 in conference play through three series, the Wolverines won 11 straight games, a streak that included nine consecutive conference wins and moved U-M to 14-3 in the Big Ten. They advanced to the semifinals of the Big Ten Tournament after dropping their opening game.
Under Bakich, eight Wolverines earned All-Big Ten Conference honors, including junior outfielder Jordan Brewer, who also was named Big Ten Player of the Year. Sophomore designated hitter Jordan Nwogu and sophomore pitcher Jeff Criswell joined Brewer on the first team, while closer Willie Weiss was named to the All-Big Ten Freshman Team. Brewer, Weiss, Karl Kauffmann and Tommy Henry all earned All-America honors by various publications.
Michigan also had five players selected in the 2019 MLB Draft. Pitchers Henry and Kauffmann were chosen in Competitive Balance Round B, with Henry drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks (74th overall) and Kauffmann selected by the Colorado Rockies (77th overall). Brewer went in the third round (106th overall) to the Houston Astros, while the Oakland A's took pitcher Jack Weisenburger in the 20th round. Infielder Jimmy Kerr was selected in the 33rd round by the Detroit Tigers.
