Andy Stankiewicz
Stankiewicz speaks to his GCU team in 2022
Born
Andrew Neal Stankiewicz

(1964-08-10) August 10, 1964 (age 59)
Inglewood, California, U.S.
Alma materPepperdine University
Baseball career
Infielder
Batted: Right
Threw: Right
MLB debut
April 11, 1992, for the New York Yankees
Last MLB appearance
September 23, 1998, for the Arizona Diamondbacks
MLB statistics
Batting average.241
Home runs4
Runs batted in59
Teams
Coaching career
Current position
TitleHead coach
TeamUSC
ConferencePac-12
Record34–22–1 (.605)
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
2004–2005Staten Island Yankees
2006–2009Arizona State (AC)
2012–2022Grand Canyon
2023–presentUSC
Head coaching record
Overall375–262–3 (.588)
TournamentsNCAA: 0–4–0 (.000)
Accomplishments and honors
Championships
Awards
  • 4× WAC Coach of the Year (2017, 2018, 2021, 2022)
  • Rod Dedeaux USA Baseball Coach of the Year (2014)

Andrew Neal Stankiewicz (born August 10, 1964) is the head coach of the USC Trojans baseball team in Los Angeles and is a former Major League Baseball middle-infielder.

Stankiewicz had a seven-year MLB playing career spanning four clubs and 429 appearances. He was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 1986 draft and went on to make his MLB debut with the club in 1992. He also played for the Houston Astros and Montreal Expos before closing out his career with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 1998.[1]

Following his playing career, Stankiewicz worked in the Yankees organization including serving as the manager of the Staten Island Yankees in 2003 and 2005, a roving infield instructor in 2004,[2] and as a scout in 2006.[3] He led Staten Island, the Yankees' Class A affiliate, to the 2005 NY-Penn League Championship.[citation needed]

He got his first taste of college coaching with a three-year stint as an assistant coach at Arizona State under Pat Murphy,[4] making a pair of College World Series appearances in 2007 and 2009.[5]

Stankiewicz also served as the minor league field coordinator for the Seattle Mariners from 2009 to 2012[6] before taking the head coaching job at Grand Canyon.[7]

In an 11-year stint as the head coach at Grand Canyon, he inherited an NCAA Division II program and guided it through a transition to Division I where it stood as one of the nation's top mid-major programs[8] with five Western Athletic Conference regular-season championships[9] and multiple appearances in the nation's top-25 rankings.[10]

Stankiewicz went to St. Paul High School in Santa Fe Springs, California.[11] He is an alumnus of Pepperdine University, where he was a standout for the Waves baseball program and graduated in 1986 with a degree in sociology. He ranks in the top 10 in several Pepperdine career batting categories, and is third on the school's all-time list in stolen bases (101).[12]

Playing career

High school

Stankiewicz was an all-league player and his team's most valuable player in football, basketball and baseball at St. Paul High School. He was "regarded as 'one of the best athletes in the history of the school.' His credentials were impressive, not in one sport, but three."[13]

He hit .438 and was the Swordsmen's everyday shortstop as a senior in 1982.[13]

Stankiewicz also played football where he was a Los Angeles Times First Team All-Southeast wide receiver as a senior in 1981, catching 53 passes and returning four kicks for touchdowns.[14] His coach classified him as "the fastest player in the league."[15] He played in the state's Shrine All-Star Football classic at the Rose Bowl in July 1982.[16] Stankiewicz received football interest from Northern Arizona.[13]

College

In July 1982, Stankiewicz received a full baseball scholarship to Pepperdine. He originally held partial scholarship offers from Pepperdine and UC Irvine but signed with the Waves when head coach Dave Gorrie upped his offer to a full scholarship.[13]

Stankiewicz appeared in 32 games as a freshman in 1983, hitting .208 with five RBIs. He became an everyday starter as a sophomore in 1984, playing all but two games in his final three seasons combined. His loudest offensive numbers came as a sophomore, hitting .306 with a team-leading 11 home runs, a team-best 63 runs scored and 74 hits. He rounded out his career hitting .278 as a junior and .288 as a senior. For his career, he played in 221 games, recorded 215 hits, 20 home runs, 172 runs scored, 96 RBIs and a .285 batting average.[17]

Stankiewicz wore No. 3 as a Wave and earned second-team all-conference honors as a sophomore and a senior.[17]

The Waves qualified for the NCAA tournament in his junior and senior seasons. In the 1985 Stanford Regional, Pepperdine lost its opener to Nebraska before bouncing back to win three straight games against Oregon State, Nebraska and Stanford. The Waves fell in the winner-take-all regional championship to Stanford. In the 1986 Austin Regional, Pepperdine won games against Texas–Pan American and Southern Illinois before losing to Arizona. The Waves staved off elimination by beating host Texas but fell again to Arizona. Stankiewicz finished 6–4 in the NCAA tournament in his Waves career.[17]

Stankiewicz remains in Pepperdine's career top 10 for at bats with 755, runs with 172, walks drawn with 121, stolen bases with 101 and stolen-base percentage at .828.[17]

While at Pepperdine, Stankiewicz played alongside other future MLB players in Paul Faries, Mike Fetters, Matt Howard, Chad Kreuter and Doug Simons as well as current Pepperdine head coach Rick Hirtensteiner.

Alongside his brother, Alan, Stankiewicz played collegiate summer ball in 1985 for the North Pole Nicks under legendary coach Mike Gillespie.[18] Both Andy and Alan earned National Baseball Congress All-American honors.[19]

MLB draft

Stankiewicz was selected in three MLB drafts.

Minor leagues

In 11 seasons in the minor leagues, he played primarily shortstop and second base. In 1987 he hit .307 at Ft. Lauderdale, and in 1989 he stole 41 bases in 498 at bats at Albany.

Major leagues

Stankiewicz played for four different ballclubs during his career: the New York Yankees (1992–1993), Houston Astros (1994–1995), Montreal Expos (1996–1997), and Arizona Diamondbacks (1998).

He made his Major League Baseball debut on April 11, 1992, and played his final game on September 23, 1998.

He was a 27-year-old rookie in 1992, when he hit .268 for the Yankees, and .304 with runners in scoring position, and set what turned out to be career highs in at bats (400), runs (52), home runs (2), RBIs (25), and stolen bases (9).

Coaching career

Following his playing career, he managed the Staten Island Yankees, New York's single-A (short season) affiliate, for two seasons (2004–2005), which culminated with a New York–Penn League title in 2005. In 2006, he worked as a scout for the New York Yankees.[20] From 2006 to 2009 he was an assistant baseball coach at Arizona State University. Under his guidance, ASU led the nation in fielding percentage in 2007, and he coached 29 players who were drafted, including three first rounders.

Grand Canyon

On April 25, 2011, Stankiewicz became the head coach at Grand Canyon University.[21]

In his first season, he guided the Antelopes to a 27–23 overall record as the squad finished eighth in the final West Region poll. Stankiewicz also had been selected as an assistant coach for USA Baseball's Collegiate National Team during the summer of 2012. The squad traveled to Cuba and The Netherlands to compete in Honkbal-Haarlem Baseball Week, where they won the bronze medal. In just his second season at Grand Canyon, Stankiewicz had the program winning 40 games and advancing to the NCAA Division II Baseball Championship.

Stankiewicz continued to lead the Lopes as they transitioned from Division II to Division I beginning in 2014. In 2015, under his direction, Grand Canyon won the 2015 regular season WAC title.[22]

Stankiewicz quickly built Grand Canyon into one of the WAC's top two programs, winning regular-season championships in 2015, 2017 and 2018. In 2017 and 2018, the Lopes did not lose a WAC series and posted 19–5 and 20–4 records.

He continued the program's upward trajectory into the 2020s, winning additional WAC regular-season championships in 2021 and 2022. Stankiewicz took the program to its first NCAA Division I baseball tournament in 2021 with a WAC baseball tournament championship.[23] In 2022, the program made its debut in the D1Baseball.com top-25 poll for the first time and remained for three weeks through the end of the regular season. The Lopes earned an at-large bid into the 2022 NCAA Division I baseball tournament as one of the last four teams in.[24]

USC

Stankiewicz was named head baseball coach at the University of Southern California on July 3, 2022.[25][26]

His first season was considered a surprising success,[27][28] winning 34 games and posting a 26–6 record at home. The Trojans finished fourth in the Pac-12 standings by winning seven of their 10 conference series but were left out of the NCAA tournament[29] despite being projected as safely in by many publications.[30][31]

Head coaching record

Statistics overview
Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason
Grand Canyon Antelopes (Pacific West Conference) (2012–2013)
2012 Grand Canyon 27–23 23–17 3rd
2013 Grand Canyon 40–19 26–10 2nd
Grand Canyon: 49–27
Grand Canyon Antelopes (Western Athletic Conference) (2014–2022)
2014 Grand Canyon 30–23 19–8 2nd ineligible
2015 Grand Canyon 32–22 19–7 2nd ineligible
2016 Grand Canyon 25–28–1 13–14 5th ineligible
2017 Grand Canyon 29–25 20–4 1st ineligible
2018 Grand Canyon 33–24 19–5 1st WAC tournament
2019 Grand Canyon 36–24 18–9 T-4th WAC tournament
2020 Grand Canyon 9–9 0–0 Season canceled due to COVID-19
2021 Grand Canyon 39–21–1 29–7 T-1st NCAA Regional
2022 Grand Canyon 41–21 25–5 1st (West) NCAA Regional
Grand Canyon: 341–239–2 162–59
USC Trojans (Pac-12 Conference) (2023–present)
2023 USC 34–23-1 17–13 4th Pac-12 tournament
USC: 34–23–1 (.595) 17–13–0 (.567)
Total: 375–262–3 (.588)

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

Coaching tree

Personal

Stankiewicz married his wife Mari Ana in 1992. The couple has four children: Drew, Marisa, Dane and Mia. Drew played baseball at Arizona State and was drafted in the 11th round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies.[45] Marisa played softball at Arizona State, Dane played baseball for Andy at Grand Canyon, and Mia played softball at South Mountain Community College and CSUN.[46][47]

He grew up in Inglewood, California, the son of Al and Hope Stankiewicz. He has an older brother, Alan, and a younger sister, Andrea.[13]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Andy Stankiewicz Stats". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  2. ^ Forde, Mike (23 June 2005). "Andy managing just fine with S.I. Yanks". New York Post. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  3. ^ Kepner, Tyler (2006-09-22). "From Arizona, to Columbus, to the Bronx". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  4. ^ Skoda, Jason P. (6 July 2006). "Arizona State grants Stankiewicz's wish". The Arizona Republic. p. 12. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  5. ^ "Arizona State Sun Devils - Baseball History - The Baseball Cube". TheBaseballCube.com. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  6. ^ "Willis, Stankiewicz named as Mariners minor league co-ordinators". The Seattle Times. 2009-11-24. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  7. ^ "Grand Canyon names Andy Stankiewicz as new head baseball coach". thepacwest.com. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  8. ^ Healy, Joe. "10 Mid-Major College Baseball Programs Primed For A Breakthrough In the 2020s". www.baseballamerica.com. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  9. ^ "Western Athletic Conference" (PDF). Western Athletic Conference. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  10. ^ "D1Baseball Top 25: Tennessee Clings To No. 1, Three Teams Enter • D1Baseball". D1Baseball. 2022-05-09. Retrieved 2022-06-18.
  11. ^ Foster, Chris (20 May 1992). "Gone but Not Forgotten: Angelus League, Disbanding After 31 Years, Has More Than Its Share of Memories". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  12. ^ "BASERecord Book2022 (PDF)" (PDF). Pepperdine University Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  13. ^ a b c d e Farrell, Lynne E. (8 Jul 1982). "'Too-Small' Stankiewicz Gets Pepperdine Baseball Scholarship". Los Angeles Times. p. 2. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  14. ^ Farrell, Lynne E. (13 Dec 1981). "Downey, St. Paul Top Times All-Star Team". Los Angeles Times. p. 6. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  15. ^ Hamilton, Tom (3 Sep 1981). "Angelus League Features 3-Team Race". Los Angeles Times. p. 16. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  16. ^ "Stankiewicz To Play In Shrine All-Star Game". East Whittier Review. 17 Jun 1982. p. 16. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  17. ^ a b c d "BASERecord Book2022 (PDF)" (PDF). Pepperdine University Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-26.
  18. ^ Scott, Casey (27 Aug 1985). "North Pole Nicks Defeat Anchorage in Battle of Alaskans". The Wichita Eagle. p. 12. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  19. ^ Scott, Casey (28 Aug 1985). "BeeJays, Nicks Top All-Tourney Team". The Wichita Eagle. p. 20. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  20. ^ Kepner, Tyler (September 22, 2006). "BASEBALL; From Arizona, to Columbus, to the Bronx". The New York Times.
  21. ^ "Grand Canyon Names Stankiewicz as Baseball Head Coach". GCULopes.com. April 25, 2011.
  22. ^ Metcalfe, Jeff (May 18, 2015). "Grand Canyon baseball wins its first WAC regular season title". Arizona Central.
  23. ^ Oscherwitz, Evan (4 June 2021). "GCU Baseball Eyes First NCAA tournament Appearance". AZ Central. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  24. ^ Lyddon, Luke (30 May 2022). "GCU baseball team selected to return to NCAA tournament". 12 News. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  25. ^ Kartje, Ryan and Iliana Limón Romero (July 3, 2022). "USC hires Grand Canyon's Andy Stankiewicz to rebuild Trojans' baseball program". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on July 9, 2022. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  26. ^ Grosbard, Adam (July 3, 2022). "USC names Andy Stankiewicz new head baseball coach". Orange County Register. Archived from the original on July 9, 2022. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
  27. ^ "USC baseball quickly learning how to win under Andy Stankiewicz | Pac-12". pac-12.com. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  28. ^ "Podcast: USC baseball near top of standings halfway through Andy Stankiewicz' first year". 247Sports. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  29. ^ "USC baseball shockingly snubbed by NCAA tournament selection committee". Trojans Wire. 2023-05-29. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  30. ^ Staff, D1 Baseball (2023-05-29). "D1Baseball Field of 64 Projections: May 29, Final Edition • D1Baseball". D1Baseball. Retrieved 2023-06-04.((cite web)): CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  31. ^ Cahill, Teddy. "2023 NCAA Baseball Tournament Projected Field Of 64". www.baseballamerica.com. Retrieved 2023-06-04.
  32. ^ "Choate Joins GCU Baseball Staff". Grand Canyon University Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  33. ^ "Toreros hire Nathan Choate as pitching coach". Daily Press. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  34. ^ "Nathan Choate hired as new baseball coach at Loyola Marymount". Daily Breeze. 2019-06-26. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  35. ^ "Dorman named Lopes pitching coach". Grand Canyon University Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  36. ^ Oregonian/OregonLive, Nick Daschel | The (2019-08-10). "Oregon State baseball hires Rich Dorman as its pitching coach, replacing Nate Yeskie". oregonlive. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  37. ^ "Marc Mumper - Baseball". Grand Canyon University Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  38. ^ "Marc Mumper promoted to assistant baseball coach". Abilene Christian University Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  39. ^ "Marc Mumper joins AFA Baseball Staff". Air Force Academy Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  40. ^ "Roster | DSL CLE Blue". wap.milb.com. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
  41. ^ Rogers, Kendall (2022-05-24). "2022 Assistant Coach Carousel • D1Baseball". D1Baseball. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
  42. ^ sports, azcentral. "Grand Canyon names longtime assistant Gregg Wallis head baseball coach". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved 2022-07-21.
  43. ^ "Ryan Cisterna - Baseball Coach". California State University at Bakersfield Athletics. Retrieved 2022-06-24.
  44. ^ "Central Arizona College Sports". Central Arizona College Sports. Retrieved 2022-06-19.
  45. ^ "Drew Stankiewicz". Baseball Reference. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  46. ^ Obert, Richard (20 June 2021). "Stankiewicz children influenced in life, on the ball field by their father Andy". Arizona Central. Retrieved 18 June 2022.
  47. ^ Naczek, Margaret (30 May 2018). "Stankiewicz's love of baseball became a family affair". Arizona Sports. Retrieved 18 June 2022.

External links

Head baseball coaches of the Pac-12 Conference
Grand Canyon Antelopes head baseball coaches
USC Trojans head baseball coaches
Western Athletic Conference Baseball Coach of the Year
Categories