LSU baseball coach Paul Mainieri will coach the U.S. national collegiate team in 2018, USA Baseball announced Tuesday.
Mainieri previously served as an assistant on the U.S. national collegiate team in 2015, and former LSU pitcher Alex Lange played on the team in 2016. This will be Mainieri’s first turn as the U.S. national head coach.
“It has been a goal of mine since I went into coaching 36 years ago to one day coach our nation’s team,” Mainieri said in an LSU-released statement. “And to now have that dream realized is almost overwhelming.”
The U.S. national collegiate team is comprised of the top college players in the country. The team last summer played a series of games in Cary, N.C., and a handful of other locations in the U.S. The team played several games against the national teams from China, Cuba and Japan.
In addition to Lange, Mainieri has coached four other players who played on the national collegiate team during his 11 seasons at LSU: Micah Gibbs (2008), Mikie Mahtook (2010), Kevin Gausman (2011) and Alex Bregman (2013, 2014).
He also shares deep personal connections with three former Team USA coaches.
“My three mentors throughout my coaching life — Tommy Lasorda, Ron Maestri, and my father, Demie Mainieri — all took their turn in coaching Team USA,” Paul Mainieri said. “And now I get the opportunity to follow in their footsteps. I’m thrilled beyond words to have this wonderful experience.”
Read the entire article at NOLA.com.
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