USC Trojans
2026 USC Trojans baseball team
Founded	1888; 138 years ago (1888)
Overall record	2,944–1,745–29 (.627)
University	University of Southern California
Head coach	Andy Stankiewicz (4th season)
Conference	Big Ten
Location	Los Angeles,California
Home stadium	Dedeaux Field (Capacity: 2,500)
Nickname	Trojans
Colors	Cardinal and gold[1]
College World Series champions
1948, 1958, 1961, 1963, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1978, 1998
College World Series runner-up
1960, 1995
College World Series appearances
1948, 1949, 1951, 1955, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1978, 1995, 1998, 2000, 2001
NCAA regional champions
1978, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005
NCAA tournament appearances
1948, 1949, 1951, 1954, 1955, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1984, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2015, 2025
Conference regular season champions
1930, 1932, 1935, 1936, 1939, 1942, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1964, 1966, 1968, 1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1977, 1978, 1991, 1995, 1996, 2001, 2002

TheUSC Trojans baseball program represents theUniversity of Southern California incollege baseball. Established in1888, the team is a member of theNational Collegiate Athletic Association and theBig Ten Conference. USC’s home field isDedeaux Field, which is named in honor of former head coach andNational College Baseball Hall of Fame inducteeRod Dedeaux.

The USC Trojans are one of the most successful programs in the history of college baseball. The Trojans have won morebaseball national championships than any other program across all divisions of college baseball with 12 national championships.

USC's most notable baseball coach was Rod Dedeaux, who coached from 1942 to 1986 and led the school to 11 of its NCAA championships, including five straight from 1970 to 1974. The first Trojan national championship came in1948. The 12th and most recent NCAA championship came in1998.

The Trojans began recognizing baseball as a school sport in 1889. As with many programs during the late 19th century and early 20th century, the Trojans lacked a consistent head coach, when they even had one at all. It was not until 1908 that the Trojans had an official head coach, Harvey Holmes, but Holmes only coached the team for one year. Holmes also coached other sports at USC including football and track. The team would get another coach during the 1911 season, Curtiss Bernard. Bernard also only coached for a year, and in 1912 the Trojans once again had a one-year coach in Len Burrell.

During theWorld War I years, the USC baseball team was made up mostly of law school students, but the team opened up to all students for the 1916 and 1917 seasons. Following the conclusion of the war, the baseball team was coached by"Gloomy Gus" Henderson in 1920 (who would also coach the Trojan basketball team for two years and the football team for six). Henderson would join forces with Willis Hunter as co-coaches for the 1921 season, but the team was left without a coach for the 1922 season. In 1923 the team was coached by George Wheeler, who also coached the law students during the 1914 season. Wheeler coached the team for a year, and would mark the last time the Trojan baseball team has lacked consistency at the coaching position.

Long-timeMajor League Baseball player and multiple MLB record-holderSam Crawford took over as head coach of USC baseball in 1924. Crawford would mark the end of inconsistency at the coaching ranks for the baseball program. During his tenure, the program slowly began to rise to national prominence, and Crawford helped to create theCalifornia Intercollegiate Baseball Association (CIBA) in 1927. Crawford coached the Trojans for six years before turning the reigns over toSam Barry. Crawford compiled an overall record of 59-46-3, including a second-place finish during the initial campaign for the CIBA.

In 1930, Sam Barry took over the USC baseball program and immediately built off of the success his predecessor had. On his arrival at USC in 1929, he was named head basketball coach and was made an assistant for the USC football team under his friend and colleague,Howard Jones. When Jones died suddenly in 1941, Barry was named his successor, and served as head coach for all three major USC sports teams simultaneously. Barry won the CIBA title in his first year, finishing 11–2 and 25–5–1 overall. During the next decade, Barry would claim four more CIBA titles. Barry coached the Trojans from 1930–1941 before joining theNavy duringWorld War II. As he left, he recommended thatJeff Cravath become the head football coach, Julie Bescos become the head basketball coach, and Rod Dedeaux, the captain of his 1935 team, become the head baseball coach. Upon his return, Barry would resume coaching the Trojans alongside Dedeaux. Barry finished with a career mark of 219–89–3. He remains one of only three coaches to coach aFinal Four game and in a College World Series. Barry was elected to the inaugural class of theAmerican Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame in 1966.

When Sam Barry returned from World War II in 1946, Barry and Dedeaux served as co-coaches, with Dedeaux running the team each year until Barry finished thebasketball season. The arrangement was so successful that USC won the College World Series in 1948.

After finishing the season 40–12–1, USC metYale for the1948 NCAA Division I baseball championship at the second College World Series. The CWS in 1948 was a best 2-out-of-3 format. The games were played on June 25 and June 26, with June 26 being a doubleheader if necessary. USC won the first game, 3–1 to take a 1–0 series lead, but lost game 2 by a score of 8–3. The third and final game immediately followed game 2. USC scored a run in the first inning to claim a lead it would not surrender. USC claimed their first national championship with a game 3 victory, 9–2. Although USC won, they were unable to prevent future President of the United States of America,George Bush, from collecting adouble in the final game.^[2]

After being co-head coach in 1942 with his former college coach Sam Barry, Dedeaux took over the USC program in 1943. Barry recommended Dedeaux to coach the team when Sam Barry joined the Navy. Dedeaux coached the Trojans by himself for the next three years, until once again joining forces with Barry as co-head coaches. After Barry's death in September 1950, Dedeaux became the sole coach of USC baseball.

After taking over in 1951, Dedeaux became the sole coach and proceeded to build on the early success to establish the strongest program in collegiate baseball. The Trojans claimed 11 straight CIBA championships in Dedeaux's first 11 years. The Trojans claimed nine outright titles and tied for first in 1953 and 1957. Following the 1957 campaign, Dedeaux's team finished the season 36–8 overall and earned the first of his 10 national championships as sole coach.

After a total of 45 years as head coach of USC, Dedeaux decided to retire following the 1986 campaign. Dedeaux drastically changed college baseball and left historic marks on the sport. Dedeaux won a total of 11 national championships, compiled a record of 1,332–571–11, and completed a stretch of 37 years without a losing season. He retired as the winningest coach in college baseball history and held that distinction until 1994 when the record was broken by Texas head coachCliff Gustafson.

While he was at USC, Dedeaux also served as coach of theUnited States national baseball team at both the1964 Summer Olympics inTokyo, Japan, and the1984 Summer Olympics inLos Angeles, when baseball was ademonstration sport prior to its elevation to full medal status in 1988.

Following his retirement, Dedeaux became the Director of Baseball for USC, and for the rest of his life remained a beloved annual presence at the College World Series inOmaha, Nebraska. USC's baseball field was named after him when it opened in 1974.^[3] He was inducted into the American Baseball Coaches Association's Hall of Fame in 1970, and in 1999 was named the Coach of the Century byCollegiate Baseball magazine.

Dedeaux died at age 91 inGlendale, California, of complications from a December 2, 2005,stroke.^[4] He was survived by his wife of 66 years, the former Helen Jones, and their four children. On July 4, 2006, Dedeaux was inducted as a member of the first class of inductees into theCollege Baseball Hall of Fame.

USC reached out toMike Gillespie, one of Rod Dedeaux's former players, to replace the recently retired coach. Gillespie played under Dedeaux from 1960–1962, and after a successful coaching stint at theCollege of the Canyons, he was named just the fourth head coach of USC baseball since 1924.

Gillespie was namedNational Coach of the Year in 1998.

After 20 years as the head coach of the Trojans, Gillespie decided to retire following the 2006 season. During his career, Gillespie kept Trojan baseball in the spotlight, especially in the years leading up to and following the 1998 championship. He finished with an overall record of 763–471–2 during his tenure as coach of the Trojans. As a result of his success, Gillespie earned the honor to coach the 2000 USA National Team. During his tenure he was named Pac-10 coach of the year four times, while his teams produced 44 All-America selections, 94 draft picks, and 25 Major League players.

After sitting out the 2007 season, Gillespie was named coach of theUC Irvine Anteaters in September 2007. Gillespie replacedDave Serrano, who had just guided the Anteaters to their first CWS appearance but left to take over atCal State Fullerton, his alma mater, afterGeorge Horton left Fullerton to head the new program atOregon.^[5]

In June 2006,Chad Kreuter became only the fifth man to earn the title of head baseball coach at USC since 1924. Kreuter replaced his father-in-law, Mike Gillespie, after Gillespie retired.

Kreuter failed to reach the postseason in each of his four years as head coach. He produced an overall record of 111–117 during this time, never posting a winning record. During his tenure, the Trojans twice finished in last place in the Pac-10, and never higher than fifth in the conference. Although his players flourished in the classroom, he came under heavy criticism late in his tenure.^[6]

In August 2010, Kreuter was relieved of his duties, and was replaced by assistant coach and formerLoyola Marymount head coachFrank Cruz.^[7]

On May 30, 2019,Dan Hubbs was informed that his contract would not be renewed by the university, but athletic directorLynn Swann thanked Hubbs in a statement for his hard work coaching the program, and insisted he would always remain a great Trojan.^[8]

Heading into the next chapter, formerLoyola Marymount head coachJason Gill was hired to be the new head coach of the USC Trojans baseball program.

During Gill's first season in 2020, the Trojans got off to a hot start, winning 10 of their first 15 games, including consecutive victories over nationally ranked powerhousesVanderbilt andTCU in back-to-back days.^[9] Fans in Troy got excited about the program possibly making a return to theNCAA Tournament that year, but theCOVID-19 pandemic in mid-March abruptly cancelled the rest of the spring.

Gill lost his footing during the challenging circumstances of the pandemic, and the university chose to amicably part ways with him following his third season in 2022.^[10]

On July 3, 2022, the Trojans hiredAndy Stankiewicz as their new head coach. Stankiewicz had earned a highly respected reputation in baseball, first as a hard-nosedinfielder during his playing days, reaching themajor leagues with persistence and determination, and then in coaching as an accomplished skipper forGrand Canyon University, theNew York Yankeesorganization, andUSA Baseball.^[11] He also recorded two appearances in theCollege World Series as an assistant forArizona State University.^[12]

During Stankiewicz's first season in 2023, his Trojans won 34 games, including 26 at home, and USC improved up to fourth place in thePac-12 Conference standings by winning seven of their ten conference series. Despite being widely predicted to easily make theNCAA Tournament by many publications,^[13][14][15] the Trojans were not selected.Dedeaux Field was renovated for even bigger upgrades within the next three years.^[16]

In 2024, the Trojans began playing at alternate sites while their home stadium was being refurbished. They performed at a nearly identical clip from the previous year, going 31-28, with a 17-12 record in conference play (a slightly higher winning percentage than their 17-13 league record the year before), and again finished in fourth place in thePac-12 Conference.^[17]

In 2025, the Trojans began playing in theBig Ten Conference, and still finished in fourth place for the third consecutive season, but they finally took the big steps forward that many fans predicted. They improved to 37 wins, and this time made theNCAA Tournament, marking the program's most successful season in the last ten years.^[18]

Bovard Field was the former home of USC baseball until Dedeaux Field opened in 1974.

The baseball field was aligned (home to center field) similar to Dedeaux Field, but a few degrees clockwise, nearly true north, but just slightly west. Home plate was located in today's E.F. Hutton Park and left field was bounded by Watt Way. Beyond first base, a large eucalyptus tree came into play; while its trunk was in foul territory, some of its branches crossed into fair territory and guarded the foul line in shallow right field.

Dedeaux Field is the home field for the USC Trojans baseball team. It is named after the former legendary USC coach Rod Dedeaux, who coached from 1942 to 1986. The Trojans moved into the ballpark in 1974, the same year that they won their fifth consecutive national championship. After many renovations, the current capacity is 2,500 people.

• Records are through March 11, 2020

• TheNCAA Division I baseball tournament started in 1947.
• Theformat of the tournament has changed through the years.

The following is a listing of first team selections. Other selections are available at USC's official website.^[21]

Legend

• ABCA =American Baseball Coaches Association
• BA = Baseball America
• CB = Collegiate Baseball

Legend

• ^ denotes player was named MOP of the College World Series
• * denotes selection to College World Series All-Decade team
• ~ denotes selection to All-Time College World Series team

• 2005:Jeff Clement^[22]
• 2015:Garrett Stubbs^[23]

• Brian Bannister
• Aaron Boone
• Bret Boone
• Don Buford
• Jeff Cirillo
• Ron Fairly
• Kent Hadley
• Geoff Jenkins
• Randy Johnson
• Jacque Jones
• Steve Kemp
• Dave Kingman
• Barry Latman
• Fred Lynn
• Mark McGwire
• Mark Prior
• Blake Sabol
• Tom Seaver
• Al Silvera
• Roy Smalley
• CJ Stubbs
• Garrett Stubbs
• Barry Zito

• List of NCAA Division I baseball programs

• USC Trojans baseball

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• Articles with dead external links from March 2022
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