| Mike Neu | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Neu in 2019 | |
| California Golden Bears | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: (1978-03-09)March 9, 1978 (age 47) Napa, California, U.S. | |
Batted: Switch Threw: Right | |
| MLB debut | |
| April 9, 2003, for the Oakland Athletics | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| June 11, 2004, for the Florida Marlins | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Win–loss record | 0–0 |
| Earned run average | 3.72 |
| Strikeouts | 22 |
Stats atBaseball Reference  | |
| Teams | |
Michael David Neu (born March 9, 1978) is an Americancollege baseball coach and formerpitcher who is the current head baseball coach of theCalifornia Golden Bears. Neu played college baseball at theUniversity of Miami for coachJim Morris from 1997 to 1999 and played professionally inMajor League Baseball (MLB) from 2003 to 2004. He has also served as the head coach for thePacific Tigers from 2016 to 2017.
Raised inNapa, California, Neu attendedVintage High School where he set Monticello Empire League records for career wins (21) and strikeouts (196). As a senior in 1996, he was first-team All-State, All-Region and MEL Player of the Year with a 10–1 record, a 0.64 ERA and 121 strikeouts in 77.0 innings. Neu was also MEL Player of the Year as a junior. Neu earned a master's degree in Physical Education fromBall State University in 2011.[1]
As a player at theUniversity of Miami, Neu had a stellar 1999 campaign and helped the Hurricanes capture theCollege World Series title with a 6–5 victory overFlorida State University in the championship game. He finished the year 3–1 with a 2.94 ERA and tallied 110 strikeouts in 67.0 innings, earningCollegiate Baseball All-America honors. Neu led the nation in strikeouts per nine innings (14.8) and was selected to the All-College World Series team with three saves and appearances in all four of Miami's games at the CWS. Neu had transferred to Miami fromSacramento City College wherein 1998 he was the Northern California Pitcher of the Year, the Bay Valley Conference Pitcher of the Year, and a Junior College All-American while going 15–0 with a 1.44 ERA and 139 strikeouts in 108.0 innings. He was named MVP of the 1998 Cal State Championship Final Four after throwing 11.0 innings with no earned runs and notching a win and a save in the state tournament.[1] In 1998 and 1999, he playedcollegiate summer baseball with theBrewster Whitecaps of theCape Cod Baseball League.[2][3]
Drafted out of theUniversity of Miami in the 29th round of the1999 Major League Baseball Draft by theCincinnati Reds. Neu spent 4 years in the Reds' organization making his way up to Triple-A, before he was claimed in the2002Rule 5 draft by the Oakland Athletics. Neu played 32 games for the Athletics in2003 and had a 3.64ERA. On December 13, 2003, he was traded to the Florida Marlins withBill Murphy forMark Redman. In2004, Neu played for the Triple-AAlbuquerque Isotopes, but struggled with a 6.57 ERA. Inspring training2005, he was released by the Marlins and on April 6, he signed with theLos Angeles Dodgers. Due to injuries, Neu did not appear in an MLB game for the Dodgers and became afree agent after the season.
Neu was the head baseball coach atDiablo Valley College (DVC) from 2009 to 2011, leading his team to an 87–41 mark (.680) with two Big 8 Conference titles in three years. His 2011 squad was ranked No. 1 in Northern California and his pitching staff led all the California Community Colleges with a 2.13 team ERA. Prior to taking over the reins at DVC, Neu was the team's pitching coach for two seasons. Additionally, he spent time as an associate scout for both theKansas City Royals and theAtlanta Braves before moving into the coaching ranks.[4]
In four seasons as the pitching coach at theUniversity of California, Berkeley from 2012 to 2015, Neu helped shape the Bears' pitching staff into one of the stronger units in thePac-12 Conference as the Bears finished fourth in the conference in ERA in 2015 with a team ERA of just 3.03. With Neu's pitchers leading the way, the Bears pushed their way into the top-25 during the year and made their way to the finals of the Texas A&M Regional in the NCAA tournament.[4]
Neu left Cal to become head coach atUniversity of the Pacific inStockton, California, where he served for two seasons. On July 5, 2017, Neu was named head coach at Cal, taking over for the 2018 season.[5]
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pacific Tigers(West Coast Conference)(2016–2017) | |||||||||
| 2016 | Pacific | 22–30 | 12–15 | 6th | |||||
| 2017 | Pacific | 18–35 | 6–21 | 9th | |||||
| Pacific: | 40–65 | 18–36 | |||||||
| California Golden Bears(Pac-12 Conference)(2018–2024) | |||||||||
| 2018 | California | 32–22 | 16–14 | 5th | |||||
| 2019 | California | 32–20 | 17–11 | 4th | NCAA Regional | ||||
| 2020 | California | 5–11 | 0–0 | Season canceled due toCOVID-19 | |||||
| 2021 | California | 29–26 | 15–15 | 7th | |||||
| 2022 | California | 29–27 | 14–16 | 7th | |||||
| 2023 | California | 24–28 | 12–18 | T–8th | |||||
| 2024 | California | 34–18 | 17-13 | T–5th | Pac-12 Tournament | ||||
| California: | 185–152 | 91–87 | |||||||
| California Golden Bears(Atlantic Coast Conference)(2025–present) | |||||||||
| 2025 | California | 0–0 | 0–0 | ||||||
| California: | 185–152 | ||||||||
| Total: | 225–217 | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||
Neu has a wife, Nicole, and two sons; Damon and Maddax.