Gonzalez enters his third season with the IU South Bend Baseball program. As the pitching coach, Gonzalez has helped guide the IUSB pitching staff to program bests in 14 different statistical categories. Following the 2021 season head coach Doug Buysse promoted Gonzalez to Associate Head Coach.
Gonzalez served as a graduate assistant at the University of Rio Grande (OH) in 2019 and 2020. There he earned his master’s degree in athletic coaching and leadership. In his two years at Rio Grande, he assisted with the hitters in 2019 and pitchers in 2020. The program’s success included a 2019 River States Conference Championship and an NAIA National Tournament appearance, where they beat tenth ranked Middle Georgia State before falling to No. 1 Southeastern.
In the summers from 2018-2020 Gonzalez was the pitching coach for the Kalamazoo Growlers in the prestigious Northwoods League. He helped lead the Growlers to three consecutive playoff appearances and a regular season championship in 2020. Growlers pitchers also set the franchise record for ERA in a season (3.07) in 2020.
So far during his coaching career Gonzalez has had the privilege of working with 22 MLB Draft Picks and 10Â more players who have signed a professional contract.
The Grand Rapids, Mich. native prepped at Comstock Park High School where he was a three year varsity starter and set the school record for ERA in a season (0.76). After, he enrolled at Kalamazoo Valley Community College and was slotted into the starting rotation his freshman and sophomore seasons, and was also a captain his sophomore year. Following KVCC Gonzalez transferred to IU South Bend where he saw most of his action out of the bullpen. He currently holds school records in appearances (Career and season twice), career ERA, and best strikeout to walk ratio in a career.
Gonzalez’s responsibilities include overseeing the pitching staff, recruiting, and field maintenance. He currently resides in Mishawaka, Ind.
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