HEAD COACH IN WAITING Tim Montez

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SEASONS

• 2010-11 - Associate Head Coach/Pitching
• 2009-10 - Associate Head Coach/Pitching Coach
• 2008-09 - Associate Head Coach/Pitching
• 2007-08 - Associate Head Coach/Pitching

In seven years, he has aided the Dolphins to one of their best runs in program history (43 wins - 2006), back-to-back NCAA Regional appearances (2006, 2007) for the first time since 1994-95 and regional appearances in four of the last six years (2006, 2007, 2009, 2011).

Despite a tough 2012 campaign, the Dolphins pitching staff was still able to produce some breakthrough performers.

Newcomer Alex McRae was first in ERA (3.43), while ranking second in innings pitched (88.1), strikeouts (42) and opponents’ batting average (.288) to earn A-Sun all-freshman honors. He went at least seven innings in five of his first six starts. McRae also saw action at third base, first base and designated hitter during the season.

Sophomore Chris Anderson led the staff in innings pitched (88.1), strikeouts (69) and complete-games (3). He struck out at least five batters in four of his final seven starts and retired 18 of his first 19 hitters to get the complete-game win vs. East Tennessee State.

In the bullpen, sophomore Will Flor posted a team-best 1.88 ERA, while sophomore Adam Maxon struck out 25 batters in 23 relief appearances

In 2011, Montez got several solid performances throughout the staff en route to earning an at-large berth to the Gainesville NCAA Regional.

Senior Matthew Tomshaw led the squad with 17 starts, a 3.69 ERA, two complete games, 102.1 innings and 76 strikeouts. He tallied his first career shutout in a win at FGCU and got the win in the Dolphins 11-2 victory against national runner up Florida. Tomshaw received A-Sun all-tournament honors, while getting drafted in the 42nd round of the MLB Draft by the Minnesota Twins.

Juniors Steve Eagerton and Sean Green each came back from the brink of career-ending injuries to record good campaigns. Eagerton was one of three players nationally not to lose in 2011 after posting a 9-0 record with 43 strikeouts in 83.2 innings. He pitched into the seventh inning five times en route to earning second team all-conference honors. Green made 25 appearances in 2011, earning three wins in 36.2 innings. He made his presence known in the A-Sun Tournament with a career-best seven innings to against Mercer.

Anderson also flourished with a school-record 36 appearances to get 11 saves for freshman All-America honors from Collegiate Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). Senior reliever Chris Kaminski tied the JU career record with his 17th save at the NCAA Tournament against Manhattan, while freshman starting pitcher Tony Mollica led the A-Sun with an .206 opposing batting average.

Despite the unhealthy state of the staff entering 2010, the Dolphins ranked fourth in the conference in ERA.

A big part of the team’s success was the emergence of Tomshaw, who garnered second team all-conference accolades. Tomshaw became the ace of the staff after leading the Dolphins with an 8-2 record and 92 innings. His three complete games were also the most by a Dolphin since Dennis Robinson tallied seven in 2004.

Kaminski was named to the A-Sun preseason team and garnered second team all-conference accolades after leading the squad with a 2.38 ERA, 24 appearances, seven saves and a .236 opponent batting average.

Matt Loosen could not shake the effects of a knee injury prior to the start of the year but did finish with a team-best 86 strikeouts. He went on to be selected in the 24th round by the Chicago Cubs in the 2010 MLB Draft. Along with Kyle Kriech signing as a free agent with the Kansas City Royals, the duo became the 39th and 40th pitcher to sign a major league contract under Montez.

In 2009, the Dolphin pitching staff was once again a big part of JU’s run to its 13th regional as the unit ranked third in the A-Sun with a 5.20 ERA, strikeouts (450) and opponent batting average (.288) while finishing second with 13 saves.

The depth of the squad proved most advantageous in the rain soaked A-Sun tournament in DeLand, Fla. as JU was able to use a bevy of arms and a career performance by senior Billy Schlee to rally for wins in both of its games.

In the championship game, which extended to two days due to rain, junior Carson Andrew started the game and returned for the next day to allow only three runs in five innings while striking out eight batters. The bullpen closed the door on the title as four pitchers allowed only one unearned run and two hits through the final four innings.

Among the other pitchers to enjoy career seasons were Loosen and Kaminski, who were each named second team all-A-Sun. Loosen went 4-1 record with two saves and 4.16 ERA while also ranking nationally in strikeouts (59th, 91) and strikeouts per nine innings (43rd, 10.24). Kaminski tallied a team-best 2.70 ERA and a 5-1 record while notching a conference-best eight saves and 33 strikeouts in 34 innings.

Andrew also went on to be drafted by the Los Angeles Angels in the 28th round of the 2009 MLB Draft. The 2009 staff also ranked with the best in program history by tallying the second most strikeouts (451) while also allowing the fewest walks (184) since the 2003 season.

In 2008, Montez experienced growing pains with a youthful pitching staff after injuries depleted his experienced arms throughout the year. Among the bright spots, Loosen was named to the A-Sun all-freshman team after ending the year with team lows in ERA (3.52) and opponent batting average (.235). In 2007, the Dolphins entered the A-Sun tournament as the No. 4 seed and dropped its opening game to No. 2 Belmont. Behind the strongest pitching performances of the year, the squad rattled off four consecutive wins to secure its third tournament title since joining the A-Sun in 1999. Through the five games in the tournament, the staff allowed 23 runs (21 earned) for an ERA of 4.30 compared to 5.86 for its opponents. At one point, the staff allowed only one run in 22 innings of work while the starting rotation chewed up 32.2 innings out of a possible 44. Several members of the Dolphins pitching staff enjoyed career seasons including juniors Matt Davis and Matt Gardner.

Davis, who was named to the A-Sun Tournament team, spent most of 2007 as the squad's closer to notch a career 13 saves.

At the end of the year, Davis was moved to the starting rotation where he flourished in only five starts. During that span, he finished 2-1 with a 3.82 ERA, 21 strikeouts and a .252 opponent batting average in 33 innings. Gardner, who was recruited by Montez at Fresno State, earned second team all-conference accolades after ranking third in the conference with a 3.14 ERA, while also leading the Dolphins with six wins, 83 innings pitched and a .244 opponent batting average.

Montez made quite an impression in his first season with the program as the Dolphins won the second most games in program history (43), captured the A-Sun regular-season title for the first time and reached the NCAA Regionals for the 11th time in program history.

The biggest benefactor of his presence was sophomore starter Matt Dobbins, who earned All-America honors and was named A-Sun Pitcher of the Year after tying for the most wins in the nation (12). Dobbins, who served as a position player as a freshman, had never pitched more than 3.2 innings in his Dolphin career.

Senior reliever Aaron Parvey also posted career numbers after leading the bullpen with a 6-1 mark, 62.1 innings and a 3.32 ERA in 30 appearances. Parvey had only 17 career appearances with 15 innings pitched in his previous three seasons with the program.

Montez was also instrumental in the development of junior Justin Young, who took the mound for the first time in his career and went on to finish with a 1.66 ERA, three saves, a .199 opponent batting average and 26 strikeouts in 38 innings.

As a whole, the Dolphins posted the lowest team ERA (4.19) since 1995, the most strikeouts (349) since 2001, the second most saves (18) in program history and featured their first All-America selection since 2001 (Casey Shumaker). As the team’s recruiting coordinator, Montez helped produce the 38th best recruiting class nationwide in 2006, according to Collegiate Baseball.

In 23 seasons, Montez has coached, recruited or worked with 15 major league players including Barry Zito (San Francisco Giants), Michael Young (Philadelphia Phillies), Cliff Lee (Philadelphia Phillies), Eric Hinske (Atlanta Braves), Adam Kennedy (Seattle Mariners) and Matt Garza (Chicago Cubs) and the recently retired Russ Ortiz. He has had at least one former player in the last seven World Series, including Zito and Doug Fister (Detroit Tigers) in this past Fall Classic.

Before JU, Montez has also served as a pitching coach with Fresno State, Arkansas, Cal State Northridge, UC Santa Barbara and Pepperdine.

In his three years as Mike Batesole's top assistant at Fresno State, Montez served as assistant head coach, pitching coach and recruiting coordinator while being instrumental in assembling the staff's first ranked recruiting class (No. 16) by Collegiate Baseball. His 2005 class was ranked No. 17 by Collegiate Baseball and featured Freshman All-America honoree third baseman Beau Mills. Under his tutelage, Cody Smith (Texas Rangers, 2003) and David Griffin (Cincinnati Reds, 2004) inked professional contracts, while Richie Robnett (Oakland A's) and Garza (Minnesota Twins) were selected in the first round of the 2005 MLB Draft. Pitchers Doug Fister (New York Yankees - 7th round), Rudy Quinonez (Atlanta Braves - 12th round) and Michael Cooper (St. Louis Cardinals - 16th round) were also taken in the first day of the 2005 draft. The 2006 class was ranked 19th in the country giving Fresno State three straight top 20 recruiting classes in a row during Montez's tenure.

Montez went to Fresno State following five seasons as an assistant at Arkansas under ABCA Hall of Fame head coach Norm DeBriyn. In his five years at Arkansas, Montez built a reputation for recruiting some of the top pitchers in the country. Arkansas' ERA nearly dropped a full run in his first season, going from a school record 6.20 to 5.28 in 1998. It dipped to 5.12 in 1999 as he guided the pitching staff to a school-record 22 conference victories en route to Razorbacks' first SEC overall and Western Division titles. The team's ERA continued its steady decline in 2002 as the staff recorded a 4.28 ERA, finishing one game short of advancing to the College World Series.

Under Montez's direction, each of his recruiting classes from 1998-01 for the Razorbacks were ranked among the top 30 in the nation by Collegiate Baseball.

Prior to joining Arkansas, he served for one season as the pitching coach at Cal State Northridge, before they temporarily dropped its program. The Matadors compiled a 42-20 record in 1999, thanks in large part to a pair of 11-game winners in Benny Flores and Erasmo Ramirez (who played with the Texas Rangers, Oakand Athletics and Florida Marlins from 2003-07).

A native of Southern California who grew up in Whittier, Montez has always been one step ahead of the game in his coaching career. During a redshirt season at Pepperdine, he found time to coach Esperanza High School to the playoffs with a sparkling 1.86 ERA. Montez' coaching talents were recognized by then Pepperdine coach Andy Lopez, who added Montez to his staff. Montez directed the Waves' pitching staff from 1989-90 and helped Pepperdine post a 78-42-1 record over that two-year period, including a conference title. His staff was two-time ERA leaders in the West Coast Conference while guiding the Waves to a NCAA West Regional appearance in 1989. Pepperdine boasted the conference pitcher of the year in both seasons along with two freshmen All-America honorees.

Montez returned to the high school baseball circuit in 1991 as an assistant coach at Montclair Prep High School in Van Nuys, Calif., where he coached Texas Rangers designated hitter Brad Fullmer and San Francisco Giant right-hander Russ Ortiz. Montclair amassed a 59-12 record in the three seasons of Montez's tenure, including a state championship in 1991.

In 1994, Montez returned to the collegiate ranks as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at UC Santa Barbara. He helped lead the Gauchos to the NCAA West Regional in 1996 and signed one of the top recruiting classes (1995-96) that included five-time All-Star selection Michael Young (Texas Rangers) and the following year 2002 AL Cy Young Award winner Barry Zito (Oakland Athletics).

A four-year letterwinner at Pepperdine, Montez posted a 19-11 record while collecting three saves and helped the Waves to a Southern California Baseball Association title his senior year. He earned all-conference recognition after tallying a 6-3 record and a career-best 2.80 ERA as a sophomore. Montez was a first-round draft pick of the Mexican League's Mexico City Reds. He played two seasons before returning to the United States to begin coaching.

Tim is the father of three sons: David, Ryan and Adam. His niece, Monica, played softball at Florida State and was named ACC Rookie of the Year in 2006.