In spite of challenges, new baseball mentor Andy Stankiewicz claims, 'What I see at USC is opportunity'

At every single phase via his decades-extended profession in baseball, acquainted uncertainties have adopted Andy Stankiewicz.

As an undersized infielder, several envisioned him to make it earlier one A … or double A … or triple A. Nevertheless he carved out a productive seven-yr occupation in the massive leagues.

As a first-time head college baseball mentor, Stankiewicz experienced much less than a dozen gamers still left on his roster in 2012 when he took the reins at Grand Canyon, a onetime Division II baseball ability caught in a many years-extended skid. But he righted the ship practically straight away, guiding Grand Canyon through a transition to Division I, winning 5 meeting titles and major the Antelopes to back again-to-back again NCAA tournaments.

“I never ever considered any of [the doubters],” the new USC coach informed The Moments this week. “I consider in what I can do and I consider prospects current them selves in daily life, and you just tackle them. You simply cannot make excuses. You have to uncover options.”

Now, as he requires the helm of faculty baseball’s most storied software, Stankiewicz faces possibly the most complicated obstacle of his career. Even if he doesn’t see it that way.

“What I see at USC is option,” Stankiewicz mentioned. “Obviously there are challenges, but I search at an possibility for us to do one thing really particular.”

It’s been a prolonged time considering that USC’s baseball software has lived up to that stage of assure. The Trojans have twice as numerous countrywide titles as any other university baseball plan, but have been to an NCAA regional just after in the past 17 yrs. Stankiewicz is USC’s sixth coach in the course of that period, which yielded just two successful seasons but a good deal of annoyance and disappointment.

The Trojans’ past mentor didn’t specifically leave the method in the very best spot both. Jason Gill was permit go previous month following a turbulent, 3-yr tenure that sparked two university investigations and caused popular unrest between players.

In the wake of Gill’s firing, three frequent contributors — catcher Garret Guillemette and pitchers Carson Lambert and Matt Keating — left the software. Six or 7 other individuals are mulling their options in the transfer portal although at minimum a few extra day to day place gamers — De’Andre Smith, Rhylan Thomas and Tyresse Turner — are waiting on possible possibilities to convert pro.

Convincing lots of of people players to keep is Stankiewicz’s 1st buy of enterprise. Convincing other people exterior the program to be part of by way of the transfer portal arrives subsequent. His arrival after the July 1 deadline to enter the portal, on the other hand, did the new coach no favors.

“It was not as significant of a mass exodus as some individuals believe,” Stankiewicz mentioned. “Most of them want to come back again. Most of them came for a rationale — to play baseball at USC and be a part of that custom.”

The other concerns Stankiewicz inherits have less clear-minimize options.

There’s small he can do about USC’s hard scholarship situations. School baseball courses are allotted 11.7 scholarships to dole out as partial aid to players. At USC, where tuition and other fees can exceed $80,000 a yr, the fiscal stress can be significantly onerous, restricting the pool of prospective potential customers.

Stankiewicz suggests he hopes USC’s new arrangement with Stay Doubted concerning title, picture and likeness canhelp mitigate some of those people fears. He also observed the just about $6,000 for educational achievement college student-athletes will be suitable to generate from USC following drop in mild of the Supreme Court’s current Alston ruling.

He’s taken a likewise optimistic stance about USC’s stadium, which the mentor verified will no for a longer period be standing 5 decades from now.

Fears about the future of Dedeaux Area have loomed because the city of Los Angeles introduced its vision for the 2028 Olympics. Individuals strategies call for the industry to be razed in order to create a new aquatics center ahead of the Online games. But specifics about that demolition — and the subsequent fallout for USC baseball — remained unclear.

Stankiewicz was eager to set the report straight about the future of the Trojans stadium. When some had puzzled if USC baseball would be displaced for several yrs by design, Stankiewicz stated he’s been confident the program will only be impacted from the drop of 2027 by way of the summer time of 2028.

“That’s it. One calendar year,” Stankiewicz said. “When it’s above, we’re likely to be in a beautiful, brand name new Dedeaux.”

Stankiewicz, who grew up in Cerritos and performed college ball at Pepperdine prior to actively playing 7 years in the significant leagues, has no hassle dreaming up a vivid long term for USC. It’s a challenge not each individual coach is willing to consider on — best candidates Troy Tulowitzki and Andrew Checketts, in fact, took their names out of the jogging just before USC turned to Stankiewicz, who also was a prospect for the occupation in 2019.

USC’s new mentor has cleared similar hurdles prior to.

“I believe that in this location,” Stankiewicz stated. “I believe in myself. And I believe that that this is where I’m meant to be at this minute in my everyday living.”