Rich Maloney
 Maloney in 2011 | |
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | Ball State |
| Conference | Mid-American |
| Record | 686-425-2 (.617) |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | September 23, 1964 Roseville, Michigan, U.S. |
| Playing career | |
| 1984–1986 | Western Michigan |
| 1986 | Pulaski Braves |
| 1987 | Sumter Braves |
| 1987–1990 | Durham Bulls |
| 1990–1991 | Greenville Braves |
| Positions | Shortstop, Second Baseman, Third Baseman |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 1992–1995 | Western Michigan (AHC) |
| 1996–2002 | Ball State |
| 2003–2012 | Michigan |
| 2013–present | Ball State |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 1027–669–2 (.606) |
| Tournaments | NCAA: 6–11 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| |
| Awards | |
As Player
| |
Richard Allen Maloney (born September 23, 1964) is an American college baseball coach and the current head coach at Ball State, a position he has held since the 2013 season. He previously served as the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines, where he compiled a 341–244 record over ten seasons (2003–2012). During his tenure at Michigan, he secured three Big Ten regular-season titles and two Big Ten tournament titles. Maloney led the Wolverines to four consecutive NCAA tournament appearances from 2005 to 2008 and was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year in both 2007 and 2008.
Prior to his time at Michigan, Maloney served as the head coach at Ball State from 1996 to 2002. He was named the MAC Coach of the Year in 1998 and 2001, as the Cardinals finished first in the MAC West for four consecutive seasons (1998–2001) and captured three regular-season titles. Following his return to Ball State in 2013, he has led the program to two additional MAC West titles, two regular-season titles, and earned Coach of the Year honors in 2014 and 2022. In 2023, he guided the Cardinals to their first MAC tournament title since 2006.
Head coaching record
The following table details Rich Maloney’s year-by-year record as an NCAA Division I head baseball coach.[1][2][3][4]
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ball State Cardinals (Mid-American Conference) (1996–2002) | |||||||||
| 1996 | Ball State | 32–20–1 | 16–14 | T–5th | |||||
| 1997 | Ball State | 40–19 | 21–10 | 2nd | MAC Tournament | ||||
| 1998 | Ball State | 39–18 | 23–8 | 1st (West) | MAC Tournament | ||||
| 1999 | Ball State | 42–18 | 25–6 | 1st (West) | MAC Tournament | ||||
| 2000 | Ball State | 34–23 | 18–8 | T–1st (West) | MAC Tournament | ||||
| 2001 | Ball State | 35–23 | 21–5 | 1st (West) | MAC Tournament | ||||
| 2002 | Ball State | 34–23 | 17–9 | 2nd (West) | MAC Tournament | ||||
| Ball State: | |||||||||
| Michigan Wolverines (Big Ten Conference) (2003–2012) | |||||||||
| 2003 | Michigan | 30–27 | 16–14 | 3rd | Big Ten Tournament | ||||
| 2004 | Michigan | 34–26 | 19–13 | T–3rd | Big Ten Tournament | ||||
| 2005 | Michigan | 42–19 | 17–12 | T–4th | Atlanta Regional | ||||
| 2006 | Michigan | 43–21 | 23–9 | 1st | Atlanta Regional | ||||
| 2007 | Michigan | 42–19 | 21–7 | 1st | Corvallis Super Regional | ||||
| 2008 | Michigan | 46–14 | 26–5 | 1st | Ann Arbor Regional | ||||
| 2009 | Michigan | 30–25 | 9–15 | 7th | |||||
| 2010 | Michigan | 35–22 | 14–10 | 2nd | Big Ten tournament | ||||
| 2011 | Michigan | 17–37 | 7–16 | 10th | |||||
| 2012 | Michigan | 22–34 | 8–16 | 10th | |||||
| Michigan: | 341–244 (.583) | 160–117 (.578) | |||||||
| Ball State Cardinals (Mid-American Conference) (2013–present) | |||||||||
| 2013 | Ball State | 31–24 | 15–12 | 2nd (West) | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2014 | Ball State | 39–18 | 22–4 | 1st (West) | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2015 | Ball State | 33–25 | 14-13 | T-3rd (West) | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2016 | Ball State | 32-26 | 15-9 | 1st (West) | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2017 | Ball State | 30–28 | 14–10 | T-2nd (West) | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2018 | Ball State | 32–26 | 17–10 | T-2nd | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2019 | Ball State | 38–19 | 20–5 | 2nd | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2020 | Ball State | 7–9 | 0–0 | Season canceled due to COVID-19 | |||||
| 2021 | Ball State | 38–18 | 29–11 | 2nd | No Conference Tournament Held in 2021 | ||||
| 2022 | Ball State | 40–19 | 32–7 | 1st | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2023 | Ball State | 36–23 | 19-11 | T–2nd | NCAA Lexington Regional | ||||
| 2024 | Ball State | 35-23-1 | 18-12 | 3rd | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2025 | Ball State | 36-22 | 21-9 | 2nd | MAC tournament | ||||
| 2026 | Ball State | 3-1 | 0-0 | ||||||
| Ball State: | 686-425-2 (.617) | 377-173 (.685) | |||||||
| Total: | 1027-669-2 (.606) | ||||||||
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National champion
Postseason invitational champion
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Draft picks: first rounders
Throughout his career at Michigan and Ball State, Maloney coached 70 players who were selected a total of 77 times in the MLB Draft. This includes six first-round picks—all produced during his tenure at Ball State. Notably, Maloney coached the 2002 top overall pick, Bryan Bullington, marking the first time in MAC history that a player in any sport was selected number one overall.
| Pick | Player | Team | Position | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 41 | Jeff Urban | San Francisco Giants | LHP | 1998 |
| 21 | Larry Bigbie | Baltimore Orioles | OF | 1999 |
| 1 | Bryan Bullington | Pittsburgh Pirates | RHP | 2002 |
| 32 | Luke Hagerty | Chicago Cubs | LHP | 2002 |
| 18 | Brad Snyder | Cleveland Indians | OF | 2003 |
| 34 | Drey Jameson | Arizona Diamondbacks | RHP | 2019 |
Played in majors
Coach Maloney has mentored 15 players from Ball State and Michigan who have gone on to reach the Major Leagues.
- Bryan Bullington
- Larry Bigbie
- Brad Snyder (baseball)
- Jake Fox
- Chris Getz
- Clayton Richard
- Zach Putnam
- Ryan LaMarre
- Zach Plesac
- Drey Jameson
- Kyle Nicolas
- Alex Call
- Chayce McDermott
- Sam McConnell
- Zach Cole
Player awards
Under Coach Maloney’s leadership at Michigan and Ball State, his players have earned:
- 6 Conference Players of the Year
- 8 Conference Pitchers of the Year
- 7 Conference Freshman Players/Pitchers of the Year
- 4 Conference Defensive Players of the Year
- 4 Conference Tournament MVPs
- 1 ABCA/Rawlings National Gold Glove Winner (Awarded to the single best defensive player at his position in the country)
- 1 National Freshman Pitcher of the Year
Head coaching tree
Head coaches that coached under Maloney throughout his career at Michigan and Ball State:
NCAA Division I Head Coaches
- Jake Boss Jr. – Michigan State (2009–Present); formerly Eastern Michigan (2008)
- Jeff Mercer – Indiana (2019–Present); formerly Wright State (2017–2018)
- Blake Beemer – Butler (2023–Present)
- Jason Murray – Charleston Southern (2005–2008)
Non-Division I & Community College Head Coaches
- Matt Husted – Wheaton College (2013–Present)
- Ray Skjold – Post University (2019–Present)
- Bob Keller – Mississippi Gulf Coast CC (2022–2025)
- Nick Caruso – Macomb Community College (2025–Present)
- Matt Howard – IU Kokomo (2018–2021)
- Dustin Glant – Anderson University (2016)
References
- ^ "Year-by-Year Results" (PDF). BallStateSports.com. Ball State Sports Information. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
- ^ "Annual Conference Standings". BoydsWorld.com. Archived from the original on February 20, 2013. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
- ^ "Michigan Baseball Year-by-Year Results". MGoBlue.com. Michigan Sports Information. Retrieved March 20, 2013.
- ^ "2013 Mid-American Conference Baseball Standings". D1Baseball.com. Jeremy Mills. Archived from the original on May 26, 2013. Retrieved May 30, 2013.