Jedd Gyorko Returns to Manage WV Black Bears

The West Virginia Black Bears announced on Tuesday that former MLB player Jedd Gyorko will return to manage the team.

Gyorko will be managing his second season with the Black Bears in 2022. Last season, the inaugural of the MLB Draft League, he led the team to a 30-19-6 record and had seven players drafted. Hitting coach Jim Galusky and pitching coach Jake Hale will be returning for their second seasons as well.

“We are thrilled to have Jedd and the rest of the coaching staff back this year,” said Leighann Sainato, General Manager of the Black Bears. “The team had a lot of success last season, and Jedd was the driving force behind those accomplishments. The entire staff brings a lot of experience, on and off the field, which is very important for the young players on our roster.”

In addition to the seven players who were drafted last season from the Black Bears, another six player signed major league or independent league contracts as free agents. The team finished only a half game back of the Trenton Thunder for the MLB Draft League Championship.

“It was a lot of fun [last season]. There were obviously new challenges… never being a manager before, but it was great to see the kids’ progress,” Gyorko said. “A lot of [last season’s players] got drafted, and even more signed to professional deals. It was fun to be able to watch them perform and teach them along the way.”

Gyorko spent parts of eight seasons in the MLB across four different organizations. He finished sixth in the NL Rookie of the Year voting in 2013 with the San Diego Padres after hitting 23 home runs as a second baseman. Across eight seasons he has a career slash line of .245/.310/.424 with 121 home runs and 370 RBIs.