Jedd Gyorko Returns to West Virginia to Join WVU Baseball Staff

WVU fans will see a familiar face in the dugout this coming baseball season. On Wednesday, the WVU baseball program announced the return of West Virginia legend Jedd Gyorko as a special assistant to head coach Steve Sabins.

After wrapping up an eight-year MLB career in 2020, Gyorko returns to WVU and college baseball – where he had a decorated career as a Mountaineer from 2008-2010.

Look who is back in the dugout!

Eight-year MLB veteran and former Mountaineer baseball great, 𝗝𝗲𝗱𝗱 𝗚𝘆𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗼, has joined the staff as Special Assistant to the Head Coach!

📰 https://t.co/0JBDlQH2UU#HailWV pic.twitter.com/TJ9QGm5CuF

— WVU Baseball (@WVUBaseball) September 18, 2024

“I am thrilled to have Jedd Gyorko and his family part of our team,” said Sabins about the hiring of Gyorko. “The most accomplished Mountaineer baseball player of all time is a special communicator and teammate. He understands team dynamics at the core level and will be an incredible resource to our players and staff. Jedd reached the pinnacle of baseball and was an elite player. He is humble, selfless, caring and wants to help move Mountaineer Baseball forward. Jedd will aid in player development, alumni relations, and fundraising. I’m excited to name Jedd the Special Assistant to the Head Coach and have him part of what we are building here.”

From the press release….

Collecting 10 All-America honors while at WVU, Gyorko started 168 games at second base and shortstop, tallying 281 hits in 696 at-bats, good for a .404 career batting average. His career totals include 207 runs, 73 doubles, five triples, 35 home runs, 178 runs batted in and six stolen bases. Gyorko hit .400 or higher in two of his three years at West Virginia.

In the WVU record books, Gyorko is first in career extra-base hits (113) and batting average (.404), tied for second in career home runs (35), second in career runs (207), RBIs (178), doubles (73), assists (475) and total bases (469), third in career hits (281) and slugging percentage (.674), fifth in career on-base percentage (.470), tied for fifth in career sacrifice flies (14) and tied for eighth in career walks (92).

In addition to his All-America honors, Gyorko was also named the Big East Rookie of the Year in 2008, NCBWA District II Player of the Year as both a sophomore and junior as well as the program’s first Brooks Wallace Award winner in 2010, awarded to the nation’s top shortstop.

Gyorko became the 68th Mountaineer selected in the MLB Draft, going in the second round (59^th overall) in 2010 to the San Diego. He made his Major League debut on April 1, 2013, as the team’s Opening Day second baseman and finished sixth that season in the National League Rookie of the Year voting.

Gyorko played in 364 games with the Padres in three years, accumulating 309 hits in 1,307 at-bats, including 49 home runs, 58 doubles, one triple and 171 runs batted in. He led the Padres in home runs (49), runs batted in (171), hits (309), doubles (58) and walks (96) from his Major League debut in 2013 through 2015. Gyorko set the San Diego Padres single-season home run mark by a second baseman in 2013, when he swatted 23, becoming the first rookie to lead the Padres in home runs and is San Diego’s all-time leader for home runs by a second baseman with 40. Gyorko posted a .992 fielding percentage at second base his rookie season, the highest ever in MLB by a rookie second baseman.

Gyorko was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in 2015 where he hit 61 home runs from 2016-18, second most behind infielder Matt Carpenter during that time. In 2016, he hit a career-high 30 home runs. He finished his career in 2020 after stops with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers.

Find more coverage of the WVU baseball program at WV Sports Now.