Baseball

WVU pitching coach takes post in Texas

MORGANTOWN — WVU baseball coach Randy Mazey’s longest-tenured assistant is departing.

Pitching coach/ recruiting coordinator Derek Matlock will be introduced as the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley’s (UTRGV) head coach in a 1 p.m. press conference June 10, sources confirmed to The Dominion Post on Friday night.

Mazey hired Matlock the day after he came on board at WVU, in June 2012.

This marks Matlock’s first college head-coaching job. He replaces Manny Mantrana, who resigned last month, after nine seasons at the helm. He accepted an administrative role at the school as special assistant to the athletic director.

Mantrana finished with a record of 210-274, with one winning season, in 2012. UTRGV went 26-28 overall and 7-17 in the WAC this season, failing to qualify for the league tournament.

Matlock has been instrumental in developing WVU’s pitchers. His staff recorded an earned-run average of less than 4.00 in three of the last four seasons.

He has also had a major hand in the Mountaineers’ recruiting efforts. He helped land highly touted right-hander Alek Manoah, a member of the 2017 Big 12 Conference all-freshman team.

Matlock also recruited catcher-third baseman Ivan Gonzalez, who was overlooked by schools in his native Texas but emerged as one of WVU’s most productive players.