University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point athletic department is pleased to announce the hiring of Jeremy Jirschele as the new assistant baseball coach, effective immediately.
Jirschele brings a wealth of baseball experience, especially of the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC). He was a four-year letterwinner at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, where he was twice named the WIAC Position Player of the Year (2004, 2005) and was selected as a two-time First Team ABCA All-American. Jirschele also earned First Team All-WIAC accolades twice.
“We are excited to have Jeremy as a part of our staff for the 2012 season and beyond,” said UW-Stevens Point head baseball coach Pat Bloom. “Coaching is in his blood-his father and both of his grandfathers have coached successfully over many years and in different sports. In my opinion, he is one of the best young coaches in the state, and we are fortunate that his aspirations to coach college baseball have brought him to us.
“He has a strong baseball mind, along with great instincts and feel for how to teach the game and develop skill,” said Bloom. “In addition, his track record as a player speaks for itself. He has instant credibility and the full respect of our players, and we are all looking forward to working with Jeremy in continuing to solidify our status as one of the premier baseball programs in Division III.”
Jirschele tallied impressive stats while at UW-Oshkosh, batting .431 his junior year and .438 as a senior. He also holds the WIAC record for career doubles with 53, and is second for career hits with 253. In 2005, he also recorded a fielding percentage of .981. In addition, Jirschele was one of 16 players named to D3baseball.com’s NCAA Division III All-Decade Team for the 2000s, and was one of only two Wisconsin players to make the list.
During the summer of 2004, Jirschele played for the Wisconsin Woodchucks where he earned MVP honors and was selected as Baseball America’s Silver Glove Award winner as a second baseman. In 2005, he was drafted by the Kansas City Royals and played for their minor league organization until 2008.
Baseball runs in the Jirschele family, as his father, Mike, is currently managing the Kansas City Royals Triple A affiliate team, the Omaha Storm Chasers. Mike has previously been selected as the Top Managerial Prospect and Most Likely to Manage in the Major Leagues and has coached top major leaguers such as Johnny Damon. His younger brother Justin is a senior third basemen for the Pointers and has garnered several honors, including ABCA All-Region and All-Conference WIAC.
The Clintonville, Wis., native also works for the Wisconsin Baseball Academy and serves as the camp coordinator in addition to providing individual lessons. He has also been an assistant coach at Wausau West High School for the past three seasons, helping lead the team to a state tournament berth in 2011.
Jirschele lives in Wausau with his wife, Jennie, and three children, Keagen (5), Taelyn (3) and Paetyn (1).