Baseball
- Title:
- Assistant Coach/Pitching Coach
E-mail coach Kenny at skenny@umd.eduSean Kenny is in his third season at Maryland, where he serves as the pitching coach. Kenny came to Maryland in July 2009 after six successful seasons at Pepperdine, where he served in the same position.
Since his arrival, Kenny has overseen a rapid growth of the Terrapin pitching staff and has also played a vital role in Maryland's success on the recruiting trail.
In his first season (2010), Maryland's pitching staff set a school record with 464 strikeouts while ranking 16th nationally in strikeouts/9 innings (8.5). In 2011, the Terps ranked fifth in the Atlantic Coast Conference and 32nd nationally with 8.0 strikeouts/9 innings, all while dropping their team ERA 1.95 runs per game. Maryland also allowed just 22 home runs - the second fewest in the ACC - despite playing in a hitter-friendly ballpark.
Kenny's positive impact has also been seen in recruiting. He helped Maryland sign the school's first top-25 recruiting class in 2010, which included 22 newcomers. That group comprised a number of highly touted pitchers that have Maryland poised to make further strides in 2012.
Kenny also has a record of developing talent for the next level. He helped Adam Kolarek develop into an 11th-round draft pick of the New York Mets in 2010 and Eric Potter into a 19th-round pick of the Oakland A's in 2011. During Kenny's tenure at Pepperdine, 13 Waves pitchers were drafted by Major League Baseball teams.
Prior to coming to Maryland, Kenny oversaw a pitching staff at Pepperdine that produced 11 All-WCC first team selections, two conference pitchers of the year and freshmen of the year.
In 2004, senior right-hander Jacob Barrack was tabbed All-WCC first team and was selected in the 19th round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft by the Philadelphia Phillies.
In 2005, the Waves' pitching staff produced a 3.84 ERA and was anchored by senior right-hander Kea Kometani (a 15th-round selection of the Texas Rangers), junior Paul Coleman (the WCC pitcher of the year and a ninth-round pick of the Detroit Tigers), senior Steve Kleen (an 11th-round selection of the Oakland A's) and freshman Barry Enright (the WCC freshman of the year).
In 2006, Pepperdine's staff registered a 3.48 ERA and produced a pair of first-team All-WCC selections in Enright and freshman Brett Hunter. Enright was tabbed the conference's co-pitcher of the year while Hunter was named to the league's all-freshman team and was selected a freshman all-American. Coleman, who led the staff with a 2.59 ERA, was drafted in the 12th round by the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Pepperdine's staff produced a 3.33 team ERA in 2007 and produced a pair of first-team All-WCC selections in Enright and Adam Olbrychowski, and had three other pitchers drafted in addition to Enright and Olbrychowski.
Nick Gaudi and Nathan Newman were all-WCC first team under Kenny's tutelage in 2008. Hunter and Newman were selected in the first 10 rounds of that year's MLB Draft, however, Newman opted to come back for his senior year and was drafted in June 2009 by the Detroit Tigers.
Five of Kenny's pitchers received all-WCC honors following the 2009 campaign including redshirt freshman Cole Cook, who also was named to the Louisville Slugger Freshman All-America Team. Both Gaudi and Matt Bywater were named to the all-WCC first team, while Scott Alexander and Bryce Uhrig earned honorable mention accolades from the conference.
Kenny's pitchers established a Pepperdine record last season with 477 strikeouts, which broke the previous standard of 445 set by the Waves' 1992 national championship team. They also averaged 9.10 strikeouts per nine innings.
Kenny spent five seasons as pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at San Diego prior to his stint at Pepperdine.
During Kenny's time at San Diego (1999-2003), the Toreros compiled an overall record of 168-128-2 (.567), captured two West Coast Conference titles and advanced to the NCAA Championships his final two seasons.
While at San Diego, Kenny guided a pitching staff that led the WCC in ERA in 2002 and produced the conference's pitcher of the year in junior left-hander Ricky Barrett. Barrett, who was tabbed a third-team all-American, was a seventh-round draft pick of the Minnesota Twins.
Kenny began his coaching career as a volunteer assistant at Saint Mary's College in 1997, where he worked with the Gaels' outfielders. He took on his first full-time coaching assignment at Laney Community College in Oakland, Calif., where he served as pitching coach in 1998.
A product of Pioneer High School in Michigan, Kenny was a two-time Mid-American Conference selection as a pitcher at Eastern Michigan. He went on to play three seasons of professional baseball in the New York Mets' organization after being a 17th-round selection by the club in 1993.
A native of Ann Arbor, Mich., Kenny earned a bachelor's degree in English literature from Eastern Michigan in 1997 and obtained a master's degree in physical education from Saint Mary's in 2000. He now resides in Annapolis, Md.
