CARY, N.C. – USA Baseball announced today the hiring of Jim Koerner as its Director of Player Development. Following 20 years of coaching at the collegiate level, Koerner will now be responsible for developing on-field programming for USA Baseball’s six national teams and three national team development programs. He will also produce curriculums related to player development for USABDevelops.com, the organization’s free online educational resource center.
Koerner will also serve as the Field Coordinator at the Prospect Development Pipeline League, the premier development and showcase experience for high school draft prospects from Major League Baseball and USA Baseball, and the primary identification event for the 18U National Team. Additionally, he will assist with player and staff identification for all 10 clubs in the Appalachian League and serve as a roving instructor during the season. Koerner will start with USA Baseball following the 2021 college baseball season.
"We could not be more thrilled to have Jim joining USA Baseball as our Director of Player Development,” said Paul Seiler, USA Baseball Executive Director/CEO. “His passion for our game and for developing young athletes is inspiring, and the knowledge he has gained over two decades of coaching will be an invaluable asset to all of the players and coaches that come through our programs. From our national teams to the Prospect Development Pipeline League, the new MLB Draft Combine, and the Appalachian League, Jim will be integral in ensuring all of our athletes grow both on and off the field.”
“I am honored to accept this position with USA Baseball,” said Koerner. “This organization represents a standard of excellence that is unmatched in the amateur baseball world and one that I am excited to be a part of going forward. I want to thank everyone involved in the process that helped make this opportunity possible and I am excited to get started!”
Koerner has been the head coach at North Carolina Central University (NCCU) from 2011-2021. As just the second head coach in the program’s modern-day history, Koerner took NCCU baseball to new heights in his 10 years at the helm. Under his guidance, the Eagles set the school record for wins twice, in 2013 (27) and again in 2018 (28). He also coached two MLB Draft picks with NCCU, including Corey Joyce, who became the highest selection in program history when he was taken in the 12th round by the Detroit Tigers in 2019. Koerner helped lead NCCU’s transition to the NCAA Division I level in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference during the 2011-2012 season and has since coached 31 All-MEAC selections, including the 2017 and 2019 MEAC Rookies of the Year and the 2018 and 2019 MEAC Players of the Year.
Before his time at NCCU, Koerner was an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Buffalo from 2007-2011, helping the Bulls reach their best offensive performances in program history in 2009 and 2010. The team recorded an all-time high in wins since 1999 during the 2009 season and set the records for team batting average (.312), home runs (46), and stolen bases (71) in 2010. In those two seasons combined, the Bulls broke over 25 season, career, team, and individual records.
He began his coaching career in 2001 as the head coach at Medaille College, where he helped found the program and was named the 2003 North Eastern Athletic Conference Coach of the Year. In 2004, he moved to the Division I ranks as an assistant coach at Monmouth University before taking the assistant coach and recruiting coordinator role at Marshall University from 2005-2006. During that time, Marshall ranked highly among NCAA teams in most offensive categories and Koerner helped Adam Frederick break the program’s all-time hits record (250) while also recruiting and signing several of the Top 100 rated players in the Northeast.
Koerner received his bachelor’s degree in economics in 1997 from St. John Fisher College (N.Y.) and a master’s degree in athletic administration from Marshall University.
For more information on USA Baseball, visit USABaseball.com and follow along on Twitter @USABaseball.
