SAN DIEGO – San Diego State baseball head coach Shaun Cole made a huge splash with his latest staff addition, appointing former Major League Baseball star reliever Mark Melancon as the Aztecs’ pitching development coordinator.
“Our program is very fortunate and thrilled to have Mark join our coaching staff,” Cole said. “He will assist in all aspects of our pitching development, bringing his unmatched experience as an elite pitcher. Most importantly, Mark is also a great person and a role model. He finished his degree while rehabilitating with the New York Yankees. This speaks highly about his work ethic, discipline, and desire to be great beyond the baseball field. He’s going to impact our program, coaches, and student-athletes on and off the field.”
A four-time MLB All-Star, Melancon played for eight teams during his career from 2009-23, featuring stints with the Yankees, Houston Astros, Pittsburgh Pirates, Washington Nationals, San Francisco Giants, Atlanta Braves, San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks.
In 14 seasons at the major league level, Melancon posted a 37-40 record with a 2.94 ERA and 643 strikeouts in 732 relief appearances, earning 262 saves, which ranks 36th on MLB’s all-time list.
“It’s exciting to be part of a staff that has great experience and a clear vision on what needs to happen to be successful at the highest level,” Melancon said. “I’m eager to help these players compete for a national championship and hopefully move on to the next level.”
After collecting 2013 Setup Man of the Year honors following his first season in Pittsburgh, Melancon enjoyed one of his finest professional campaigns with the Pirates in 2015, when he led the National League with a team-record 51 saves to earn the senior circuit’s Trevor Hoffman Reliever of the Year award along with Sporting News NL Pitcher of the Year accolades.
That season, Melancon paced the National League with a .962 save percentage, converting 51 of 53 opportunities. Additionally, he tied the Pirates’ record for the most saves before the All-Star break (29) and set a team standard for the most saves in the month of June (11) before finishing eighth in the NL Cy Young Award balloting.
In 2016, Melancon received his second straight All-Star game selection for Pittsburgh before a mid-season trade to the Washington Nationals. Despite pitching for two clubs, he was runner-up for Hoffman Reliever of the Year honors and still led the majors with 67 games finished while posting a 1.64 ERA, which was tops among NL relievers. Collecting 47 saves that year, Melancon became the first player to save 17 games for one team (Nationals) after recording 30 saves for another squad (Pirates) in the same season.
Following his stop in Washington, Melancon spent time with the Giants (2017-19) and Braves (2019-20) before signing a one-year deal with the Padres in 2021, when he led the majors with 39 saves, compiling a 4-3 record with a 2.23 ERA and 59 strikeouts in 64.2 innings of work. In April of that season, he received MLB Reliever of the Month recognition.
After his stint in San Diego, Melancon finished his career with the Diamondbacks in 2022-23, posting 18 saves in 62 appearances.
A native of Wheat Ridge, Colorado, Melancon played collegiate baseball at Arizona, where he set a single-season school freshman record with 29 appearances in 2004, helping the Wildcats advance to the NCAA Men’s College World Series.
Following his junior season, Melancon was drafted by New York in the ninth round of the 2006 MLB First-Year Player Draft.
Along with his success in the major leagues, Melancon also pitched for Team USA that captured a gold medal at the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He also represented Team USA at the All-Star Series in Taiwan (2011) and Japan (2014).