SAN DIEGO – San Diego State baseball head coach Kevin Vance announced two additions to his staff with the hiring of Nate Esposito and Josh Nicoloff as assistant coaches.
In their roles, Esposito will tutor the catchers, while Nicoloff will coach the outfielders, with both providing assistance to the hitters.
“We are thrilled to welcome Nate and Josh to our Aztec family,” Vance said. “Nate’s roots in Northern California and Josh’s strong connections throughout Southern California give us two tireless recruiters who will help us attract the best talent from across our state. Their knowledge of the game, work ethic and commitment to developing players will elevate our program. Most importantly, they are exceptional people who will have a tremendous impact on our student-athletes and our culture.”
A native of Granite Bay, California, Esposito arrives on The Mesa after spending the past two seasons as an assistant at Cal State Northridge, where he oversaw the development of the Matadors’ hitters and catchers while serving as the team’s third base coach.
Under Esposito’s guidance, CSUN emerged as one of the top offensive units in the Big West during the 2026 campaign, ranking first in home runs (70), RBIs (286) and slugging percentage (.501) while finishing second in batting average (.294).
Prior to his move to the San Fernando Valley, Esposito spent two seasons as an undergraduate assistant at his alma mater Oregon State in 2023 and 2024, working with the team’s catchers while serving as first base coach.
With Esposito on the bench, the Beavers eclipsed the 40-win plateau and advanced to the NCAA Tournament in both seasons, highlighted by a Super Regional appearance in 2024.
In addition, Esposito gained valuable experience in summer ball with the Pacific Empire League after serving as head coach and manager of the Medford Rogues in 2024, following a stint as a catching/third base coach with the Lincoln Potters in 2023.
As a collegiate player, Esposito competed as a catcher at Oregon State from 2012-14, playing in 41 games before concluding his career at Concordia-Portland.
Esposito was selected in the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Kansas City Royals, and he went on to complete six years in professional baseball, amassing 145 hits, 27 doubles, four home runs and 56 RBI over his career. With the Royals' organization, Esposito played 228 total games and advanced to the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers, where he retired from the professional ranks after 17 games with the club in 2021.
Prior to college and pro ball, Esposito was a standout prep player at Granite Bay High School, where he was an all-league and all-city selection while appearing in the 2010 Area Code Games. He was also drafted out of high school by the Oakland Athletics in 2011.
Esposito received a bachelor's degree in sociology from Oregon State.
Meanwhile, Nicoloff makes the short trip across town after a two-year stint at the University of San Diego, where he was promoted to assistant coach for the 2026 campaign after serving as the Toreros’ director of baseball operations in 2025.
With Nicoloff on staff, USD captured the 2025 West Coast Conference regular-season championship and ranked second in the league that season in batting average (.285), hits (565), on-base percentage (.391) and fielding percentage (.975).
During his tenure, the Toreros garnered five first-team all-WCC accolades, four second-team all-conference plaudits, three all-league honorable mentions and one WCC Defensive Player of the Year selection.
Nicoloff arrived in San Diego from his alma mater, Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Orange County, where he served as the Eagles' hitting coach for two seasons in 2023 and 2024.
With Nicoloff on board, Santa Margarita Catholic posted a school-record 29 victories in 2023 and claimed its first-ever Trinity League Championship. His tutelage continued to be vital in 2024, when the Eagles slashed a program-best .303/.422/.811 as a team.
Nicoloff has also coached in summer collegiate leagues, working as the hitting coach for the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters of the Northwoods League (2023) and the Menlo Park Legends of the California Collegiate League (2024).
A collegiate player, Nicoloff witnessed success at both Columbia University (2018-21) and Kansas State (2022). As a freshman in 2018, he helped the Lions capture the Ivy League championship before earning all-conference honors as a sophomore in 2019. Additionally, Nicoloff led the team with a .394 batting average as a junior during the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign, topping the squad in hits, total bases, and stolen bases before the remainder of that season and the entire 2021 campaign were canceled due to the pandemic.
In 2022, Nicoloff transferred to Kansas State as a graduate student, where he was an ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove Award finalist at second base. Nicoloff started all 58 games that season, belting seven home runs with 27 RBIs while compiling 12 multi-hit games, a 13-game hit streak and a team-high 19-game on-base streak.
Nicoloff was a three-year letterwinner at Santa Margarita Catholic, earning Trinity League All-Star honors in 2016 before receiving Orange County All-Star South recognition in 2017.
Nicoloff graduated from Columbia with a degree in political science.
Under the direction of head coach Kevin Vance, San Diego State enjoyed a resurgence on the diamond in 2026, capturing the regular-season conference championship in its final season as Mountain West members, finishing with a 36-24 overall mark for its best record since the 2018 campaign.
Beginning with the 2027 season, the Aztecs will join Dallas Baptist, Fresno State, Gonzaga, Oregon State, Texas State and Washington State in baseball competition as members of the Pac-12 Conference.