McSpadden Joins Thomas at UTA

ARLINGTON, Texas – It’s a reunion of sorts for UTA baseball as head coach Darin Thomas has announced that Galen McSpadden will join the Mavericks staff as a volunteer coach. Thomas played for McSpadden at Seward County Community College before joining the Saints coaching staff with McSpadden for nine seasons.

“I am extremely excited to get a coach of Galen’s caliber to join our staff,” said Thomas. “Our players and coaches are really going to benefit from his experience in the college game.”

McSpadden, a 2010 inductee to the NJCAA Baseball Hall of Fame, spent 37 seasons at Seward County.  Retiring in 2018, McSpadden finished with 1,243 wins with the Saints, ranking him 7^th on the all-time NJCAA history for career wins at the time of his retirement.

85 players were either drafted or signed professional contracts with Major League Baseball organizations during his 37 years at the helm. He coached 181 All-Conference selections (101 First Team), 55 NJCAA All-Region VI selections, 12 Conference Freshmen of the Year, seven Conference Most Valuable Players, three NJCAA National Batting Champions, three NJCAA Central District Big Stick Award Winners, three Region 6 Most Valuable Players, four NJCAA Region 6 Gold Glove Award Winners, and one NJCAA Central District Defensive Player of the Year.

While at Seward County, McSpadden sent several athletes to UTA to continue their baseball career including 2017 MLB Draft pick, Jakob Hernandez. Current Mavericks Dylan Paul, Tanner King and Ryan Thomas all played under McSpadden at Seward County.

“I’m looking forward to playing for him again,” said King. “He brings a lot to the table and is a big reason I am the pitcher I am today and a big reason how I got to UTA. Our program will be better with him here.”

Prior to coaching the Saints, McSpadden was drafted and signed by the San Diego Padres in the 6th round of the 1974 MLB Draft, spending four years with the organization.

WHAT THEY ARE SAYING ABOUT McSpadden 
“Coach McSpadden has been a huge part in shaping my baseball and coaching career. The guidance and values that he showed me as a young player have stuck with me. To this day I try to use his mentorship as a template on how to run my programs. The Mavs just got a huge asset.”
-Johnny Cardenas
Stephen F. Austin Head Baseball Coach

“Coach McSpadden is a wonderful coach because he truly cares for his players. He blends the perfect mix of allowing his players the freedom to have fun while also holding them accountable for playing the game the right way.”
-Tiny Thomas
San Francisco Giants Scout