UAB Blazers baseball

UAB Blazers baseball
2026 UAB Blazers baseball team
Founded1979 (1979)
UniversityUniversity of Alabama at Birmingham
Head coachCasey Dunn (5th season)
ConferenceThe American
LocationBirmingham, Alabama
Home stadiumJerry D. Young Memorial Field
(capacity: 1,000)
NicknameBlazers
ColorsUAB Green and UAB Gold[1]
   
NCAA tournament appearances
1991, 2012
Conference tournament champions
Sun Belt: 1991
Great Midwest: 1992, 1994
C-USA: 2012
Conference regular season champions
Great Midwest: 1992
For information on all University of Alabama at Birmingham sports, see UAB Blazers

The UAB Blazers baseball team is a varsity intercollegiate athletic team of the University of Alabama at Birmingham in Birmingham, Alabama, United States.[2] The team is a member of the American Conference, which is part of the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Division I. UAB's first baseball team was fielded in 1979. The team plays its home games at Jerry D. Young Memorial Field in Birmingham, Alabama. The Blazers are coached by Casey Dunn.[3]

History

The UAB fielded its first varsity baseball team in 1979 as an independent before joining the Sun Belt Conference in 1980. Harry Walker, the program’s first head coach, led UAB through the 1986 season, a tenure that included the 1981 Sun Belt North Division title. Pete Rancont took over in 1987 and coached the program for 13 seasons. Under Rancont, UAB reached its first NCAA Tournament in 1991, advancing to the Central Regional in Austin, Texas. The program moved to the Great Midwest Conference in 1992 and won both the regular-season and tournament titles in its first year in the league, with Rancont earning conference coach of the year honors.[4]

UAB joined Conference USA in 1996 and remained there through the 2023 season. Results in C-USA were mixed, with the team producing winning records in some seasons and finishing in the lower half of the standings in others. Larry Giangrosso coached from 2000 through 2006, followed by Brian Shoop, whose tenure ran from 2007 through the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Shoop led the Blazers to their second NCAA Tournament appearance in 2012, when UAB won the Conference USA Tournament and advanced to the Tallahassee Regional. A Shoop-era highlight came in 2014, when the team posted the program’s lowest team ERA at 2.87.[4]

Perry Roth served as head coach for a single season in 2021 before Casey Dunn was hired ahead of the 2022 campaign. UAB left Conference USA for the American Conference in 2024. Through the start of the 2026 season, the program has recorded 23 winning seasons, two NCAA Tournament appearances, and 62 alumni who have reached professional baseball, including 36 drafted players. Home games are played at Regions Field, which opened in 2013, while Young Memorial Field, opened in 1984, remains in use on campus.[4]

Conference affiliations

American logo in UAB's colors

Head Coaches

UAB has had six head coaches.[4]

Coach Years Seasons Record Pct.
Harry Walker1979–19868211–171.552
Pete Rancont1987–199913368–374–1.496
Larry Giangrosso2000–20067169–218.437
Brian Shoop2007–202014361–407.470
Perry Roth (interim)2021118–36.333
Casey Dunn2022–present498–121.447
Total471,252–1,271–1.496

Year by year results

UAB baseball history year-by-year results.[4]

Season Coach Overall Conf. Standing Postseason
Independent (1979)
1979Harry Walker21–29——
Sun Belt Conference (1980–1991)
1980Harry Walker30–206–62nd
198140–1712–01st (North)
198214–184–21st (North)
198329–1811–62nd (West)
198427–168–93rd (West)
198526–275–113rd( West)
198624–267–103rd (West)
1987Pete Rancont23–228–104th (West)
198822–28–14–124th (West)
198928–277–113rd (West)
199027–268–102nd (West)
199129–309–72nd (West)NCAA Regional
Great Midwest Conference (1992–1995)
1992Pete Rancont43–1817–11st
199335–2312–62nd
199432–2316–62nd
199534–2213–92nd
Conference USA (1996–2023)
1996Pete Rancont33–2513–114th
199731–2914–136th
199829–2415–124th
199922–317–209th
2000Larry Giangrosso28–3210–157th
200125–306–2110th
200216–407–2310th
200327–2612–179th
200430–2913–167th
200531–2714–168th
200619–386–186th
2007Brian Shoop25–3312–124th
200826–347–178th
200931–2611–126th
201028–2511–13T-5th
201129–289–157th
201232–309–157thNCAA Regional
201323–367–178th
201435–2120–102nd
201533–2515–152nd
201621–3412–189th
201724–319–2111th
201821–3313–178th
201927–2912–189th
20207–90–0—Season canceled (COVID-19)
2021Perry Roth (interim)18–3611–216th (West)
2022Casey Dunn31–2513–178th
202317–368–2210th
American Conference (2024–present)
2024Casey Dunn26–2913–145th
202524–308–1910th
Total1,252–1,271–12 NCAA Appearances

Facilities

Jerry D. Young Memorial Field

Jerry D. Young Memorial Field is the home of UAB baseball. The stadium opened in 1984 and is named after former UAB administrator Jerry D. Young, who played a key role in establishing the program. It seats 1,000.[4] In 2022 artificial turf was installed as the playing surface. UAB plays select games at Regions Field.[4]

UAB in the NCAA tournament

Year Record Pct Notes
1991 1–2 .333 Central Regional
2012 0–2 .000 Tallahassee Regional
TOTALS
 1-4 .200

Blazers in Major League Baseball

Since the Major League Baseball draft began in 1965, UAB has had 28 players selected.[5]

Notable players include:

See also

References

  1. ↑ UAB Brand Refresh - Toolkit. Retrieved February 18, 2025.
  2. ↑ "UAB Blazers". d1baseball.com. Retrieved 2021-12-28.
  3. ↑ "UAB Baseball Record Book (Updated July 2025) - UAB Athletics" (PDF). uabsports.com. Retrieved 2025-12-13.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "UAB Baseball Record Book (updated January 2026)" (PDF). UAB Athletics. Retrieved 2026-04-21.
  5. ↑ "MLB Amateur Draft Picks who came from "University of Alabama at Birmingham (Birmingham, AL)"". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2021-12-28.
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