From developing all-conference pitchers to helping his pitching staff members rewrite UE baseball history, pitching coach Josh Reynolds has already made a significant impact on the Purple Aces’ program in just two short years on staff.
UE has produced four all-Missouri Valley Conference pitchers in Reynolds’ two years on staff as the Purple Aces’ pitching coach, which ranks as the second-highest total among league schools over the last two years. Relief pitchers Tom Heithoff (twice), Corey Davisson (2010) and J.R. Carbonell (2009) have all earned all-MVC pitching honors for UE, while Davisson tied UE’s single-season records for both appearances (33) and winning percentage (9-1, .900) last year under Reynolds’ tutelage. Heithoff also quickly emerged as one of the top closers in school history under Reynolds, as he totaled 18 saves in his two years at UE to rank second all-time in Evansville history in saves.
Staff-wise, the Purple Aces have also improved with Reynolds serving as pitching coach. UE has dropped its team earned run average by over a full point with Reynolds as pitching coach over the last two seasons, while the Purple Aces have gone from ranking 250th nationally in hits allowed in 2008 to 106th in the country last year in 2010.
Reynolds himself excelled on the mound at Division II power University of Central Missouri (formerly Central Missouri State) from 1998 through 2000. Reynolds was a two-time MIAA and All-America pitcher for the Mules, while setting a school record with 32 career victories in just three years. Reynolds was selected in the third round of the 2000 Major League Baseball draft by the New York Mets after his junior year, but not before ranking among Central Missouri’s career leaders in victories, innings pitched (248.0) and strikeouts (193). In fact, Reynolds still ranks among the Mules’ top five in all three categories, and was inducted into the school’s athletics Hall of Fame in 2007.
Following college, Reynolds pitched professionally for parts of five seasons in the New York Mets, San Diego Padres, and Boston Red Sox organizations. Overall, he posted a career record of 21-15 with a 4.14 ERA as both a starter and a reliever, while posting a near three-to-one strikeout-to-walk ratio (211 strikeouts to 72 walks) in the Minor Leagues.
Reynolds came to UE in the summer of 2008 after spending three seasons at Kansas State and one year as pitching coach at Northeast Texas Community College in 2007. Reynolds earned his bachelor’s degree in social sciences from Kansas State in 2006. Reynolds and his wife, Ashleigh, reside in Evansville.
