Eastern Connecticut State University

COACH'S VIDEO PROFILE: Click Here (12 min., 14 sec.)

In his second full season as head coach, 2021 New England Coach-of-the-Year Brian Hamm led the Eastern Connecticut Warriors back to national prominence. After winning the Little East Conference regular-season title, the Warriors reached No. 12 in the national rankings and received a top seed in the NCAA Regional Tournament. The Warriors enter the 2022 season ranked ninth in the Collegiate Baseball Division III national pre-season poll, marking the first time since 2012 that the Warriors have been ranked in the top 10.
 
Under Hamm’s leadership, the 2021 team broke the Little East Conference regular-season record for most wins (15-1 LEC) and was ranked No. 1 in the final six New England coaches’ polls. Three players (Luke Broadhurst, John Mesagno, and Josh Vincent) received All-America honors with five All-New England and ten All-Little East Conference honorees.  Broadhurst’s Little East Conference Player-of-the- Year recognition represents the fifth such honor for Hamm in his 12 years as a head coach. 
 
Before coming to Eastern, Hamm spent the previous thirteen years at Amherst -- the first four assisting legendary Hall of Fame coach, Bill Thurston. In nine years as head coach at Amherst, Hamm oversaw the winningest period in Amherst baseball’s 161-year history, posting a 221-113 (.662) record. Hamm led the program to four NCAA Division III tournaments and two NESCAC (New England Small College Athletic Conference) tournament championships. Hamm’s teams were 96-35 (.725) in conference play and set program records for highest team batting average (.323) and lowest team ERA (3.12). His .725 winning percentage in NESCAC regular-season play is the highest among NESCAC baseball coaches. 
 
In addition to qualifying for NCAA tournaments twice as the NESCAC champion, Amherst qualified twice on an at-large basis under Hamm. The Mammoths won their first two regional games in 2013 and 2014 and in 2015 were beaten in the final round by eventual national champion, SUNY Cortland. In 2014, Amherst won a program-record 30 games and was ranked as high as No. 3 in New England and No. 22 in the final ABCA national poll. Hamm was named NESCAC Coach-of-the-Year in 2011 and 2018.
 
During his tenure at Amherst, Hamm produced the 2012 Baseball America Pre-Season National Player of the Year, two players in Baseball America’s Top 5 Division III Pro Prospects, and more players in the MLB amateur draft than any other Division III head coach. 
 
Hamm’s former players and coaches have gone on to have successful careers in the baseball industry. Former pitching coach, Jordan Tabakman, was named 2021 Division I Pitching Coach-of-the-Year by Collegiate Baseball for his leadership of the Fairfield University pitching staff, while former coaches Bryan Adamski and Mike Armstrong are head coaches at Trinity College and Alfred State, respectively. Joe Haumacher, a former assistant coach, is currently a pitching coach with the Toronto Blue Jays organization. Former player and assistant coach, Harry Roberson, is the minor league hitting coordinator for the Boston Red Sox, and Shaun McNamara is a professional scout for the New York Mets. Twelve of Hamm’s former players work in front offices of Major League Baseball organizations and his first two captains currently hold significant roles within Major League Baseball: John D’Angelo is a Vice-President at Major League Baseball and Will Lawton is Director of Baseball Operations and Scouting for the Pittsburgh Pirates. 
 
While at Amherst, Hamm started the baseball analytics team, which produced Sarah Gelles (Director of Research and Development, Astros) and Jasmin Horan (Research and Development Analyst, Cubs) two trailblazers in the MLB analytics industry. Meanwhile, Jim Logue (Director of Baseball Analytics, Tigers), Jason Stein (Senior Manager of Pro Player Personnel, Mets), Jake Girard (Amateur Scout, Rays), and Dan Kaplan (Video Analyst, Mariners) are former members of the analytics team. 
 
While Hamm’s teams have had great success both on the field and professionally, they have also distinguished themselves in the classroom and the community. During his nine seasons at Amherst, his teams placed more players on the NESCAC All-Academic Team than any other NESCAC baseball team. 
 
The Warriors have matched this success; in addition to Broadhurst’s CoSIDA Academic All-American honors (Hamm’s third), the team finished the 2020-2021 academic year with a 3.39 cumulative GPA, receiving the ABCA & LEC Team Academic Award (awarded to the baseball team with the highest GPA) for the second straight year. Twelve players were selected to the LEC All-Academic Team and twenty-nine players selected to the LEC All-Academic Honor Roll.
 
In the fall of 2020, 40 members of the baseball team were recognized by the LEC for having semester GPAs of at least 3.0. Among these, twenty-five players had a GPA of at least 3.5, making this the most of any Eastern athletic program. In the spring of 2020, seven players were named to the LEC All-Academic Team. 
 
A native of Terryville, Hamm attended Middlebury College, where he was a two-sport captain, graduating in 2002. During his senior year, he was honored with the John P. Stabile Memorial Award given to the top student-athlete for leadership, academic scholarship, and athletic achievement. He was a four-year starter at shortstop (1999-02), where he batted .299 and holds the career assist record of 323. He ranks in a tie for second at Middlebury with 104 assists in a season, holds the game record of six hits, and shares the game record of five runs scored in a single game. In soccer, he was a three-year letter winner (1999-01) at goalkeeper and a two-time all-region and first-team All-NESCAC selection, starting each of the 52 matches in which he appeared. His squad’s successes included one ECAC Tournament championship and one NESCAC championship. His overall record during his playing career was 35-11-7 with a 0.81 goals-against average and 19.5 shutouts.
 
After graduating from Middlebury College in 2002, Hamm spent three years as an assistant coach at his alma mater. He also served as an Envoy Coach for Major League Baseball for three years, working with amateur and professional teams in Europe. In the summer of 2009, he worked as a roaming instructor for the Dutch and Spanish Baseball Federations, coaching with junior national and national teams, and evaluating their development programs. At the 2009 American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Convention, MLB honored Hamm with the Julio Puente Envoy Coach Award, which is awarded to the envoy coach who most epitomizes excellence in coaching and player development in international baseball. He is the youngest coach to have received this award.
 
Hamm holds a Master’s Degree in Sport Management from the University of Massachusetts Isenberg School of Management. He lives with his wife Maija in Branford.

 BRIAN HAMM'S CAREER HEAD COACHING  RECORD (12 Years)