James Cooper (baseball)
James Cooper (born February 12, 1982) is an American college baseball coach, currently is serving as head coach of the Grambling State Tigers baseball team. He was named to that position prior to the 2010 season.[1]
| Current position | |
|---|---|
| Title | Head coach |
| Team | Grambling State |
| Conference | SWAC |
| Record | 215–302 |
| Biographical details | |
| Born | February 12, 1982 Shreveport, Louisiana |
| Playing career | |
| 2001–2004 | Grambling State |
| 2004-2005 | Tri-City ValleyCats |
| 2006 | Sussex Skyhawks |
| Position(s) | Outfielder |
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |
| 2007–2009 | Grambling State (Asst.) |
| 2010–present | Grambling State |
| Head coaching record | |
| Overall | 215–302 |
| Tournaments | SWAC: 15–16 NCAA: 0–2 |
| Accomplishments and honors | |
| Championships | |
| SWAC champion (2010) | |
| Awards | |
| SWAC Coach of the Year (2010, 2017) | |
Playing career
Cooper was an outfielder for Grambling, where he earned All-Conference honors and played under longtime head coach Wilbert Ellis. He was drafted in the 33rd round of the 2004 MLB Draft by the Houston Astros. He played two seasons in the Astros system, reaching Class A, and one season of independent baseball in the CanAm League for the Sussex Skyhawks before ending his playing career.[1][2]
Coaching career
Cooper returned to Grambling as an assistant to new head coach Barret Rey. He helped rebuild the Tigers program, qualifying for a pair of Southwestern Athletic Conference Baseball Tournament appearances in three years. With Rey's departure for SWAC rival Alcorn State, Cooper was elevated to head coach.[3][4] In his first season, Cooper led the Tigers to a SWAC Tournament championship and an appearance in the NCAA Regional. Cooper earned SWAC Coach of the Year honors for his efforts. During the 2019 season, Cooper obtained his 200th victory with a 19-2 win over University of Arkansas Pine Bluff on April 20, 2019. Notable players drafted or signed under Cooper's helm: Jeremy Shelby 2010 38th round draft pick to Baltimore Orioles, Eldred Barnett 2011 29th round draft pick to San Francisco Giants, Chris Wolfe 2012 29th round draft pick to Oakland A's, Cory Jordan 2013 35th round pick to Tampa Rays, Edwin Drexler 2015 38th round draft pick to Los Angeles Dodgers, Tanner Raiburn 2017 33rd round draft pick to Boston Redsox, Johan Mojica 2017 UDFA to Milwaukee Brewers, Marshawn Taylor 2018 28th round pick to Arizona Diamondbacks.[1][2]
Head coaching record
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grambling State Tigers (Southwestern Athletic Conference) (2010–present) | |||||||||
| 2010 | Grambling State | 22–32 | 10–13 | 3rd (West) (5) | NCAA Regional | ||||
| 2011 | Grambling State | 23–26 | 15–9 | 2nd (West) (5) | SWAC Tournament | ||||
| 2012 | Grambling State | 22–26 | 13–11 | 3rd (West) (5) | SWAC Tournament[lower-alpha 1] | ||||
| 2013 | Grambling State | 18–30 | 9–15 | 5th (West) (5) | |||||
| 2014 | Grambling State | 16–31 | 11–13 | 4th (West) (5) | SWAC Tournament[lower-alpha 2] | ||||
| 2015 | Grambling State | 11–39 | 9–20 | 4th (West) | SWAC Tournament[lower-alpha 3] | ||||
| 2016 | Grambling State | 22–27 | 15–8 | 2nd (West) | SWAC Tournament[lower-alpha 4] | ||||
| 2017 | Grambling State | 22–30 | 15–9 | 1st (West) | SWAC Tournament[lower-alpha 5] | ||||
| 2018 | Grambling State | 26–26 | 14–10 | 2nd (West) | SWAC Tournament[lower-alpha 6] | ||||
| 2019 | Grambling State | 27–25 | 16–8 | 2nd (West) | SWAC Tournament[lower-alpha 7] | ||||
| 2020 | Grambling State | 6–10 | 1–2 | (West) | Season canceled due to COVID-19 | ||||
| Grambling State: | 215–302 | 128–118 | |||||||
| Total: | 215–302 | ||||||||
|
National champion
Postseason invitational champion
| |||||||||
- The top four teams in each four team division qualified for the SWAC Tournament in 2012.
- The top four teams in each four team division qualified for the SWAC Tournament in 2014.
- The top four teams in each four team division qualified for the SWAC Tournament in 2015.
- The top four teams in each four team division qualified for the SWAC Tournament in 2016.
- The top four teams in each four team division qualified for the SWAC Tournament in 2017.
- The top four teams in each four team division qualified for the SWAC Tournament in 2018.
- The top four teams in each four team division qualified for the SWAC Tournament in 2019.
References
- "2012 Baseball Coaching Staff". Grambling State Tigers. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
- Marq Mitcham (August 16, 2013). "Grambling baseball coach has optimistic outlook". Bastrop Daily Enterprise. Bastrop, Louisiana. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
- "Grambling State Announces James Cooper as Head Baseball Coach". TSPN Sports. July 18, 2009. Archived from the original on April 20, 2014. Retrieved January 20, 2014.
- Ken Trahan (July 17, 2009). "Grambling chooses James Cooper as baseball coach". SportsNOLA. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved January 20, 2014.