The Fresno State baseball team, which traditionally includes the top recruits in the nation, enters its first season in the Mountain West and once again fields an elite group of recruits for the 2014 season.
All of the programs early signees are California natives.
Steve Rousey joined the Fresno State baseball staff in August of 2010 after eight years as the head coach at Cal State Northridge. Rousey serves as the Bulldogs pitching coach and was instrumental in the 'Dogs earning their sixth consecutive Western Athletic Conference title in 2011. Under Rousey, the Bulldogs bullpen finished with a 2.91 ERA after averaging only three walks per game, striking out 420 batters and earning 40 wins.
At the end of 2011, Greg Gonzalez was named WAC Pitcher of the Year after finishing with an 11-1 record having pitched two complete games to earn a 1.79 ERA. Gonzalez was the second Bulldog in four years to earn the honor, fourth in program history.
In Rousey's final year with Northridge, the team finished with a 29-27 overall record, going 9-15 in the Big West. After successfully recruiting his second top-40 class in as many seasons, Rousey finished 2010 with the program's first winning season since the 2002 campaign.
That squad saw six players drafted or signed by a Major League Baseball organization. He also had four student-athletes earn All-Big West honors.
The top assistant at Northridge under current Fresno State head coach Mike Batesole for the 2001 and 2002 seasons, Rousey helped lead the Matadors to a 75-39 record and the Big West title in 2002. Working primarily with the pitchers, he saw his staff finish the 2002 season with 41 wins, 13 saves and 478 strikeouts.
Northridge pitchers ended 2001 second in the Big West in strikeouts and third in earned runs allowed. In 2001, Rousey's pitching staff included MLB pitchers Kameron Loe and Bill Murphy. The Matadors saw two pitchers earn all-conference honors and one pitcher, Murphy, named to the All-West Region team.
In his first season with the Matadors he guided the pitching staff to a 4.60 earned run average and 459 strikeouts in 492.2 innings. The Matadors ranked second in the Big West Conference in strikeouts, fourth in ERA and gave up the third-fewest earned runs in the conference.
Before coaching at Cal State Northridge, Rousey's 21-year coaching career included stints at Long Beach State, Los Angeles City College and Crescenta Valley High School.
As the head coach at Los Angeles City College (`95-'00), he compiled a 24-18 record in his first year after taking over a team that had no players after the program was cut and then reinstated. His teams compiled 50 wins over his last two seasons, while 56 of Rousey's players went on to play at the university or professional level.
Before taking the helm of Los Angeles City College, he was the pitching coach at Long Beach State (`93-'95). While with the 49ers, the team claimed two Big West titles and made three regional appearances. His staff helped Long Beach State make it to the College World Series semifinals in 1993. Three pitchers earn All-American honors and one named the National Pitcher of the Year, Daniel Choi (1993), during his tenure.
The 1994 staff posted a 3.47 earned run average, which ranks third all-time on the Long Beach State Career List, while the 1993 pitching staff finished with a 3.55 team earned run average, which ranks fourth all-time. His 1993 pitching staff finished the season third all-time in saves (19), fifth in fewest runs per nine innings (4.6) and third in strikeouts with 495. His 1995 squad is first in saves with 21 and second in total strikeouts with 528.
Rousey has also coached with several summer collegiate teams, including as the pitching coach for the Alaska Goldpanners (`98-'99) and as the head coach for the Brewster Whitecaps of the prestigious Cape Cod League (`95).
Before his career as a coach, he was a top pitcher at Cal State Fullerton. In three seasons with the Titans, he compiled an impressive 15-5 record with 120 strikeouts. Rousey played in the College World Series twice (`82 and `84), helping the team to the national championship in '84 by compiling an 8-3 record with a 3.47 earned run average.
In all, Rousey has coached 16 Major League Players.
Rousey was a 7th round pick by the Chicago Cubs as a High school senior at Crescenta Valley High School in southern California. He declined the Cubs' offer and chose to attend Cal State Fullerton. A fourth-round pick by the Seattle Mariners in 1984 after his Junior season, he spent five years playing professionally in the Seattle Mariners and Montreal Expos organizations.
He earned his bachelor of arts in English from Cal State Fullerton in 1988 and his master's degree in physical education from Azusa Pacific in 1992. He and his wife Robin reside in Clovis, Calif. with their four children, P.J., Gabbie, Nate and Faith.
