Andy Stankiewicz - Baseball Coach - Grand Canyon University Athletics

Andy Stankiewicz

Title:
Head Coach
Years at GCU:
11th season
Phone:
602-639-6042
Alma Mater:
Pepperdine (1986)
Career Record:
341-239-2 (.588)

Year-by-Year

YEAR	SCHOOL	RECORD
2012	GCU (D2)	27-23
2013	GCU (D2)	40-19
2014	GCU	30-23
2015	GCU	32-22
2016	GCU	25-28-1
2017	GCU	29-25
2018	GCU	33-24
2019	GCU	36-24
2020	GCU	9-9*
2021	GCU	39-21-1
2022	GCU	41-21
341-239-2 (.588)
* 2020 season shortened because of COVID-19

WAC Regular-Season Champions

2015, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022

WAC Tournament Champions

2021

NCAA Tournament Appearances (D1)

2021, 2022

WAC Coach of the Year

2017, 2018, 2021, 2022

A former big leaguer, professional scout and minor league manager, Andy Stankiewicz completed his 11th season at the helm of Grand Canyon’s baseball program for the 2022 season after becoming the fourth head coach in the history of the program prior to the 2012 campaign.

Stankiewicz has guided GCU to five WAC regular-season titles (2015, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022), one WAC tournament title (2021) and the program's first NCAA tournament appearance at the D-I level (2021) followed by its first at-large selection into the NCAA tournament (2022). Along the way, Stankiewicz has been awarded the WAC Coach of the Year award four times (2017, 2018, 2021, 2022).

Stankiewicz led the program to new heights in 2022, finishing the regular season with three consecutive weeks in the D1Baseball.com Top-25 Poll. GCU won the WAC regular-season title again but went 2-2 in the WAC Tournament. The Lopes strong resume earned them an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history and the first time by a WAC school since 2012. GCU had one of the nation's strongest nonconference schedules and recorded victories over top-10 teams in Oregon State, Stanford and Texas Tech. The Lopes were a No. 3 seed in the Stillwater Regional.

GCU achieved a major milestone in 2021 by reaching its first NCAA tournament at the D-I level. The Lopes claimed the WAC's top seed entering the tournament and took care of business by going 3-0 with wins over New Mexico State, Sacramento State and UT Rio Grande Valley. GCU advanced to a regional in Tucson, falling to a pair of top-25 teams in No. 5 Arizona and No. 23 Oklahoma State. Stankiewicz led the Lopes to a D-I program record of 39 wins while recording a personal milestone by winning his 300th game on May 29 in the WAC tournament championship game. The Lopes made noise in the state of Arizona in 2021 by splitting regular-season series with Arizona and Arizona State, while also picking up impressive series wins over Tulane and Missouri.

After a pair of successful seasons at the Division II level in 2012 and 2013, Stankiewicz successfully guided the GCU baseball program through a transition to the Division I level. The transition saw unprecedented success, as the Lopes claimed the WAC regular season championships in 2015 and 2017. Amid the transition, GCU posted an impressive 71-33 (.683) mark in conference play despite being the WAC’s only transitioning school. Amid the transition, Stankiewicz’s program recorded marquee wins over the likes of Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Arizona, Tennessee, UC Irvine and Kansas.

GCU's success under Stankiewicz continued after the Division I transition when the Lopes claimed the 2018 WAC regular season title. The skipper was named the WAC Coach of the Year for the second straight season, and the program once again featured the WAC Player of the Year (Quin Cotton). For the second straight season, GCU won all eight of its conference series -- running an impressive streak of consecutive conference series wins to a nation-leading 17 series. Stankiewicz also guided GCU to its first top-10 win, toppling No. 4/7 TCU 9-8 in 12 innings on Feb. 18.

The program continued to build in a 2019 season that saw it reach the doorstep of the NCAA tournament. GCU won its first three WAC Tournament games to advance to the championship before falling in a pair of one-run losses to Sacramento State. Stankiewicz and the Lopes posted the program's best RPI (108) and a winning record in seven matchups against the Pac-12 Conference. GCU hit 148 doubles for the nation's second-highest mark prior to the NCAA tournament beginning.

Stankiewicz is one of the more respected coaches on the collegiate baseball landscape, evidenced by multiple selections to lead USA Baseball national teams into international competition. Most recently, Stankiewicz guided the U18 national team to an undefeated gold-medal run at the World Baseball Cup in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada in September 2017. He helped mold the team by narrowing 100 players to a 20-player roster, which he led to a 9-0 mark and a 61-5 margin of victory.

The MLB Draft is increasingly shining a national spotlight on the impressive player development within the program under Stankiewicz's guidance. GCU had nine players drafted between the 2018 and 2019 drafts, with the five selections in 2019 matching a program best. In 2018, right-handed pitcher Jake Wong became GCU's highest draft pick since Tim Salmon (1989), going in the third round (80th overall) to the San Francisco Giants. Another right-hander, Mick Vorhof, went in the ninth round, the first time the program has featured two players in the first 10 rounds since 1988. Zach Malis (24th) and Ian Evans (26th) made it four total selections in the draft, the most since 1996. The Lopes topped that mark the following year with Quin Cotton (8th), Kona Quiggle (16th), Preston Pavlica (24th), Tyler Wyatt (31st) and Kade Mechals (40th) combining to tie a program record for total selections.

In his time as GCU’s head coach, 17 Lopes have been selected in the MLB First Year Player Draft with five selections coming in the first 10 rounds. Fifty-one Lopes have been named first- or second-team all-conference in Stankiewicz’s tenure with 30 being first-team selections.

GCU posted a 20-4 record during conference play in 2017, the best mark the WAC had seen since Rice claimed the NCAA championship in 2003. The Lopes won their final nine weekend series of the season. GCU’s season started with a series victory over No. 22 Oklahoma State and concluded with edging out New Mexico State for the outright regular season title. Unsurprisingly, Stankiewicz was voted by his peers as WAC Coach of the Year.

In 2015 – just the second year of GCU’s transition – Stankiewicz and the Lopes won their first WAC regular season title. In that championship season, GCU posted a .308 team batting average, a mark that ranked seventh in the country. During the reclassification process (2014-17), Stankiewicz’s teams ranked 28th in Division I in batting average (.294).

With low expectations from outsiders, GCU burst onto the Division I scene by claiming second- and first-place finishes, respectively, in its first two seasons of transition to Division I athletics. In 2015, GCU posted a 32-22 overall record and a 19-7 record in conference play. In its return to Division I in 2014, GCU went 30-23.

In 2013, GCU's final season at the Division II level, Stankiewicz led the Lopes to their first appearance in the Division II Championship after the squad boasted a 40-19 record. GCU won the Division II West Region championship after earning the No. 4 seed in the tournament. Stankiewicz was named the ABCA/Rawlings Division II West Region Coach of the Year as his team posted its most wins since collecting 43 in 1990. He also was named Pacific West Conference Coach of the Year after GCU earned a share of the conference crown for the first time since joining in 2007.

In his first season as head coach in 2012, Stankiewicz guided the Lopes to a 27-23 record as the squad finished eighth in the final West Region poll. The 27 wins marked a six-win improvement from the previous season.

Stankiewicz’s history of USA Baseball now dates back over six years. He was selected as an assistant coach for USA Baseball's Collegiate National Team during the summer of 2012. The squad traveled to Cuba and the Netherlands to compete in Honkbal-Haarlem Baseball Week, where it captured the bronze medal. In 2013, he served as an assistant coach for the USA Baseball 2013 17U National Team Development Program.

In the summer of 2014, Stankiewicz served as the manager of the USA Baseball 18U National Team and guided the squad to a gold medal at the COPABE 18U Pan American Games in La Paz, Mexico. The team went 12-0 in its summer contests.

Prior to joining GCU, Stankiewicz held the position of minor league field coordinator for the Seattle Mariners. Before his stint with the Mariners, he was a member of the Arizona State baseball coaching staff from 2007 to 2009. He helped guide the Sun Devils to three Pac-10 championships and two appearances in the College World Series.

Stankiewicz also brings to GCU a professional coaching background, having served as manager for the New York Yankees NY-Penn League team in Staten Island. He guided Staten Island to the NY-Penn League championship in 2005.

Stankiewicz was drafted by the New York Yankees in the 12th round of the 1986 First-Year Player Draft. He made his Major League debut with the Yankees on April 11, 1992. Stankiewicz played in parts of seven MLB seasons, with the Yankees (1992-93), Houston Astros (1994-95), Montreal Expos (1996-97) and the inaugural season of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 1998.

A standout infielder at Pepperdine, Stankiewicz ranks in the school's top 10 in runs scored (172), triples (9), at-bats (755), stolen bases (101) and games played (220).

Andy and his wife, Mari Ana, reside in Gilbert and have four children: Drew, Marisa, Dane and Mia. Drew played collegiately at Arizona State and was an 11th-round selection of the Philadelphia Phillies in 2014 and has reached as high as Double-A. Marisa graduated from ASU, where she helped lead the Sun Devils softball team to a Women's College World Series appearance in 2018. Dane had a five-year playing career at GCU and now coaches college baseball. Mia was an All-American softball player at South Mountain Community College and now plays for CSUN.

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING

Andy was one of our original Diamondbacks. He played a number of years in the majors, but he paid his dues to get there. He’s a lifer in baseball. That’s who he is.
- Jerry Colangelo, former owner of Arizona Diamondbacks and Phoenix Suns, GCU consultant, namesake of GCU's Colangelo College of Business

He was always a very competitive player, a great teammate and a fiery guy. He wasn't the biggest guy on the field but he played hard every single day.
- Luis Gonzalez, former Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder, five-time MLB All-Star, 2001 World Series champion

If it wasn't for Stankiewicz, I probably wouldn't have gotten through college. He was a team leader. Even though his stature might be small, he carried a big punch. You got up because Andy Stankiewicz told you to.
- Mike Fetters, 16-year MLB career, Pepperdine teammate

The instruction they’re getting from Stankiewicz and his staff ... there’s just so much exposure there and so many opportunities to further your career.
- Cody Ransom, 13-year MLB career, GCU baseball alumnus

There’s nobody that I have any more respect for. To be teammates -- it was extraordinary.
- Jay Bell, two-time MLB All-Star, 2001 World Series Champion

PLAYING CAREER

A lifelong underdog due to his undersized 5-foot-9 frame, Stankiewicz went on to have a very successful collegiate career at Pepperdine before grinding through six years in the minors to play seven MLB seasons.

During his four-year career with the Waves, Stankiewicz helped lead Pepperdine to two NCAA Regional appearances and one WCC championship.

Between the 1985 and 1986 trips to the NCAA tournament, Pepperdine won six games over the likes of Texas, Nebraska, Stanford and Oregon State.

Following Stankiewicz’s junior season, he was taken in the 18th round of the MLB draft by the Detroit Tigers but decided to return for his senior season. After another year, Stankiewicz improved his draft stock to the 12th round, where he was selected by the New York Yankees. It was his third time being picked in the draft after going in the 26th round to Kansas City out of high school.

Stankiewicz left Pepperdine with his name up and down the record books including top-10 career marks in stolen bases, runs scored, walks drawn, at bats and stolen base percentage.

After six years in the minors, including three stops in Triple-A, Stankiewicz debuted with the Yankees in 1992. In his stint with Double-A Albany-Colonie, he once went 93 straight games without committing an error.

When injuries mounted for the big league club, an opportunity opened for Stankiewicz hours before Opening Day. It didn’t take long to win over the hearts of fans in the Bronx, as he quickly became a favorite during his rookie season in 1992.

He was paired with Buck Showalter at three different minor league stops in his journey to the big leagues. So when Showalter, the new Yankees manager, needed a replacement in the infield, he drew from his personal confidence in Stankiewicz -- and a .400 batting average in spring training -- to give him the shot that many others had not.

Stankiewicz debuted as a pinch-hitter on April 11 at Detroit. He then played an inning in the field on April 12 before making his first major league start on April 14 in Toronto. He went 1 for 3, walked and drove in a run.

Through 19 starts in the months of April and May, Stankiewicz was batting .329 and slugging .466.

“The Andy Stankiewicz story has only been playing in the Bronx for six weeks,” Jack Curry of the New York Times wrote in May 1992. “But his knack for reaching base, catching everything and hustling around like a Little Leaguer has forced fans at Yankee Stadium to embrace him.”

After becoming the first Yankees rookie in over 15 years to record more than 100 hits, Stankiewicz’s time with New York came to a close when other players returned to health.

Stankiewicz played in 16 game for the Yankees in 1993 before being traded to the Astros in the ensuing offseason. He spent two years with Houston and two years with the Montreal Expos before landing in Phoenix for the inaugural Arizona Diamondbacks season in 1998.

In what would be his final season in the majors, Stankiewicz played in 77 games for -- who else? -- Showalter. With more than 1,000 fielding chances, Stankiewicz committed just 20 errors in seven years -- a career fielding percentage of .980.