CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
728 Career Wins as a Head Coach
59 Ivy League Honors
16 MLB Draft Selections
New England Baseball Journal's Most Influential List
2025 NEIBA Hall of Fame Inductee
2024 NEIBA Jack Butterfield Award
2023 Trinity Athletics Hall of Fame Inductee
2019 Ivy League Coach of the Year
2019 NEIBA Coach of the Year
Bill Decker was introduced as the Joseph J. O'Donnell ’67 Head Coach for Harvard Baseball on September 26, 2012. He will enter his 14th season at the helm of the Crimson during the 2025-26 academic year following a 22-year tenure at Trinity in which he won a national championship in 2008 and earned induction into the Trinity Athletics Hall of Fame in 2023.
Decker earned induction into the NEIBA Hall of Fame following the 2025 season. In 2025, the Crimson earned a spot in the Ivy League Tournament and finished as the tournament’s runner-up. Harvard registered seven All-Ivy selections, including unanimous First Team All-Ivy accolades for Gio Colasante, alongside three Ivy League Tournament All-Tournament Team selections and three Academic All-District picks.
After the 2025 season, Harvard notched a pair of MLB Draft picks for the third straight season as right-hander Truman Pauley went to the New York Mets in the 12th round with the 373rd overall pick while right-hander Callan Fang was picked by the Minnesota Twins in the 13th round with the 389th overall selection.
In 2024, Harvard totaled seven Ivy League awards, including Ivy League Pitcher of the Year honors for Callan Fang and unanimous First Team All-Ivy accolades for Ben Rounds who hit .403, becoming the first member of the Crimson to hit above .400 since 2004. Over the course of the season, Harvard earned at least one win over all seven other Ivy programs. Following the season’s conclusion, Decker captured the NEIBA’s Jack Butterfield Award presented for integrity and dedication to the game of baseball.
Following the 2024 season, the Crimson tallied a pair of MLB Draft selections for the second straight season as right-hander Sean Matson went to the Cleveland Guardians in the ninth round with the 265th overall pick and right-hander Tanner Smith went to the San Diego Padres in the 15th round with the 450th overall selection.
Decker guided the Crimson to a berth in the inaugural Ivy League Tournament in 2023, securing the No. 2 seed behind a 15-6 Ivy League record, marking Harvard’s most Ivy League wins since 2005. The Crimson captured six of its seven Ivy League series during the regular season. Decker coached Callan Fang to earn Ivy League Rookie of the Year honors as the Crimson tallied five All-Ivy honorees and five Academic All-District selections.
Following the conclusion of the 2023 season, the Crimson boasted a pair of draft picks in the 2023 MLB Draft. On the second day of the draft, the Los Angeles Angels took right-handed pitcher Chris Clark in the fifth round with the 147th overall pick while the Cleveland Guardians snagged right-handed pitcher Jay Driver in the ninth round with the 278th overall pick.
In 2022, the Crimson returned to competition following a pause due to COVID-19, winning 19 games, including 10 Ivy wins, and finishing in fourth place in the Ivy League standings. Harvard recorded a pair of wins over Power Five opponents during its non-conference season, topping Miami – 11-6 in the season opener – and UCLA – in a 5-0 shutout victory. The Crimson pitching staff ranked 29th in the NCAA in strikeouts per game (9.8) while Harvard’s batters ranked 51st in the nation in doubles per game (2.1). Harvard totaled five All-Ivy selections and three CoSIDA Academic All-District honorees.
Decker guided the Crimson to an outstanding season in 2019, winning 27 games, capturing the Ivy League title, and making an appearance in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2005. Decker earned Ivy League Coach of the Year honors after 14 wins in the league, the most since 2006. Seven members of the team earned All-Ivy awards, including Jake Suddelson, who took home Ivy League Player of the Year accolades. Two MLB Draft selections capped off a strong season for the Crimson. Patrick McColl was picked in the 10th round by the Oakland Athletics, and Hunter Bigge was selected in the 12th round by the Chicago Cubs.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Harvard did not compete during the 2021 baseball season. In 2020, the Crimson played six contests before the COVID-19 pandemic forced the cancelation of the remaining season.
The 2018 season was a successful year for the Crimson, with a 22-20 (.524) overall record and 12-9 (.571) conference record. The season contained the most wins for the program since 2005 and the most Ivy League wins since 2007, with its best conference finish since 2010. Harvard won its first Beanpot Championship title since 2014 and fifth in program history. In addition, the Crimson closed out their season with a series win over Dartmouth for the first time in 13 years.
Seven members of Decker’s 2018 team were awarded All-Ivy recognition in nine separate awards, more than any other team in the conference. Noah Zavolas was also named Ivy League Pitcher of the Year after tossing a no-hitter against Yale, the first in 17 years. Zavolas and Simon Rosenblum-Larson were both drafted in the 2018 Major League Baseball Draft as picks for the Seattle Mariners and Tampa Bay Rays, respectively. Twenty-one players earned ECAC Academic Honors for the season, with the program receiving the NCAA Academic Progress Rate Public Recognition Award for the 13th year.
In 2017, the Crimson posted a 19-23 overall record, including an appearance in The Beanpot championship game. Harvard tallied four All-Ivy selections at the end of the season.
Decker led the 2016 Harvard squad to a 17-24 overall record, including a 9-11 mark in Ivy League play, with an impressive win over Wake Forest. Under his leadership, Nick Gruener, John Fallon, Matt Rothenberg, and Josh Ellis earned All-Ivy League recognition, as the program continued its upwards trend.
Harvard continued its improvement under Decker in 2015, tallying an 18-24 record in the program's most successful season since 2007. Harvard finished second in the Ivy League Red Rolfe division and tallied seven wins in conference play. Ethan Ferreira was named to the All-Ivy first team, and Mike Martin and Jake McGuiggan were selected to the second team.
Decker's Crimson also saw improvement in 2014, earning an 11-28 record, including a Baseball Beanpot Championship, Harvard's first since 2005. Three Crimson, Mike Martin, Kyle Larrow and Carlton Bailey, earned All-Ivy League honors under his guidance.
After taking over in September of 2012, Decker led the Crimson to a 10-31 record in 2013, including a third-place finish in the Ivy League's Red Rolfe Division. The Crimson had three All-Ivy choices in Tanner Anderson, Mike Martin and Brandon Kregel.
Decker, the 2008 ABCA National Coach of the Year, spent 22 seasons as head coach of the Trinity College (Conn.) baseball team before coming to Harvard. Trinity’s all-time winningest coach, he owned a 529-231 (.696) record while winning five conference championships and advancing to nine NCAA Tournament appearances and winning one national title.
In 2008, Decker led Trinity to a 45-1 mark en route to the school's first-ever NCAA Division III National championship. After finishing the regular season undefeated, the Bantams ran their record streak to 44 games, which is the longest winning streak in Division III history. The .978 winning percentage set a new NCAA record in any division in any sport.
On top of being selected as the 2008 ABCA National Coach of the Year, Decker was also selected as the New England Coach of the Year in 1999, 2004, 2008 and 2009 as well as the New England Small College Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2000, 2003, 2008 and 2009.
In 2012, Decker led the Bantams to a 34-11 record and a fifth NESCAC Championship title. In 2009, the Bantams won the NESCAC Championship, and the New England Regional Championship to earn a second consecutive bid to the Division III College World Series. In 2007, Decker's team advanced to NCAA Tournament play for the third time in five years and won four games in the regional.
In 2005, Decker guided Trinity to a 35-9 record and was named the New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association (NEIBA) Coach of the Year. Trinity also won its second NCAA Division III Regional Championship title in three years and made its second trip to the NCAA Division III World Series.
Decker began his collegiate head coaching career with one season at Macalester College in 1990. He got his college coaching start in 1989 as an assistant coach at Wesleyan (Conn.) Prior to that, Decker served single years in assistant roles at Deerfield Academy (Mass.) and Phillips Exeter Academy (N.H.) In all four of those stops, Decker also served as a member of the schools' football programs. He also served as a graduate assistant coach in football at his alma mater, Ithaca College (N.Y.)
Decker has been an active member of the New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association as a regional coordinator. In 1997, Decker was a member of the USA Baseball National Trials coaching staff and has made summer trips as part of Major League Baseball International. Eight of his Trinity players continued their baseball careers at the professional level, and Jonah Bayliss became the first NESCAC player in 10 years to appear in a major league game in 2006. Decker-coached athletes compete annually in the NCAA-sponsored collegiate leagues each summer.
A 1985 graduate of Ithaca College, Decker received a bachelor's degree in physical education with a minor in business. He also holds a master's degree in physical education with a concentration in coaching, which he received from his alma mater in 1992. Decker’s baseball career was cut short due to injury in college, but the two-sport star was a team captain and an All-America defensive back for the football team.
Decker and his wife, Nancy, have three children, Kyle, Sarah, and Kacey.
Bill Decker Yearly Record
Year W L Pct. Postseason
at Wesleyan (23-8, .742) - Assistant Coach
1989 23 8 .742 ECAC quarterfinals
at Macalester (8-26, .235) - Head Coach
1990 8 26 .235 --
at Trinity (529-231, .696) - Head Coach
1991 14 9 .609 --
1992 19 9 .655 ECAC semifinals
1993 12 8 .600 --
1994 18 13 .581 ECAC quarterfinals
1995 21 12 .636 Declined ECAC invitational
1996 19 15 .559 ECAC finals
1997 17 13 .567 ECAC semifinals
1998 23 11 .676 NCAA Regional Tournament
1999 25 11 .694 NCAA Regional Tournament
2000 22 9 .710 NCAA Regional Tournament
2001 25 10 .714 NESCAC Tournament
2002 26 10 .722 NESCAC Tournament
2003 27 12 .692 NCAA World Series
2004 27 9 .750 NESCAC Tournament
2005 35 9 .795 NCAA World Series
2006 17 18 .486 --
2007 30 8 .789 NCAA Regional Tournament
2008 45 1 .978 NCAA National Champions
2009 33 7 .825 NCAA Regional Tournament
2010 19 11 .633 --
2011 21 15 .583 --
2012 34 11 .755 NCAA Regional Tournament
at Harvard (191-271, .413) - Head Coach
2013 10 31 .244 --
2014 11 28 .282 --
2015 18 24 .429 --
2016 17 24 .450 --
2017 19 23 .452 --
2018 22 20 .524 --
2019 27 16 .628 NCAA Regional Tournament
2020 1 5 .167 --
2021 -- -- -- Team did not compete due to COVID-19
2022 19 22 .463 --
2023 20 24 .455 Ivy League Tournament
2024 13 26 .333 --
2025 14 28 .333 Ivy League Tournament
Total 728 528 .580 (Head Coaching)
