Joe Walsh just finished his 17th season as the Joseph J.O'Donnell Head Coach for Harvard Baseball in 2011-12. Walsh has ledHarvard to five Ivy League titles and as many appearances in theNCAA Tournament - reaching the Regional Semifinals twice. Under hisdirection, the team has also earned regular season wins overnational powers Miami, Notre Dame and Oklahoma State.
Walsh's club has won the Red Rolfe Division eight times. In2005-06, Harvard recorded a Walsh-best 14-win campaign in theAncient Eight, cruising to the title in a year that saw his teamboast seven players recognized on the all-conference teamsincluding the Pitcher of the Year and the Rookie of the Year. Itmarked the third time in four seasons that Harvard had the league'stop rookie.
In 2007, Walsh became Harvard's 500-win man when his Crimsondefeated Brown, 7-3, on April 21, 2007.
Since taking charge of the program in 1996, Walsh has ledHarvard to a 347-388-2 overall record and an impressive 204-136mark (.600) in Ivy League play. In addition to winning five Ivytitles, his squads have captured the Red Rolfe DivisionChampionship on eight occasions. He owns an overall record of569-564-3 (.502).
In 2004-05, Harvard jumped out to a 6-0 Ivy League record to startthe season and won going away. The Crimson went on to a 29-17record and play in the NCAA Tournament at Cal. State-Fullerton.
In 1999, Harvard won its third straight Ivy championship,finishing with a 16-4 League mark, and went on to compete in theLos Angeles Regional of the NCAA Tournament at USC. That squadcompleted the year with a 28-20 record.
One year earlier, Walsh directed Harvard to a school record forwins during a 36-12 campaign that included the Ivy championship anda final national ranking of 24th--the highest for the Crimsonprogram since 1983. After guiding the squad to a 16-4 Leaguerecord, Walsh led Harvard to wins over Tulane and Nicholls State inthe 1998 NCAA South II Regional at LSU.
That success followed the breakthrough 1997 campaign when he tookHarvard to a 34-16 overall record and a final ranking of 27th inthe country. After claiming its first Ivy title since 1985 with aLeague-best 18-2 Ivy mark, the Crimson made an impressive showingin the NCAA Midwest Regional at Oklahoma State. Walsh'ssixth-seeded club handed top-seeded (and fourth-ranked) UCLA anopening-round loss and then eliminated Stetson in the secondround.
Walsh was named the 1997 and 1998 Northeast Region Division ICoach of the Year by the American Baseball Coaches Association.
When he came aboard in 1996, Walsh became the Crimson's firstfull-time, and first endowed, baseball coach. Joseph J. O'Donnell'67, MBA '71, a former Harvard baseball and football letterwinnerwho is a long-time supporter of the College, established a $2.5million endowment fund that supports the head baseball coach inmuch the same way that an endowed chair supports a professor.
Prior to his appointment, Walsh accumulated a 222-176-1 record in15 years at Suffolk University, his alma mater in downtown Boston.He was named the 1995 New England Division III Coach of the Yearafter leading the Rams to a 26-11 record and the ECAC finals. InMay 2009, Walsh was inducted in Suffolk's Athletic Hall ofFame.
His involvement in the renowned Cape Cod League dates back to1988, when he was the head coach of the Brewster Whitecaps. From1991 to 1998, he served as the pitching coach for the WarehamGatemen. In addition to coaching on the Cape, Walsh also runsbaseball camps and clinics throughout New England as the Play ToWin Baseball Camp.
Walsh is a 1971 graduate of Catholic Memorial High School and a1976 graduate of Suffolk with a degree in philosophy. He lives inChester, N.H. with his wife Sandra, and four daughters: Tory (23),Holly (21), Katie (18) and Kasey (16).
