COLUMBIA, SC – Paul Mainieri has been ousted midway through his second season as South Carolina’s baseball coach after he could not reach the level of success he enjoyed at LSU.
Mainieri, 68, who won the College World Series with LSU in 2009, had been away from the game for three years before South Carolina lured him out of retirement. The Gamecocks went 28-29 last year in Mainieri’s first season. They are 12-11 so far this season.
South Carolina lost 22-6 to Arkansas on Friday, its sixth consecutive loss. The loss dropped the Gamecocks to 0-4 in Southeastern Conference play.
“[Athletic director] Jeremiah Donati and I have agreed that the baseball program will be better served with new leadership,” Mainieri said in a statement released by the university on Saturday. “I take full responsibility for the win/loss record of the baseball program over 80 games as head coach.
“When [former athletic director] Ray Tanner invited me to come back to coaching three years after my retirement, my goal was to work with young guys again and restore the South Carolina program to greatness with a return to Omaha. My staff and I have worked diligently in an effort to accomplish that goal. Unfortunately, that goal wasn’t accomplished as quickly as I wanted and it took longer than I expected and that’s time I don’t have at my age.”
Donati said he and Mainieri had a conversation Saturday and agreed the move would be in the best interests of the program. Mainieri said: “I didn’t get work at the level I expected, or the university deserved.”
Mainieri has a 1,545–817–8 record in his 39-year head coaching career. He went 179-121-2 at St. Thomas from 1983-88, 152-158 at Air Force from 1989 to ’94, 533-213-3 at Notre Dame from 1995 to 2006 and 641-285-3 at LSU from 2007 to ’21, posting a 40-40 record in his 1½ seasons. First. South Carolina.
He ranks sixth in NCAA history in career wins. He participated in the College World Series with Notre Dame in 2002 and LSU in 2008, 2009, 2013, 2015, and 2017. His 2009 LSU team won it all and his 2017 team was the CWS runner-up.
“I appreciate all that Paul has done for our student-athletes and our program, not only at South Carolina, but throughout his career,” Donati said in a statement. “He is a Hall of Fame coach and a world-class individual, and we wish him and his family all the best.”
