Last updated: 7/21/2025
Standout former Arizona Wildcat Chip Hale, an NCAA National Champion player and a World Series Champion coach, enters his fifth season in charge of his alma mater's program in 2026. He was named the next Head Coach of Arizona Baseball on July 5, 2021 and earned a four-year contract extension through the 2030 season on June 23, 2025 following the Wildcats trip to the Men's College World Series.
With the Wildcats
Hale, the 2024 Pac-12 Coach of the Year, has found tremendous success in his first four seasons at the helm in Tucson. As a proud alumni he has led the program to four consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances, the 2025 Men's College World Series, the 2025 Big 12 Championship title, the 2024 Pac-12 regular season and tournament championships, and over 150 wins. After winning Pac-12 Coach of the Year in his third season he became the first person in Pac-12 baseball history to win both Pac-12 Player of the Year (1987) and Pac-12 Coach of the Year (2024). Along the way Hale has produced three first round MLB Draft selections (20 total picks), six All-Americans, 15 Big 12 and Pac-12 All-Conference honorees, the first conference Scholar Athlete of the Year in program history, and much more. Under Hale's direction, Arizona is one of just 11 programs in the nation with four NCAA Tournament appearances and a trip to the College World Series since 2022. He is only the second head coach in program history to earn NCAA Tournament bids in each of his first four seasons.
2025 Season
The Wildcats reached new heights under Hale's direction in 2025, reaching the College World Series for the 19th time in program history and picking up a second consecutive conference tournament championship, among numerous other accomplishments. Arizona finished the season ranked No. 7 by D1Baseball, marking the program's first Top 10 finish since the 2021 campaign.
Arizona returned nearly its entire lineup but had to replace their full weekend rotation heading into the season while looking to build on their accomplishments from the year before. Despite a difficult opening weekend in which the Wildcats went 0-3, the program managed to gain momentum throughout the 2025 season culminating with 10 wins over their final 13 games and their deepest postseason run under coach Hale.
The Wildcats offense was led by infielder Mason White, catcher Adonys Guzman, and outfielder Aaron Walton, all of whom posted batting averages of .320 or better. White cemented his legacy as one of the most prolific power hitters in program history with 20 more dingers, giving him 49 on his career to move into sole possession of second place on the Arizona leaderboard. Guzman continued his development under Hale and assistant coach Toby DeMello with a career-best season at the plate in 2025, posting the best marks of his collegiate career across the board.
For the fourth time in four years under Hale's leadership, the Wildcats paced the conference in triples. Arizona's 36 three-baggers were the most in the Big 12 and in the entire nation by a margin of seven, and the most by the Wildcats since the 2005 team swatted 45.
Arizona excelled on defense once again under Hale's guidance, with the team posting a .978 fielding percentage and turning 57 double plays. The Wildcats 57 twin killings led the Big 12 Conference and were tied for second nationally.
The Wildcats postseason run in 2025 was nothing short of remarkable. With two wins on the final weekend of the regular season the Wildcats secured a first round bye in the Big 12 Championship and took advantage of the extra day of rest by sweeping their way through the event for their second consecutive conference tournament title. Arizona opened the NCAA Tournament the next week at the Eugene Regional and posted a perfect 3-0 record to storm through to the Super Regional round, which meant a road trip across the country to Chapel Hill. The Wildcats were soundly defeated in the opening game by No. 5 national seed North Carolina but rallied for back-to-back wins to punch their ticket to the College World Series.
Following the Wildcats season nine players heard their names called in the 2025 MLB Draft, led by outfielder Brendan Summerhill who was selected in the first round (42nd overall) by the Tampa Bay Rays. Arizona's nine MLB Draft picks were the program's most since 2008, tied for third most in the nation, and tied for fifth most in program history.
2024 Season
Hale's 2024 Wildcats impressed on a national level and blew away all preseason expectations, going from picked to finish ninth in the Pac-12 Preseason Coaches Poll to winning the conference regular season and tournament championships, picking up the program's 43rd NCAA Tournament appearance, and earning a regional host bid. Arizona finished the season ranked No. 21 by Baseball America, their first time ending the season ranked since 2021. The Wildcats tremendous success earned Hale the honor of being selected as the Pac-12 Coach of the Year.
Significantly improved pitching and timely hitting were the keys to success for the 2024 Wildcats, with the former spearheaded by Hale's hiring of assistant coach Kevin Vance to lead Arizona's pitching staff and the latter executed by his promotion and retention of assistant coach Toby DeMello. Under their guidance, six Wildcats picked up Pac-12 All-Conference nods, tied for the most in program history.
The Wildcats as a team earned the moniker of "Cardiac Cats" due to their resilience and ability to mount heroic comebacks. Eight times Arizona walked off their opponents in 2024, including a pair of late-inning comebacks over Oregon State and USC that sealed their Pac-12 regular season and Tournament championships, respectively.
Leading the charge on offense were Tucson native shortstop Mason White and outfielder Brendan Summerhill, both players identified, recruited, and developed exclusively by Hale and his staff. White and Summerhill, both Pac-12 All-Conference selections, combined for 150 hits, 28 doubles, eight triples, 27 home runs, and 124 RBI. White's 19 home runs were the eighth most hit by a Wildcat in a single season in program history and tied for second most in the Pac-12 in 2024. Summerhill paced the team and ranked 14th in the conference with a .324 batting average, while his six triples were second most on the circuit. Second baseman Garen Caulfield also enjoyed a career year for the Cats in 2024, earning Pac-12 All-Conference honors after collecting 74 hits and 42 RBI to go along with a .310 batting average.
Arizona's offense excelled with speed in 2024, leading the Pac-12 and ranking third nationally with 26 triples — it marked the third time in three years under the direction of coach Hale that the Wildcats paced the conference in baseball's most exciting play.
Hale's biggest success may have come in the hiring of Vance, however, as the Wildcats pitching staff dropped their ERA over a run and a half from 5.97 in 2023 to 4.46 in 2024. Vance's leadership helped steer all three members of the Arizona starting rotation — Jackson Kent, Clark Candiotti, and Cam Walty — to Pac-12 All-Conference selections. It is believed to be the first time in program history that three starting pitchers earned All-Conference recognition. Vance's 2024 Wildcats led the entire nation in strikeout-to-walk ratio, BB/9 rate, and fewest walks.
Under Hale and Vance's direction, the Wildcats saw four pitchers selected in the 2024 MLB Draft, the most for the program since 2013. Starting pitchers Jackson Kent (4th round, Nationals), Clark Candiotti (4th round, Padres), and Cam Walty (20th round, Guardians) were joined by elite bullpen arm Anthony Susac (8th round, Rangers) in hearing their names called during the 2024 Draft.
2023 Season
The 2023 Wildcats made a furious charge down the final stretch of the season, advancing all the way to the Pac-12 Tournament Championship Game and earning a spot in the NCAA Fayetteville Regional, the 42nd NCAA Tournament appearance in program history.
Arizona's many outstanding offensive performances in 2023 were highlighted by the slugging efforts of first baseman Kiko Romero and outfielder Chase Davis, the former of whom broke the Wildcats single-season RBI record and the latter of which finished his time in Tucson third all-time on the program's career home run leaderboard. Romero and Davis co-led the Pac-12 with 21 home runs apiece, tied for the third greatest efforts in school history. Both players would go on to earn selection in the 2023 MLB Draft, with Davis going 21st overall in the first round to the St. Louis Cardinals and Romero earning a seventh round pick by the New York Yankees.
Overall, the Arizona offense finished the year first in the Pac-12 in batting average, slugging percentage, doubles, triples, and extra-base hits. It didn't end at the conference level, the Wildcats lineup also ranked among the most dangerous in the entire nation, finishing the year ranked among the Top 20 teams in the country in batting average, doubles, doubles per game, hits, runs, scoring, slugging percentage, triples, and triples per game.
Arizona's defense improved again under coach Hale, leaping from a .972 fielding percentage in year one to a .977 mark in year two that ranked second in the Pac-12. Wildcat shortstop Nik McClaughry led the way to earn Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year honors and a finalist distinction for a Rawlings Gold Glove as a reward.
In addition to the selections of Davis and Romero, three more Wildcats heard their names called in the 2023 MLB Draft. Right-handed pitcher TJ Nichols was picked up in the sixth round by the Tampa Bay Rays, while McClaughry and right-handed pitcher Chris Barraza were selected in the 10th round by the San Diego Padres and Los Angeles Angels, respectively.
Davis and Romero both picked up All-America selections following the year, while first-year infielder and Tucson native Mason White earned Freshman All-America honors.
2022 Season
In 2022, Hale's first season leading the charge at Arizona, the program continued their historical run of success, highlighted by the program's 41st trip to the NCAA Tournament and a pair of elimination game victories at the NCAA Coral Gables Regional. Hale was one of one of just four first-year head coaches in the country to earn a spot in the 2022 NCAA Tournament.
On February 18, 2022 the Wildcats took down Kansas State, 8-6, to earn coach Hale his first victory as head coach. Arizona finished the year with a record of 39-25 and a winning conference record of 17-15.
Following the season two Wildcats under Hale's guidance heard their names called in the Major League Baseball Draft. All-American catcher Daniel Susac was selected 19th overall by the Oakland Athletics, making him the 12th first round pick in program history. All-Pac-12 outfielder Tanner O'Tremba was also picked up by the San Francisco Giants in the 15th round.
Arizona's success on the field in 2022 was driven by a balanced approach that focused on excelling at the plate, on the mound, and in the field.
Offensively, the Wildcats finished the year ranked among the top four teams in the Pac-12 in runs, hits, triples, home runs, RBI, walks, total bases, and extra-base hits. Led by the likes of Susac, O'Tremba, Chase Davis, Garen Caulfield, and more, Arizona averaged over 6.5 runs per game. Under Hale's direction Susac collected 100 hits, tied for sixth nationally and making him just the 10th player in program history to post a 100-hit season. The 2022 Wildcats paced the conference with 26 triples, marking the sixth time since moving to Hi Corbett in 2012 that Arizona led the Pac-12 in baseball's most exciting play.
The Wildcats also showed immense improvement on defense over the course of the season, finishing the campaign with a .972 fielding percentage that was five points higher than the previous year's mark and the Wildcats best defensive performance since 2018. The '22 Cats also excelled at twin killings, wrapping up the year ranked fourth in the nation with 57 double plays turned.
On the mound, Arizona placed two pitchers on the Pac-12's All-Conference squad. Southpaw Garrett Irvin earned the first all-conference honors of his career, while right-hander Quinn Flanagan became the first Wildcat relief pitcher to earn a First Team Pac-12 All-Conference selection since 2016.
Before Arizona
Hale, the Wildcats all-time leader in games played, hits, and total bases during his time in Tucson from 1984-87, returned to Arizona with nearly two decades of professional coaching experience. He is the sixth head coach in Arizona Baseball's modern history, and the 17th overall.
"I am thrilled and excited to have Chip lead our iconic baseball program," Heeke said at the time of his hiring. "Chip has long been a member of the Wildcat Family as a former student-athlete and has always remained close to our University and to our Tucson community. He has played and coached at the highest levels of the game and brings an unbridled passion and enthusiasm to his work. I have no doubt that Chip embraces the Wildcat Way mission we share at Arizona Athletics, and that he will mentor and develop future generations of Wildcat champions on the diamond, in the classroom, and in the community."
Hale returned to Tucson from Detroit, where he served as the third base coach for the Tigers in 2021. Across time with Detroit, the Washington Nationals (2018-20), Oakland Athletics (2012-14, 2017), Arizona Diamondbacks (2007-09, 2015-16), and New York Mets (2010-11), Hale has compiled 15 years of coaching experience at the highest level baseball has to offer.
"I am very honored and excited to be the new head baseball coach at the University of Arizona," Hale said in July 2021. "We will work tirelessly to build on the success that has been established here and continue to coach and develop our Wildcats to be champions on the field and in the classroom. With the help and support of the University of Arizona and the Wildcat Family, we plan on making many trips to Omaha!"
During his decade and a half in Major League Baseball, Hale's most notable stop was as the manager for the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2015-16. While leading the D-backs he compiled nearly 150 wins and steered the performances of All-Stars Paul Goldschmidt and A.J. Pollock. In his first season in Phoenix in 2015, the D-backs finished among the top three teams in the National League in batting average, runs, hits, doubles, triples, home runs, stolen bases, on-base percentage, and slugging percentage.
Prior to his time in Detroit, Hale spent three years serving as the Washington Nationals bench coach from 2018-20. His time in the nation's capital was highlighted by a 2019 World Series Championship, the franchise's first title.
Over the course of his Major League coaching career, Hale has helped guide the development of Bryce Harper, Juan Soto, Trea Turner, Anthony Rendon, Matt Chapman, Paul Goldschmidt, Zack Greinke, Josh Donaldson, Dan Haren, Justin Upton, and many more.
Hale got his coaching start in professional baseball with the Triple-A Tucson Sidewinders, where he served as the club's skipper from 2004-06. His stint in the minors culminated with the wildly successful 2006 campaign in which the Sidewinders went 91-53 and won the Pacific Coast League, earning Hale PCL Manager of the Year honors.
In his four-year career for the Wildcats, the legendary infielder picked up a 1986 NCAA National Championship, 1987 Pac-10 South Player of the Year honors, First Team All-Pac-10 South recognition, and the 1987 Tom Hansen Medal. To this day he still holds Arizona career records with 255 games played, 978 at-bats, 337 hits, 162 walks, and 507 total bases. Hale was inducted into the Arizona Sports Hall of Fame in 1994.
Following his standout collegiate career, Hale was selected by the Minnesota Twins in the 17th round of the 1987 MLB Draft. He went on to enjoy a seven-year Major League career with the Twins and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Hale is joined in Tucson by his wife, Judi; together they have three children, Jack, Edward, and Sabrina, and one granddaughter, Palmer.
Chip Hale Coaching History
- 2022-current: Arizona, Head Coach
- 2021: MLB Detroit Tigers, Third Base Coach
- 2018-20: MLB Washington Nationals, Bench Coach
- 2017: MLB Oakland Athletics: Bench Coach
- 2015-16: MLB Arizona Diamondbacks, Manager
- 2012-14: MLB Oakland Athletics, Bench Coach
- 2010-11: MLB New York Mets, Third Base Coach
- 2007-09: MLB Arizona Diamondbacks, Third Base Coach
- 2004-06: Triple-A Tucson Sidewinders, Manager
Chip Hale Playing History
- 1984-87: NCAA Arizona Wildcats
- Selected by the Minnesota Twins in the 17th round of the 1987 MLB Draft
- 1989-96: MLB Minnesota Twins
- 1997: MLB Los Angeles Dodgers
Chip Hale Career Highlights
- 1986 NCAA National Champion with Arizona
- 2006 Pacific Coast League Coach of the Year
- 2019 World Series Champion with Washington Nationals
- 2024 Pac-12 Coach of the Year
- Led Arizona to 2024 Pac-12 Regular Season & Tournament Championships
- Guided Wildcats to 2025 Big 12 Championship title in first year in the conference
- First person in Pac-12 baseball history to be named Pac-12 Player of the Year (1987) and Pac-12 Coach of the Year (2024)
- 21st person to participate in the Men's College World Series as a player (1985 & 1986) and as a coach (2025)
- Second coach in program history to make NCAA Tournament in each of first four seasons
- One of just four first-year head coaches to reach 2022 NCAA Tournament
- NCAA Tournament appearances in first four years at Arizona
Chip Hale Year-by-Year Head Coaching Record
| Year |
School |
Record |
Conference Record |
NCAA Postseason |
| 2022 |
Arizona (Pac-12) |
39-25 (.609) |
16-14 (.533) |
Coral Gables Regional |
| 2023 |
Arizona (Pac-12) |
33-26 (.559) |
12-18 (.400) |
Fayetteville Regional |
| 2024 |
Arizona (Pac-12) |
36-23 (.610) |
20-10 (.667) |
Tucson Regional |
| 2025 |
Arizona (Big 12) |
44-21 (.677) |
18-12 (.600) |
Men's College World Series |
|
TOTAL (4 seasons) |
152-95 (.615) |
66-54 (.550) |
|
What They're Saying About Chip Hale
Paul Goldschmidt — Seven-time MLB All-Star, 2022 AL MVP
"I'm very happy for Chip and the University of Arizona! Chip is a great coach and leader and I know he will do his best to continue and grow the great legacy at Arizona. I learned a lot from him while I was with the Diamondbacks and I know his decades of experience in baseball will be great for all the student-athletes who get to play for him."
AJ Hinch — Manager, Detriot Tigers
"He will work with the kids and develop a great identity for that University. He has great passion for that place; he talked about (Arizona) as much as he talked about his Major League career as a coach and a player. They're getting a baseball guy with a ton of passion for the community."
Bob Melvin — Manager, Oakland Athletics
Chip is the perfect fit for Arizona Baseball. He's local, an alumni, and has always been passionate about the school. I've always said that Chip can teach a Little Leaguer and a Big Leaguer equally as well. His experience in baseball is second to none and his competitiveness and will to win is off the charts. What a great hire."
Kevin Long — 1986 NCAA National Champion & Washington Nationals Hitting Coach
"Chip Hale exemplifies what an Arizona Wildcat is all about. The commitment to excellence on and off the field will be a top priority. Chip has always been a grinder and understands there are no shortcuts to success. I couldn't be more excited for Chip and the Arizona Baseball program. Bear Down!"
Dallas Braden — Five-year Major Leaguer
"Having worked with Chip & having him as a bench coach I always felt like he would be PERFECT for the college game. Prepared. Motivated. Grinder. Disciplined. Regimented. He will have expectations & should those young athletes pay attention they will exceed them on & off the field."
Alan Trammell — Special Assistant to the General Manager, Detroit Tigers
"You couldn't get a better hire! All the attributes you want in a head coach. Hard working, dedicated, knowledgeable, and love the game. The University of Arizona has hired the right man!"
Billy Owens — Oakland Athletics Assistant General Manager and Arizona Alum
"Chip Hale is the perfect hire for the Arizona Wildcats. I met Chip my freshman year at Arizona and knew he would manage in the Majors and become a successful collegiate coach immediately. He brings an unmatched work ethic, infectious enthusiasm, winning makeup, and incredible integrity to Hi Corbett Field. He'll challenge for the best recruits in the country, coach them with passion, prepare them for the next level, and graduate a high percentage of his student-athletes. Huge day for present, future, and alumni Wildcats. Looking forward to sustained excellence and championship-caliber baseball in the Old Pueblo."
AJ Pollock — 2020 World Series Champion, 12-year MLB Veteran
"I loved playing for Chip Hale during my time with the Diamondbacks. He's a great baseball guy and more importantly, a great person. I'm excited for the Arizona Wildcats and the future of their baseball program."
