UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Penn State baseball head coach Mike Gambino has announced the addition of Ryan Wheeler to his coaching staff. The Penn State alum returns to the program as director of player development.
Wheeler spent the last nine seasons on the Saint Joseph's staff, including the last five years as the Hawks' associate head coach. He also served as Saint Joseph's recruiting coordinator.
During his time with Saint Joseph's, the Hawks have appeared in four Atlantic 10 tournaments, won 20 or more games in each full season and won the program's first-ever Atlantic-10 regular season title in 2023.
Wheeler was recognized by his peers as the top recruiting coordinator in the Atlantic 10, according to a survey by D1Baseball.com.
Four Saint Joseph's players have been selected in the MLB Draft during Wheeler's tenure: catcher Deon Stafford (5th round, Pittsburgh Pirates, 2017), pitcher Tim Brennan (7th round, Texas Rangers, 2018), catcher Andrew Cossetti (11th round, Minnesota Twins, 2022) and outfielder Brett Callahan (13th round, Detroit Tigers, 2023).
Cossetti was named NCBWA District 1 Player of the Year in 2022, while Stafford earned both Atlantic 10 and ECAC Player of the Year honors in 2016. Stafford and Cossetti both set the program's single-season home run record. Cossetti owns Saint Joseph's all-time home run mark.
With Wheeler's guidance, Saint Joseph's reached three consecutive Atlantic 10 championships in 2021, 2022 and 2023.
In 2023, Saint Joseph's went 28-24-1, including 17-7 in Atlantic 10 play. The Hawks' wins included Duke, Maine, VCU (2) and George Mason (2). Nine Hawks were selected All-Atlantic 10. Callahan and Ryan Cesarini were named ABCA/Rawlings East All-Region.
The Hawks finished 24th in the nation and led the Atlantic 10 with a .305 batting average. They also ranked 30th in the nation in runs per game (8.1; 1st), 31st in triples per game (0.32; 1st A-10), 42nd in total triples (17; 1st), 48th in slugging percentage (.496; 2nd) and 50th in on-base percentage (.399; 4th). Callahan ranked 11th in the country, and led the A-10, with six triples. Cesarini paced the Atlantic 10 with a .392 average.
Prior to his time at Saint Joseph's, Wheeler spent three seasons as head coach at Temple. Wheeler was the 2014 Co-Philadelphia Big 5 Baseball Coach of the Year after leading the Owls to an appearance in its first-ever American Athletic Conference Championship and regular season wins over nationally-ranked Houston and Louisville.
Before Temple, Wheeler spent five years as an assistant coach at the University of Richmond, helping the Spiders to the Atlantic 10 Championship game in 2011.
Wheeler coached the 2006 season as an assistant at Penn.
Wheeler began his coaching career with a nine-year stint at William & Mary. He was on the Tribe's staff in 2001 when it won its first Colonial Athletic Association title and earned a bid to the NCAA Regionals. William & Mary ranked 10th in the nation in batting average and 14th in runs per game in 2004.
Before coaching at Saint Joseph's, Wheeler coached over a dozen MLB Draft selections, including MLB infielder Brendan Harris, pitcher Chris Ray and pitcher Bill Bray.
Wheeler played at Penn State from 1991-94. He served as a team captain on the 1994 team. He ranks second in program history with 109 career walks and also sits second all-time with 184 consecutive starts. The shortstop was selected in the 31st round of the 1994 MLB Draft by the California Angels.
Photo Credit: Brian Westerholt/Four Seam Images/SJU Athletics