Bay Area native and former NCAA Division II Player of the Year Harmen Sidhu joined the Cal Baseball coaching staff as a volunteer assistant in September 2019 before later transitioning into his current role of Director of Player Development & Analytics.
His first season (2020) with the Golden Bears was brought to an abrupt halt after 16 games due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Sidhu most recently spent one season as an assistant coach on staff at Holy Names University in 2019, where he guided the Hawks' pitching staff to vast improvements from the previous season. Hawks pitchers saw their collective earned run average drop from 7.45 to 5.59, WHIP from 2.04 to 1.74 and walks issued from 258 to 137 during conference play. Sidhu additionally mentored a pair of all-region and all-conference pitchers in Garrett O'Callaghan and Joshua Nelson, the former of which became the program's first All-PacWest Conference First Team and All-West Region Second Team selection.
"I am beyond thankful for the opportunity that Coach Neu has given me," Sidhu said at the time of his hire. "It is humbling to have the chance to work with one of the best coaches and programs in the country. I also want to thank the rest of the staff for welcoming me with open arms. I am excited to work with our student-athletes and help mentor them into being the best people they can be, while developing lifelong relationships."
Sidhu's collegiate playing career started at Diablo Valley College, where he played two years under Neu, who was the program's head coach at the time. Sidhu earned All-BIG 8 First Team honors and was part of a team that finished third in California. Sidhu later transferred to Oregon State and then Sonoma State, where he developed into one of NCAA Division II's premier players.
As a senior at Sonoma State, Sidhu garnered the 2013 Tino Martinez Award, which is annually presented to the most outstanding player in NCAA Division II baseball. The right-handed pitcher sported a 10-1 record, 93 strikeouts and a nation-leading 0.98 ERA over 82.2 innings of work during his final season. He was also named the 2012-13 California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year and broke CCAA records for single-season ERA and career ERA (1.56).
Sidhu was selected by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 20th round of the 2013 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft following his senior season.
"Harmen has been tremendously successful as both a player and coach," Neu said in 2019. "His experience at the college and professional levels, along with being well-versed in pitching technology, will be a great resource for our student-athletes. We're extremely excited to have him with our program moving forward."
Sidhu grew up in the East Bay and attended College Park High School in Pleasant Hill, where he led the Falcons to their first North Coast Section Championship and was an All-Diablo Foothill Athletic League and All-Bay Area First Team player. He graduated from Sonoma State Magna Cum Laude in 2013 and completed his master's degree in July, graduating Magna Cum Laude from the University of the Southwest in New Mexico with a M.S. in Exercise Science.
