Mike Neu (new) is in his ninth season as the head coach at Cal and his 13th campaign on the program's coaching staff in 2026.
A young and inexperienced 2025 Cal team that returned just over 14% of its innings pitched on the mound and four regular starting position players from a successful 2024 squad came on strong at the end of the campaign by reaching the quarterfinals at the ACC Championship. The No. 16 seeded Golden Bears knocked off No. 9 Miami and No. 8 Wake Forest in their first two contests with both teams reaching the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship after being knocked off by the Bears. During the 2025 season, Cal had wins over four ACC teams that reached the NCAA Super Regionals (Duke, Florida State, Louisville, Miami) including a Louisville squad that played in the College World Series.
Cal finished the 2025 season that ended with Neu’s 500th game as a collegiate head coach by winning six of its final 10 contests. Before taking its first two games at the ACC Championship, Cal had twice walked off Boston College at Stu Gordon Stadium to win two-of-three from the Eagles in the final regular-season series of the campaign May 15-17 and was a winner at home over No. 2 Florida State with a 5-0 shutout of the Seminoles on May 10. The 2025 campaign also featured a 7-2 record on a season-long nine-game road trip March 18 - April 1 that featured a season-long five-game win streak (March 18-24) and was highlighted by a historic series sweep of then No. 14 Stanford (March 21-23) that was Cal’s first three-game road sweep of the Cardinal in recorded history and the Bears’ first of Stanford regardless of location since Cal took all three in Berkeley in 1992.
In chronological order, other big moments and highlights for a 2025 squad that finished 24-31 overall and 9-21 in its first season in the Atlantic Coast Conference included a near no-hitter in a Feb. 22 win over Houston, walking off Cal State Bakersfield in 11 innings on Feb. 26, hitting a school-record-tying eight home runs in a 19-3 win at Santa Clara on March 2, knocking off defending ACC champion Duke on the road in its’ first-ever ACC game on March 7, a win over No. 23 Virginia in the Bears’ first-ever ACC home game on March 14, a come-from-behind 14-10 victory March 29 in the middle game of a three-game set at No. 18 Louisville, and a two-run rally in the top of the ninth inning April 1 to win at Sacramento State.
Cal’s offense was a consistent threat in 2025 and finished among the top 10 of the ACC and top 125 nationally in triples (16, 2/T38), doubles (107, T8/T103), slugging percentage (.470, 9/84), home runs (72, T10/T82) and hits (536, 10/T125). Third-team All-ACC selection Jacob French (.390, 4 HR, 36 RBI, 2 SB) and second-team All-ACC pick 2B Jarren Advincula (.342, 6, 33, 13) were among ACC and national leaders. French's .390 batting average ranked second in the league and 25th nationally, while his five triples were tied for second in the league and tied for 19th nationally. He was also the ACC's sixth-toughest player to strike out and tied for No. 89 nationally with 9.8 at bats per strikeout. Advincula was nnth in the ACC and tied for 82nd nationally with 81 hits and also had a team-high 17 doubles, while C Alex Birge led the Bears with 12 home runs, and 1B Dominic Smaldino drove in a team-high 46 runs and was second to Birge with 11 long balls. French and SS PJ Moutzouridis were named to the all-tournament squad at the ACC Championship.
A young and inexperienced staff that returned just 14% of its' innings pitched from a stellar 2024 group was still able to produce several highlights with the biggest coming in the second to last series of the ACC schedule when Oliver de la Torre and Gavin Eddy combined on a six-hit shutout in a 5-0 victory over then No. 2 Florida State on May 10. Other highlights included a shut out against Nevada on Feb. 17 to wrap up a series victory against the Wolf Pack, taking a no-hitter into the ninth inning of a 5-1 victory over Houston five days later, a single-game school-record-tying 19-strikeout performance March 24 at San Francisco when Ethan Foley fanned a career-high and individual team season-best 13 Dons. Three different pitchers - Eddy (4-4, 5.74 ERA, 58.0 IP, 50 SO), Cole Tremain (4-6, 3.38 ERA, 1 SV, 45.1 IP, 40 SO) and Austin Turkington (4-5, 5.27 ERA, 54.2 IP, 62 SO) - tied for the team lead with four victories. Tremain also led the club with 24 appearances, while Eddy paced the squad in innings pitched. Turkington was the team leader in strikeouts (62) despite missing the final month of the season due to injury and had both of the team's complete games when he went the distance in wins at Duke and Stanford in two of his first three ACC starts. Turkington's two complete games ranked tied for first in the ACC and tied for 16th nationally. De la Torre had several memorable performances in addition to his combined shutout against Florida State including winning efforts against NCAA Super Regional team Miami with 6.0 two-hit shutout innings to earn the win against the Hurricanes in the ACC Championship opener and 5.2 innings of two-hit work (one run) in a March 29 relief outing to win at CWS participant Louisville. De la Torre, Eddy, Foley and Turkington are among 10 pitchers slated to return in 2026 that combined for 303.1 (64%) of the team's innings in 2025.
Cal hosted three teams in 2025 - Florida State, NC State and Virginia, who played in the 2024 College World Series with six of its 10 ACC series in its first season in the league against teams ranked in the top 25 at the time. The Bears squared off with ranked teams in each of their first five series to start their ACC slate (No. 14 Virginia, at No. 14 Stanford, at No. 18 Louisville, No. 6 Clemson, at No. 18 Georgia Tech) and later went up against No. 2 Florida State. Cal also played a NC State that spent time squad in the Top 25 but was not ranked at the time they played the Bears, while meeting a No. 16 Georgia Tech team in an ACC Championship quarterfinal.
Much of the reason the Bears were light on returning collegiate experience in 2025 was the large group of professional baseball players the program produced in 2024 beginning with first-round draft pick C Caleb Lomavita (Washington Nationals). Lomavita was responsible for much of the Bears’ success in 2024 as a third-team Perfect Game All-American, second-team ABCA/Rawlings All-West Region, and first-team All-Pac-12 and All-Pac-12 Defensive Team selection. He started all 55 games and hit .322 (73-227) with 55 runs scored, 13 doubles, one triple, 15 home runs, 52 RBI and 12 stolen bases. OF Rodney Green Jr. (Oakland Athletics, fourth round), RHP Christian Becerra (Minnesota Twins, 12th round) and RHP Andres Galan (Tampa Bay, 17th round) were also selected in the 2024 MLB Draft. while RHP Tyler Stasiowski signed as an undrafted free agent with Minnesota, and LHP Luke Short and RHP Connor Sullivan caught on with the independent Oakland Ballers. Becerra (4-1, 4 SV, 3.68 ERA), Green (.267, 14 HR, 46 RBI, 15 SB) and Stasiowski (5-1, 4 SV, 2.65 ERA) each earned 2024 honorable mention All-Pac-12 honors.
Neu’s 2025 squad did included a pair of returning first-team 2024 All-Pac-12 infielders in Advincula and Moutzouridis, as well as an honorable mention All-Pac-12 outfielder in CF Seth Gwynn. Advincula led the Bears with a .325 batting average in 2024 and then was the Cape Cod League batting champion in the summer of 2024 with a .392 mark. Moutzouridis (.299, 6 HR, 42 RBI), also a second-team Perfect Game Freshman All-American, and Gwynn (.311, 7 HR, 29 RBI) both had strong campaigns at the plate for Cal in 2024 for a squad that was arguably the hottest team in college baseball at the end of the regular season with 20 wins in its final 25 games before finishing 36-19 for a .655 winning percentage that was the program’s best since the 1966 team was 32-14 (.696). The Bears’ late-season run included wins in each of their first two games at the Pac-12 Tournament that put them in the semifinals and nearly earned them a spot in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship.
Neu’s long history with Cal baseball began with four seasons as the program’s pitching coach from 2012-15. After leaving to serve as the head coach at Pacific for two seasons (2016-17), Neu returned to Berkeley as the school’s 11th head coach when he was named to the position on July 5, 2017, after former long-time head coach David Esquer took the head coaching job at his alma mater Stanford.
During his Cal tenure, Neu has established a culture of player development that helped lead to 27 Cal players being drafted over the first MLB Drafts of his head coaching tenure (2018-24) and guided the Bears to five winning campaigns in his first seven full seasons at the helm (2020 season shortened by COVID-19).
In year one as Cal’s skipper in 2018, Neu guided the Bears to a 32-22 overall record and a 16-14 mark in the Pac-12. The season was highlighted by the emergence of 1B Andrew Vaughn as one of the nation’s top players. With Neu on hand in Los Angeles, Vaughn became the first Cal baseball player to ever win the prestigious Golden Spikes Award as the country’s top amateur baseball player after hitting .402 with 23 home runs and 63 RBI. Vaughn was also a consensus first-team All-American selection among a long list of honors. On the mound, the 2018 Bears showed dramatic improvement in Neu’s first season as head coach. Under his tutelage, Cal’s pitching staff lowered its collective ERA by almost a full run (5.17 to 4.20) from the year before. RHP Aaron Shortridge established himself as one of the Pac-12’s top pitchers, compiling a 5-3 record and a 2.77 ERA with three complete games in 12 starts (17 appearances). RHP Tanner Dodson (2-1, 2.48 ERA, 11 SV) moved to the back end of the bullpen and set the Bears' single-season record for saves.
Neu built upon his first season as the Bears' head coach the following campaign in 2019 when Cal capped a 32-20 record with its first trip to an NCAA Regional since 2015. The Bears punched their ticket as an at-large bid and were the No. 2 seed at the Fayetteville Regional after finishing fourth in the Pac-12 and carrying a No. 31 RPI ranking at the conclusion of the regular season (eventually finished No. 30). Vaughn (.374, 15 HR, 50 RBI) and C Korey Lee (.337, 15 HR, 57 RBI) led the way offensively. Cal’s 2019 success continued into the summer when seven Bears were selected in the MLB Player Draft, including first-round picks in Vaughn (No. 3 overall, Chicago White Sox) and Lee (No. 32 overall, Houston Astros). Vaughn and Lee - both of whom went undrafted out of high school - became the first duo in school history to be taken in the first round of the same draft. Vaughn, who was the program’s highest-drafted player ever, was also named a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award and a first-team All-American for the second straight year.
After posting back-to-back 32-win seasons and a combined 33-25 (.569) conference record in his first two years, Neu was awarded with and agreed to a contract extension in October of 2019.
Cal was 5-11 in the 2020 campaign shortened by COVID-19 but Neu oversaw a youth movement that included 11 freshmen earning playing time, five of whom later went on to play professional baseball. All told, 13 players from the 2020 roster would go on to play professionally including big leaguers in INF Darren Baker and RHP Grant Holman.
In the next two seasons after the COVID-19 shortened 2020 campaign, Neu’s Bears were 29-26 overall and 15-15 in Pac-12 action in 2021 followed by nearly identical marks in 2022 of 29-27 overall and 14-16 in the Pac-12. Both squads were packed with star power as a combined 10 Bears ended up as top-10-round selections in MLB Drafts from 2021-24 including first-rounders in OF Dylan Beavers in 2022 (Baltimore Orioles) and Lomavita in 2024. Baker (NCAA Senior Class) and Beavers (NCBWA) were also All-Americans in 2022 before Lomavita picked up All-American honors in 2024. Baker led the 2021 squad with a .327 batting average, while part-time starter C/UT Dom Souto had a team-high .336 mark in 2022. Beavers had the top power numbers both seasons with 18 homers and 49 RBI in 2021 followed by 17 long balls and 50 RBI in 2022.
Five of the six Cal players who have earned Freshman All-American honors during Neu’s tenure were on rosters from 2020-22 in RHP Joseph King (2020 - Collegiate Baseball), RHP Paulshawn Pasqualotto (2021 - Perfect Game/Rawlings), Beavers (2021 - Baseball America, NCBWA). RHP Josh White (2021 - NCBWA) and Lomavita (2022 - Collegiate Baseball).
In 2023, the Bears just missed the .500 mark at 24-28. Part-time starter Nathan Manning had a team-high .330 batting average, while Lomavita (16 HR) and INF Carson Crawford (47 RBI) produced the biggest power numbers. Pasqualotto was also 5-1 on the mound.
Neu was Cal’s pitching coach for four seasons from 2012 to 2015 before his two seasons as the head coach at Pacific, where he guided a rebuilding Tigers program to 40 wins over his two seasons. That turnaround started immediately in 2015 as Pacific won 12 games in the always-competitive West Coast Conference, the program’s second-most conference wins since 1999.
Before making the move to Stockton, Neu had established himself as one of the Pac-12’s top pitching coaches and recruiters under Esquer. In his final season as Cal’s pitching coach in 2015, the Bears compiled a team ERA of 3.03, which was the second-best mark for a Cal pitching staff since 1976. That team reached the final of the Texas A&M Regional thanks in part to the contributions of three of Neu’s pupils in right-handed pitchers Daulton Jefferies, Ryan Mason and Alex Schick, all of whom would be selected in the Major League Baseball draft.
Prior to his arrival in Berkeley, Neu’s reputation in pitching circles was already well-known. Serving as head coach at Diablo Valley College from 2009-11, Neu led the Vikings to an 87-41 record and two Big 8 Conference titles. His 2011 squad was ranked No. 1 in Northern California and DVC's pitching staff led all California Community Colleges with a 2.13 team ERA.
As a player, the Napa, Calif., native and right-handed pitcher played professionally in the Dodgers, Marlins, A’s and Reds organizations. Neu was called up to the Major Leagues with the A’s on April 9, 2003, and compiled a 3.64 ERA in 32 relief appearances that season. He also pitched for the Marlins in 2004.
Prior to his professional career, Neu enjoyed a standout collegiate season in 1999 at Miami by helping the Hurricanes win the College World Series. He pitched in 46 games all out of the bullpen and finished the season 3-1 with a 2.94 ERA and 110 strikeouts in 67.0 innings. Named a Collegiate Baseball All-American, Neu led the nation in strikeouts per nine innings (14.7) and was selected to the All-College World Series team after earning three saves and appearing in all four of Miami’s games in Omaha.
Before transferring to Miami, Neu starred at Sacramento City College, where he was named an All-American and MVP of the state's final four championship, as well as the Northern California and Bay Valley Conference Pitcher of the Year after going 15-0 with a 1.44 ERA and 139 strikeouts in 1998. He was also a standout for the same Vintage High program that produced Cal right-handed pitchers Jared Horn, Aaron Shortridge and Miles Tenscher, setting Monticello Empire League records for career wins (21) and strikeouts (196).
Neu earned a Master’s degree in physical education from Ball State in 2011. He and his wife, Nicole, have two sons, Damon and Maddax.
YEAR-BY-YEAR HEAD COACHING RECORD
YEAR - SCHOOL- RECORD- PCT.- CONF.- PCT. - POSTSEASON
2016 - Pacific - 22-30 - .423 - 12-15 WCC - .444
2017 - Pacific - 18-35 - .339 - 6-21 WCC - .222
2018 - California - 32-22 - .592 - 16-14 P12 - .533
2019 - California - 32-20 - .615 - 17-11 P12 - .607 NCAA Regional
2020 - California - 5-11 - .312 - 0-0 P12 - .000
2021 - California - 29-26 - .527 - 15-15 P12 - .500
2022 - California - 29-27 - .518 - 14-16 P12 - .466 P12 Tournament
2023 - California - 24-28 - .480 - 12-18 P12 - .400 P12 Tournament
2024 - California - 36-19 - .655 - 17-13 P12 - .567 P12 Tournament Semis
2025 - California - 24-31 - .436 - 9-21 ACC - .300 ACC Championship Quarters
Pacific - 40-65 - .380 - 18-36 WCC - .286
California - 211-184 - .534 - 100-108 (91-87 P12; 9-21 ACC) - .481
Total - 251-249 - .502 - 118-144 (18-36 WCC; 91-87 P12; 9-21 ACC) - .450
Last Updated
July 27, 2025
