Griffin Barnes Promoted to Assistant Coach
July 25, 2024 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES โ Griffin Barnes has been promoted to a full-time assistant coaching position with the UCLA baseball program, head coach John Savage announced on Thursday.
Barnes has been on the UCLA baseball staff each of the past two seasons, serving as the team's Director of Player Development in 2023 before receiving a promotion to Director of Baseball Operations for the 2024 campaign.
"Griffin has been a reliable and hard-working member of our program over the last two seasons, and I'm happy to see him rewarded with this opportunity to join the coaching staff," said Savage. "I am confident his experience as a player and coach at the collegiate and pro levels will be a resource to our players."
Prior to his arrival in Westwood, Barnes made coaching stops as a volunteer assistant at La Sierra University in Riverside, Calif., and as an assistant coach at Esperanza High School in Yorba Linda, Calif.
Barnes was a three-year letterwinner at Grand Canyon University from 2016-18, serving as team captain in both his junior and senior seasons. He was the Lopes' primary catcher in the 2018 season, hitting .285 for the year with 17 RBIs. He had a blistering start to that season, batting .361 through his first 26 games.
After graduating from GCU, Barnes signed as an undrafted free agent with the Los Angeles Angels organization. He spent time with the Orem Owlz and AZL Angels at the rookie-ball level that summer. He went on to make Independent League stops with Monterey, Rocky Mountain, and Saltillo from 2019-22. His high-water mark in Indy ball came with the Rocky Mountain Vibes of the Pioneer League in 2021, slashing .307/.337/.426 over 76 games.
