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California head baseball coach David Esquer represents the best in college baseball - first as a player, then as an assistant coach, and now as the leader of the Golden Bears. As a player, Esquer was the starting shortstop on Stanford's 1987 national championship squad. As an assistant coach, he helped produce six NCAA postseason teams and one World Series participant at Stanford and Pepperdine. And now entering his 10th year as the head coach of Cal, Esquer has led the Bears to NCAA Regionals in 2001 and 2008, was the 2001 Pac-10 Coach of the Year, has had three players selected in the first round of the professional draft and has produced seven All-Americans.
At age 43, Esquer has amassed a career record of 263-236-2 (.527), including last season when the Bears finished 33-21-2 overall, were ranked as high as No. 5 nationally in early April, advanced to the NCAA Regional in Long Beach, went 3-1-1 against Bay Area rival Stanford and were 2-0 against eventual national champion Fresno State. Another top year was 2001 when Cal finished 34-25 overall and advanced to a NCAA Regional (Baton Rouge, La.) for the first time since 1995. Cal's 34 wins in 2001 and 2005 (when the Bears arguably deserved to make an NCAA Regional as well) were the most single season victories since 1992 when the Bears placed seventh at the College World Series.
In Esquer's tenure, Cal has had 45 players sign professional contracts, including right-hander Brandon Morrow, who in 2006 became the highest draft pick in school history when he was the fifth pick overall by the Seattle Mariners. Esquer also helped develop junior first baseman David Cooper, a first-round pick of the Toronto Blue Jays in 2008, and third baseman Conor Jackson, who in 2003 was drafted in the first round by the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Last year's squad featured three of Esquer's seven All-Americas ¬¬- senior second baseman Josh Satin (first-team All-American in Baseball America, plus two other All-America honors), Cooper (four different All-America honors) and right-hander Kevin Miller, a Freshman All-American in Collegiate Baseball. Other All-Americans under Esquer's guidance include Jackson in 2003, Xavier Nady in 2000, Freshman All-Americans Jeff Kobernus in 2007 and Satin in 2005. Esquer also has had 14 players named first-team All-Pac-10 and numerous others listed as Pac-10 honorable mention. Academically, the Bears had an impressive 12 players named Pac-10 All-Academic in 2004, and last season six Bears were Pac-10 All-Academic honorees. In 2007, infielder Brett Munster was a member of ESPN The Magazine's District 8 All-Academic team.
Esquers' 2009 squad, featuring junior preseason All-American utility player Blake Smith and Wallace Award candidates Smith and Miller, will be looking to continue their coaches' winning legacy and advance to a second straight NCAA regional. But, beyond the on-field accomplishments, the Cal mentor has also been instrumental in securing several improvements at Evans Diamond, including the Carl Van Heuit Training Center, which provides the Bears with new indoor batting cages, bullpens and workout facilities.
A huge part of Esquer's success has been due to his outstanding coaching staff of Dan Hubbs and Jon Zuber, who also boasts an impressive resume of baseball accomplishments. Combined with pitching coach Hubbs, a standout pitcher at USC, and hitting coach Zuber, a Cal baseball Hall of Famer, the threesome have been involved in 18 NCAA Regionals, four College World Series and a National Championship as either players or coaches. In 2008, Hubbs' pitchers set a school record with 435 strikeouts, while Zuber's hitters were second in the conference with a .302 team average.
Esquer became only the 10th coach in Cal baseball history when he was named head coach of the Bears on June 10, 1999, replacing longtime Cal mentor Bob Milano. Esquer came to Berkeley after serving as the top assistant at Pepperdine from 1996-99. Prior to working at Pepperdine, he was the No. 2 assistant coach at Stanford from 1991-96.
At Pepperdine, Esquer was the program's chief recruiting coordinator as well as the team's hitting instructor, infield coach and handler of the third base coaching duties. During his three seasons with the Waves, Pepperdine compiled a cumulative record of 112-63 (.640). Esquer has also tutored some of the nation's top fielding teams. Cal's 2000 squad was one of the nation's best with a .974 team fielding percentage and Pepperdine was ranked in the Top 10 in fielding percentage his three seasons there. During Esquer's six-year coaching stint at Stanford the Cardinal compiled a 222-142 (.610) record and advanced to the NCAA Tournament five times, including a trip to the College World Series in 1995.
A shortstop at Stanford from 1984-87, Esquer was a starter on the Cardinal's 1987 College World Series championship team. He earned all-tournament honors after hitting .350 with six RBI in Omaha. He also earned All-Pac-10 Southern Division honors as a senior, batting .318 with 41 RBI and 16 stolen bases. Esquer went on to play professional baseball for four seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, California Angels and Milwaukee Brewers organizations.
Esquer was a three-sport star and class valedictorian at Palma High School in Salinas, Calif. He was tabbed the "Athlete of the Year" at Palma High School after being named team captain and MVP in baseball, football and basketball.
Esquer earned a bachelor's degree in economics and a master's degree in sociology from Stanford in 1987. His wife, Lynn, is a former professor at Pepperdine in the graduate school of education and psychology, and a former assistant clinical professor in psychology at Cal. The Esquers reside in Moraga with their daughter, Gabrielle, born July 3, 2002, and son, Xavier, born December 22, 2003.
Esquer's Career Record at Cal 2000 25-28 2001 34-25 NCAA Regional, Baton Rouge, La., Pac-10 Coach of the Year 2002 29-27 2003 28-27 2004 25-31 2005 34-23 2006 26-28 2007 29-26 2008 33-21-2 NCAA Regional, Long Beach, Calif. Total 263-236-2 (.527)
