Tim Leary, a star pitcher for the Bruins from 1977-79 and member
of the 1988 World Champion Los Angeles Dodgers, will return for his
second tour of duty as UCLA baseball pitching coach.
His previous stint with the Bruins was one of the most
successful periods in the head coach Gary Adams’ 29-year
tenure. In the first year with Leary on board, the Bruins made
their only College World Series appearance under Adams in 1997. In
his final year at UCLA, his pitching staff won the Pac-10
Conference title in 2000.
“I want UCLA to be the school that pitchers want to come
to,” Leary said. “My focus is on pitching mechanics,
conditioning and aggressiveness. I will teach our pitchers to work
fast, change speeds and throw strikes early in the
count.”
Leary graduated in 1979 with a B.A. in economics. His stellar
collegiate career ““ a lifetime record of 21-15, 3.09 ERA, and
a school record 16 complete games ““ made him the No. 2
overall pick in the 1979 professional draft, the highest a Bruin
has ever been drafted.
Since Leary left to pursue private business interests, the
Bruins have not even sniffed the postseason.
When former pitching coach Gary Adcock accepted the head
coaching job at Cal Baptist in June, Adams looked to the past in
his search for the missing ingredient. He believes he found it,
again, in Tim Leary.
“It is great to have Tim back with us again,” Adams
said. “He did a great job in the four years he was here. He
has the experience and knowledge of pitching in the major leagues
for over 10 years.”
Leary’s best professional season came in 1988, when he was
named NL Comeback Player of the Year. He won 17 games with a 2.90
ERA to help lead the Dodgers to the World Series title.