Assistant Coaches |
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| Jay J. Sferra begins his first year as assistant coach at
Arizona State after spending three years as the Director of Baseball Operations for the
Sun Devils. Sferra will handle a variety of responsibilities for Murphy including coaching
the outfielders and handling first base coaching duties as well as teaching bunting to
hitters. "Jay is an excellent addition to the coaching staff," said head coach Pat Murphy. "He has the pulse of high school baseball and will be instrumental in our recruiting efforts." For the previous three years, he has been the Director of Instruction for Murphy's Pitch-by-Pitch Baseball Academy. Sferra is a 1977 graduate of the University of Colorado with a degree in Recreational Administration and a minor in Business Marketing. He was a four-year letterwinner in baseball and three-year letterwinner in basketball. An All-Big-Eight selection and honorable mention All-American in 1976 and '77, he is ranked first in career assists for outfielders at CU. A starting centerfielder and leadoff hitter, Sferra is second in career stolen bases for the Buffaloes. He holds the NCAA record for most at bats in a single game with 10 where he went 6-for-10 in the 22-inning game versus Nebraska. As a basketball player, Sferra was the starting point guard for CU and figures eighth all-time in career assists at Colorado. While playing summer ball for the Boulder Collegians in 1977, he played with Arizona State notables Bob Horner and Hubie Brooks. Sferra was named 1972-73 Basketball and Baseball Player of the Year in high school at the Christian Brothers Academy in Syracuse, New York. He signed professionally with the Philadelphia Phillies organization and played in the New York-Penn League. Born and raised in Syracuse, New York, Sferra worked previously as the Sales Director for AT&T in Phoenix. Sferra and his wife Gerrie have two children, Carrie (16) and J.J. (13). |
Mike Rooney begins his first season as an assistant coach for
the Arizona State baseball team. He will handle a variety of duties including coaching the
infielders. Rooney spent the last five years coaching at Malvern Prep in Malvern, Pennsylvania. While at Malvern Prep, he coached two first-round MLB picks in four years as the head coach - Ben Davis (2nd pick overall by the Padres in 1995) and Josh McKinley (11th pick overall by the Expos in 1998). He also coached future first-round pick Glenn Davis (27th pick overall by the Dodgers in 1997) who played at Vanderbilt after graduating from Malvern Prep. During Rooney's tenure, his team's averaged 22 wins per season while setting a school record for victories in 1997 with 26. He raised over $28,000 in four years, adding indoor and outdoor batting cages and trips to Florida and Puerto Rico. A graduate of Notre Dame in 1992, Rooney earned his bachelor's degree in Business Administration and Accounting. While at Notre Dame, he played for Coach Murphy from 1989-92 on the Irish baseball team. Rooney played six different positions during that time (every position except first, pitcher and catcher). He was a member of the '92 squad which was one win away from a trip to the College World Series. While Rooney was with the Irish, the teams averaged 47 wins per year |
