|
Jack Cressend returns to Tulane for his second stint with the Green Wave and begins his first year as an assistant coach. A standout player for the Green Wave from 1994-96, Cressend went on to a notable eleven year professional career, pitching five years in the Major Leagues. Cressend will assist with recruiting and be in charge of scheduling, summer baseball player placement and serve as the team's pitching coach. A two-way player as a pitcher and outfielder, Cressend helped the Green Wave to two NCAA Tournament appearances (1994, 1996) and one Conference USA Tournament title in 1996. In 1996, Cressend was named to the All-Conference USA tournament team after pitching a complete game shutout with eleven strikeouts in the championship game against South Florida. Cressend also led all of Conference USA in strikeouts that year. Despite being overlooked in the draft, he signed a professional contract with the Boston Red Sox organization following his junior year and went on to play 11 seasons of professional baseball including five seasons (2000-04) in the major leagues with the Minnesota Twins and the Cleveland Indians. In 1997, Cressend was named the Red Sox's minor league pitcher of the year after leading Class A Sarasota in wins, innings pitched, strikeouts, and games started. In 2002, Cressend was a member of the American League Central Division Champion Minnesota Twins. The Twins ended up losing to the eventual World Series Champion Anaheim Angels in the American League Championship Series. Cressend's best season in the major leagues came in 2004 with Cleveland when he posted a 2.51 ERA in 43 innings pitched with only nine walks. Over his entire professional career, Cressend made 370 appearances pitching 953 innings with 820 strikeouts. His career major league numbers are 160 innings pitched, 104 strikeouts, 5-5 record and 4.20 ERA. Cressend also has the distinction of striking out the first batter he ever faced in professional baseball as well as striking out the last batter he ever faced. Cressend returns to the college game after serving as an area scout for the Tampa Bay Rays from 2006-08. He also founded and coached the Louisiana Knights, a traveling baseball team designed to help high school players get more exposure to college coaches. Over the two years Cressend was involved with the Knights program, he coached and helped over 40 players reach the college baseball ranks. He remains one of Tulane's career pitching leaders, ranking seventh in strikeouts per nine innings with 9.96, and is ranked eighth in opponent batting average (.257). He also holds several single season records, including strikeouts per nine innings with 10.78, in 1996. He is currently ranked ninth for appearances (29) and eighth for combined shutouts (2) in the Tulane baseball record books. Cressend earned his bachelor's of science degree from the A. B. Freeman School of Business from Tulane in 2008. He and his wife, Katy, have two sons: Cole (6) and Cameron (3) and reside in Mandeville, La. |
 
|
||||||||||||||||||
