Jeff Palumbo - Baseball Coach - East Carolina University Athletics

Photo by: American Athletic Conference

Jeff Palumbo

Title:
Associate Head Coach - Recruiting Coordinator
Email:
palumboj14@ecu.edu
Phone:
(252) 737-1984

Jeff Palumbo, a 19-year coaching veteran at the Division I level, recently completed his 10th season as a member of East Carolina’s coaching staff and fifth as an associate head coach and recruiting coordinator – a position he was elevated to on July 22, 2019.

Following coaching stints at George Mason, UCF and Virginia Commonwealth, Palumbo arrived in Greenville on July 1, 2014. He oversees all aspects of the Pirates’ recruiting efforts, serves as the base running and infield coach and assists Head Coach Cliff Godwin with the hitters.

Palumbo has directed ECU’s recruiting efforts that have garnered national attention since stepping on campus, which included consecutive Top 25 national rankings for its 2015-16 (D1Baseball/18, Baseball America/23) and 2016-17 classes (Baseball America/19, D1Baseball/20), while also being tabbed as one of the nation’s Top 30 recruiters by his peers. His 2021-22 and 2023-24 classes were also ranked 26th by Collegiate Baseball.

During his 10-year tenure in Greenville, Palumbo has had a direct hand in mentoring six All-Americans, six freshman All-Americans, 12 Major League Draft selections and 21 All-American Athletic Conference performers going back to 2015. He has helped the Pirates post 397 total wins with seven 40-plus winning campaigns (six straight), earn eight NCAA Regional berths (five as a host), appear in four Super Regionals (2016, 2019, 2021, 2022) and claim eight AAC titles (five regular season, three tournaments).

Palumbo’s teams have consistently ranked among the league (top three) and national leaders (top 50) in almost every offensive category including home runs, runs scored, RBI, sac bunts and sac flies. During the recently completed 2024 campaign, the Pirates slotted eighth among NCAA Division I teams in hits (671), 15th in sacrifice bunts (46), 16th in sacrifice flies (35) and winning percentage (.730), 20th in runs scored (498) and 24th in batting average (.309). Individually, Jacob Jenkins-Cowart was 10th in RBI (79) and 33rd in RBI per game (1.25) while Carter Cunningham placed 17th in runs scored (77) and Riley Johnson was 19th in runs scored (75) and triples (5). Cunningham garnered AAC Player of the Year honors and Johnson collected AAC Defensive Player of the Year accolades. ECU claimed its fifth-straight AAC regular season title, finishing two games clear of UTSA, while pacing the league in batting average (.309), slugging percentage (.485), on base percentage (.399), runs scored, hits, RBI (464), total bases (1,055), sacrifice bunts, sacrifice flies, fielding percentage (.977) and putouts (1,662).

In 2023, East Carolina paced the American Conference in on base percentage (.390), runs scored (486), hits (668), RBI (445), doubles (131), walks drawn (317), total bases (1,052), sacrifice flies (35) and sacrifice bunts (37) while slotting second in batting average (.292) and triples (14). East Carolina also set the league's single-season record for runs scored, hits, RBI and walks drawn while ranking 16th nationally in sacrifice flies, 17th nationally in hits, 25th in doubles, 26th in runs scored and 30th in sacrifice bunts and walks drawn.

The 2020 club, which posted a 13-4 record before the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, led the nation in fielding percentage (.990) and sac bunts (23), while standing eighth in batting average (.317), 10th in hits (183), 38th in runs (117) and 41st in on-base percentage (.397) and slugging percentage (.441).

Junior Alec Burleson, who was selected in the second round of the 2020 MLB Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals (pick 70 overall), earned First-Team All-America honors by Collegiate Baseball after hitting at a .375 clip with three home runs and 12 RBI.

In 2019, ECU lead the country in total sac bunts (72), which set an ECU and American new single-season record. Palumbo’s squads have also stood among the national leaders in fielding percentage (No. 22 in 2018, No. 32 in 2019) and double plays turned (No. 14 in 2015).

Palumbo helped ECU lead The American in at-bats (2,187), hits (642), sac bunts and total plate appearances (2,640) while ranking second in eight other offensive categories including average (.294), home runs (71), on-base percentage (.389), RBI (402), runs (435) and slugging percentage (.449). ECU also stood among the NCAA leaders in nine statistical categories, which included Top 15 placements in sac bunts (first), win percentage (10th) and hits (14th).

Regarded as one of the top two-way players in the country after being named a finalist for the 2019 John Olerud National Player-of-the-Year Award along with earning inclusion to five All-America teams as the utility player, Burleson led the Pirates outright in eight offensive categories including batting average (.370), doubles (23), hits (91), RBI (61) and multi-hit games (23), while sharing the team lead in multi-RBI contests (16) and fielding percentage (1.000). He slugged at a .573 clip to stand second on the club and belted nine homers to rank third and was named to the 2019 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team.

Junior Spencer Brickhouse closed out his collegiate career batting .335 (69-for-206) with 14 home runs and 56 RBI and earned Second-Team All-America honors from the College Baseball Foundation. Brickhouse led the club outright in on-base percentage (.467) runs (57), slugging percentage (.626) and walks (45), while sharing the team lead in triples and multi-RBI games. Both Brickhouse and Burleson also garnered first-team all-conference honors alongside junior Bryant Packard (unanimous selection) and Jake Washer, while Turner Brown was a second-team selection. Four of his players (Brickhouse, Brown, Packard and Washer) were selected in the 2019 MLB Draft.

The 2018 club lead The American in home runs (58), RBI (356), runs scored (393), sac bunts (38) and sac flies (42), while standing among the Top 3 in eight other stat categories. ECU, who ranked among the NCAA leaders in 11 statistical groups, stood second nationally in sac flies and 22nd in fielding percentage (.978).

Junior Brady Lloyd (.322/2 HRs, 25 RBI) along with sophomores Brickhouse (.298/10 HRs, 40 RBI) and Packard (.406/14 HRs, 50 RBI) earned first-team all-conference accolades, while Dwayna Williams-Sutton (.331/7 HRs, 21 RBI garnered second-team honors. Packard, the 2018 AAC Player-of-the-Year, was named to a school-record seven All-America teams and helped the Pirates claim their second AAC Tournament championship in four years (other 2015).

Brickhouse took home Most Outstanding Player honors, while Brown and Andrew Henrickson earned all-tournament team accolades. Burleson became the third-straight offensive player to earn Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-America honors under and first as a two-way player.

In 2017, Palumbo instructed an offensive unit that led The American and ranked 52nd nationally with a .291 batting average, while ranking among the top three in 10 other statistical categories. The Pirates boasted an impressive .974 fielding percentage to stand third in the league and 58th nationally, while also sitting second in the Pirates’ record book.

Seniors Eric Tyler (.343/6 HRs, 38 RBI) and Charlie Yorgen (.339/5 HRs/38 RBI) earned first-team all-conference honors, while Travis Watkins (.340/10 HRs, 40 RBI) took home Third-Team All-America accolades from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA). Watkins and Yorgen helped the Pirates reach The American Championship Game posting a 3-1 record with three wins over Top 25 teams and earning all-tournament team honors.

Brickhouse (.310/10 HRs/28 RBI) garnered three Freshman All-America Team designations, which marked the second consecutive year ECU has had an offensive player named to multiple Freshman All-America Teams (other – Dwanya Williams-Sutton in 2016). Brown, a sophomore, led The American and ranked 39th nationally in sac bunts, marking the second-straight year Brown has stood among the league and national leaders.

During the 2016 campaign, Palumbo helped the Pirates lead The American in five offensive categories (average/.289, hits/603, hit by pitch/79, on-base percentage/.375 and sac bunts/47) while standing in the top-3 in 10 others. Yorgen (14/second) and Brown (10/fourth) stood among the league leaders in sac bunts, while Tyler capped off his junior season batting .306 – good enough for ninth in the league.

Tyler and Yorgen were two of five Pirates named to the 2016 All-Charlottesville Regional Team after batting .545 and .600 respectively.

In his first year with the Pirates, Palumbo guided the squad to a No. 14 national ranking in double plays turned (59) marking the most by an ECU team since posting 62 twin-killings in 2007. He was also instrumental in helping the club rank second nationally in bunt singles (36), first in the American Athletic Conference in fielding percentage (.971) and second in the league in sac bunts (51).

Hunter Allen stood third in the league with a .339 average and was the toughest hitter to strikeout fanning once for every 13.9 plate appearances. Yorgen ranked 11th in the country (first in AAC) with 16 sac bunts, while the infield combination of Allen to Yorgen to Bryce Harman turned a combined 37 of 59 double plays. Harman set the single-season school record with 570 putouts and Yorgen registered 178 assists to stand ninth on the single-season charts.

In all, the 2015 AAC Tournament champions ranked among the top three in the league in seven offensive categories including sac bunts, batting average (.280/third) and hits (574/third).

Prior to his arrival at ECU, Palumbo had mentored three ABCA/Rawlings All-East Region and six all-conference selections with the Rams, while helping the program rank among the NCAA leaders in seven key statistical categories.

Virginia Commonwealth (2012-14)
In 2014, Palumbo’s club saw a dramatic increase in its offensive numbers from the year before where they stood among the Atlantic 10 (top-3) and NCAA (top-50) leaders in scoring (6.3 rpg/29th), runs (357/33rd), average (.292/36th), hits (589/38th) and on-base percentage (.373/47th). Five players earned All Atlantic-10 honors and were led offensively by a quartet of second-team performers in Chris Ayers, Bill Cullen, Joey Cujas and Vimael Machin.

As the infield instructor at VCU, Palumbo’s clubs ranked either first or second in the conference in fielding percentage, which included a No. 7 national standing in 2013 (.980). Over the course of three seasons, the Rams boasted an impressive .975 fielding clip.

UCF (2009-11)
In 2011, Palumbo helped guide UCF to a 39-23 record - its best since 2005 - and its first trip to the NCAA Tournament in seven years with a No. 2 seed in the Tallahassee Regional. The Knights also posted their best Conference USA finish (fourth) since joining the league in 2006.

Regarded as one of the top fielding coaches in the country, Palumbo’s 2011 UCF squad shattered the school’s single-season record with a .978 fielding percentage, committing only 53 errors in 62 games, and ranking ninth nationally. Behind strong defense, including a stretch of eight-straight games without recording an error, the Knights posted two wins each over Florida, Stetson and Rice, in addition to victories against Florida State and Alabama.

Palumbo has been outstanding on the recruiting trail during his time as an assistant coach. Under the direction of first-year skipper Terry Rooney in 2009, Palumbo and the Knights put together Collegiate Baseball Newspaper’s fourth-ranked recruiting class and followed with the nation’s 20th-best class heading into the 2011 season. Those rankings were the highest-ever in program history.

The staff’s recruiting efforts quickly paid off as the 2010 squad won 33 games despite being the only team in the country to have five freshmen make at least 35 starts, including three infielders. That same season, Palumbo’s infield turned a school-record 61 double plays, ranking among the nation’s top-10 in that category. Not only did the Knights possess solid defense, but they also turned heads at the plate setting school and Conference USA marks with a .343 batting average and .435 on-base percentage. Further, UCF set program records with 78 homers and a .538 slugging percentage.

During his time with the Knights, Palumbo coached two Louisville Slugger All-Americans, a Golden Spikes Award finalist, a pair of Freshman All-Americans, a Conference USA Freshman-of-the-Year and two first team all-conference honorees.

George Mason (2006-08)
A native of Bowie, Md., Palumbo is no stranger to the Colonial Athletic Association having played at George Mason from 2001-04 before serving as an assistant coach with the Patriots from 2006-08.

He spent three seasons as the program’s recruiting coordinator and hitting coach, and oversaw a defense that finished with a .970 fielding percentage - second in the league - during his final season in 2008, while posting a third-place conference finish, a .311 team batting average and 63 home runs.

During his time at George Mason, Palumbo helped guide four players into the professional ranks including three-time all-conference honoree and ABCA All-East Region selection Scott Krieger, as well as Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American Justin Bour.

George Mason As A Player (2001-04)
A two-time CAA Defensive Player and Scholar Athlete-of-the-Year selection, Palumbo finished his career as the Patriots all-time leader in hits (283), at-bats (865), games played (218) and games started (217), while ranking among the top-10 in runs, stolen bases, total bases, RBI and walks. During his senior campaign, he led the nation in runs scored per game (1.4), hit a career-best .402 and led the Patriots to an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament - the program’s first appearance since 1993. Palumbo was selected in the 15th-round round by the San Francisco Giants in the 2004 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft and was later named a Northwest League All-Star with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes.

In 2010 he was selected as a member of the CAA’s Silver Anniversary team.

Palumbo, a 2004 graduate of George Mason, and his wife Sarah have two sons (Grayson and Parker) and a daughter (Ella). Palumbo graduated cum laude receiving his degree in administration of justice.