Case Western Reserve University Men's Baseball

Englander, the 2014 D3Baseball.com Mideast Region Coach of the Year, completed his tenth season at Case Western Reserve in 2016. Under Englanders tutelage, CWRU has averaged 29 wins over the past six seasons, and has consistently ranked as one of the top programs in the NCAA Mideast Region. Since 2011, Englanders Spartans have made four NCAA Tournament appearances with back-to-back regional runner-up finishes in 2013 and 2014. Most recently, CWRU completed its seventh-straight winning season under Englander, ending the 2016 season with a 26-15 overall record, and qualifying for the NCAA Division III Regionals in Spokane, Washington.  Junior pitcher Jake Shields and sophomore first baseman Daniel Watson each earned all-region honors, and senior pitcher Connor Tagg was named an Academic All-American.  The Spartans finished the 2015 season with a 24-15 overall record, as senior Kerrigan Cain was named an Academic All-American, and was a recipient of the NCAA Postgraduate Scholarship. The 2014 Spartans (34-12) broke the school record for wins and finished runner-up at the NCAA Mideast Regional in Marietta. Nationally ranked for most of the year, the Spartans reached as high as No. 13 in the polls and claimed a share of a second consecutive University Athletic Association Championship. Englander was tabbed Mideast Region Coach of the Year by D3Baseball.com, and his program produced two All-Americans, two Capital One Academic All-Americans® and the unanimous selection for Mideast Region Player of the Year in junior third baseman Andrew Gronski. In 2013, the Spartans (29-14) placed runner-up at the NCAA Midwest Regional in Wisconsin and earned the No. 21 ranking in the final D3Baseball.com Top 25 of the year the first national ranking in team history. The 2013 campaign also included the schools first UAA Baseball Championship and three victories versus teams ranked in the top 10 in the nation. The 29 victories were the third most in school history. In 2012, the Spartans posted a 27-16-1 overall record, while Englander was recognized off the field with CWRUs J. Bruce Jackson Award for excellence in undergraduate mentoring. All of the on-field and mentoring success came in the same year which Englander underwent surgery (fall 2011) to remove a cancerous brain tumor then returned immediately to his coaching and instructing duties. Adversity is one of the greatest opportunities we can be presented with in life, said Englander. Adversity is an opportunity to see what youre made of, to improve yourself, and to lift the spirits of others." A year earlier, the Spartans shattered the school record for wins and finished at 33-15 overall. CWRU earned the first NCAA Tournament berth in program history and placed third during the Mideast Regional in Marietta. Senior third baseman Chad Mullins was named the D3Baseball.com National Player of the Year and an ABCA/Rawlings All-American each program firsts. Prior to being named head coach at Case Western Reserve on July 6, 2006, Englander served as an assistant coach for four seasons at The College of Wooster under the legendary Tim Pettorini. At Wooster, Englander was responsible for coaching pitchers and catchers, recruiting student-athletes, and running the teams strength & conditioning program. During his time as an assistant coach, the Fighting Scots won three straight North Coast Athletic Conference Championships (2004-06) with three NCAA Tournament appearances. Englander began his collegiate coaching career immediately following an outstanding playing career with the Fighting Scots. The right-handed pitcher (1999-2002) was a two-time All-American that won 32 games on the mound. As a senior in 2002, he was 10-1 with a 2.31 earned run average and six complete games. For his career, he ranked third all-time in Scot history in wins (32) and 10th in ERA (2.79). Englander earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from Wooster in 2002. He resides in Lyndhurst with his wife, Heather, his sons, Quinton and Miles. Updated August 2016

Steve Gruenberg was named the Assistant Baseball Coach at Case Western Reserve University in October of 2020.  In his two seasons with the team, the Spartans have gone 43-27 and claimed the University Athletic Association Championship in 2022. His work with the pitching staff helped lead sophomore Tyler Horvath to D3baseball.com All-America Second Team honors in 2022, while Horvath shared UAA Pitcher of the Year honors with graduate student Evan Faxon. Gruenberg brought with him extensive experience as an NCAA Division III coach, in particular, the development of collegiate pitchers. He is coming off an eight-year stint as the Associate Head Baseball Coach at Kenyon College, where he worked primarily with the pitchers and catchers, while also assisting with recruiting and other facets of team management. While at Kenyon, he guided 20 players to All-North Coast Athletic Conference honors and helped the 2018 squad earn a spot in the NCAC Baseball Tournament. Gruenberg has also been the Assistant Coach and Pitching Coach for the Harwich Mariners of the prestigious Cape Cod Summer Baseball League since 2013, where he worked to develop some of the top collegiate pitching talents in the country that appeared in the prestigious league. Thirty-four of his pitchers in the league were drafted over the last four years, and his 2016 squad set a league record with a 2.00 team ERA. In addition, he served as the Mariners Youth Clinic Coordinator