6/4/2017
Andrew Werner is in his second year as the pitching coach at USC Aiken.
During his first season with the Pacers, Werner coached PBC Pitcher of the Year and third-team All-American Joseph Benitez, who established school records for strikeouts and innings pitched and tied the record for wins with 11. Benitez and Connor Riley posted top-15 marks for strikeouts in a single season.
“Andrew Werner stood out to me from the second I read his resume,” Thomas stated. “When you talk about what we do here at USC Aiken and compare it to his background and fundamental approach, you couldn’t have gotten a better fit for our program. I had tons of choices to become our new pitching coach and Andrew Werner by far seemed to me to be the logical choice.”
Werner, a graduate of the University of Indianapolis, had a standout collegiate career and pitched professionally.
From June 2009-Sept. 2010, Werner was with the Windy Cindy Thunderbolts. There, he was in the top three of all major pitching categories, including wins, strikeouts and innings pitched.
From 2011-2012, Werner was with the San Diego Padres. He reached MLB in less than two years after being signed out of Independent baseball. With the Padres, he was voted the Pitcher of the Year in High A Lake Elsinore and AA San Antonio. Werner helped the squad win a minor league championship in High A Lake Elsinore in the California League. He averaged 7.8 strikeouts per nine innings and held a 2.50 strikeouts-to-walk ratio.
From 2012-15 he was with the Oakland Athletics organization. Werner helped the squad win the Texas League Championship for the Midland Rockhounds. In 2013, he led the PCL in innings pitched and wins.
Werner was with the Ottawa Champions Baseball Club in 2015 as a starting pitcher/player-coach. There, he led the Can-Am League in wins and innings pitched. Werner participated in fan meetings, was an active member in the community, helped deciding starting rotation roles and assisted with player-personnel decisions.
Werner landed as the recruiting coordinator/head assistant coach at Illinois Central College prior to accepting the job at USC Aiken. There, he made all gameday decisions regarding the pitching staff, implemented throwing programs, created strength and conditioning programs and ran baseball camps to help fundraise for the baseball program.
