Baseball
- Title:
- Assistant Coach
- Email:
- holmes_jm@mercer.edu
- Phone:
- (478) 301-2738
Justin Holmes enters his third year as an assistant coach on theMercer University baseball staff. Holmes comes to Mercer from theUniversity of Georgia where he was a volunteer assistant for threeseasons. While at Georgia, he was part of the 2008 Bulldog squadthat won an SEC Championship and finished second at the CollegeWorld Series.
Holmes will serve as the new hitting instructor for a Bearsoffense that in 2010 posted the third-best team batting average inAtlantic Sun history, at .340. Holmes will also coach first baseand work with the Mercer infield defense that posted an impressive.961 fielding percentage in 2010.
Year two under Holmes saw the Mercer offense continue to growinto one of the most feared line-ups in all of college baseball.The Bears led the A-Sun Conference in almost every offensivecategory including batting average (.302), slugging percentage(.462), on-base percentage (.391), runs scored (384), hits (606)and home runs (65). For the season, the Orange and Black finishedin the top-25 nationally in home runs (5th), slugging percentage(9th), on-base percentage (18th) and batting average (24th). Holmeswas key in the development and maturation of Louisville SluggerAll-American first team selection Nick Backlund, A-Sun ConferenceFreshman of the Year winner Chesny Young and A-Sun All-Conferencefirst team member Derrick Workman.
Holmes’ first season in Macon was one to remember as theBears put together one of the most dynamic seasons offensively ofany team in the nation. Under Holmes’ tutelage, Mercerfinished third in the country in home runs (80), fifth in runs pergame (7.7), 16th in batting average (.310), 17th in hits (653) and41st in fielding percentage (.974). Junior Jacob Tanis was named anAtlantic Sun All-Conference while outfielders Joe Winker, ThomasCarroll and Billy Burns were selected to the A-Sun All-Conferencesecond team. Holmes also had three of his players taken in the 2011MLB Draft including Tanis (13th round, Oakland Athletics), Winker(28th round, Los Angeles Dodgers) and Burns (32nd round, WashingtonNationals).
A native of Oviedo, Fla., Holmes spent four years playingprofessional baseball before returning to Georgia to begin hiscoaching career. He holds the Bulldog record for best careerfielding percentage by a shortstop at .951. He works with theinfielders and serves as the first base coach.
Holmes was a three-year starter for the Bulldogs includingCo-MVP of the 2004 squad that finished third at the College WorldSeries with a 45-23 record. He earned second team All-SEC honors asa senior captain. He batted a team-best .332 with eight home runsand 56 RBI in leading the Bulldogs to the 2004 SEC title. As ajunior, he hit .301-1-16 and ranked second among SEC shortstopswith a .971 Fielding Percentage. For his career, Holmes hit .319with nine home runs, 94 RBI and 34 stolen bases.
Holmes was a 26th round draft pick of the Cleveland Indians in2004. He played in the Indians organization for two years, spendingtime in Burlington, N.C. in the Appalachian League, and Eastlake,Ohio for Lake County in the South Atlantic League. Also, he playedfor the Traverse City (Mich.) Beach Bums of the Frontier League.Holmes was a two-time All-Star selection for the Bums.
Holmes began his collegiate career at the University of SouthFlorida, playing one season with the Bulls before transferring toGeorgia in 2002. He is a 2005 graduate of UGA with a degree inClassical Culture.
Holmes is married to the former Elizabeth Newsome of Washington,Ga. She is a 2008 graduate of the UGA veterinary school. She was amember of Georgia’s 2003 and 2004 national championshipequestrian teams. They just recently had a son named Rider togetherwho is two months old.
