Troy University Athletics
Skylar Meade Joining USA Collegiate National Team Coaching Staff
6/21/2024 2:00:00 PM | Baseball
TROY, Ala. - USA Baseball announced on Friday that Troy head coach Skylar Meade will join the Collegiate National Team coaching staff for the International Friendship Series this summer.Â
Meade will serve as the pitching coach during Team USA's five-game International Friendship Series against Chinese Taipei from June 29-July 3. He is joined on staff by Alabama State head coach José Vázquez (manager), Florida Atlantic head coach John McCormack (hitting/bench coach), South Alabama head coach Mark Calvi (3rd base coach), East Carolina's Brady Austin (bullpen coach) and former Clemson standout Kier Meredith (assistant coach). Â
"When I was first approached about the opportunity to be pitching coach for Team USA, I was incredibly humbled and excited," Meade said. "To be able to throw on the red, white and blue uniform will be a supreme honor I don't take lightly. It will be a lot of fun to work with the best players the United States has to offer starting on June 25th."Â
Meade has posted a 109-68 record during his first three seasons leading the Trojan program. Under Meade's leadership, Troy is coming off back-to-back top three finishes in the Sun Belt Conference with its first 40-win season and NCAA Regional appearance since 2018 coming during the 2023 campaign.Â
During Meade's tenure, Troy has had 11 All-Sun Belt selections, including three pitchers in Grayson Stewart (2023), Noah Manning (2023) and Luke Lyon (2024). Among Sun Belt teams, Meade's pitching staff has ranked inside the top five in strikeouts and fielding independent pitching in each of his three seasons. Â
Prior to Troy, the Louisville, Ky., native had stints as the pitching coach at Eastern Illinois (2009-12), Middle Tennessee State (2013-14), Michigan State (2015-17) and South Carolina (2018-21). He's coached 28 MLB Draft picks during his coaching career, including 12 who have been selected in the top ten rounds. During his playing career, Meade starred at Louisville as a left-handed pitcher and helped the Cardinals reach the 2007 College World Series. Â
Collegiate National Team Training Camp will feature 56 of the top non-draft-eligible collegiate players in the country. A two-game Stars vs. Stripes series will take place June 26 and 27 at the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary N.C., before rosters are selected for the International Friendship Series and Summer League Tour on June 29. Troy's Brooks Bryan is among the players to receive an invitation. Â
The International Friendship Series opens at Segra Stadium in Fayetteville, N.C., (June 29) before heading to the USA Baseball National Training Complex in Cary, N.C., for two games (June 30-July 1). Game four will be played at First National Bank Field in Greensboro, N.C., (July 2) and the series will wrap up at Atrium Health Ballpark in Kannapolis, N.C. (July 3). Â
The summer concludes on the Fourth of July in Fayetteville, N.C., as the Friendship Series team will face the Summer League Tour team at Segra Stadium. Â
