JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida State is on the search for a new baseball coach after parting ways with Mike Martin Jr., ending a lengthy run of a Martin leading the Seminoles.
Michael Alford, FSU’s vice president and athletics director, said the program would begin a national search immediately to find his replacement.
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“Making the change with our baseball coach was not an easy decision, but it is our responsibility to put our student-athletes and our teams in the best position to reach their full potential,” Alford said in a statement. “Ultimately, the decision came down to whether our baseball program was performing up to the admittedly high standards that we have established through our historic success and I do not believe we were.”
The Martin legacy runs deep in Tallahassee.
Mike Martin was an FSU coaching legend, spending 40 seasons in charge of the Seminoles. He retired after the 2019 season as the all-time winningest coach for any sport in NCAA history (2,029-736-4). Even before Martin was named head coach in 1980, he spent five years as an assistant (1975-79) and two years with the Seminoles as a player (1965-66).
When his father retired, Martin Jr. was the natural replacement. He played for his father (1993-95) and then began coaching under him (1998-2019). Martin Jr. was named the head coach for the 2020 seasons. He finished his head coaching career at FSU with a 77-54 record. Martin Jr’s. winning percentage (.588) is the worst of any of the program’s previous eight coaches. Charlie Armstrong’s 46-29 mark (.613) was the previous low.
The Seminoles couldn’t find any momentum under Martin Jr. They failed to get out of regionals again and haven’t hosted a regional since 2018.
“We deeply appreciate all Mike has done for the program as head coach, as an assistant coach and as a Seminole student-athlete,” Alford said. “His passion for the university and the baseball program is unequaled. I am sure I speak for all Seminole fans when I say we wish him and his family nothing but the best.”