Trevor Hairgrove concluded his first season with the NM State baseball program as the volunteer assistant coach in 2019.
Hairgrove, a former professional infielder in the Angels organization, has been part of a historic four year stretch that has seen the Aggies collect 147 wins the past four seasons. That stretch also includes four straight nationally recognized recruiting classes.
Hairgrove, who coaches first base for the Aggies, helped lead the team to a 38-17 mark in 2019 and the programs second ever WAC Regular Season Championship - the first since 2012. The 38 wins was the fifth most in a single-season in program history and included a notable win on the road at Arizona on April 30, giving the program their first win against the Wildcats since 2012.
The offense, with Hairgrove playing a large role, spent the majority of the year leading the country in eight offensive categories. NM State boasted a final batting average of .356, surpassing the previous school record of .355, set in 1988. The Aggies also shattered the single-season triples record (34) and finished one hit by pitch shy of tying the school record (119), which was set in 2018. NM State concluded the Regular Season leading the country in batting average, runs, runs per game, hits, triples, on base percentage, slugging percentage and hit by pitch. The Aggies were also Top 10 in the country in home runs, walks and sacrifice flies.
Individually, Hairgrove helped guide position players Joey Ortiz, Nick Gonzales, Tristan Peterson and Tristen Carranza to historic seasons. Ortiz finished in the Top 8 in program history for a single-season in eight categories. The junior shortstop set a new single-season school record for hits (106), runs (85) and triples (10) en route to WAC Player of the Year honors - just the second WAC Player of the Year in program history. Ortiz also became the career leader in triples (18) and was a semifinalist for the Brooks Wallace Award (best shortstop in the country) and Dick Howser Award (best player in the country) in May 2019. Gonzales, a semifinalist for the Howser Award and the Golden Spikes Award (national player of the year) started the season on a terror and never let up en route to batting .432 with 16 home runs and 80 RBI. Gonzales finished the season Top 10 in the country in seven offensive categories (average, hits, runs, RBI, total bases, on base percentage and slugging percentage) under the tutelage of Davis. Peterson enjoyed a breakout season in his first year in the Crimson and White, batting .400 with 20 home runs and 90 RBI. The first basemen flourished with Davis' teaching, ranking Top 10 in the country in RBI, slugging percentage and on base percentage. Lastly, Carranza capped off a marvelous career batting .371 with 18 home runs and 73 RBI, a personal best in all three categories. The senior outfielder tied the school record with 21 hit by pitches, previously set by himself the season prior.
Defensively, Hairgrove saw the Aggies collect an impressive .974 fielding percentage, a year after breaking the single-season school record with a .977 clip in 2018. Known as one of the best defenders in the West, Oriz committed only seven errors at shortstop while compiling a .973 fielding percentage.
At seasons end, NM State placed six players on the All-Conference list with Ortiz earning Player of the Year honors. Third basemen Eric Mingus was part of the group of six. After making zero starts in his first year in the program in 2018, Mingus compiled a .332 batting average with five home runs and 52 RBI in 2019 with the tutelage of Hairgrove.
Off the field, Hairgrove and the program earned the NM State Athletics Community Service Award for the fourth straight year in 2019 and set the program attendance record for the fourth time since 2015. The program has accumulated over 6,000 hours of Community Service since head coach Brian Green took over the program.
Hairgrove spent the previous three seasons on the staff at his alma mater, University of California Riverside. The third and final year of his tenure with the Highlanders saw Hairgrove serve as the director of baseball operations during the 2017 season and was in charge of the travel for the team and helped prepare scouting reports.
As an undergraduate assistant from 2014-16 at UC Riverside, he worked with the infielders and was the first base coach. Hairgrove helped keep pitching and spray charts during the game in his work under head coach Doug Smith.
During the summer season from 2014-17, Hairgrove also worked as a field manager for the Rochester Honkers of the Northwoods League. He was in charge of recruiting players for the summer league team and helped run the offense serving as the third base coach. IN 2016, Hairgrove mentored and coached Drew Ellis, the 44th overall selection in the 2017 MLB Draft. The summer of 2017 saw him help the offense lead the league in home runs and sit at third in walks at season’s end. He also coached the 2017 Northwoods League MVP, Zack Zubia.
Following a stellar four-year playing career at UC Riverside, Hairgrove was selected in the 18th round, 555th overall, by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The 2011 season saw him start in 52 games for the Orem Owlz before moving up to Low-A ball with the Cedar Rapids Kernels in 2012. In 2013, Hairgrove progressed to High-A as a utility player with the Inland Empire 66ers before being promoted to Double-A in the middle of the season.
As a student-athlete at UC Riverside, Hairgrove started 200 games at shortstop which puts him at fourth all-time in school history for career game started. He was named First-Team All-Big West and to the ABCA All-West Region team in 2011. Hairgrove earned his bachelor’s degree from UC Riverside in 2014.
Hairgrove is married to his wife Makenna and they have two children, Magnus and Tabitha.
