The Jim Wells era at Alabama is over.
The longtime Crimson Tide baseball coach retired Tuesday, ending a 15-year tenure that featured huge success through the first eight-or-so years but seemed to slip into mediocrity after that. Mitch Gaspard, an Alabama assistant and the team’s recruiting coordinator the past two seasons, has been elevated to head coach in Wells’ place.
Gaspard has agreed to a three-year contract that is subject to approval by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama system.
Alabama was a moribund program when Wells took over in 1995, but he quickly resurrected it, leading the Tide into the College World Series in 1996, 1997 and 1999. In fact, Alabama was the national No. 1 seed in both 1996 and 1997.
That 1997 team, an offensive juggernaut, was particularly impressive and would have won the national championship that year many believe if star slugger Roberto Vaz hadn’t stepped on a baseball during warm-ups during regional play and broken his foot. The Tide went on to lose in the finals to LSU, a team it had beaten 28-2 during the regular season. Yes, 28-2.
Alabama, which won six SEC Tournament titles under Wells, captured its last SEC Tournament title back in 2003. Since that time, it’s been a mostly unspectacular run for Wells and the Tide. Alabama’s best season after ’03 came in ’06 when the Tide captured an SEC regular season crown and lost to North Carolina in super regional play. Alabama’s other SEC title under Wells came in ’96.
Wells, 54, leaves Alabama as the school’s winningest baseball coach, having a compiled a 625-322 (.656) record. He retired from Alabama briefly a couple of years ago before reconsidering and returning to his post.
“During a meeting on Monday, Coach Wells told me that he has decided to retire as head baseball coach,” Alabama athletics director Mal Moore said in a released statement. “Jim served our baseball program with distinction for 15 seasons. I have tremendous respect for Jim and the reasons for which he made this decision at this time. Mitch Gaspard has agreed to take over leadership of the program.”
Gaspard, who served as head coach at Northwestern (La.) State from 2002-2007, has a total of 10 years experience as an Alabama assistant baseball coach and was a member of Wells’ staff in the early years when the Tide enjoyed so much success.
“I have no doubt that Mitch and his staff will continue to elevate the team to a championship level,” Wells said in a released statement. “He is an outstanding coach and an even better person, and I couldn’t be happier for him or the Crimson Tide baseball team. One goal I wanted to attain before I left my position was making sure the program was back on solid ground, and I leave the University feeling confident that it is.”
