Last month long time baseball coach John Slosar announced that he will retire after the 2011 season. After 27 years as Stags head coach, he has collected over 400 victories and led the team to 4 MAAC South titles while winning one MAAC Championship. The three-time MAAC Coach of the Year led Fairfield to 11 20-win seasons.
Slosar exploded on the national scene as a player for the University of Connecticut where he helped the Huskies finish fifth in the 1972 College World Series by hitting .400 during the tournament.
Fairfield Athletic Director Gene Doris has commented, "I am very appreciative of the contribution John has made to Fairfield University athletics, both as a coach and as an administrator."
Coach Slosar has certainly made his presence felt here at Fairfield and it is hard to say that the baseball team would be where it is at today without his great coaching. Even this year with an 8-16 conference record there is still reason to hope. Sophmore Anthony Hajjar looks like he is the real deal and combined with the leadership of their best player senior Tucker Nathans, the Stags will hope to improve on that.
The baseball team, however, has been struggling the last few years and really has not been relevant in playoff discussions. Their MAAC record has dropped in each of the last four seasons and have not had a winning conference record in 10 years. Either way, it will be nice for Slosar to go out on top this year. It is hard to put 27 years into anything, and to do it at a college baseball level is saying something.
Nathans and Hajjar will be the next two stags drafted. Nathans this year and then Hajjar following his Junior season (in my opinion). They are both great players and will carry the team this year
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