Eastern Illinois University Baseball

Jason Anderson was hired as the 13th head baseball coach at Eastern Illinois on June 24, 2015. He begins his 11th season as head coach in 2026 and 13th season as a coach at EIU. Anderson pitched at the University of Illinois from 1998-2000, earning Big Ten Pitcher of the Year honors in 2000 and First Team All-American status that same year. He was a 10th round MLB Draft selection of the New York Yankees in 2000 and made his Major League Debut in 2003 with the Yankees. He played in the majors until 2010, seeing time with the Yankees, New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, Philadelphia Phillies, and San Diego Padres. Prior to his head coaching position at Eastern Illinois, Anderson served as pitching coach for the EIU baseball team from 2013-16 and held assistant coaching positions at Danville Community College (2010) and the University of Illinois (2011-12). Anderson is a native of Danville, Illinois, holds a bachelor's degree from Illinois, and is married to Brittany with three children.

Eastern Illinois * Joined Eastern Illinois baseball staff in July 2024 * Served as the volunteer assistant coach for the 2025 season * Assists with hitters and

Max Fecske is an assistant baseball coach at Eastern Illinois University, hired in July 2024 to serve as pitching coach on head coach Jason Anderson's staff. He begins his second season at EIU for the 2026 season. Prior to joining the Panthers, Fecske served as pitching coach and recruiting coordinator at Western Illinois (2023-24), where he coached second team All-OVC relief pitcher Caden Kratz. He also worked as pitching coach at Glendale College (2022-23), where his team won the Western States Conference South Championship and CCCAA Regional Championship. Fecske spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Pepperdine (2019-2022), including two years as a graduate assistant and one year as a volunteer coach, working with multiple MLB draft picks including Billy Cook, Wyatt Young, John Peck, and Ryan Johnson. He earned his bachelor's degree from Webster University in 2016 and his master's degree from Pepperdine University in 2021. A native of North Hollywood, California, Fecske finished his collegiate baseball career at Webster University, where he earned All-SLIAC honors and led the team to an NCAA Division III World Series appearance in 2015.

Mike Pugliese begins his fifth season on the Eastern Illinois baseball staff for 2026. He is responsible for coaching outfielders, assisting with offense, coaching first base and camp coordination. Under his coaching, the team has achieved significant success including a third NCAA Tournament appearance in Division I program history in 2023 when they played at the Vanderbilt Regional. He helped coach the team to a school record 38 wins and OVC Tournament Championship in 2023, and to the OVC regular season title in 2025 with a 31-8 record and 17-7 OVC mark. Pugliese has coached multiple All-OVC selections and helped develop players like Ryan Ignoffo (20th round MLB Draft pick by Miami Marlins in 2023) and Lucas Loos (school single season home run record holder). Prior to Eastern Illinois, he served as General Manager and Director of Player Development for the Illinois Travel Baseball Club from 2014-2021 and as Assistant Coach at Oakton Community College in Des Plaines, Illinois from 2020-2021. A native of Naperville, Illinois, Pugliese played baseball at Carthage College from 2011-2014.