- In his sixth year at UIS in 2019
- The program’s all-time wins leader with 158 victories entering the 2019 season
- Led the 2018 program to a No. 4 ranking in NCAA Division II, as well as clinching the GLVC Regular Season East Division Championship
Chris Ramirez is in his sixth season as the head coach of the University of Illinois Springfield baseball team in 2019. Ramirez took over a program that won just 30 games in its first three seasons, and has turned it into one of the top teams in the country.
In his first five seasons at UIS, Ramirez has a record of 158-105, a winning percentage over .600. Over the last two years, the Prairie Stars are 80-30. UIS has reached the GLVC Tournament in four of five seasons. Ramirez has coached 29 all-conference players, including 13 first-team players, eight all-region performers, and four All-Americans.
UIS had a breakthrough season in 2018 with its best season in program history. Ramirez was named the GLVC Coach of the Year, and the NCBWA Regional and National Coach of the Year. The Prairie Stars went 47-9 on the season, including winning the GLVC East Division with a 23-1 mark. UIS hosted the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional Tournament, and was ranked as high as fourth in the nation. During the season, it won 29 consecutive games at one point.
Ramirez helped UIS have the top offense in the country. It led NCAA Division II with 1.86 home runs a game, a .581 slugging percentage, and 9.4 runs a game. The Prairie Stars also led the conference in batting average, doubles, on-base percentage, and walks. Defensively, UIS led the nation in hits allowed per nine innings, and led the conference in ERA, strikeouts per nine innings, strikeouts-to-walk ratio, and WHIP.
A total of 12 players earned all-GLVC honors, including seven on the first-team. Five earned all-region honors, and three were All-American, including Nick Stokowski who was a consensus first-team All-American. After the season, Cole Taylor signed with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim organization, becoming the first UIS player to sign with a MLB-affiliated organization.
In 2017, the Prairie Stars had one of the best offenses in the GLVC, leading the league in average (.319), runs (411), hits (578), extra-base hits (199), RBI (375), total bases (936), and slugging percentage (.516).
Seven players were named all-conference after the Prairie Stars went 33-21 that year. Taylor and Michael Rothmund were both named to the All-Midwest Region team, and Taylor was the program’s first All-American.
In his first three seasons at UIS, Ramirez helped the program go 78-75. The 2014 and 2016 teams both won 28 games and advanced to the GLVC Tournament. The program earned 10 all-conference honors in those seasons.
Along with success on the field, Ramirez has been a vital component in the fundraising efforts at UIS, helping build the UIS Baseball Field into what it is today. Since Ramirez joined the staff, the field has seen new dugouts, a new backstop, batting cage, and a turf infield.
Ramirez is the third coach in the history of UIS baseball and came to Springfield from Texas A&M-Corpus Christi where he was the longest tenured assistant on the staff after coaching at the NCAA Division I school for six seasons.
Prior to Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Ramirez was an assistant coach at Southeastern Community College in West Burlington, Iowa. At Southeastern, Ramirez helped lead the Hawks to 68 wins over two seasons which included two of the program's three best seasons and a conference title. Fourteen players during that time moved on to four-year schools with two being chosen in the MLB Draft.
Ramirez also gained coaching experience during the summer of 2007 by serving as an assistant for the Madison Mallards of the Northwoods League - a collegiate summer league. In the spring of 2006, he took the title of head coach at West Burlington High School, where he led the Falcons through their summer baseball schedule.
As a player, Ramirez spent two seasons at High Point University as an outfielder. He was named to the Big South All-Academic Team in 2005. He began his collegiate career at Kirkwood Community College in Iowa where he was a closer on the mound and outfielder. He spent one summer playing for the Northwoods League in LaCrosse, Wis., and the summer of the 2004 in the New England Collegiate Baseball League.
Ramirez played for Fort Madison High School in Iowa where he was a two-time first-team all-state selection, and MVP of his conference as a senior. He earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from High Point in 2005.
Ramirez and his wife, Lindsay, live in Springfield with their daughters Layla and Mia.
