2009 Baseball Coaches

James Grandey is entering his sixth year as head baseball coach at Bluffton University. He is confident that the Beavers are moving in the right direction. “We have worked extremely hard as a program during the past five years,” explained Coach Grandey. “We have a strong foundation for the future. Through continued hard work and improvement, we will be able to take the next step.”

Grandey’s first five seasons have been full of highs and lows, including the March 2, 2007, bus accident that claimed the lives of five of his players and left many others sidelined with serious injuries.

The Beavers have created a reputation as one of the HCAC's top offensive teams under Coach Grandey. The Bluffton University baseball team shattered numerous hitting records again in 2008, a common theme during Grandey’s tenure as head coach. The Beavers’ 408 hits, 78 doubles and 556 total bases this year all set new standards for Bluffton University baseball. Also topping the team single-season list was 275 runs scored and 236 runs batted in.

Despite missing their goal of a school-record 18 victories, the Beavers were tied or led late in the contest or lost by one or two runs 11 times in 2008. Bluffton demonstrated that it could play with anybody, going 4-3 against teams that qualified for the NCAA Division III Regionals.

Before coming to Bluffton, Grandey served as a graduate assistant on the Muskingum College baseball and football coaching staff as he worked towards his master’s degree.

Grandey earned a bachelor and master’s degree from Muskingum College in 1999 and 2002, respectively, and was a standout student-athlete while playing for the Muskies. As a senior, he earned first team All-Ohio Athletic Conference honors in both football and baseball and was named first team All-Mideast Region in baseball, as well. Grandey’s academic career was just as impressive, as he earned Academic All-OAC honors as a sophomore, junior and senior and was named first team CoSIDA Academic All-American in baseball as a senior.

Grandey resides in Bluffton with his wife, Jessica, and one-year-old daughter, Ayla Marie.

Tristan McIntyre has recently been named the graduate assistant coach for the Bluffton University baseball team, working with the pitching staff. Following his graduation from McCutcheon High School in Indiana, McIntyre attended Purdue University where he was a three-year letter-winner as a pitcher for the Boilermakers of the Big Ten Conference.

McIntyre graduated from Purdue in 2008 with a bachelor of arts in history and a minor in organizational leadership and supervision. He earned Academic All-Big Ten Conference honors in 2005 and 2006.

While playing baseball at Purdue, McIntyre was also involved with numerous youth programs in Lafayette, Ind. He coached the Summer Recreation baseball team (11 and 12 year olds) and was an assistant with the Colt baseball team (15 and 16 year olds) and the Lafayette Colt baseball travel team that will participate in the Colt World Series. In addition, he served as pitching coach for the Lafayette Post 11 Legion baseball team.

Along with his coaching duties, McIntyre will be taking classes in pursuit of a master’s in business administration while at Bluffton.