Produced by: David Hedlund, Associate Professor, Graduate Program Coordinator and Chairperson Division of Sport Management
May 13, 2022
Ed Blankmeyer, the winningest coach in the history of St. John’s Baseball and the BIG EAST has announced that he will return to the University in the fall as an Adjunct Associate Professor in the Division of Sport Management in The Lesley H. and William L. Collins College of Professional Studies. He left the University in 2020 to pursue an opportunity offered by the New York Mets to serve as head coach of the Brooklyn Cyclones.
“St. John’s University is a special place with special people,” he said. “I am most thankful to once again be part of the family. In the spirit of St. Vincent de Paul, my hope is to be able to provide a service to our students. Coaching and teaching go hand in hand. Hopefully my experience, knowledge, and insights will help our students prepare for their careers.”
Mr. Blankmeyer was the University’s baseball coach for almost 25 years. Throughout his storied career, he achieved unparalleled success that concluded with an all-time record of 829 games played, 500 wins, and four losses; five BIG EAST Tournament crowns; six BIG EAST regular season titles; 11 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Tournament appearances; and one NCAA Super Regional appearance. He earned eight BIG EAST Coach of the Year honors, four American Baseball Coaches Association Northeast Region Coach of the Year honors, nine 40-win seasons, and 124 All-BIG EAST selections.
Ed was a fixture at St. John’s for more than two decades. In the tradition of his immediate predecessors, Jack Kaiser and Joe Russo, he is a St. John’s legend through and through. We are delighted that in his role as Adjunct Associate Professor of Sport Management he will continue to help our students achieve their professional goals and objectives.
When he was the baseball coach at St. John’s, 91 of his players drafted and/or signed to professional contracts. Many have credited him over the years for helping them to achieve their goals.
“Coach Blankmeyer’s stats and numbers as a Hall of Fame coach speak for themselves,” said Michael Fahid ’01Ed, ’13MS, Assistant Dean, Undergraduate Advisement, in The Peter J. Tobin College of Business, and a former St. John’s baseball player. “His impact on those that have played for him, coached with him, and learned from him might be even more impressive.”
He added, “When I was a first-year student, I immediately knew that Coach truly cared about how his student-athletes carried themselves off the field, particularly in the classroom. He always emphasized the importance of academic achievement and the mission of St. John’s.”
Mr. Blankmeyer will teach an undergraduate course in the “Philosophy, Principles, and Organization of Athletics in Education.” “When you look at the success students in the Division of Sport Management achieve in the classroom and after they graduate, so much of it starts with the exceptional talents and passion of these students being taught by outstandingly knowledgeable and experienced sports minds in the classroom,” said David P. Hedlund, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Chairperson of the Division of Sport Management. “For almost 25 years, Ed coached and helped hundreds, if not thousands, of student-athletes open doors to careers in baseball.”
He continued, “The impact St. John’s University faculty have on students as educators and mentors is of great importance to the future success of our students. Ed will bring a lifetime of exceptional experiences to bear when educating students in the classroom. From his modern knowledge of baseball and sports to the skills needed to be a successful coach to what it takes to be person of the highest standards, Ed exemplifies and will undoubtedly be an exceptional faculty member and help St. John’s University students once again work to achieve their career goals and dreams.”