ORLANDO, Fla. – UCF baseball head coach Greg Lovelady announced the addition of former major leaguer, Andy Barkett, to the Knights staff. The addition of Barkett comes after Barrett Serrato departed the Knights to join the Kent State Flashes' staff as the recruiting coordinator.
"Really excited to add someone with the knowledge and experience that Andy brings to the table," said Head Coach Greg Lovelady of the newest addition to the Knights coaching staff. "Having him with our hitters, our coaches, and in our dugout sharing that knowledge and experience is not only going to be a huge advantage for us this year but also for years to come, as our players and coaches are going to be better because of him."
Most recently, Barkett was the assistant hitting coach for the Boston Red Sox for the 2018 and 2019 seasons and was in that role for the 2018 World Series-winning Red Sox team. With Barkett on staff, the Red Sox offense led the majors in runs, hits, batting average, and OPS in 2018 and finished in the top five in all of those categories in 2019.
The newest UCF coach began his coaching career in the minors, spending nine years as a manager in the Pirates, Tigers and Marlins organizations. Prior to his coaching career, Barkett had a four-year playing career at NC State before playing 11 seasons as a professional. Throughout his minor league career, he played in over 1,100 games while hitting a .273 clip with 249 doubles, 89 homers, and 604 RBI.
Barkett had his Major League debut on May 28, 2001, for the Pittsburgh Pirates where he saw action in 17 games. He collected 14 hits, hitting .304 with three RBI in his Major League Baseball tenure, before returning to the minors for the remainder of his career.
Andy Barkett resides in Oviedo, Fla. with his wife Brandy and three children. Barkett's daughter, Jade Barkett recently committed to join the UCF women's soccer program with past fall.
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The UCF baseball team is set for its fourth season under head coach Greg Lovelady and will welcome seven teams from the 2019 NCAA Tournament to John Euliano Park in 2020. Click here or call (407) 823-1000 for ticket information.
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