Syracuse, N.Y. – Le Moyne College head baseball coach Scott Cassidy ’98 was inducted into the Greater Syracuse Sports Hall of Fame (GSSHOF) on Monday night during a Dinner and Induction Ceremony held at the OnCenter.
“It was a great experience for me and my family,” said Cassidy after the ceremony. “It is really rewarding to be recognized in this capacity for the body of work I have put together. I have enjoyed every step of the way both as a player and now a coach. I am lucky to have so many people who have supported me along the way and to share this evening with them is special and a night I will forever cherish.”
Cassidy was part of a nine-member class that was 36th to be inducted into the Hall. The nine new inductees bring the GSSHOF to a total of 271 men and women since the first ceremony in 1987. Joining Cassidy in the Class of 2023 was Jamie Archer, Tom Blackford, Bob Casullo, Irene Contos, Carolyn Davis Hassan, Ronnie Legette, Sr., Andy Melnyk and Sidney Oglesby. Cassidy joins Joe Tesori ’71 (Class of 2013) and Dan Sheehan (Class of 2017) as current Le Moyne head coaches to be elected to the GSSHOF.
As a student-athlete, Cassidy registered 14 wins, 18 complete games, a 3.44 earned run average and 153 strikeouts as a three-year starter on the mound for the Dolphins. His 18 complete games are the second-most in the program’s history and are the most from the Division-I era. He was just the second Dolphin to make 29 starts (following Gold Wave Hall of Famer Jon Ratliff ’93) and at the time of his graduation, Cassidy ranked second on the Division I chart with 186 innings pitched and four shutouts. As a senior, Cassidy was selected as the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Player of the Year after going 7-5 with a 3.06 ERA and 83 strikeouts and leading the Dolphins to a 26-15 record, including a 20-6 mark in conference play.
After graduating, Cassidy embarked on a 10-year professional career, first by signing with the Toronto Blue Jays on May 21, 1998 as an amateur free agent. He worked his way through the Blue Jays minor league system – picking up league All-Star honors in 1998, 2000 and 2001 – and earned a spot on Toronto’s opening day roster for the 2002 season. He made his Major League debut against the Boston Red Sox on April 1, 2002, throwing one and two-thirds scoreless innings. Cassidy appeared in 58 games as a rookie for the Blue Jays in 2002, posting a 1-4 record with 48 strikeouts in 66 innings pitched. After spending the 2003, 2004 and 2005 seasons at the Triple-A level with the Blue Jays, Red Sox and San Diego Padres, Cassidy joined the Padres for their run to the 2005 West division title. In 10 appearances out of San Diego’s bullpen, Cassidy compiled a record of 1-1 and 12 strikeouts over 12 and one-third innings pitched. In 2006, Cassidy broke training camp with the Padres. He pitched in 42 games, recording a 6-4 record, a 2.53 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 42.2 innings pitched. Cassidy completed his professional career in 2007, registering a 4-4 record, 10 saves and 49 strikeouts in 40 innings over 40 appearances for San Diego’s AAA affiliate, Portland. After signing with the Milwaukee Brewers in December 2007 in an effort to bolster the team for the 2008 season, Cassidy announced his retirement on March 2, 2008.
A 2015 Gold Wave Hall of Fame inductee, Cassidy recently completed his 13th season as the head coach of the Le Moyne baseball program. After leading the Dolphins to a 34-22 record in 2023, he sports a 323-252-2 record in charge of his alma mater. He has guided the program to four NCAA Championships berths, including each of the last two seasons. He has seen 62 players receive Northeast-10 Conference All-Conference honors, including 16 First Team awards, three Rookie Hitter of the Year, three Rookie Pitcher of the Year, two Player of the Year and two Pitcher of the Year honors. He has seen two of his pitchers (Josiah Gray and Ryan Murphy) be drafted in the top five rounds of the MLB draft with one, Josiah Gray, already reaching the Major Leagues as he is in the rotation for the Washington Nationals. Cassidy’s team has on three different occasions won the NE10 Team Academic Excellence award for best team GPA in the conference for baseball.
