July 29, 2015
RENO, Nev. - Nevada baseball head coach T.J. Bruce has hired Jake Silverman as an assistant coach. Silverman spent the previous five seasons with Bruce at UCLA, and will now work with Nevada's catchers and assist with hitting and base running as an assistant coach for the Wolf Pack.
"Jake is an outstanding coach that will bring a wealth of energy and knowledge to the University of Nevada," said Bruce. "He's been a part of three College World Series staffs during his coaching stints at Cal State Fullerton and UCLA. We're thrilled to welcome Jake to Wolf Pack baseball."
Silverman spent the past five seasons with UCLA, helping the Bruins compile a 202-103-1 record in that span with four postseason appearances. Silverman and UCLA earned two trips to the College World Series while capturing the 2013 NCAA Championship.
A native of Tustin, Calif., Silverman is a former collegiate player at Fullerton College (2006-07) and Cal State Fullerton (2008). His coaching career began as an undergraduate assistant coach with the Titans during the 2009 and 2010 seasons before his stint at UCLA.
"I'm proud and humbled to have this opportunity to be a part of the Nevada baseball program," said Silverman. "I look forward to working with Coach Bruce and Coach Bennett to continue the great tradition that is Wolf Pack baseball."
Last season, Silverman helped guide UCLA to a 45-16 overall record, a Pac-12 title and a 3-2 record at regionals. Silverman's work with the catchers paid dividends in 2015 as UCLA's 28 successful steals allowed ranked third in the league. The Bruins' catching corps only allowed one passed ball and handled a UCLA pitching rotation which boasted the nation's top ERA. Silverman helped sophomore catcher Darrell Miller Jr. earn honorable mention All-Pac-12 honors.
In 2014, UCLA's defense ranked fourth in the Pac-12 in fewest stolen base attempts against while the Bruin catchers threw out 22-of-56 attempted base stealers. The Bruins posted a 25-30-1 mark overall, the only sub-30-win season during Silverman's time with the program. Junior catcher Shane Zeile was named to the All-Pac-12 first team and was later drafted in the fifth round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Tigers.
The Bruins posted a 49-17 record in 2013, which ranked second most in a season in program history, and matched a school record with 21 league wins. UCLA went 10-0 in the postseason and won the program's first national championship. Zeile posted a .991 fielding percentage while the pitching staff boasted the sixth-lowest ERA in the nation.
Silverman had two catchers drafted following the 2012 season, which concluded with a 48-16 record, a Pac-12 title and a trip to the College World Series. Tyler Heineman and Trevor Brown combined to throw out 19 of 33 attempted base stealers while catching for a pitching staff that posted the second-best ERA in the conference. Heineman was drafted in the eighth round by the Astros while Brown went in the 10th round to the Giants.
In his first season with UCLA, the Bruins posted a 35-24 record in 2011 and won its first outright Pac-10 title since 1986. Catcher Steve Rodrigues threw out base stealers at a 40.7 percent clip before being selected in the 15th round by the Diamondbacks.
In two seasons as an undergraduate assistant coach at Cal State Fullerton, Silverman helped the Titans advance to the College World Series in 2009 and to an NCAA Super Regional in 2010. He also served as an assistant coach in the summer of 2010 for the Peninsula Oilers of the Alaska Collegiate Summer League.
A graduate of Foothill High School in Tustin, Silverman attended Fullerton College. He batted .350 in 16 games as a freshman in 2006. In 2007, he earned the Art Nunn Award for exemplary acts on and off the field while seeing action in 14 games. Silverman attended Cal State Fullerton in 2008 and saw action in one game as a catcher.
Silverman earned an associate's degree from Fullerton College before earning a bachelor's degree in communications from Cal State Fullerton in 2009.
