FROM CBB NEWS SOURCE
EVANSTON, Ill. – Jon Mikrut, who played at Northwestern from 2002-05, has returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach for the Wildcat baseball team head coach Paul Stevens announced Wednesday.
"We’re very excited to have Jon back at Northwestern University after being a player here and moving on to professional baseball," Stevens said. "We feel that he will have a strong relationship with our student-athletes. He’ll be in charge of infielders and hitters and I think that they will be well instructed and well prepared under his guidance."
Mikrut was a standout as both a shortstop and a pitcher during his time at NU, including earning third-team All-Big Ten accolades as an infielder during his sophomore season. His name can be found littered across the Northwestern career record book as he ranks first all-time in at-bats (788), second in games played (212) and saves (16), third in triples (11) and total bases (365), fourth in doubles (44) and sixth in hits (233).
A native of Wauconda, Ill., Mikrut was voted by his teammates as Co-Freshman of Year in 2002 and hit a team-best .317 the following year during his All-Big Ten campaign. Doubling as the team’s closer, his 16 career saves came over his first three seasons in a Wildcat uniform.
Following his collegiate career, Mikrut signed a professional contract with the St. Louis Cardinals’ organization. He competed as both a position player and a pitcher for four seasons and advanced to the Double A level. Mikrut played in the 2006 Midwest League All-Star Game as a pitcher for the Swing of the Quad Cities and was also selected to the 2008 Florida State League All-Star Game.
He has six years of coaching experience as a baseball instructor at the Libertyville (Ill.) Sports Complex as well as recently serving as the head sophomore baseball coach at Carmel Catholic High School in Mundelein, Ill.
Mikrut graduated from Northwestern University in 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in learning and organizational change from the School of Education and Social Policy.
