Joplin, Mo. – Missouri Southern baseball coach Bryce Darnell has announced the hiring of former Major League Baseball pitcher Shaun Marcum as the team's new pitching coach.
Marcum comes to Missouri Southern after serving as an assistant coach at Northwestern Oklahoma State in 2015.

"I'm looking forward to joining coach Darnell, Tuck and the Missouri Southern baseball program," Marcum said. "The opportunity to join a program that has a chance year in and out to win a conference, regional and national championship is something I couldn't pass up. I can't wait to get started."

A third-round selection by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2003 Major League Baseball Amateur Draft, Marcum spent nine of his 13 professional years playing at the Major League level. He made his big league debut on September 6, 2005, in Toronto against the Baltimore Orioles. Since that time, Marcum started 167 games, made 28 relief appearances, and logged in over 1,000 innings on the mound at the Major League level.

Over his nine-year big league career, Marcum spent time with the Blue Jays, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Mets, and now the Cleveland Indians while compiling a career record of 61-48. From 2007-2012, he compiled the seventh highest win percentage (.628) of all major-league pitchers with over 800 innings pitched.

After posting a 37-25 record in five years with Toronto, Marcum was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers prior to the 2011 season where he played for two seasons. He compiled a 20-11 record in Milwaukee. Arguably in the most prolific year of his career, Marcum pitched over 200 innings and posted a 13-7 record for the Brewers in 2011. That year, the Brewers won the National League's Central Division and came within two wins of playing in the World Series. That postseason, Marcum was the starting pitcher in game three of the National League Division Series against the Arizona Diamondbacks, as well as the game two and game six starter in the National League Championship Series versus the St. Louis Cardinals.

"We are excited to have Shaun (Marcum) here as one of our coaches," Darnell said. "His baseball experiences are truly unique and he is a tremendous addition to our staff. He will be an excellent resource for our pitchers."

Marcum played collegiately at Missouri State University where he led the Bears to unprecedented success as a two-year closer and starting shortstop. In 2002, he was an integral part of a team that finished as the runner-up in the NCAA Division-I Regional tournament at the University of Nebraska. A year later, Marcum was a part of arguably the most successful team ever to come out of Missouri State University. That year, MSU won its second Missouri Valley Conference regular season title in three years and made history a few weeks later when they defeated Big 12 Champions, Nebraska to claim its first-ever NCAA Regional Title. The following week MSU swept a best two out of three series against Ohio State to win the Super Regional and propel the Bears to their first College World Series appearance.

A native of Excelsior Springs, Missouri, Marcum and his wife, Stephanie, have three sons, Ryne, Landon, and Calan.