Pepperdine Baseball Camps
Rick Hirtensteiner, who earned All-American, Academic All-American and WCC Player of the Year honors for the Waves as a student-athlete, enters his 25th season as a member of the Waves’ coaching staff and his eighth as the program’s head coach heading into the 2023 season.
Hirtensteiner was named WCC Coach of the Year in 2018 after leading the Waves to the conference’s regular-season title. During the COVID-19 shortened season of 2020, Pepperdine earned national recognition with its 12-3 start, including a ranking as high as #16 by Baseball America, the program’s best since 2014.
His seven-year record as head coach is 160-159 (.502).
In his time as head coach, the Waves have been honored with two All-Americans (A.J. Puckett in 2016 and Jordan Qsar in 2018), 17 All-WCC selections (eight on the first team) and 15 MLB Draft selections.
Hirtensteiner is the 17th head coach in the program’s storied history. He was promoted after Steve Rodriguez left following the 2015 season.
During his time as an assistant, Hirtensteiner’s responsibilities included serving as hitting instructor, coaching third base (which he continues to do) and working with the outfielders. He also organized Pepperdine’s fundraising efforts and the Malibu Baseball School. During Hirtensteiner’s 17 seasons as an assistant, Pepperdine posted an overall record of 578-423 (.577), won six WCC regular-season crowns and advanced to the postseason 10 times.
A graduate of nearby Buena High School in Ventura, Calif., Hirtensteiner cracked the Pepperdine lineup as a rookie in 1986 and still ranks #5 on the Waves’ all-time games played list, appearing in 239 contests.
As a senior in 1989, he earned All-American first team honors from Baseball America and was the WCC’s Player of the Year. He also earned CoSIDA Academic All-American honors in 1989 after earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration. Hirtensteiner was also recognized as the WCC’s Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year, becoming just the second Pepperdine athlete to earn the prestigious award.
During Hirtensteiner’s four years, the Waves won three WCC titles and advanced to the NCAA Tournament each season, compiling a cumulative four-year record of 164-76-7 (.678), including an 80-15-1 (.839) mark against league foes. The Waves earned a national Top 20 ranking all four seasons.
The 1986 and 1988 teams advanced to the championship round in NCAA regional tournament play, while the 1987 team was ranked as high as #2 nationally and won a school-record 21 consecutive games.
A four-time All-WCC pick (three first team, one second team), Hirtensteiner had a .337 career batting average and is the Waves’ all-time career leader in triples (17), and also ranks among the top five in base hits (295), runs scored (228), RBI (175) and at-bats (876).
As a senior in 1989, Hirtensteiner led the Waves with a .366 batting average and clubbed a team-best 12 home runs as a leadoff hitter. Hirtensteiner tied a single-game school record by slugging three home runs in a game at UC Santa Barbara. Additionally, Hirtensteiner emerged as the Waves’ closer, often times tossing warm-up pitches in the outfield during conferences on the mound.
He also competed for Team USA in 1987, batting .333 in 40 games, going 43-for-129 with four homers and 21 RBI. He won a silver medal at the Pan American Games.
Hirtensteiner was an eighth-round draft pick by the California Angels in 1989, and he played professional baseball for seven seasons with the Angels, Florida Marlins and Montreal Expos organizations, reaching the AAA level with Montreal. Hirtensteiner also played in the Northern League with the St. Paul Saints, the Salt Lake City Trappers of the Pioneer League plus stints in Australia and Mexico.
After completing his professional career, Hirtensteiner opted to pursue a coaching job, landing an assignment as a volunteer assistant at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. Hirtensteiner worked under head coach Jim Gilligan in 1996-97 while completing work for a master’s degree in business administration.
In January 2007, Hirtensteiner was named to the WCC’s 40th Anniversary Team. He was inducted into the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015.
Hirtensteiner and his wife, Shannon, have five sons — Cade, Cullen, Crosby, Colter and Cash — and live in Agoura Hills.
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Rick Hirtensteiner, who earned All-American, Academic All-American and WCC Player of the Year honors for the Waves as a student-athlete, enters his 25th season as a member of the Waves’ coaching staff and his eighth as the program’s head coach heading into the 2023 season.
Hirtensteiner was named WCC Coach of the Year in 2018 after leading the Waves to the conference’s regular-season title. During the COVID-19 shortened season of 2020, Pepperdine earned national recognition with its 12-3 start, including a ranking as high as #16 by Baseball America, the program’s best since 2014.
His seven-year record as head coach is 160-159 (.502).
In his time as head coach, the Waves have been honored with two All-Americans (A.J. Puckett in 2016 and Jordan Qsar in 2018), 17 All-WCC selections (eight on the first team) and 15 MLB Draft selections.
Hirtensteiner is the 17th head coach in the program’s storied history. He was promoted after Steve Rodriguez left following the 2015 season.
During his time as an assistant, Hirtensteiner’s responsibilities included serving as hitting instructor, coaching third base (which he continues to do) and working with the outfielders. He also organized Pepperdine’s fundraising efforts and the Malibu Baseball School. During Hirtensteiner’s 17 seasons as an assistant, Pepperdine posted an overall record of 578-423 (.577), won six WCC regular-season crowns and advanced to the postseason 10 times.
A graduate of nearby Buena High School in Ventura, Calif., Hirtensteiner cracked the Pepperdine lineup as a rookie in 1986 and still ranks #5 on the Waves’ all-time games played list, appearing in 239 contests.
As a senior in 1989, he earned All-American first team honors from Baseball America and was the WCC’s Player of the Year. He also earned CoSIDA Academic All-American honors in 1989 after earning a bachelor’s degree in business administration. Hirtensteiner was also recognized as the WCC’s Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year, becoming just the second Pepperdine athlete to earn the prestigious award.
During Hirtensteiner’s four years, the Waves won three WCC titles and advanced to the NCAA Tournament each season, compiling a cumulative four-year record of 164-76-7 (.678), including an 80-15-1 (.839) mark against league foes. The Waves earned a national Top 20 ranking all four seasons.
The 1986 and 1988 teams advanced to the championship round in NCAA regional tournament play, while the 1987 team was ranked as high as #2 nationally and won a school-record 21 consecutive games.
A four-time All-WCC pick (three first team, one second team), Hirtensteiner had a .337 career batting average and is the Waves’ all-time career leader in triples (17), and also ranks among the top five in base hits (295), runs scored (228), RBI (175) and at-bats (876).
As a senior in 1989, Hirtensteiner led the Waves with a .366 batting average and clubbed a team-best 12 home runs as a leadoff hitter. Hirtensteiner tied a single-game school record by slugging three home runs in a game at UC Santa Barbara. Additionally, Hirtensteiner emerged as the Waves’ closer, often times tossing warm-up pitches in the outfield during conferences on the mound.
He also competed for Team USA in 1987, batting .333 in 40 games, going 43-for-129 with four homers and 21 RBI. He won a silver medal at the Pan American Games.
Hirtensteiner was an eighth-round draft pick by the California Angels in 1989, and he played professional baseball for seven seasons with the Angels, Florida Marlins and Montreal Expos organizations, reaching the AAA level with Montreal. Hirtensteiner also played in the Northern League with the St. Paul Saints, the Salt Lake City Trappers of the Pioneer League plus stints in Australia and Mexico.
After completing his professional career, Hirtensteiner opted to pursue a coaching job, landing an assignment as a volunteer assistant at Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas. Hirtensteiner worked under head coach Jim Gilligan in 1996-97 while completing work for a master’s degree in business administration.
In January 2007, Hirtensteiner was named to the WCC’s 40th Anniversary Team. He was inducted into the Pepperdine Athletics Hall of Fame in 2015.
Hirtensteiner and his wife, Shannon, have five sons — Cade, Cullen, Crosby, Colter and Cash — and live in Agoura Hills.
Former Pepperdine standout and Major League Baseball player Danny Worth heads into his fifth season as an assistant coach with the Waves in 2023.
Before joining the full-time staff ahead of the 2019 season, Worth also served as a volunteer assistant during the fall of 2017 before returning to professional baseball.
Worth has had an essential role in developing hitters and infielders during his time with the Waves, helping produce nine All-WCC selections, including the 2018 WCC Player of the Year, and four draft picks at the positions he coaches.
“I am excited to announce Danny Worth will be joining the Pepperdine baseball coaching staff,” said Hirtensteiner at the time of Worth’s hiring in July 2018. “Danny will return to his alma mater after enjoying a 10-plus year professional baseball career. During his time as a player at Pepperdine, Danny developed into one of the best shortstops in the country and now he will be working diligently to develop Pepperdine student-athletes both on and off the field. Danny served as our undergraduate assistant last year and played a large role in our offensive improvement for the 2018 season. Danny is a dedicated and hardworking husband and father, a great role model for our current players and future recruits and is a great fit for Pepperdine University.”
Worth played for the Waves from 2005-07, becoming one of the best shortstops in Pepperdine history. He hit .320 over his career with seven home runs and 108 RBI. Worth hit 59 doubles over his career, good for second all-time in Pepperdine history and ninth all-time in the West Coast Conference. The Waves had an overall record of 118-66, one of the best three-year stretches in school history. Worth was part of two WCC champions and played in three NCAA Tournaments. He was an All-WCC selection all three years he was with the program.
After being drafted in the second round by the Detroit Tigers in 2007, Worth made his MLB debut in May 2010 with the Tigers. Over his six-year MLB career, he had a .223 batting average with two home runs in 149 games played. In 2017, Worth played in the Korean Baseball Organization for the SK Wyverns.
He and his wife Breanne have two girls, Brenna and Brielle, and one son, Weston.
Cameron Rowland is in his second season with the Pepperdine baseball team as the pitching coach in 2023.
Before joining Pepperdine, Rowland was the pitching coach at San Francisco State for two seasons (2019-21), though the 2021 season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In each of his seasons, the Gators were among the league leaders in earned-run average, ranking third in 2020 and third in 2019. SFSU issued the fewest walks in the conference in 2019 and was second in 2020.
He also assisted at Delta College during the spring of 2021, and helped five pitchers receive Division I scholarships.
“Coach Rowland has proven himself both in the recruiting and player development aspects of the game,” said head coach Rick Hirtensteiner said at the time of Rowland’s hiring in July 2021. “He emphasizes building relationships with players and recruits and does a tremendous job growing players as human beings while also helping them become competitive players on the field. He is well-versed in using and implementing the latest data-driven pitching technologies to get the most out of each individual pitcher’s strength and abilities. Cameron will have a huge impact on the future success of the Waves’ pitching staff and baseball program.”
“I want to thank Dr. (Steve) Potts and Coach Hirtensteiner for this opportunity to be part of the Pepperdine baseball program.” Rowland said. “I am excited to contribute to a university that has a rich tradition of academic and baseball excellence. I look forward to developing our student-athletes on and off the field and helping Pepperdine win at the highest level.”
Rowland helped the Gators reach a national ranking of #17 in Division II by Collegiate Baseball in 2018, and #4 in the NCBWA West Region poll. SFSU won its first-ever CCAA Tournament game in 2019.
Before joining San Francisco State, Rowland was the pitching coach for the varsity baseball team at Foothill High School, located in Pleasanton, Calif., where he starred in high school. He helped the Falcons win back-to-back East Bay Athletic League division championships in 2017 and 2018.
Rowland is a 2016 graduate of the University of Nevada and he graduated with a degree in liberal arts and a minor in kinesiology. He pitched two seasons for the Wolf Pack and won six games with two saves in 37 career appearances. The 2015 squad won its first-ever Mountain West Conference regular-season title and went 41-15 overall.
A native of Pleasanton, Calif., he spent his sophomore year at Chabot College, where he won the Coast Conference Golden Gate championship in 2014 and was named a California All-State first team pick, the CGG Stopper of the Year and to the All-CGG first team. He first played baseball and football at Diablo Valley College.
Cole Mahoney-Bruer joined Pepperdine in September 2022 as the baseball program’s volunteer assistant coach.
Prior to arriving in Malibu, Mahoney-Bruer was the head coach at Ventura College (CCCAA) for three seasons. Under his leadership, Ventura led the league in runs, hits, hit-by-pitches and on-base percentage in 2022. Before being promoted to head coach, Mahoney-Bruer was an assistant with Ventura from 2015-18.
Mahoney-Bruer also has experience working at the Mamba Sports Academy and the Los Angeles Dodgers Training Academy. He served as the hitting coach for the Thunder Bay Border Cats of the prestigious Northwoods League in 2016. He also completed a graduate internship with Pepperdine baseball in 2015 and coached at Oaks Christian High School in nearby Westlake Village from 2011-2014, winning a CIF Championship in 2014
Mahoney-Bruer has coached three players who reached Major League Baseball in Phil Bickford (Los Angeles Dodgers), Andrew Nardi (Miami Marlins) and Michael Papierski (San Francisco Giants, Cincinnati Reds). Twenty-six of his players transferred to the Division I level. He has coached 25 draft picks, including one first-round pick.
Mahoney-Bruer received his bachelor’s degree in physical education and health from Graceland University in 2012, where he served as an undergraduate assistant coach. He then received his master’s degree in intercollegiate athletic leadership from the University of Washington in 2015.
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