COACH ROD DEDEAUX

Raoul “Rod” Dedeaux – legendary USC and USA Olympic Baseball Coach, Father of International Baseball, and “Coach of the Century”

Rod loved the taste of victory on the baseball diamond. But his most enduring legacy was his ability to use the sport of baseball as a platform to provide a positive, lifelong impact in the lives of thousands of young adults; his heart was always focused on mentorship and guidance demonstrated through his tireless coaching to promote teamwork, sportsmanship, discipline, a sense of fair play – and having a heck of a good time.

Dedeaux’s baseball career started when he was an All-City shortstop at Hollywood High from 1930-1931. He then starred as a shortstop at University of Southern California from 1933 to 1935; he was team captain and one of the first major league players to come out of the university. He turned pro after graduation, as he was very highly regarded and was signed by Casey Stengel to play for The Brooklyn Dodgers. He played at minor league Dayton in 1935 and hit .360, he was called up to the big leagues at the end of the season but only had four at bats with one RBI. Heartbreak struck soon after when he broke a vertebrae in his back and was never able to play in the majors again.

Rod would turn a terrible tragedy into a triumph, as he soon became the youngest head coach in the history of college baseball in 1942. In 1948 he won the college baseball championship and he soon turned the USC baseball program into nothing short of a juggernaut. His teams won a record eleven national championships including five in a row from 1970-1974. He was coach of the United Stated Olympic Baseball team when baseball was a demonstration sport in 1964 and then again in 1984. He was then an assistant coach to his close friend, Tommy Lasorda, on the 1988 gold medal winning team in Sydney, Australia.

Team USA & The Olympics

Rod Dedeaux was the head coach of the United States baseball teams at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo and the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, where baseball was contested both times as a demonstration sport. The 1964 team played one game as part of the Olympic program, defeating a Japanese amateur all-star team, while the 1984 team finished second in a field of eight teams, winning its first four games and losing to Japan in the final game of the tournament.

Rod Dedeaux & Japanese Baseball

Dedeaux’s sphere of influence also extended to international baseball. He founded the USA-Japan Collegiate World Series in 1972 and was its chairman from 1972 to 1984. Rod coached the US amateur team that played in Tokyo in conjunction with the 1964 Olympics.