NORMAL, Ill. – Illinois State head coach Steve Holm added another piece to his coaching staff Friday, as he announced the hiring of former Sacramento State assistant Dane Fujinaka as the Redbirds' newest assistant coach.
"I am happy to announce that Dane will be joining the Redbird baseball staff," Holm said. "He is a young, eager up-and-coming coach who will be our first base coach, work with the catchers as well in assisting in recruiting. Dane was one of the most competitive players I ever coached and I can't wait until that rubs off on our players. I would really like to welcome Dane to Normal and the Redbird baseball program."
Fujinaka's first full season as the catching coach for the Hornets was in 2018, as Sacramento State finished the season 35-25 overall and advanced to the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) championship game. A former Sacramento State player, Fujinaka returned to the Hornets in the summer of 2017 as the team's volunteer assistant coach. He began his coaching career in 2016 as an assistant at Menlo College, where the team posted a 35-22 overall record. During the 2017 season, the Oaks went 34-20 overall and set numerous offensive records, including the top two single-season home run totals in school history.
"I'm extremely excited to be a part of the Illinois State baseball family," Fujinaka stated. "As a player at Sacramento State, I had a lot of fun and learned a lot from Steve, and I feel very fortunate for the opportunity to now work for him. I've been lucky to be around and mentored by great baseball guys, specifically, Reggie Christiansen and Jake McKinley and I can't wait to continue learning from Steve, Wally, and the players."
The Aiea, Hawaii, native played his first three collegiate seasons at Sacramento State where he appeared in 152 games. He transferred to Menlo for his senior season and started all 54 games for the Oaks.
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