Report: Kentucky to Hire Former Wildcat Austin Cousino as Assistant, Recruiting Coordinator

Cousino is reportedly headed back to Lexington after playing for UK from 2012-14.

On Thursday night, it was reported that Kentucky baseball was losing assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Will Coggin to Georgia. 

Head coach Nick Mingione is wasting no time in finding a replacement, as it was reported less than 24 hours after that UK is set to hire former Wildcat Austin Cousino to the same position. 

Derek Terry of Bat Cats Central broke the news on Friday morning that Cousino, who played at UK from 2012-14, is "expected to be the next recruiting coordinator with an official announcement likely coming late next week."

Cousino left UK as one of the more decorated players in the recent history of the program. The outfielder was an SEC All-Freshman Team selection and three-time selection to the SEC All-Defensive Team, even winning a Rawlings Gold Glove in 2014. He made two NCAA Tournament appearances.

A frequenter of the USA Collegiate National Team, Cousino was selected in the third round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Seattle Mariners, though he never made it out of the minors and last played for the Los Angeles Angels' organization in 2016.

Since then, he was a graduate assistant at Mississippi State for one season in 2018 and an assistant at Xavier in 2019. He was then an area scout for the Detroit Tigers around Columbus, Ohio — his hometown — until the end of 2022, when he became a scout in the Louisville area for the Tampa Bay Rays this year.  

The 30-year-old is now returning to his alma mater to take over for Coggin, a respected hitting coach and recruiter who was alongside Mingione for around a decade. Cousino will join Mingione, pitching coach Dan Roszel and assistant Nick Ammirati on the Wildcats' staff for the 2024 season. 

Additionally, Terry reports that Roszel, who joined Mingione's staff alongside Coggin in 2020, has signed a two-year extension "with a significant pay raise." His contract was set to expire at the end of June. 

How Division-III roots are pushing Jackson Gray to the finish line in a special season HERE.

Roommates, Kentuckians, Brothers: More on Darren Williams and Mason Moore HERE.

The King of Work: More on catcher Devin Burkes and his MVP honors HERE.

Game recap of Kentucky's Regional-clinching win can be found HERE.

How getting hit in batting practice helps Kentucky HERE.

How hard conversations molded RHP Austin Strickland HERE.

Want the latest on national football and basketball recruiting, including Cats targets? Head over to SI All-American for the latest news, blogs, and updates about the nation's best prospects.

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