Mike Marron completed his eighth season as the pitching coach for Old Dominion in 2023 after joining the staff in July of 2015.
The 2023 season saw Sam Armstrong named to the All-Sun Belt Second Team as he was drafted in the 13th round of the MLB Draft by the Chicago Cubs. The junior from Wantage, New Jersey went 9-4 with a 3.51 ERA through 15 starts. Additionally, left hander Ben Moore was named a Second Team Freshman All-American by Perfect Game after finishing 2-1 with a 1.88 ERA through 21 appearances with one start. The Monarchs owned the third-best ERA in the Sun Belt at 5.02 and ranked second in the league in shutouts (4), third in walks allowed per nine innings (4.25) and fourth in WHIP (1.55).
In 2022, ODU recorded its second-straight 40+ win season as the team finished 41-17 and 19-11 against Conference USA opponents. Blake Morgan was voted the C-USA Freshman of the Year and added Freshman All-American nods from Collegiate Baseball, the NCBWA and D1Baseball. The lefty went 8-0 with a 1.69 ERA, which ranked sixth in the country. He struck out 66 batters and walked eight through 69.1 innings pitched and held opposing hitters to a .216 average. Noah Dean was taken in the fifth round of the 2022 MLB Draft by the Boston Red Sox. In 26 innings out of the bullpen, he went 3-2 with a 4.15 ERA with seven saves and set the ODU record for career saves with 18.
Marron helped coach the Monarchs to their first conference championship in 20 years and their first as a member of Conference USA. ODU earned its first-ever No. 1 seed in an NCAA Regional and was seeded 11th overall. Hunter Gregory posted an 8-2 record with a 2.95 ERA, and Ryne Moore went 9-1 with a 3.16 ERA. Both Gregory and Moore were drafted following the season as was reliever Aaron Holiday.
In the shortened 2020 season, ODU compiled a 12-4 record overall. Monarch weekend starters Hunter Gregory, Ryne Moore and Nick Pantos each picked up two wins on the bump. Junior Gregory turned in a 1.69 ERA and compiled 28 strikeouts, the most on the ODU squad. Freshman Noah Dean also put together solid performances on the mound in relief, collecting two saves in 5.1 innings of work.
In his fourth season with the Monarchs, Ryne Moore turned into a staff ace, leading ODU weekend starters with a 3.78 earned run average. First year Monarchs Tommy Gertner and Aaron Holiday pitched to ERA's under 3.
In 2018, the Monarchs compiled a 15-37 record, as Marron oversaw a young pitching staff. Morgan Maguire blossomed into a star in the rotation, going 4-7 with a 3.38 ERA with two complete-game shutouts. Marron also helped develop a plethora of true freshman arms, including Connor Muly (1-0, 3.31 ERA) and Jason Hartline (2-4, 4.05 ERA), who were two of the most valuable bullpen arms for the Monarchs in 2018.
In 2017, Marron helped guide the Monarchs to a 37-21 overall record, the most single-season wins for the program since 2006. ODU also compiled a 19-11 Conference USA record en route to finishing second in the league during the regular season, the best finish ever for ODU in C-USA. On the mound, ODU posted a team ERA of 4.66, down 0.24 points from 2016. Of the 11 pitchers who pitched in 10 or games, six were newcomers, including three true freshmen. Individually, senior Saturday starter Adam Bainbridge earned All-C-USA honors after going 7-4 with a 3.35 ERA and two complete games and John Wilson, who went 6-1 with a 3.41 ERA, was named a Collegiate Baseball News Freshman All-American.
In his first season with the Monarchs in 2016, Old Dominion posted a 4.90 team ERA and ranked third in the league with 12 pickoffs. Marron saw Sam Sinnen earn the first C-USA Pitcher of the Week honor of the season after throwing five shutout innings against No. 10 NC State. He also mentored Sinnen to Second Team All-Conference USA, VaSID All-State honors and Conference USA All-Tournament Team accolades at the end of the season. Marron also guided the pitching staff to rank fourth in the league with 17 saves, seven of which came from ninth round draft pick Nick Hartman.
Prior to ODU, Marron joined the Stony Brook baseball staff as an assistant coach in 2009, where he was directly responsible for the preparation of the pitching staff routine, drills and philosophies. He was also heavily involved with the recruiting process and assisted in developing three top 75 national recruiting classes and five top 5 regional recruiting classes.
During his time at Stony Brook, the Seawolves went 219-121 and claimed five America East championship titles. He also recruited, coached and developed four All-Americans, five Freshman All-Americans, three Conference Pitchers and Rookies of the Year, 10 Major League Baseball draft picks and 22 all-conference selections.
Marron highlighted his career by helping the program record a 52-15 overall record in 2012 en route to a College World Series appearance in Omaha, Neb. and a No. 7 national ranking. His pitching staff produced the 15th best ERA in the nation, while also ranking ninth in hits allowed and 23rd in walks allowed.
Marron arrived at Stony Brook after four seasons as an assistant coach at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell. He helped lead the team to the Northeast 10 Championship and an appearance in the NCAA Regionals in 2006. During his last two seasons, Marron guided the program to top 10 ERA rankings in Division II, ranking eighth in 2008 (3.37) and fifth in the nation in 2009 (3.14). Overall, he mentored 23 all-conference players, including a Rookie of the Year, two First Team All-Region selections and a fifth round MLB draft pick.
While in Massachusetts, Marron was the head coach of the Pittsfield Dukes in the New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) for two summers, leading the program to its first playoff berth and a place in the Divisional Championship round. He was named the 2008 NECBL Coach of the Year and coached 13 MLB draft picks. Marron moved to the Cape Cod Baseball League (CCBL), the premier amateur baseball league, in the summer of 2009 as an assistant coach for the Orleans Firebirds. He assisted with all on-field phases of the organization and coached 21 draft picks, including five current MLB players.
Prior to his coaching days, Marron was a standout athlete at the College of the Holy Cross, where he was a four-year letter-winner. He was a right-handed pitcher and catcher from 2002-2005. He was named the Hop Riopel Team Most Valuable Player and Second Team All-Patriot League in 2003 and earned the title of team captain as a senior.