SARASOTA,  Fla. – New College of Florida has named former big league pitcher and Sarasota native Eric Skoglund as its new head baseball coach.

Skoglund has spent each of the past two seasons serving as the baseball program's pitching coach and recruiting coordinator. The 33-year-old becomes the second head coach in Mighty Banyans Baseball history, succeeding Mariano Jimenez Jr., who will continue to serve as New College's athletic director to support the development of all NCF student-athletes.

"Eric's experience at the Major League level sticks out on a resume, but more importantly, he cares deeply for our scholar-athletes. He wants to make New College the top NAIA destination in the country by building outstanding men from the inside out."

"I'm honored to join New College of Florida as the head baseball coach. Coach Jimenez laid a strong foundation, and I'm excited to build on that momentum," Skoglund added. "Our focus will be on developing student-athletes who compete with intensity, integrity, and passion.

"This is a special opportunity, and I'm ready to get to work."

Skoglund attended Sarasota High School, where his impressive time with the Sailors playing under Florida High School Athletic Association hall of fame coach Clyde Metcalf led to his selection in the 16th round of the 2011 MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates. Skoglund ultimately elected not to sign with the Pirates and attend UCF in the fall of 2011.

At UCF, Skoglund amassed notable accomplishments while playing for head coach Terry Rooney. He earned Louisville Slugger Freshman All-American team and All-Conference USA Freshman team honors in his debut season with the Knights and as a junior, earned a unanimous selection to the All-American Athletic Conference First team and was also named the AAC pitcher of the year.

He also spent two summers pitching in the prestigious collegiate Cape Cod Baseball League, pitching for the Harwich Mariners in 2012 and Bourne Braves in 2013.

Skoglund's impressive college career led to his selection in the third round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Kansas City Royals.

He made his major league debut with the Royals on May 30, 2017, and pitched 6.1 scoreless innings with five strikeouts and earned the win for Kansas City in a 1-0 victory over the Detroit Tigers. The southpaw wound up a member of the Royals' starting rotation for three seasons (2017-19), compiling 22 big league starts and five relief appearances.

Skoglund played under 2015 World Series-winning manager Ned Yost in each of his three major league seasons. As a rookie in 2017, he was coached by two-time World Series-winning pitching coach Dave Eiland.

Under Skoglund's leadership, NCF's pitching staff allowed the second fewest hits (460) in the Sun Conference last season and had the second fewest wild pitches (29). Right-hander Adrian Orozco Molina posted the fourth-best ERA (2.96) among qualified pitchers in the Sun Conference under Skoglund in 2025.

Skoglund will lead the Mighty Banyans Baseball program into its third season in history and second as members of the Sun Conference.