Arkansas State baseball head coach Mike Silva announced the addition of former Texas State assistant coach Jerry Cervantez to the Red Wolves’ staff on July 2, 2024. Cervantez serves as the catchers and outfielders coach for Arkansas State.
In his first season on Silva’s staff in 2025, Cervantez helped guide Arkansas State to one of the most improved overall performances in the Sun Belt Conference. The Red Wolves posted 26 victories, their most since 2019, and returned to the Sun Belt Conference Tournament for the first time since 2021 after being picked last in the league’s preseason poll. A-State finished the regular season with its best Sun Belt winning percentage since 2014, earned the No. 8 seed in the conference tournament and improved its NCAA RPI by 74 spots.
Working closely with the Red Wolves’ catchers and outfielders, Cervantez played a key role in Arkansas State ranking among the top three teams in the Sun Belt in several defensive categories, including ERA (4.44), shutouts (4), WHIP (1.36) and double plays (44), while also defeating multiple nationally ranked opponents and winning its most conference series since 2017. He also worked closely with Kaden Amundson, who ranked seventh among Sun Belt Conference catchers with a .995 fielding percentage during the 2025 season.
Cervantez arrived in Jonesboro after spending six seasons at Texas State, where he served as the hitting and catching coach and played an important role in the Bobcats’ 2019 Sun Belt Conference championship and 2022 Sun Belt West Division title.
During his tenure in San Marcos, Texas State established a new school record for home runs in 2022 (87) and nearly matched that total in 2023 (83). Cervantez helped guide the program to its first regional finals appearance in school history and coached Dalton Shuffield to All-American and Sun Belt Player of the Year honors.
“I am excited to be joining Coach Silva’s staff at Arkansas State,” said Cervantez. “Mike is one of the best in the business and I’m honored he has put his trust in me. I look forward to embracing the culture as we compete for Sun Belt Championships and prepare our student-athletes for excellence in life.”
Cervantez worked as an assistant coach at Clarendon College from 2013-15, overseeing hitting and recruiting in addition to strength and conditioning responsibilities. He became the pitching and catching coach at Western Texas College ahead of the 2016 season, where his staff led the conference in earned run average during the 2017 and 2018 seasons.
“We are pleased to have Jerry join our staff for the upcoming season,” Silva said after Cervantez's hiring. “He has worked and grinded through all levels of college baseball over the years and is very deserving of this opportunity. Our players are going to benefit daily from his attention to detail and passion for player development!”
He began his coaching career as an assistant at New Mexico Junior College in 2010 and took the same position at Clarendon College one year later before being elevated to head coach ahead of the 2012 campaign. The Bulldogs ranked inside the top 10 nationally in the NJCAA in team batting average and appeared in the Region V Tournament in both seasons.
