Pitching Coach
Dusty Blake is entering his first season as the St. Louis Cardinals pitching coach and his third season with the Cardinals organization. He was named the team's pitching coach on November 6, 2022.
Blake served as the team's pitching strategist in 2021 and 2022 under pitching coach Mike Maddux, working closely with the Major League coaching staff, video scouting team and pitchers.
Before joining the Cardinals in 2021, Blake had spent the previous three seasons (2018-20) as pitching coach for the Duke University Blue Devils, where he handled the team's pitching staff in addition to managing scouting reports.
While at Duke, Blake's pitching staff set a school record in 2020 for consecutive scoreless innings (37) and had the program's first ever perfect game. The 2020 staff led the Atlantic Coast Conference in ERA, fewest walks and best strikeout/walk ratio, while also leading the nation in shutouts. Blue Devils pitcher Bryce Jarvis was the highest drafted (1st round -18th overall) player in Duke baseball history in June of 2020. In 2018 and 2019, the team's pitchers set school records for strikeouts, ranking 14th in the nation in 2019.
Before his stint at Duke, Blake served as Head Coach and Associate Athletic Director at Pfeiffer University (NC) from 2013-17, where he led the NCAA Division II Falcons to back-to-back winning seasons in 2014-15 for the first time since 2003-04. Blake has also coached at USC Upstate (2012), Wofford College (2008-11), Catawba College (2006-07) and in the Coastal Plain League (summer ball). He also served as pitching coach and outfield coach at Pfeiffer (2005).
Blake is a graduate of Appalachian State University where he also pitched for the Mountaineers from 1999-2003. A native of Candor, NC, Blake resides in Durham, NC with his wife, Amy, and daughters, Mia and Macy.