Mark Martinez became a head coach at a later age than most, but he’s wasted no time in making his mark on the San Diego State baseball program.

Martinez, 56, has guided the Aztecs to three Mountain West tournament championships in his four seasons as head coach, something no other conference coach achieved so quickly. He reached 100 career victories quicker than any other SDSU coach and has a 143-103 (.581) record to show through four seasons.

SDSU is the only Division I team with five conference tournament titles in the last six years. The Aztecs and Cal State Fullerton are the only two California schools to reach the NCAA Tournament five of the past six years, an accomplishment shared by just 16 other teams across the nation.

In addition, the Aztecs have led the Mountain West in earned-run average each of the past two seasons and are one of only nine teams in the nation to bat over .300 two straight years.


For these and other accomplishments, Martinez was recognized Tuesday with a contract extension that will take him through the 2023 season.

“Obviously, there’s been a lot of success,” said John David Wicker, SDSU’s director of athletics. “They’re building a program. I’ve said all along that continuity is key, so we wanted to reward Mark for the work he’s done and keep him around for awhile. … You look at our most successful programs and there’s continuity in the coaching staff.“

Added Wicker: “He’s made a commitment to the student-athlete and not just what they’re learning in the classroom. They’ve (Martinez and his staff) done a lot of helping young men grow up to be great adults. I appreciate what he’s done in the community and really taking advantage in helping young men grow up to be great adults.”

SDSU’s most recent conference championship came in May, when the Aztecs won three straight games to take the title in the event they hosted at Tony Gwynn Stadium. The Aztecs finished the season with a 39-21 record. Their 185 wins over the past five years are more than any other Division I program in California.


“We have a commitment to winning and a commitment to winning Mountain West championships,” Martinez said. “Hopefully, we’ll continue to grow the program into national prominence. I’m excited to be able to continue the recent consistency of winning championships and developing student-athletes that we’ve established.”

Martinez joined the SDSU baseball program in 2006 as an assistant coach, become executive head coach thereafter and was promoted to head coach after Tony Gwynn died in 2014.

Martinez is the fifth head coach in the 83-year history of the Aztecs baseball program, following Charlie Smith (1936-64), Lyle Olsen (1965-71), Jim Dietz (1972-2002) and Gwynn (2003-14).


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kirk.kenney@sduniontribune.com / on Twitter: @sdutkirKDKenney