Matt Rein enters his fourth season as an assistant coach at Radford and his second campaign under head coach Karl Kuhn. Rein serves as the Highlanders' pitching coach.
“After knowing and competing against Radford and Matt’s pitching staffs over the last two years, retaining Matt was an easy decision,” Kuhn said. “His pitching staffs worked quick, threw strikes and always competed at the highest level. One of the best compliments you can give another coach is that you didn’t like facing their team or their pitching staff. That is the way I felt about Matt’s pitching staffs at Radford. Matt is organized, highly motivated and is dedicated to making our pitchers the best they can be as well as attaining all their goals at Radford and beyond.”
The 2020 season saw Rein's staff post a 5.05 ERA, which was nearly a full run better than the start of the 2019 season. Staff ace Brandon Donovan had a career-best season on the mound, ranking fourth in the Big South in strikeouts while decreasing his ERA by more than a full run. Ryan Bywaters also continued his progression, lowering his ERA to 2.29, the best among Radford's starting pitchers. The Highlander bullpen also showed signs of improvement, with Bruce Hudson leading the conference with four saves while lowering his ERA to 2.16. Hudson also limited opponents to just a .115 batting average. Austin Gerber also put together a career-best season with a 1.98 ERA, while opponents hit just .196 off him.
Rein lowered the staff ERA to a 4.69 in 2019, his second season on the staff. The staff tallied a 2.5:1 walk ratio. The pitching staff led Radford to its first 30-win season since 2015. Andrew Nardi and Zack Ridgely ranked inside the Big South’s top 10 in ERA for 2019. Nardi was fourth with a 3.60, while Ridgely was 10th with a 3.86. The duo also ended the year inside the top 10 in walks and earned runs allowed per game. Cameron Fritz had the eighth most wins of any Big South pitcher with a 6-2 record.
Rein led Radford’s pitching staff to a 4.84 ERA in 2018, ranking fifth in the Big South. The Highlander staff turned in a 4.75 ERA in conference action, while limiting Big South foes to a .247 clip. Radford was extremely hard on left-handed bats, holding opposing southpaws to a .239 batting average.
After leading the conference in wins, Austin Ross was named to the All-Big South First Team after finishing the 2018 campaign with a 9-4 record, ranking 30th nationally in wins. Ross struck out 69 in 68.2 innings, walking only 22 batters. Leading the squad with a 3.54 ERA, opposing teams only hit .233 off Ross.
Rein comes to Radford after serving as the pitching coach at Coker (S.C.) for the past two seasons. In his second season with the Cobras, Rein's staff turned in a 5.54 ERA with two pitchers earning all-conference honors.
In his first season working with the Coker pitching staff, Rein helped guide the Cobras to a 28-20 overall record, a 12-12 mark in South Atlantic Conference play and a trip to the South Atlantic Conference tournament. The Cobras saw the benefits of Rein as the staff lowered its team ERA from 8.00 to 5.59 in his first season.
Rein arrived at Coker after a two-year stint at Longwood, where he guided a Lancer pitching staff that posted a 5.45 ERA with 440 strikeouts in 2015.
Prior to coaching at Longwood, Rein spent time in the St. Louis Cardinals minor league system as a member of the Johnson City Cardinals and Batavia Muckdogs. He made 15 appearances on the mound in 2011 for Johnson City, compiling a 2-1 record with a 3.60 ERA. He hurled 26 strikeouts in 20 innings pitched, while allowing 23 hits for a .284 average.
Rein also spent a summer pitching for the Lake Erie Crushers of the Frontier League. He made 20 appearances, including 18 starts, throwing 121.1 innings with a 2.36 ERA.
No stranger to the Big South, Rein was a four-year standout at Coastal Carolina. In 2011, he was named an American Baseball Coaches' Association (ABCA) All-American after earning Big South Pitcher of the Year accolades. He was also a two-time All-Big South First Team selection, totaling 21 career wins with a 2.99 career ERA for the Chanticleers.
A native of Houston, Texas, he received his bachelor's degree from Coastal Carolina in May 2013.
