By Alex Stoev (@alexstoevsjsu) – Spear Reporter | Sanfilippo with all smiles in SJSU’s win against Grand Canyon University on May 1. (Photo by Alex Stoev – Spear Reporter)
When head coach Brad Sanfilippo took over San Jose State baseball in 2018, the program was searching for stability. Nine seasons later, he turned the team into a championship-caliber team.
Straight out of college, Sanfilippo seized the opportunity to begin his coaching career, and he did not miss a beat.
The sacrifice paid off, as in 2023 he led SJSU to its first-ever Mountain West championship after defeating the Air Force Falcons.
The love for the game began during Sanfilippo’s youth, when he played in the Los Gatos Little League as a shortstop.
He went on to play at Los Gatos High School, De Anza College for one year, and UC Davis for three years.
Once his playing days were over, he decided it was time to go into coaching to leave a bigger mark on the sport.
“There were some coaches that had a really large impact on my life,” Sanfilippo said. “And I felt like I could add on, and the further I started going, I felt like I wanted to continue to pursue this as a career.”
Sanfilippo speaking with an umpire during SJSU’s game vs Grand Canyon on May 1. (Photo by Alex Stoev – Spear Photographer)
After graduating from Los Gatos High School in 1993, Sanfilippo decided to return home and begin his coaching career there, becoming an assistant coach from 1999 to 2001.
“I felt pretty lucky because the places I’ve been able to coach have kind of meant something to me personally,” Sanfilippo said. “To have an impact on the community that I grew up in felt special to me.”
After a brief time away, Sanfilippo came back to Los Gatos again, this time as a head coach, and helped bring home the school’s only two Central Coast Section (CCS) championships in 2006 and 2009.
“It’s a high school with a rich athletic tradition,” Sanfilippo said. “So to be able to go back there and have good players and coaches and be able to help the program to a couple historic championships was certainly meaningful for me.”
From 2010 to 2012, Sanfilippo took on a volunteer assistant job at the University of California, Berkeley. He helped lead the Golden Bears to the College World Series in 2011.
Then, after a stint as the SJSU assistant, he went back to Berkeley from 2015 to 2017 to serve as an assistant.
During his time at Berkeley, Sanfilippo coached 21 players into the major leagues, such as free-agent outfielder Mark Canha and New York Mets shortstop Marcus Semien.
It meant everything to Sanfilippo to be able to coach so many players to the majors.
“It was an important step in my career to be around players that are that talented,” Sanfilippo said. “To be around such a high level of baseball when I was at Cal was impactful for me, and seeing how a major league baseball player works and what they are about were some important experiences for me.”
He continues to send his players to the minors and the majors, like former Spartan first baseman Ruben Ibarra.
Former second baseman Charles McAdoo on May 28, 2026, became the newest Spartan who played under Sanfilippo to be called up to the majors, joining the Toronto Blue Jays during the 2026 season.
Current Spartans senior pitcher Jesse Gutierrez, one of the longest-tenured Spartans, praised Sanfilippo’s coaching and has taken advantage of the opportunities he was given.
“He’s left a pretty big impact,” Gutierrez said. “He’s believed in me for all four years. Even freshman year, he gave me the ball and he trusted me, and honestly that trust goes a long way.”
Throughout his years, Gutierrez learned valuable lessons from Sanfilippo.
“Just to do the little things right,” Sanfilippo said. “Everything else will kind of align. Like if we do the little things right, then we’ll do the big things right.”
During the second half of the 2025 season, Gutierrez sat out due to recovery from Tommy John surgery, and Sanfilippo was with him every step of the way.
“He was always there for me,” Gutierrez said. “Even just coming back in games right now, he’s very cautious with me. He was very careful with me, and I just really appreciate all that.”
Sanfilippo and the rest of the team overlooking the teams performance during their game against UConn on March 22. (Photo by Alex Stoev – Spear Photographer)
Sanfilippo not only leaves an impact on his players, but on his coaching staff as well, such as assistant head coach Thomas Walker.
“The initial thought in the beginning is that I was 25 years old as a junior college coach, and he really gave me a chance and believed in me,” Walker said. “Ultimately, I look back at the past and going into year six now, I would say he’s arguably the most influential person in my coaching career.”
Walker, who started with the team in 2019, was coaching summer baseball in Rochester, Minnesota, when he got a phone call from Sanfilippo wanting him to fly out and join his staff.
“I would drop everything and answer the phone anytime he called during that summer,” Walker said. “We talked for a while and he finally said, ‘Why don’t you fly out?’ Then we did the interview in the field house. I was super nervous, but now here we are.”
After 2024, Walker left the program to join Long Beach State but quickly decided to leave. He felt like it was the wrong choice, and Sanfilippo would bring him back.
“There were some personal struggles when I was down in Long Beach, and he was there for me throughout that whole process,” Walker said. “Once summer hit, I quit over there and we slowly worked back through the process of coming back.”
Even through times that could be poor for Sanfilippo, he always brings positive energy to his team so they can continue fighting like no other.
“Hopefully my guys realize that at the end of the day, I am just trying to motivate them to be their best,” Sanfilippo said. “As best as I can, I try to show up with a positive attitude and smile and bring energy for our guys even when things are not going well.”
The positive attitude isn’t just towards the players; it’s also toward the coaches.
“I think having that relationship, that freedom to be yourself all the time is a real reason why this staff has stuck together, and that’s why I came back and wanted to work with Brad again,” Walker said.
Sanfilippo isn’t just any coach; he’s a stepping stone that players take to get into the major leagues.
Throughout his career, nothing was given to him; it was fought for with all the blood, sweat and tears a man can have when leading his team all the way to the top.
Even though he has won championships and sent players to the majors, Sanfilippo’s career reflects more than just that.
It reflects on the type of person he is, the kind of heart he has and the type of coach he has become.
