Shortly after 1 p.m., Monday May 12, 2008, Carlos James accepted an offer to become to 10th head baseball coach at the University of Arkansas at Monticello.

With his hire, James becomes the first African-American head coach for UAM at any sport, as well as the first in the Gulf South Conference for baseball.

"Baseball is such a great game," said James after his hire. "It really means a lot to me to be able to share it with young, talented minds... It will take a while to get where we need to be here at UAM, but I feel there is already a positive connection."

James just completed his first full season as UAM's skipper with an overall record of 9-38-1 and a 2-16 mark against GSC-West division opponents.

In 2008, he completed the season as interim head coach as the team went 0-37, only 14 of those losses coming under James' watch.

Prior to the 2009 season, James revamped the UAM baseball program with changes to Weevils Field, new uniforms and a new-look roster.

Only two starters from 2008 returned in 2009, while James brought in a host of experienced junior transfers and a talented cast of incoming freshmen.

"This conference is so tough and produces powerhouses consistently, so it didn't take long to find an example on how to build a winning program," said James. "Right now, I need experience and leadership to guide this program."

James guided UAM to its first win since late in the 2007 season, when the Weevils defeated Central Oklahoma 6-3 in extra innings in the first week of the 2009 season.

UAM then won three of the next seven games, including a win over Montevallo and two wins over Jarvis Christian, all at home.

A week later, James led the Weevils to one of the biggest upsets in recent program history, defeating the then ranked No. 16 North Alabama Lions at home 4-3.

Later in the season, James' Weevils had their way with West Alabama, a perennial winner, defeating the Tigers 9-3 at home.

James later led UAM to a win over Ouachita Baptist, 2008's national runner-up, and ended the season with a win over Henderson State to knock the Reddies out of post-season competition.

Prior to joining the UAM staff, James was the manager of the Arkansas Prospects of Little Rock and the APAK Scout Team of Memphis, traveling baseball squads that showcase prospects to college coaches and minor league scouts. He was also an associate scout with the Seattle Mariners organization.

James served as an assistant head coach at UA-Pine Bluff from 2000-04 and head coach of the Pine Bluff Senior Babe Ruth team in 2004-05.

The Oakland Athletics drafted James out of Pine Bluff High School in 1990. He played two seasons at Seminole Junior College where his teams played in the NJCAA World Series in 1991 and again in 1992. After being drafted by the Oakland A's again, he transferred and played two seasons for the Arkansas Razorbacks followed by two seasons with the now-defunct Pine Bluff Locomotives in the independent Big South League in 1995-96.
 

Carlos James

Office:
(870) 460-1701

E-Mail:
jamesc@uamont.edu

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