Vance Law, former major league all-star and dual-sport Cougar athlete, enters his 10th year at the helm of the baseball program after compiling an eight-year record of 287-239-2 (.546).
Law guided BYU to win a second consecutive Mountain West Conference Tournament title by upsetting league champion San Diego State in 2002.
That upset in Provo led the Cougars to another NCAA Tournament berth where they eliminated No. 15 Cal State Northridge and were knocked out by USC in the 12th inning.
In the 2001 season, he was named MWC Coach of the Year after leading BYU to the title as well as upsets at No. 15 Cal-Fullerton and No. 30 Oral Roberts. In his first year, Law?s Cougars swept then No. 19 Arizona in a two-game series and they upset then No. 2 Alabama in Tuscaloosa ending a 15-game Crimson Tide home winning streak
Before coming to BYU, Law was the head baseball coach at Provo High School, where he compiled a 64-55 (.538) record in five seasons. In 1997, he led the Bulldogs to the state title (18-9 record) and was named 4A Coach of the Year. He previously had served for two seasons as an assistant coach at Utah Valley State College in 1993-94.
The infielder/outfielder played 14 years of professional baseball, including 10 on the major league level with a career .257 batting average. He started out as a 39th round draft pick and worked his way up with the Pittsburgh Pirates (1978-81), Chicago White Sox (1982-84), Montreal Expos (1985-87), Chicago Cubs (1988-89), and Oakland Athletics (1991). He also played in 1990 for the Chunichi Dragons in Nagoya, Japan.
In 1988, the third baseman was one of six Cubs named to the National League All-Star team in the game played at Cincinnati. He was selected the Most Valuable Cub by the Baseball Writers Association and also received the Ken Hubbs Memorial Award. He was also elected National League Player Representative in the Player?s Association, which was involved in negotiations with team owners.
For the past nine years, he has served as a resource player for the major league rookie training.
The Provo High graduate was a three-time All-Western Athletic Conference shortstop at BYU, where he played from 1974-78. He was also a starting guard with the BYU basketball team, where he lettered three seasons (1975-77). He was All-WAC Academic in both baseball and basketball.
Sports Illustrated selected him 19th on its list of Utah?s 50 greatest athletes of the century.
Vance is the third son of Vernon Law, former Cy Young Award pitcher in 1960 with the Pittsburgh Pirates, when he also was named to the all-star team. Vernon, who is married to VaNita McGuire and they have six children, spent 11 years as an assistant coach at BYU from 1969-79.
Vance is married to the former Sharon Metten also of Provo, and they have five children: Tim, (a former first baseman for the Cougars for three years); Andrew and Adam, both infielders at BYU; and two daughters.
Statistics:
VANCE LAW'S MAJOR LEAGUE STATISTICS Year G AB R H 2B 3B HRRBI Avg. 1980 25 74 11 17 2 2 0 3 .230 1981 30 67 1 9 0 1 0 3 .134 1982 114 359 40 101 20 1 5 54 .281 1983 145 408 55 99 21 5 4 42 .243 1984 151 481 60 121 18 2 17 59 .252 1985 147 519 75 138 30 6 10 52 .266 1986 112 360 37 81 17 2 5 44 .225 1987 133 436 52 119 27 1 12 56 .273 1988 151 556 73 163 29 2 11 78 .293 1989 130 408 38 96 22 3 7 42 .235 1990 122 457 69 143 24 1 29 78 .313 1991 74 134 11 28 7 1 0 9 .209 Total 1334 4279 522 1115 217 27 100 520 .261 COACH LAW AT BYU Year W L T 2000 29 29 0 3rd in MWC 2001 38 22 0 1st in MWC 2002 31 31 1 3rd in MWC 2003 30 24 0 2ndT in MWC 2004 28 30 0 4th in MWC 2005 39 19 1 2nd in MWC 2006 33 28 0 2nd in MWC 2007 37 20 0 2nd in MWC 2008 22 36 0 4th in MWC COACH LAW AT PROVO HIGH SCHOOL Year W L 1999 11 13 1998 6 14 1997 18 9 State Champions 1996 16 9 1995 13 10 Total 64 55 (.538) COLLEGE COACHES WHO PLAYED IN THE MAJORS Active Coach, College Team Major League Team Jerry Augustine, Wis.-Milwaukee Brewers Scott Bradley, Princeton Mariners Wayne Graham, Rice Mets, Phillies Tony Gwynn, San Diego State Padres Vance Law, BYU Pirates, Chisox, Cubs, Expos, A's Terry Puhl, Houston-Victoria Astros, Royals Steve Rodriguez, Pepperdine Jays, A's, Pirates, Padres, M's John Stuper, Yale Cardinal, Reds Ed Sprague, Pacific Jays, A's, Pirates, Padres, M's Robbie Wine, Penn State Astros
