MORGANTOWN — Jedd Gyorko takes a left turn each morning on his way to work.
It’s a left onto 2040 Gyorko Drive, the street named in his honor that leads to WVU’s Kendrick Family Ballpark.
“I guess I don’t really think about that too often,” the former major league slugger said. “I certainly appreciate it. It’s obviously pretty cool.”
The former WVU baseball star, who spent eight years in the majors with San Diego, St. Louis, the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee, is back home with the Mountaineers now.
He was hired last month as a special assistant to WVU head coach Steve Sabins, with a press release stating Gyorko would, “aid in player development, alumni relations, and fundraising.”
“I’m not much of a fundraiser, but I am trying to get my name out there to different people in the community and around the state,” he said. “The college landscape is completely different now than when I was in college, so I am working at that.
“For the most part, I’ve just been talking with the coaches and players and I just try to be there for them with whatever advice I can give.”
There is no cushy corner office for Gyorko inside the stadium, well, maybe there is but it’s likely you wouldn’t find him in it.
“Honestly, you’d probably find me on a couch in one of the other coaches’ office,” Gyorko said. “I’m a low-maintenance guy. I don’t need much. I like it more just walking around and talking with everyone else and getting to know everyone.”
The first thing to know is Gyorko does not see this job as the first step to climbing up the coaching ladder.
“Honestly, I can tell you right now is I’ve gotten to know the coaching staff and I’ve seen what they’re capable of,” Gyorko said. “They would be just fine without me. I was very happy that coach Sabins was open to me coming back in his first season. I was welcomed with open arms. It was a cool door that was opened.”
Gyorko has already done the coaching thing as the former manager of the West Virginia Black Bears. He led the Black Bears to the 2022 MLB Draft League championship, before he resigned.
“I enjoyed being with the Black Bears,” Gyorko said. “My wife and I had just had our fourth child, our second daughter. I felt it was the right time to get out of coaching then.
“That was nearly three years ago. The timing for this move now just felt right.”
He’s been there for WVU’s fall practices and scrimmages and likes a lot of what he sees, as the Mountaineers try to build off the momentum of last season’s appearance in a NCAA super regional.
On catcher Logan Sauve: “He definitely shows a lot of leadership,” Gyorko said. “When he talks, his teammates listen. That’s a good trait to have.”
On utility man Sam White: “He is the best true hitter on the team,” Gyorko said. “It seems like he’s always catching the ball right on the barrel.
“He can also play just about anywhere. There’s really not a spot on the field where I’d feel uncomfortable with him playing.”
The last thing with Gyorko is his jump shot. He used to have a wicked one back in the day.
While baseball was always his first love, Gyorko’s presence on high-school basketball courts was also well known.
“It’s been so long, I don’t know if I still have it or not,” he said.
The last time Gyorko got to show off his form was all those years ago when he was an up-and-comer with the San Diego Padres.
“At spring training, there was a hoop outside of the facility,” Gyorko said. “We used to have 3-point shooting contests all the time. I’m not going to say where I finished. Let’s just say I was near the top.”
