John Casey retired as the head coach of the Tufts University baseball program following the 2021 season, where his teams combined for a 765-341-5 (.689) record over his 38 seasons at the helm.
In their final victory of the 2019 season, Casey earned his 750th career win which advanced Tufts to an NCAA Regional final. With the win, Casey became the 16th active coach and 29th all-time in NCAA Div. III to reach the 750-win mark.
Under Casey’s leadership, the Jumbos qualified for the NCAA Div. III tournament eight times (1995, 2002, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2019).
In 2019, he guided the program to its sixth New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) championship and its third conference title in a four-year span. The 2019 season also marked the program’s fourth straight appearance in the NESCAC championship game and its 12th appearance overall. After taking home the program’s fourth NESCAC Tournament title, his 2016 Jumbos team set a program record for wins, finishing the season with a 35-8 record.
A three-time NESCAC Coach of the Year (2010, 2016, 2017), Casey's teams featured five players who signed professionally and several ABCA/Rawlings All-Americans.
In May 2019, Casey was inducted into the New England Intercollegiate Baseball Association (NEIBA) Hall of Fame, an organization in which he served as President and as a member of the Executive and All-Star Game Committees. Casey was also presented with the NEIBA’s most prestigious honor, the Jack Butterfield Award, in 2000, as well as their Andy Baylock Distinguished Service Award in 2005.
In addition to his ABCA and NEIBA Hall of Fame nods, Casey was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Boston Park League, the oldest amateur baseball league in the country, in 1999.
A 1980 Tufts graduate, Casey helped pitch the Jumbos to consecutive ECAC Division II-III Tournament appearances. Also a tight end on Tufts’ 1979 undefeated football team, he returned to Tufts a year later as a baseball and football assistant. He replaced Lee Sargent as head baseball coach in 1984.
Casey was promoted to Assistant Athletics Director at Tufts in 2001 and later served as Associate Director of Athletics.
Casey has been heavily involved with advancing the sport of baseball overseas as part of the International Sports Groups' (ISG) coaching clinics. He has made trips to Sweden, Curacao and Switzerland in order to provide?instruction to baseball coaches in those countries.
Casey, a Lifetime ABCA Member, served as President of the ABCA in 2016 and was elected Chairman of the ABCA Board of Directors in 2024. He has also served on the organization’s Standing Committee and as Chair of the Coach-Umpire Relations Committee.
