Monte Lee to be new Clemson baseball coach, source says

The wait for a new Clemson baseball coach is over.

A source told the Independent Mail on Tuesday that College of Charleston coach Monte Lee has agreed to become the next Clemson baseball coach.

Lee and athletics director Dan Radakovich met Tuesday afternoon to work toward finalizing a deal that will make Lee the third Clemson coach since 1957, the source says. Lee is set to replace Jack Leggett, who was fired June 4.

Clemson has not made the hiring official, and terms of a deal have not been released, but the source says an announcement is expected in the next couple of days.

According to the initial source, athletics director Dan Radakovich continued interviews through Monday, including a five-hour meeting with Washington Nationals assistant coach Matthew LeCroy, a former Tiger.

According to multiple reports, he also interviewed Maryland’s John Szefc, Virginia assistant Kevin McMullan, Clemson alum and Boston Red Sox organization manager Billy McMillon and current assistant Bradley LeCroy for the position.

Lee, whose record with the Cougars is 276-145, has plenty of ties within the state. He played at Charleston before working as an assistant at Spartanburg Methodist College. Lee went on to spend six seasons as an assistant under former South Carolina coach and current athletics director Ray Tanner before landing the head coaching job at his alma mater in 2009.

The Cougars are coming off their second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance, where they were eliminated in the Tallahassee Regional by Florida State a year after reaching the Super Regionals.

Leggett was let go June 4 after a Clemson career that lasted 22 years. Radakovich determined it was time to “change direction” with the program after the Tigers hit a “plateau.”

Leggett took Clemson to 21 NCAA tournaments and six College World Series appearances. He won 955 games and never had a losing season, but the Tigers won 68 games the past two seasons and had consecutive 0-2 NCAA regional finishes.

This story was originally published June 16, 2015 at 3:14 PM.