Hundreds of Pirate Baseball fans and former players attended a memorial service at Southwestern University for legendary baseball coach Jim Mallon on Saturday, March 3, who passed away February 26, following complications from heart surgery. 

In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made to Southwestern University for The Baseball Locker Room Campaign and/or The Coach Jim Mallon Endowed Fund. Visit www.southwestern.edu/makeagift and write the name of the project you would like to give to in the “Designation” line. Donations may also be made to The Blood & Tissue Center of Central Texas.

Jim Mallon was one of the most successful coaches in Southwestern’s history during his tenure as Head Coach of the Pirate Men’s Baseball Team. Mallon earned a B.S. degree (1969) and a M.S. degree (1970) from Baylor University and then, after a five-year stint with the San Francisco Giants organization, Mallon began his collegiate coaching career in 1971 at Southwestern. At the time of his retirement in 2004 he had amassed a record of 1,197 wins against only 601 losses for a winning percentage of .666.  Mallon ended his coaching career ranked third all-time in wins for both the NCAA and the NAIA. His teams won multiple championships.  1984 was one of the high points of his career with his team finishing third at the NAIA World Series.  After Southwestern’s transition to NCAA Division III, Mallon’s teams won five SCAC Championships and advanced to seven NCAA Regional Championships.  He was named NAIA District Coach of the Year on five occasions and SCAC Coach of the Year four times. From 1994 to 1999 he had players earn NCAA Division III National Statistical Champion honors six times.  Eighteen of Mallon’s players advanced to compete in professional baseball with four reaching the major league level. Twenty-four players earned All-America or Academic All-America honors. Mallon was inducted into the NAIA Hall of Fame in 1992 and the Southwestern University Hall of Fame in 2010.

Coach Mallon is survived by his wife Jane, sons Jeff and Jarret, and other family members plus a multitude of friends throughout Texas.  In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made to Southwestern University for The Coach Jim Mallon Endowed Fund and/or The Baseball Locker Room Campaign. To do so, visit http://southwestern.edu/makeagift and write the name of the project you would like to give to in the “Designation” line. Donations may also be made to The Blood & Tissue Center of Central Texas.