Dave Griffin enters his 12th season as the head coach of the Purdue Northwest baseball team in 2025.
Griffin finished his first season with the Pride after winning the most games in a season in his career, capping off a 30-18 season with a 20-7 record in the final year in the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference. He saw a pair of players earn CCAC first-team honors, as pitcher Matt Sandoval and outfielder Larry Crisler received the accolades.
In his second season, the Peregrines catapulted from their inaugural campaign in 2014 to 23 victories in 2015, finishing the year 23-16 overall. The season was kickstarted by an amazing eight-game winning streak to open the year, which included a perfect 7-0 performance on the team’s spring trip to Florida at the Russ Mat Invitational. That same season, four Peregrines received postseason awards, as Cody Dykema led the way with First Team all-CCAC honors.
Griffin completed his third season at the helm for the Purdue Calumet program in 2016, where he led the Peregrines to their second-straight Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament as one of the top eight teams in a competitive league. The Peregrines didn’t disappoint there, taking top-seeded Olivet Nazarene all the way to the 11th inning in what would become a tough 11-8 loss.
The 2015 campaign was a complete turnaround from the Peregrines' inaugural season in 2014, when Purdue Calumet finished 5-24 overall but capped the year with a two big, momentum-building wins over Illinos Tech.
In the 2021 season, he helped coach 2021 GLIAC Pitcher of the Year and All-American Chad Patrick. That summer, Patrick was select in the 4th Round of the 2021 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks. Patrick is currently a pitcher for the Milwaukee Brewers and earned his first career win in the MLB in April 2025 against the Cincinatti Reds.
In 2022, Griffin guided the Pride to an incredible run in the GLIAC Baseball Tournament winning three games and making it the Championship game where Purdue Northwest ultimately fell to Davenport.
Prior to arriving in Hammond, Griffin established himself as one of the top coaches in the state of Indiana during his six-year stretch at Bishop Noll Institute. He led the Warriors to a 22-11 season in 2004, capped off by just the second state title in program history and IHSAA Coach of the Year honors. Griffin returned to the 2A championship game in 2006, after guiding the team to a 21-11 mark.
He has spent the past 22 years as the director of the David Griffin Baseball School, a developmental program that has seen 450 players receive college scholarships and 33 individuals drafted into major league farm systems. At the year-round baseball school, he has worked with youth, collegiate and professional players in all aspects of fundamentals.
Griffin has also served as the head coach of the Indiana Playmakers elite travel team since 1998, helping guide the squad to numerous championships in the Midwest. During his time with the Indiana Playmakers, 72 players have earned a collegiate scholarship and eight were drafted.
The Dolton, Ill., native played professionally for nine seasons with the Atlanta Braves, Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees organizations. Drafted by the Braves in the 16th round in 1982, Griffin spent most of his career playing at the Double-A and Triple-A levels in the Atlanta farm system. His best season came in 1988 as a member of the Richmond Braves (AAA), when he was named the HOWE’S Sports Player of the Year, the TOPP’s Player of the Month for August while also playing in the International League All-Star Game.
Griffin was a NAIA First Team All-America first baseman at Texas Wesleyan University, where he still holds the school’s single-season records for home runs (25), slugging percentage (.856) and total bases (178). Prior to his time at TWU, he was a standout for Illinois State and South Suburban, while also playing during the summer of 1980 in the Cape Cod League.
A resident of St. John, Griffin and his wife, Michelle, have three children, David, Ashleigh and Allison.
