LOGAN, Utah – Utah State softball head coach Todd Judge announced the addition of Jared McDonald to the team's coaching staff, who will join the Aggies as an assistant coach. Additionally, Shelby Thompson, who spent 2025 on staff as an assistant coach, has been elevated to the team's pitching coach.
 
McDonald joins the Aggies following a decorated baseball playing career at both the college and professional levels, followed by a four-year stint as the coordinator of baseball/softball operations at the Illinois Bone & Joint Institute.
 
As a player, McDonald played two seasons of college ball for Pima CC in Tucson, Arizona, then one season at Arizona State. At Pima, he earned first-team All-American, all-region and all-conference honors in 2008, and was a recipient of the Rawlings Big Stick Award after hitting .467 with 16 doubles, five triples, 11 home runs and 41 RBIs in 53 games. He was selected in the 40th round by the Chicago Cubs in the 2008 Major League Baseball draft, before transferring to Arizona State for his junior year. 
 
At ASU, McDonald helped lead the Sun Devils to a third-place finish at the College World Series in 2009 as the team finished with a 51-14 overall record. McDonald played in 58 games as the team's starting shortstop, and was drafted in the 21st round of the MLB draft following the year by the Chicago White Sox. 
 
McDonald played from 2009-11 in the White Sox minor league system at the single-A level, before spending eight years in independent leagues for seven different teams. With the Rockland Boulders in 2016, he set the all-time minor league record for consecutive games on-base with 75.
 
Following his playing career, McDonald completed his bachelor's degree in technological entrepreneurship & management at Arizona State University, and was named the coordinator of baseball/softball operations at the Illinois Bone & Joint Institute, where he was responsible for staffing, player evaluation, development and programming. He also worked as an account executive for the Van Wagner Sports & Entertainment Group in Chicago from 2022-23, dealing with corporate sponsorships and sales. 
 
For more information on the Utah State softball program, follow the Aggies on Twitter at @USUSoftball, on Facebook at USUSoftball and on Instagram at ususoftball.
 
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