Previewing MIT Baseball in Coach Morris’s first year
Morris returns to MIT with championship conviction, eying the program’s first conference title since 2019
After a late-season run to the NEWMAC Championship game last year, MIT Baseball is turning a new page following longtime head coach Andy Barlow’s retirement after 22 years at the helm. Barlow departs as the winningest baseball coach in school history, notching a 421–321–3 record after nearly a quarter century with the team. Now, the reins pass to Chris Morris, the 7th head coach of MIT Baseball.
Morris comes to MIT with 12 years of collegiate coaching experience. He was most recently the head baseball coach at his alma mater, Husson University, for the past six seasons. At Husson, Morris led the Eagles to five consecutive North Atlantic Conference (NAC) Championships and five consecutive NCAA Regional appearances. Under his tenure, the program had a 125–77 record, including a dominant 74–11 record in conference play. Before his head coaching job at Husson, Morris was an assistant at Brandeis (2018), MIT (2015–2018), and Husson (2014–2015).
What to expect from Coach Morris
Coach Morris returns to MIT with championship conviction, eying the program’s first conference title since 2019. “The standard here is always going to be to win a NEWMAC title,” he asserted.
To bridge his ambition to results, Coach Morris prioritizes fundamentals and a growth-oriented mindset. He views a championship as something that is accomplished through consistent effort. “It’s what we’re doing in the weight room. It’s what we’re doing in the offseason. It’s our long, late nights in Rockwell,” Morris said. “[Winning] is always going to be our standard and our goal.”
Central to this vision is player development. “I want us to develop the correct way… to play the game the correct way. I want us to compete at a high level every day we step on the field,” Morris said.
To get to where they need to be, Morris’s expectations for his roster are simple: “Show up [on] the field every day, play hard, [and] compete to their best ability.” When they do that, he said, “good things happen.”
Drawing from his experience playing “a lot of really high-level baseball,” Coach Morris aims to maintain the high caliber and intensity of play established under Coach Barlow while also integrating his unique nuances when approaching the game.
Coach Morris on this season’s schedule
The Engineers have a challenging season of 34 games ahead of them, with Coach Morris facing many familiar faces from his past. MIT takes on Husson in a double header on March 21, and travels to Endicott on Apr. 1 and 23, facing the team that knocked Husson out of the NCAA Regionals in 2024.
When asked about facing his alma mater in his first year as MIT’s head coach, Morris finds the matter a bit funny. Although Husson was “always on the schedule,” Morris explained, he recounted a fun story. “Two years ago we came down here and scrimmaged in February with Coach [Barlow],” he said. “Right then, I was like, ‘Coach, we gotta get on the schedule,’ not knowing he was going to retire and we were going to switch seats.”
Despite the matchup against his former program, Coach Morris’s focus is drawn more to his in-conference NEWMAC games. “There’s just so many good baseball programs [in the conference],” he noted. “I’m really excited about every one of those matchups because we have to play our best baseball every one of those games.” Even with a handful of new coaches in the NEWMAC, specifically at Springfield and Emerson, the competition remains strong. “We’re going to play a lot of great baseball teams with some great coaching staff,” Morris said. “I think it’s going to be really, really challenging, [but] that’s what our guys want.”
MIT is projected to finish 4th in the NEWMAC according to a pre-season coaches poll.
On the lack of a home field
MIT’s baseball field, Fran O’Brien Field, is currently undergoing renovations to convert the natural grass to a turf playing surface. Announced via a Housing and Residential Services email to students on Nov. 10, 2025, the field is projected to be unavailable until early April, essentially closing it for the duration of the season.
Because of this, the Engineers will play all of their games away from campus. Their designated home games will be played at various other venues in the Boston area, including Austin Preparatory School in Reading, UMass Lowell in Lowell, and Boston College, in Brighton.
When asked about the challenges of having zero true home games this season, Coach Morris emphasizes the opportunity it presents to the team. “[MIT students] love being challenged academically,” he said. “Well, this is another challenge that we have to solve, and we like solving things at this school.”
Morris explained that the team has put together a thorough plan to ensure that they’re still succeeding in baseball and getting the reps and practice they need. “It is going to be much different than having your own home field, and the luxuries of being to walk 100 yards and be at your field,” he stated, “[but] we’re not going to shy away from that.”
Despite having to travel for all of their games, Morris sees a silver lining. Getting away from campus will help students “separate a little bit” from their work and “lock in a little bit more” as they approach high-stake games and conference matchups.
Even with the lack of a home field, Morris says that MIT’s mission does not change. “We’re gonna go win a NEWMAC title,” he said. “It’s just going to be done [in] a lot of different places.”