HARRISONBURG, Va. (JMU Athletics) – James Madison Baseball Head Coach Marlin Ikenberry announced the hiring of alum Christian Bourne (’19) as the program’s pitching coach on Thursday, July 23.
Bourne, who made 55 appearances as a pitcher at JMU from 2016-19, spent the last four seasons as the pitching coach at Radford. Before his stint with the Highlanders, he served as the Director of Pitcher Development during the 2021 season with the Dukes.
His time at Radford coincided with one of the more successful stretches in program history, as the Highlanders broke the school record in strikeouts per nine innings in 2024, struck out 400 batters as a staff in consecutive seasons for the first time since 2015, and signed the No. 1 recruiting class in the conference for the first time in school history. Bourne also mentored 2024 MLB eighth-round pick Dylan Howard, the program’s highest selection in the first-year player draft since 2017.
“We are very excited to have Christian as our new pitching coach,” Ikenberry said. “Him and his wife, Lindsay, bleed purple. As an alum, he will provide great leadership for our pitching staff. Additionally, his knowledge within the new era of pitching has played a major role in developing pitchers. Christian was also a part of one of the best pitching staffs in school history.”
Prior to his four seasons at Radford, Bourne spent the 2022 season at Georgia Southern, where he served as the Director of Player Development for an Eagles squad that hosted an NCAA Regional and finished 41-20. Bourne oversaw all aspects of Georgia Southern player development, using technology and innovation to design and research player development models to assist the coaching staff.
During the 2021 season as JMU’s Director of Pitcher Development, Bourne helped three Dukes take home postseason honors from the CAA. Chase DeLauter, who went on to be the 16th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, earned First and Rookie Team nods, and Conor Hartigan and Lliam Grubbs both made it on the Second Team. The Dukes finished second in the CAA in hitting, hitting at a .288 clip with DeLauter earning the batting title with a .386 batting average. Grubbs and Michael Morgan were both named to watch lists for national awards as well.
He embarked on his coaching career after a four-year career at JMU, spending the 2020 spring as an assistant coach at Mount Juliet High School in Nashville, where he guided the pitching staff to a 2.50 ERA.
Bourne, the nephew of former JMU Director of Athletics Jeff Bourne, is a native of Forest, Va.
Christian Bourne Coaching File
• James Madison | Pitching Coach – 2027-pres.
• Radford | Pitching Coach – 2023-26
• Georgia Southern | Director of Player Development – 2022
• James Madison | Director of Pitcher Development – 2021
• Mount Joliet High School | Pitching Coach – 2020
— JMU Athletics —
