| Gary McClure | |
| Birth Date: | 2 July 1964 |
| Birth Place: | Keosauqua, Iowa, U.S. |
| Alma Mater: | Austin Peay, '87 |
| Player Positions: | SS |
| Overall Record: | 847–750–4 |
| Championships: | OVC Regular season: 7 (1994, 1996, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2011, 2012) OVC Tournament: 6 (1996, 2005, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013) |
| Awards: | Inducted into Austin Peay Athletic Hall of Fame (2012) |
| Coaching Records: | Austin Peay All Time Wins Leader (847) Ohio Valley Conference All Time Wins Leader (847) Most Ohio Valley Conference Games Won (363) |
| Player Years1: | 1983–1984 |
| Player Team1: | Southeastern CC (IA) |
| Player Years2: | 1985–1986 |
| Player Team2: | Cumberland |
| Coach Years1: | 1987 |
| Coach Team1: | Austin Peay (asst.) |
| Coach Years2: | 1988–2015 |
| Coach Team2: | Austin Peay |
| Coach Years3: | 2021 |
| Coach Team3: | Burlington Bees |
Gary McClure is a former American college baseball coach, formerly serving as head coach of the Austin Peay Governors baseball program. He was named to that position prior to the 1988 season. With 847 wins, McClure is the winningest coach in Austin Peay baseball history, as well as the winningest coach in Ohio Valley Conference baseball history.[1] [2] [3]
McClure played two years at Southeastern Community College in Iowa before completing his eligibility at Cumberland. He then completed his degree at Austin Peay, and served as a student assistant coach. With the retirement of then-coach Billy Merkel, McClure was hired as head coach just two years removed from his playing days. Under McClure, the Governors won thirteen regular season and tournament OVC titles. They appeared in six NCAA Regionals. McClure has coached six major league players Jamie Walker, George Sherrill, A. J. Ellis, Shawn Kelley, Matt Reynolds, and Ryne Harper. McClure was inducted into the Austin Peay Athletic Hall of Fame in 2012. McClure has been a candidate for several major conference coaching vacancies, most recently at Iowa. He withdrew his name from consideration for the Iowa position in the summer of 2013, electing to remain at Austin Peay.
McClure was hired by the Battle Creek Bombers of the North Woods League in 2016 where his team finished with a record of 40-33 while going 21-16 in the second half. They made the playoffs for only the second time in the team's ten year history. They beat the Madison Mallards in the first round and then lost in the semifinals to the Rapids Rafters, the eventual 2016 champion.
In 2017, McClure was hired by the Kokomo Jackrabbits. In 2019, he was hired as manager of the Milwaukee Milkmen for their inaugural 2019 season in the American Association of Independent Professional Baseball but was not retained for 2020 following the team's 38-62 performance. In 2021 McClure was hired as the Manager by the Burlington Bee's for its inaugural season in the Prospect League a collegiate summer Baseball league in Burlington Iowa.
This table shows McClure's record as a collegiate head coach.[4]