LSU Baseball Hires S&C Coach

BATON ROUGE, La. – Chris Martin, the Houston Astros Minor League Strength and Conditioning Coordinator since November 2023, has been hired as the LSU Baseball Strength and Conditioning Coach, head coach Jay Johnson announced on Wednesday.

Martin, a native of Mason, Ohio, has spent the past six seasons in various roles in the Astros organization, most recently as Minor League Strength and Conditioning Coordinator. His work has been distinguished by a strong passion for developing players and maximizing their on-field performance.

“I am really excited to add Chris Martin as our LSU Baseball Strength Coach,” Johnson said. “Chris is exactly what we need here at LSU as we continue to develop future Major League players and championship teams in the weight room. Chris stands out in many ways, blending intelligence, a top-shelf work ethic, and he is elite at developing strength programs for players at the highest possible level.

“The Astros are one of the most progressive organizations in MLB regarding player development, and we are excited to tap into that by bringing Chris to Baton Rouge. Chris being our new strength coach is outstanding for our current and future players’ development.”

In his role with the Astros, Martin oversaw all aspects of strength and conditioning for the Minor League players, including the Dominican Republic Academy. Ten Astros players in 2024 made their Major League debuts during Martin’s tenure.

Martin worked for two-and-a-half years as the Astros Rehab Strength & Conditioning Coordinator, overseeing the training for injured players in the organization. He was part of a team that redesigned Houston’s return-to-play protocols, including a new-look return to throw program for post-surgical players.

Martin was tasked with return-to-play for players all throughout the organization, from the Major League roster to the Dominican Republic Academy players.

Martin also served with the Astros as a Minor League Strength and Conditioning Coach (2019-2021) and Strength & Conditioning apprentice, beginning in June 2019 at Houston’s Spring Training Complex in West Palm Beach, Fla.

In the summer of 2018, Martin completed an internship at the renowned baseball training center, Cressey Sports Performance, in Hudson, Mass.

Martin earned his M.S. (2019) and B.S. (2018) in Exercise Physiology at Kent State University. He pitched for five seasons at Kent State, and he was a part of two MAC regular- season championship teams and a MAC Tournament championship in 2018.

**LSU Press Release