Jeff Cleanthes, head baseball coach at Rhodes was hired in August of 2003 and is currently an assistant athletic director. He split his coaching duties as Director of Athletics from March of 2016 – July 2018. The 2023 season will be his 20th as head baseball coach of the Lynx. He was also an assistant athletic director from June of 2012 – March 2016.
Cleanthes came to Rhodes in 2003 from Keuka College in Keuka Park, NY, where he was the head baseball coach. During his tenure at Rhodes, the baseball program has had great success, including consistently ranking in the top 30 in Division III, winning the Southern Athletic Association title in 2015, 2017 & 2018 and competing in the NCAA tournament in 2014, 2015, 2017 & 2108.
Not only has he maintained tremendous relationships with alumni and parents of the players, Cleanthes has also initiated four major fundraising efforts. The first one in 2008 to add a grand stand, press box, new dugouts, warning track, and bullpens to the baseball complex. The 2011 campaign was to renovate storage space into a locker room and baseball offices behind the first base dugout. In 2015 the baseball program finally raised the funds for the indoor facility that houses 3 batting cages along with 2 indoor bullpens. The fall of 2017 saw the addition of the turf infield. All in all Cleanthes has raised roughly 3.5 million dollars to improve the entire baseball complex. The facility is now one of the finest in Division III. In 2008, Cleanthes received Rhodes’ Outstanding Administrator Award and was described as a mentor who inspires students to participate fully in all that they do. “It’s his ability to put the players first—staying at the office or on the field from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m. because he knows a player needs his advice or assistance,” wrote one nominator. “His greatest asset is his concern for the welfare of each player.” Cleanthes holds a MBA in professional accounting from Rutgers University and a bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from Drew University. He served as chair of the South Region NCAA Division III Baseball Committee from 2010 to 2014 and served as SAA Chair for the baseball council from 2009 – 2021.
The 2020 Campaign was short but memorable. The Lynx ended the short season 16-4, ranked 10th in the country before it was cut short. The .800 winning percentage set a new high for Lynx Baseball.
In 2019 the Lynx played in the SAA championship series for the 6th straight year, falling to Birmingham Southern. Jacob Telli became the first Rhodes player to earn the SAA player of the year award.
The 2018 Rhodes Baseball team enjoyed it’s most successful season as they finished the year 32-16, ranked 16th in the country. They defended their SAA championship winning the conference for the 2nd year in a row and 3rd in the past 4 years. This was the 5th season in row that Rhodes was playing in the SAA championship series, winning 3 of the 5 championships. The baseball program had its best run in the NCAA tournament, knocking of the 13th, 7th and #1 team in the nation before falling to the eventual NCAA champion in Regional finals, 1 win shy of making it to the championship round of 8. Once again, Center fielder Paul Giacomazzi earned Gold Glove status from the American Baseball Coaches Association for the second year in a row, one of only nine players in NCAA Division III to garner the award. The baseball team earned a 3.32 team GPA, earning the ABCA Team Academic Excellence Award for the third straight year and 31 players were selected Academic All-SAA. Rhodes achieved eight All-SAA recipients, three All-South region nod, one d3baseball.com All-American in utility player Nick Bosma.
2017 was an exciting season as well as the baseball program was playing in the winner’s bracket of the West regional where it lost 10-8 to Cal Lutheran who also ended up as the NCAA champion when the season was over. To cap off a great season, Jackson Lourie was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 24th round. Lourie is the first draft pick in the history of Rhodes College. In 2016, Rhodes returned to the SAA Championship Game for the third time in the last four seasons, falling just short to Birmingham-Southern. Cleanthes coaches shortstop Bill Munson, who went on to earn All-American honors from both D3baseball.com and the ABCA. The Lynx begin the season with their highest preseason ranking in school history at No. 7.
Under the helm of Cleanthes, the 2015 Rhodes baseball team posted a 33-13 record and finished third in the regular season in the SAA with a 14-6 Record in conference play. The Lynx were ranked as high as No. 6 during the season in both the D3Baseball.com poll and the American Baseball Coaches Association poll. Rhodes finished the season with the highest post-season ranking in school history, ending the season ranked No. 11. Rhodes also topped the national statistical category of earned run average, with a team 2.48 ERA Over the last seventeen seasons the baseball program has posted a 454-270 record (.627 winning percentage). Rhodes baseball was revitalized in 2006 when they finished 28-15, with a 15 game improvement from the previous year and led the nation with the biggest improvement in Division III from 2005 to 2006. During Coach Cleanthes’ tenure the baseball program has had great success in all areas. Coach Cleanthes has coached four Verizon Academic All Americans, four ABCA All Americans, 36 ABCA All South Region players and 48 – First-Team All SAA/SCAC players. In his 20 seasons he has coached two SCAC pitchers of the year as Robert Flanagan won the award in back to back seasons and Nick Ferazzi in 2021. He has had 1 player of the year, Jacob Telli in 2019. At Keuka, the program turned around quickly. The baseball program was in its early stages. There were 12 players on the roster and the most games they won in a season were six. By his third season, they set records in almost all categories including wins each of his three seasons. He was named as the 2002 North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) Coach of the Year, and led Keuka to a 2003 Regular season NEAC Championship. Prior to his time at Keuka College, Cleanthes served as an associate head coach and recruiting coordinator at Belmont Abbey College in Belmont, North Carolina. Cleanthes helped to establish the Crusaders as a nationally recognized Division II program that captured its first NCAA tournament bid in school history. The Crusaders finished at the bottom of the league for the previous eight seasons prior to the addition of Cleanthes. In his first season with the Abbey, Cleanthes served as the recruiting coordinator and was responsible for signing 37 student athletes. This class ended up winning back to back CVAC titles in 2000 and 2001. In 2000 the team posted a 39-17 record and participated in the NCAA Division II tournament. Two of his recruits went on to play professional baseball after graduating from Belmont Abbey. Previous to his stint at Belmont Abbey, Cleanthes served as the head baseball coach at Somers High School in Somers, New York, where his teams compiled an overall 49-27 record and captured two league championships. He also serves as Camp Director of the "Rhodes Triple Play Summer Baseball Camp." Cleanthes also served the NCAA for four years, 2009 - 2013 as the chair of the South Region Division III Baseball Committee. A 1989 graduate of Drew University in Madison, New Jersey, Cleanthes was a two-sport standout in baseball and soccer, and was a First-Team Mid Atlantic Conference selection as well as an NCAA All-Region outfielder in 1989 under the recently retired coach, Vince Masco.
Cleanthes earned a M.B.A. in Accounting from Rutgers University in 1992.
He, his wife Kait and their little girl Juniper along with their 2 dogs, Mo and Dex reside 500 feet from campus.
