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Huskers to Retire Jerseys of Erstad, Gordon, and Komine

By Kaleb Henry Feb 8, 2023 | 11:31 AM
Jordyn Senstock/Nebraska Communications

Three of the greatest baseball players to ever wear a Huskers uniform are set to have their numbers retired.

The Nebraska Athletics Department announced Wednesday that Darin Erstad, Alex Gordon, and Shane Komine will have their jerseys retired in a ceremony ahead of the Illinois series on Friday, March 24. The trio is the first to receive the honor in the 117-year history of the program.

“It is fitting that Darin Erstad, Shane Komine and Alex Gordon are the first Husker baseball players to be honored with a retired jersey,” said Nebraska Vice Chancellor, Director of Athletics Trev Alberts. “Each of them left a lasting legacy of excellence and helped elevate Nebraska baseball to new heights.

“Darin, Shane, and Alex are members of our Athletics Hall of Fame and have been great ambassadors for Nebraska, and we look forward to honoring them this spring.”

Erstad was Nebraska’s first conference player of the year and a finalist for the national player-of-the-year award. In his three seasons as a Husker, he racked up a school-record 61 hits while finishing second all-time in doubles (46), third in home runs (41) and RBI (182), and fifth in runs scored (188). He was selected No. 1 in the 1995 MLB Draft before enjoying a 14-year career that included him becoming the first player in MLB history to win Gold Glove awards at multiple positions.

Erstad was also the starting punter on the 1994 national championship football team. He returned to Nebraska as a volunteer coach in 2011 then led the program from 2012 to 2019.

Gordon earned freshman All-America honors in 2003 before being named first-team All-American in both 2004 and 2005, with the latter season seeing him as the consensus national player of the year. He was also the Big 12 Player of the Year twice and helped Nebraska to the program’s first victory at the College World Series.

Gordon was selected No. 2 in the 2005 MLB Draft by the Royals, an organization that he would stay with through the entirety of his 14-year career in the Majors. He earned eight Gold Glove awards for his play in left field, adding three All-Star selections.

Komine rewrote the record book at NU as one of the top pitchers in NCAA history. In his 68 career appearances, he posted a 41-8 record with a 2.84 ERA. Komine completed his career with the all-time school records for wins, innings, starts, complete games, strikeouts, and shutouts. He was named All-American three times, twice on the first team.

Komine helped lead Nebraska to the first two College World Series appearances in 2000 and 2001. He was selected in the ninth round of the 2002 MLB Draft and played two seasons for the Athletics.