What new San Diego State baseball coach Kevin Vance said at his introductory news conference

San Diego native Kevin Vance was introduced Wednesday as the new baseball coach at San Diego State, where he will lead the Aztecs at Tony Gwynn Stadium.

Vance starred at Torrey Pines High School before playing at UConn. He spent six years in the minor leagues and then began a coaching career that included serving as pitching coach for the last two seasons at Arizona, which reached this year’s College World Series.

The Aztecs need a turnaround after two losing seasons under Shaun Cole, whose contract wasn’t renewed.

“I’m excited to carry on the legacy of Tony Gwynn, my real childhood idol,” Vance said. “I have two autographs in my house and he’s one of them and I’ve had it forever and I cherish that. … This is really a dream come true for me. I’ve had a lot of really good coaches that have helped me get here.”

Gwynn was a two-sport star at SDSU and was drafted by the San Diego Padres and San Diego Clippers on the same day in 1981. He signed with the Padres and his 20-year big league career led him to the Hall of Fame. He was the head coach at his alma mater from 2003 until his death in 2014.

The Aztecs have reached the NCAA regionals 14 times but have never advanced to the super regionals, which is surprising given the amount of prep talent in the area.

Here’s what Vance and athletic director John David Wicker said at the news conference:

Vance on his connection to the community

“I grew up going to games here. I played in the CIF championship game here in high school. We lost, I made an error in left field in the first inning, so I still think about that all the time. It’s just great to be here and get back to my roots that I think run really deep here. I always wish I could have come here and played here. I ventured off and took a different path to get here, but I’m super grateful to be a part of this and understand that it is bigger than just me.”

Vance on alums Stephen Strasburg, Tony Gwynn Jr. and Bud Black being part of the search process

“Those guys were awesome to talk to and see what this thing’s all about and see what their vision is. They’re fired up to keep this thing going. … There’s a lot of people who care about this program and I understand that and the history of it.”

Vance on his vision for the program

“My vision is big. I’ve got big dreams for this. We need to be competing for championships every year. One of my goals — it's going to take time and we’ve got to put in the work — but I want to host regionals at Tony Gwynn Stadium. I think that’s very doable with what we have and what we can do.”

Vance on the immediate needs

“The No. 1 priority is going to be retaining the guys that are on the roster now and making sure they know what they’re getting and they’re going to get better here and are bought in to what we’re doing. The current roster, there’s a ton of talent on it, so that’s No. 1. The transfer portal is real and we will use that for sure to fill in the cracks, essentially. But we want to build from within and keep the guys we have now.”

Wicker on Vance’s San Diego roots

“He knows the area, he knows the community, he’s familiar with Southern California.”

Wicker on the search process

“There was a ton of excitement around our program and people were referring to it as a sleeping giant, a program that can achieve so much. We do have a lot of history in this program, but consistent history is something that we’re excited to move forward to.”