Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes -- West Virginia Black Bears manager Jedd Gyorko greets outfielder Eli Hammill, right, after hitting a home run against the Scrappers Sunday at Eastwood Field.

Last Saturday night, Gyorko was at Eastwood Field in Niles guiding the West Virginia Black Bears as they battled the Mahoning Valley Scrappers.

Gyorko, a Morgantown, WV native who went on to have a stellar career as a Mountaineer, was named manager of the Black Bears in April. Gyorko’s move from MLB player to MLB Draft League manager came as a surprise to many, given the fact that he is just 32 years old. Many baseball insiders believed teams would look to sign Gyorko as a free agent.

“The idea of coaching was always something that intrigued me, it was always in the back of my mind,” Gyorko said. “I didn’t know that it would happen this quickly, but when the opportunity came up, it was too good to pass up.”

“I’m coaching in my hometown. I got a chance to stay in the game, get a taste of coaching and spend the summer at home. It was a perfect scenario.”

Gyorko played three years at WVU, where he started in 168 games and left the program as the all-time leader in batting average (.404), extra-base hits (113) and home runs (35). He is second in WVU history in runs scored (207), RBIs (178) and doubles (73).

The San Diego Padres drafted Gyorko in the second round in 2010. During his rookie year in 2013, he played in 125 games with the Padres, hitting .249 with 23 home runs and 63 RBIs. He went on to play with the Cardinals, Dodgers and Brewers during his major league career.

The former player turned manager, owns a lifetime batting average of .245 with 121 home runs and 370 RBIs while playing in 846 games.

“As a player I would always sit back and watch my managers, try to observe how they do things,” Gyorko said. “The thing is, until you’re in this position you don’t realize how much goes into being a manager. It’s way more than just going out and managing a game. That’s just a very small part of the job.”

“That’s especially true at this level, when you’re also trying to develop players. These kids are still very much learning the game. They are just now getting a feel for what professional ball might be like.”

Given his age, Gyorko believes he can offer a unique perspective to players who are experiencing the rigors of playing on a daily basis for the first time.

“What they are going through now, it’s still fresh in my mind,” Gyorko said. “This is a lot different from college in that it’s baseball every day, all day. The daily grind from the time you get to the ballpark until game time can be intense. Then throw in the road trips and such and it can be mentally grueling.”

Gyorko believes the MLB Draft League — designed to give players an opportunity to showcase their skills ahead of the draft — is serving its purpose.

“There are a lot of scouts in the stands, this is definitely giving players added exposure that wouldn’t otherwise be there,” Gyorko said. “So far, the league has been well-organized, things have gone very smoothly.”

Gyorko says he is “thoroughly enjoying” his introduction to coaching. That said, he isn’t willing to totally rule out a return as a player.

“If you would have told me a year ago that I’d be doing this I wouldn’t have believed it, so I’ll be the first to acknowledge that anything is possible,” Gyorko said.

The Black Bears return to Eastwood Field today after going 1-1-1 during their last trip to Mahoning Valley. The two teams tied last Saturday, 7-7, after the Scrappers took game one of the series. The Black Bears battled back on Sunday with a 9-7 win as left fielder Grant Hussey went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and a home run. West Virginia hit three home runs in total.

The Scrappers were led by Bobby Sparling and Hayden Jones, who both recorded doubles and knocked in two runs apiece. Sparling also walked twice.

The two teams kick off their three game set tonight at Eastwood Field at 7:05 p.m.