Wylie East names Joe Castleman as second baseball coach in school history

Wylie East’s baseball program stayed in familiar hands when Wylie Independent School District named Joe Castleman the new head coach, replacing Heath Andrews after years of building the Raiders into a district contender. Andrews was the first head baseball coach in Wylie East history, so Castleman became only the second person ever to lead the program.

The hire carried extra weight because Castleman has spent more than a decade at Wylie East as a math teacher and coach. He already knows the campus, the athletes and the families who follow Raiders baseball closely in Wylie and across Collin County. Wylie ISD also noted that Castleman lives in the community with his family and has two children enrolled in district schools, a tie that underscores how closely the program is woven into local life.

Castleman’s background gives him a clear connection to the college game that many high school players hope to reach. He graduated from Texas State University with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics, played at Grayson College and was part of the 2008 NJCAA Division I national championship team, then continued his career at the University of New Mexico. For Wylie East players looking beyond the spring schedule, that path gives the new coach credibility in both academics and athletics.

He inherits a program with a strong recent record and a clear standard. Texas Highschool Baseball listed Andrews with 17 years as head coach and 341 career wins, while MaxPreps shows the Raiders went 35-4 in 2015-16 and finished 22-12 in 2022-23. MaxPreps’ 2025-26 staff page already listed Castleman on the baseball staff before the promotion, another sign that the transition was taking shape inside the program rather than arriving from outside.

The move also comes at a meaningful point in Wylie East’s history. The campus opened in the 2007-08 school year and began with only ninth graders. It added 10th grade in 2009 and 11th grade in 2010, then graduated its first senior class in 2012. In a school that is still relatively young, baseball has become one of the programs that helps define the campus identity.

Wylie East’s district page on Texas Highschool Baseball placed the Raiders among the top teams in District 9-6A in 2025, signaling that Castleman takes over a group that is still competing at a high level. For Wylie East, the hire is not a reset. It is a handoff, from the coach who built the foundation to a familiar face who knows the school, the community and the expectations that come with it.