USF Athletic Hall of Fame
An elite defensive catcher with power and speed, Hemond earned All-America honors and is the highest Major League Baseball Draft selection in program history, being selected 12th overall in the 1986 Draft by the Oakland Athletics.
A Baseball America Freshman All-American in 1984 and Third Team All-America selection in 1986, Hemond is one of two USF baseball players (USF Hall of Famer Ross Gload) to earn first-team all-conference honors three times, doing so in the Sun Belt Conference in 1984, 1985 and 1986. His No. 11 jersey was retired by USF and is displayed on the Bulls’ stadium outfield wall.
He was named the 1986 USF Male Athlete of the Year after he hit .335 with nine home runs and 55 RBI while posting a .984 fielding percentage with 54 assists at catcher, which made him a Golden Spikes Award finalist (college baseball’s “Heisman Trophy”). He had a 15-game stretch in which he picked off five runners at third base, two more at first, and threw out 11 opponents trying to steal. He finished his career with 29 home runs (seventh all-time) and 169 RBI (seventh all-time) after posting 14 home runs and 68 RBI in 1985 and six home runs, 46 RBI, and a .326 average as a freshman in 1984.
Hemond, who played with USA Baseball in 1985, helped lead the Bulls to a 131-67 record (33-19 in Sun Belt play) over his career while USF won conference regular season and tournament titles in 1986 and earned an NCAA Atlantic Regional berth. The 1986 Bulls posted a program-best record of 52-16 and earned its highest national ranking at the time.
He had a seven-year MLB career, playing with the A’s, White Sox and Cardinals and at every position but pitcher and shortstop, while logging12 home runs and 58 RBI n 298 games. He was named to the Cape Cod League Hall of Fame in 2007 after winning the Cape MVP and battling title (.358) in 1986, joining catchers Thurman Munson and Jason Varitek in accomplishing the feat.
Hemond was inducted into the USF Athletic Hall of Fame in the Class of 2025.
