Marty Lees, center, would show fielders the finer points of each position.
With the news of associate head coach Marty Lees departing the Oregon State baseball team, he leaves a huge void for the program.
A rundown of what he has done for the Beavers by the numbers is in this story in the GT today.
However, his intangibles were huge. Coach Pat Casey trusted Lees and gave him more and more work to do each year.
Being the recruiting coordinator is a major responsibility, as is coaching infielders and catchers. Behind the scenes there was a ton done by Lees.
Casey unofficially named him his coach-in-waiting a while back. Lees knew that, and was ready. So that’s how important Less was to Casey.
However, it’s not the end for the Beavers. The next two recruiting classes are already taking shape. And Casey was out on the recruiting trail last week.
Other assistants Pat Bailey and Nate Leskie have earned Casey’s trust to start taking on Lees’ role. And I’m it won’t be hard to find a quality replacement with all that the Beavers have going on.
Someone at twitter.com/cliffgt suggested former assistant coach Dan Spencer, who left OSU to be the top coach at Texas Tech. His run there just ended.
Spencer left on good terms with Casey, and was a standout coach. If Spencer wants to come back I wouldn’t be surprised to see it happen.
The thing with Casey is he wants to leave the program to someone someday who he trusts and to keep it moving forward. He has put his heart and soul into OSU baseball. So this will be a crucial hire for him.
5 comments
TurnTwo says:
Jun 26, 2012
Cliff, I couldn’t agree more with you observations. Lees was a critical component in the program and he will be difficult to replace. Casey will make a good choice and I hope Spencer is on his short list. My only concern is Yeskie — since he “replaced” Spencer and has had some personal issues in the past, however I hope that is exactly where those issues have been left, in the past. Regardless, Good luck to Lees and I’m glad to see you writing about the baseball program, I wish you had that beat permanently.
Go Beavs!
Bob says:
Jun 26, 2012
This is a tough move to understand, and I’m not talking about baseball. I can’t imagine leaving Corvallis Oregon for anywhere in Oklahoma.
Jim Patterson says:
Jun 26, 2012
It may mean The Pat has let him know he plans on coaching a few more years at OSU than Marty was willing to wait. Plus the other OSU might have something brewing with Pickins
Mike says:
Jun 27, 2012
Better have been a boatload of money because Oklahoma is a nasty place to work and live.
I actually like having Casey out on the road – what a great ambassador for the OSU program, no one better.
However, I fully understand the needs and the rules regarding recruiting and still feel comfortable that Pat and his staff will continue to get the best group we can, every year.
Was Spenecer klet go at Texas Tech ?
Cliff Kirkpatrick says:
Jun 27, 2012
Yes he was fired.