STILLWATER – Oklahoma State third base coach and recruiting coordinator, Marty Lees, has resigned from the program. The voice of Oklahoma State baseball, Rex Holt, was the first to report Lee’s resignation that Pokes Report confirmed through several other sources. There was one report on social media that the resignation was forced, but no credible source has confirmed that.
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Lees congratulates Carson McCusker on a home run against TCU.
Lees returned to the Oklahoma State coaching staff in July 2019 as an assistant coach and recruiting coordinator. He had served on the Cowboys' coaching staff from 2013-15 before spending four seasons as head coach at Washington State University.
During his previous tenure with the Cowboys, Lees helped OSU sign back-to-back recruiting classes in 2013 and 2014 that ranked in the top five nationally. As the primary coach for infielders, he instructed 13 Cowboy infielders who earned All-Big 12 honors, and OSU's fielding percentage improved each season.
There is no doubt that the Oklahoma State season ended in disappointment with a 1-2 record as the number two seed in the Tucson Regional. The Cowboys were beaten both times and eliminated by UC Santa Barbara, the runner-up in the Big West Conference. The Gauchos outscored the Pokes in the two games 27-7, losing 14-4 and 13-3, with a 5-3 win over Grand Canyon in between the two losses. Oklahoma State struggled in just about every facet in those losses. Some have suspected that Lees was made a scapegoat for the poor performance in the NCAA, but the fault was not his alone. Also, the recruiting class coming in for Oklahoma State is strong and Lees has to get some credit for that.
The other aspect of this is it did appear at times, that Lees and some other staff members weren’t always friendly with each other. There appeared to be some divisions within the staff between Lees and others.
Oklahoma State Athletics
Holliday in Arizona.
As for the replacement for Lees, Josh Holliday knows a lot of coaches and there is a strong internal candidate in Roland Fanning. Fanning is back in Stillwater for a second stint after previously serving as OSU's volunteer assistant coach in 2013 and 2014. His current title is Director of Player Development.
A native of Coalgate, Okla., Fanning spent the last three seasons as an assistant coach at Kentucky, where he served as the Wildcats’ recruiting coordinator and helped sign three classes that ranked in the top 20 nationally.
Oklahoma State Athletics
Roland Fanning
During his tenure at UK, Fanning help coach 21 Major League Baseball Draft picks, including 13 from the 2018 team, as well as seven All-Americans and nine All-SEC performers. In 2017 the Wildcats made the first NCAA Super Regional appearance in program history.
After leaving OSU following the Cowboys’ 2014 Big 12 championship and NCAA Super Regional season, Fanning joined the coaching staff at Arkansas-Little Rock and spent two seasons with Trojans, where he helped develop Ryan Scott into an All-American.
During games late in the season Fanning has been standing very close to head coach Josh Holliday and appeared to be involved in some of the game situation decisions.
