Wednesday news and notes
Published 3:02 pm Wednesday, June 3, 2015
PULLMAN — Exactly a week after announcing the firing of baseball coach Donnie Marbut, Washington State hired his replacement today in Marty Lees.
Lees, who spent the past three seasons as Oklahoma State’s top assistant coach and recruiting coordinator, held those same positions at Oregon State from 2002-2012 and was instrumental in building the teams that won back-to-back College World Series in 2006 and 2007.
Now he gets his first crack at running his own program on the Palouse.
“Marty brings a proven championship mentality to Cougar baseball,” WSU athletic director Bill Moos said in a press release announcing the hiring. “He played a significant role in building successful programs at both Oregon State an Oklahoma State, with whom we share many similarities. I am tremendously impressed with his reputation as a tireless worker, especially in recruiting. His solid reputation, along with his down home upbringing and family values make him the perfect fit.”
Lees recruited three consecutive top-five recruiting classes to Stillwater while at Oklahoma State, and though it remains to be seen whether he, or any coach for that matter, can consistently recruit elite athletes to Pullman, it’s a good sign for Cougar fans.
Initially I was a little surprised when Marbut was fired, given the relative success he enjoyed while at WSU given how tough it is to win in the Pac-12. But given this hire, especially coming so quickly after Marbut’s firing, I understand that it had to be done.
Without having coached a game, Marty Lees is an upgrade over Donnie Marbut given his track record at programs superior to WSU.
UW’s Bremer, SU’s Skubal honored
Washington and Seattle University each placed pitchers on Collegiate Baseball’s Freshman All-America team, which was announced Wednesday.
The Huskies’ Noah Bremer, a right-hander from Berkeley, Calif. and the Redhawks’ Tarik Skubal, a lefty from Kingman, Ariz. were honored.
Bremer went 6-3 with a 2.41 earned run average in his first season in Seattle, and that ERA placed him seventh in the Pac-12 and tops among freshmen. A season highlight was an 18.1-inning scoreless streak that saw him retire the first 19 batters in a March 1 game against North Dakota. Bremer then carried a no-hitter into the seventh inning against Pepperdine in his next start.
UW finished the season 29-25 overall, and its 14-16 conference record placed it seventh in the Pac-12.
Skubal finished his first collegiate campaign 7-4 with a 3.24 earned run average. As the Redhawks’ Sunday starter, he led the staff with the seven victories, and struck out 68 while walking just 27 in 83.1 innings of work.
Seattle advanced to the championship round of the WAC Tournament, and came within a win of reaching the NCAA Tournament.
