Dan Spencer gets promotion, replaces Larry Hays

Texas Tech Head Baseball Coach Larry Hays, the winningest coach in school history, announced that he is stepping down as the skipper of the Red Raiders, a position that he has held for the last 22 years.
Dan Spencer, current associate head coach, was named the head coach designate back on April 29 and will be formerly introduced as the eighth head coach in school history once the final details to his contract have been finalized.

Spencer, a native of Vancouver, Wash, played three seasons at Texas Tech (two under Gary Ashby and one under Larry Hays) after transferring from Mesa Junior College in San Diego. During his career he played in 118 games (mostly at third base) and compiled a .251 career average. He completed his degree in history at Portland State in 1990 and went on to coach at Tacoma Community College and Green River Community College.

One year ago, Spencer was one of the most highly touted assistant coaches in the country when he returned to Texas Tech after earning three varsity letters as a Red Raider infielder between 1985 and 1987. Spencer, 41, spent 11 at Oregon State and the last three years as associate head coach where he has served as pitching/catching coach and recruiting coordinator. His pitching staff’s during the back-to-back National Championships at Oregon State were instrumental in helping the Beavers become the first back-to-back College World Series Champions since LSU in the late 1990’s.

During those two seasons his staff’s have compiled 3.41 and 3.48 cumulative ERA’s while leading the team to 50-16 and 49-18 respective records. His group led the Pac-10 in ERA in both 2005 and 2006 while his bullpen helped pave the way to back-to-back national titles by contributing 20-plus saves in both 2006 and 2007.

Under his leadership, the Beavers had three pitchers and one catcher named to All-America teams and seven drafted in the top 10 rounds of the MLB Draft. Eddie Kunz, the ace of the 2007 staff, and catcher Mitch Canhan, the squad’s leading hitter, were both first round draft selections.