Weeks before Oklahoma State’s 2025 season ended, Josh Holliday's plans for the future were stalled.

In front of him sat long-time pitching coach Rob Walton, who had been a catalyst in the Cowboys' late-season turnaround around to sneak into a regional for a 12th-straight year. Walton had abruptly called for a meeting with Holliday. One-on-one. No other members of the coaching staff involved.

The meeting wasn’t regarding personnel, scouting reports or recruiting. Instead, Walton informed Holliday of his impending retirement.

And the OSU coach was left in a frenzy.

So, shortly after OSU’s season concluded in the Athens Regional, Holliday got to work. The ensuing weeks entailed countless hours and endless days of piecing together a list of names. Holliday said he was hyper-selective, yet open to suggestions. He garnered recommendations from a variety of minor league and college coaches. He even consulted with Cincinnati Reds’ director of pitching, Derek Johnson. 

“It was a pretty comprehensive exercise,” Holliday said. “A lot went into it.”

OSU pitching excelled during Walton's 13 seasons. He aided in the development of a plethora of MLB-caliber arms — Thomas Hatch, Justin Wrobleski, Justin Campbell, Brian Holiday and Victor Mederos to name some — and re-established pitching as the central identity within the program. Which made Holliday’s hiring all the more important. And it was a one Holliday said he knew would determine the trajectory of his program.

“There’s a lot of information out there about coaching, but coaching college players and college pitchers vs coaching big league pitchers and then the recruiting process of recruiting elite college pitchers and getting them to campus and then coaching them,” Holliday said. “All of those things play into being a very successful college pitching coach.”

But one name kept resurfacing. 

Blake Hawksworth. The then-Oregon pitching coach.

When the Cowboys (12-4) open Big 12 play this weekend on the road against UCF, Holliday will work alongside a pitching coach not named Walton for the first time in his OSU tenure. Still, Holliday said, he’s confident in his decision. And the production from OSU’s pitching staff thus far has only validated that. 

“When I researched him and then had a chance to talk with him, I felt there was a perfect fit,” Holliday said. “I thought he had a great balanced set of skills and passion to recruit, passion to coach, passion to teach – all the things that I think you need to have to be really effective in today’s college baseball.”

Holliday said time and time again, coaches raved about Hawksworth’s unorthodox, yet down-to-Earth approach with his pitchers. A recommendation from soon-to-be MLB Hall of Famer Matt Holliday, Josh’s brother, also helped. And Hawksworth's West Coast roots were a commodity Josh said he admired. 

Hawksworth’s playing experience in the MLB was a plus for Holliday, too. He appeared in 124 games over three seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers before his retirement in 2014.

So, Josh called Hawksworth in for an interview. He asked simple questions, gauged him in-person and came away captivated.

"It’s fun to hear perspectives, and Blake has got a good track record of just his baseball journey in general,” Holliday said. “He’s learned from some tremendous baseball people, so he’s had that unique experience as a player and as a coach to come across some great thinkers in baseball."

Holliday said from Day 1, Hawksworth dug into watching film of OSU's pitchers and familiarized himself with their techniques and history. He built the relationships in proper fashion, Holliday said, and took the time to understand what made each prospect “tick.”

So far, that has carried over to games.

Four weeks into the season, Hawksworth has already navigated uncertainty. Injuries to key arms have surfaced — namely ace lefty Hudson Barrett, whom Josh has said will miss significant time. All while the Cowboys’ influx of new faces has been time-consuming for Hawksworth to navigate. 

But he has made it work. And so far, he's unlocked the best out of his starting pitchers.

Through 16 games, OSU’s trio of starters — Barrett, sophomore lefty Ethan Lund and veteran righty Mario Pesca — boasts a 2.7 average ERA. Barrett has looked the part of a Power Four ace, emulating his production from two seasons ago when he earned All-American honors as a freshman at UC Santa Barbara. Lund ranks fifth in college baseball with 40 strikeouts and has displayed significant improvement from a season ago.

OSU's relievers have echoed parallel sentiments to the starters when asked about Hawksworth. 

“I love him, he’s been really, really good to me,” Cowboys’ closer Noah Wech said. “He’s obviously been great for the rest of the guys as well. He calls great pitches for us and he works with us very well. He’s a very trustworthy guy, so I love him. He’s been awesome.”

Their battery mates have backed that, too. 

“You can tell how intentional he is with everything,” OSU catcher Campbell Smithwick said. “He’s great with what he does. Obviously he calls great pitches for our guys, and so I’m just happy I get to experience it.”

The early returns have only strengthened Holliday’s conviction. Already, Hawksworth has begun carving out his own identity within a program long defined by Walton’s influence. While the transition inevitably comes with adjustments, new routines and philosophies, Holliday said he believes Hawksworth's blueprint is being established. Most importantly, it's already showing between the lines.

“I think with time, routine has set in,” Holliday said. “Learning about each other, game planning sets in, the pitch calling sets in. So, Blake has done a fantastic job. That comes with time and having time to settle in, and now you’re seeing the results.”

Share this article
The link has been copied!