Oklahoma State Baseball Legend Announces Retirement

One of the most iconic figures in Oklahoma State baseball history is calling it a career after this season.

On Monday, OSU pitching coach Rob Walton announced that he will be retiring at the end of the season. Walton was a pitcher for the Cowboys during his college days and has been the Cowboys’ pitching coach since 2013.

"We still have games to play this season and we're going to finish the right way," Walton said. "The game has given me so much, and I'll be forever grateful for the people and the experiences that it has brought into my life."

Walton was a standout pitcher for the Cowboys in the 1980s and helped OSU to multiple College World Series appearances. After playing in Stillwater, he played a few years professionally before beginning his long coaching career.

Walton led Oral Roberts to nine straight NCAA Tournament appearances from 2004-12 before joining Josh Holliday’s staff at his alma mater. As an assistant and pitching coach, Walton has done wonders for the Cowboy program.

"Rob and I have been side by side since day one," Holliday said. "What an amazing ride it has been the past 13 seasons working together at our alma mater with the players and staff to put Cowboy Baseball back among the very best. Rob's passion for Oklahoma State - both as a hall of fame player in the 1980s and his contributions as a coach the past 13 years - make him one of the most significant figures in our rich baseball history."

Walton was inducted into the OSU Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018 and will forever be known as one of the most important figures in the program’s history. While he has had plenty of success outside of Stillwater as Team USA head coach, Summit League Coach of the Year and much more, his legacy began and will now end at OSU.

"We have had some of the best pitching staffs in the country during Rob's time and the individual development alongside the team success that our pitchers experienced was simply fantastic." Holliday said. "He will forever be celebrated inside these walls and I'm going to miss him dearly. What a competitor, teacher, and friend. His family is also a huge part of ours. We can't thank Rob and Michelle, Davis, Donovan and Cassie enough for coming to Stillwater and making this home!"