Washington State University Baseball

Nathan Choate begins his third year as the Washington State Head Baseball Coach after being named the 18 th head baseball coach in program history June 23, 2...

Austin Ames begins his third season as the Cougars Director of Baseball Operations after being hired by Nathan Choate in July, 2023. Last season, WSU took three of four from Big Ten Conference opponent Iowa and swept San Diego State at Bailey-Brayton Field. The series-opening win over Iowa played in Texas was career win No. 100 for Choate. A pair of Cougars earned All-Mountain West Conference honors including second-team catcher Will Cresswell who became WSU’s first all-league catcher since 2021 and was later drafted in the 18th round by the Toronto Blue Jays, the first Cougar catcher drafted since 2015. In the classroom, WSU posted a 3.35 team GPA en route to earning an ABCA Team Academic Excellence Award for the second straight season under Choate. Five players earned CSC Academic All-District honors, 12 were named MWC Scholar-Athletes and 21 were named to the Academic All-MWC Team. The 2025 season also saw the fan experience at Bailey-Brayton Field improve with the addition of new backstop netting along with the addition of beer and wine sales throughout the ballpark. In his first season, WSU won the Round Rock Classic title, swept Arizona State for the second time in program history, recorded its first win at UCLA since 2014 and first win at Stanford since 2016. Three players earned All-Pac-12 honors led by ace righthander Grant Taylor who finished the season with 99 strikeouts, the seventh-most in WSU single-season history. In the classroom, the Cougars earned ABCA Acade

Washington State Baseball named Dan Bower an assistant coach, Head Coach Nathan Choate announced July 18. Bower begins his first season in Pullman and will c...

Eric Hutting begins his third season as the Cougars Assistant Coach and second as the hitting coach while working with the catchers. Hutting was hired by Nathan Choate in June, 2023. Last season, in his first season as the hitting coach Hutting saw the Cougars improved their batting average by 20 points along with a higher scoring average and on-base percentage while the defense led the Mountain West Conference in runners caught stealing. A pair of hitters earned All-Mountain West Conference honor including second-team catcher Will Cresswell who became WSU’s first all-league catcher since 2021 and was later drafted in the 18th round by the Toronto Blue Jays, the first Cougar catcher drafted since 2015. In 2024, WSU won the Round Rock Classic title after posting wins over No. 24 Kentucky and Kansas in Texas while four players were named to the All-Tournament Team led by first baseman Joey Kramer who was named the Round Rock Classic MVP. The Cougars swept Arizona State for the second time in program history, recorded their first win at UCLA since 2014 and first win at Stanford since 2016. The Cougar defense turned the second-most double plays (50) in the Pac-12 Conference and posted a .976 fielding percentage, the third-best mark in program history. Following the season, three players earned All-Pac-12 honors. Hutting came to WSU after working the prior two seasons with Choate at Loyola Marymount as an assistant coach, working with the catchers and assisting with the LMU hitter

Hayden Driggs begins his first season as the Cougars’ Director of Player Development after joining Nathan Choate’s coaching staff in June of 2025. Driggs completed his playing career at Saint Mary’s last June, helping the Gaels to a West Coast Conference Championship and a trip the NCAA Tournament. The former catcher appeared in 68 games with 18 starts, scored 12 runs, homered twice and drove in 14 runs over his three seasons at SMC. Driggs closed his career with a home run against eight-ranked Oregon State in the 2025 NCAA Tournament. The Madera, Calif. native earned his bachelor’s and master's degrees in accounting from Saint Mary’s College in June of 2025.

Jace Puckett is in his fourth season working as the Baseball Athletic Trainer at Washington State after working the prior two years as an assistant athletic trainer at the University of Kansas where he covered baseball and women’s soccer. Prior to Kansas, Puckett worked as an athletic training student at the University of Nevada with the football and baseball programs (2019-20) and at the University of Memphis with the baseball program (2019). Puckett worked three years (2016-18) as the pitching coach at Feather River College in California. Puckett earned his bachelor’s degree in kinesiology from California State University, Chico in 2015 and his master’s degree in athletic training from the University of Idaho in 2020. Puckett owns certifications in American Red Cross AED/CPR and Mental Health First Aid, and is a member of the National Athletic Trainers Association.

Jake Needham was named the Washington State Baseball Strength and Conditioning Coach, head coach Nathan Choate announced January 10. Needham joined the Cougars after working the past three seasons in the Minnesota Twins organization as a Minor League Strength and Conditioning Coach. Needham has programed, planned and administered weightlifting and condition programs for the Twins' High-A and Double-A affiliates while also assisting with the hydration and recovery programs. Prior to joining the Twins organization, Needham spent two seasons as a Graduate Assistant Strength and Conditioning Coach at Midwestern State University working with the softball and golf programs while also assisting with the soccer, track and field, cross country and football teams. Needham has also worked as a strength and conditioning intern at Nebraska (2021) and Colorado State (2020). Needham played collegiate baseball at Northeastern Junior College in Colorado before earning his bachelor's degree in health and exercise science at Colorado State in 2020 and his master's degree in exercise physiology at Midwestern State University in 2022. Needham is certified as a strength and conditioning specialist, as a functional strength coach, and in CPR/AED.

Former Cougar infielder Tommy Richards begins his second season as an assistant coach after joining Nathan Choate’s coaching staff in June of 2024. Richards was promoted to the Cougars' recruiting coordinator and infield coach in June, 2025. In 2025, Richards coached the outfielders and baserunners in his first season as the Cougars’ assistant coach and helped WSU finish fourth in the Mountain West Conference in stolen bases (42) while outfielder Logan Johnstone earned All-MWC first-team honors. Richards has served as the head coach at Bushnell University (NAIA) for the past three seasons after the school started the baseball program in 2022. The Beacons increased their win total each season under Richards, capped by 29-win 2024 campaign that saw Bushnell win the Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament Championship and earn the program’s first NAIA National Tournament appearance in school history. In 2024, Richards saw his Bushnell club post a 29-win season while three players earned All-Cascade Collegiate Conference including two who received Gold Gloves as well. Six Beacons hit over .300, three players hit double-digit home runs and as a team, Bushnell was third in the conference with a .289 team batting average and second with 57 home runs. Following the season, Richards was named the Cascade Collegiate Conference Coach of Character given to the Coach who represents the core values of the NAIA – Respect, Responsibility, Integrity, Sportsmanship and Servant Leadership. Ric