Oklahoma City University Baseball Camps

Coaching Staff

Keith Lytle | Head Coach

Keith Lytle has been recognized as one of the top hitting instructors in the nation during his 31-year tenure as Oklahoma City University assistant baseball coach.

With Lytle's aid, OCU has posted the most wins in the nation since 1991 (1,433), 12 consecutive 50-win seasons, 13 Sooner Athletic Conference titles and 14 trips to the NAIA World Series. The Stars were national runner-up three years in a row before breaking through to win the national championship in 2005. OCU set the single-season victory record in 2004 with 73.

His pupils have included seven national players of the year – Mario Delgado, Nick Klusaw, Ted Ledbetter, Allen Thompson, Kirk Walker, Brent Weaver and Miguel Beltran – and 86 all-Americans. Freddy Sanchez, the 2006 National League batting champion, blossomed under his tutelage and led the San Francisco Giants to the 2010 World Series championship. Lytle has coached 144 future professionals, including 71 taken in the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft, with OCU.

Lytle joined OCU the same year Denney Crabaugh was named head coach in 1989. Crabaugh has consistently recognized Lytle as a key factor in the success of the Stars baseball program, which has gone 1,499-460-2 during that time. OCU has set the team national record for homers four times and consistently been ranked among the national leaders in most hitting categories.

Lytle became the first OCU Athletic Hall of Famer who spent his time at the university as an assistant coach his entire tenure, and entered the NAIA Hall of Fame, another honor rare for an assistant coach. In 2003, he was named the AFLAC national assistant coach of the year, and in 2018, he was honored as the inaugural NAIA assistant coach of the year by the American Baseball Coaches Association.

From 1988-95, Lytle coached in the Shenandoah Valley League. He led the Harrisonburg Turks (Va.) to the league championship in 1991.

Lytle has experience coaching at the Triple-A level with the Texas Rangers organization. Lytle served three years as assistant hitting and first base coach with the Oklahoma City RedHawks. Lytle coached Nelson Cruz when he won Pacific Coast League most valuable player in 2008. In 1990-91, Lytle worked as a bullpen coach for the Oklahoma City 89ers.

Prior to coming to OCU in 1989, Lytle served as an associate coach at New Mexico State. Before that, he was a pitcher and first basemen for the Aggies. He graduated from New Mexico State with a bachelor's degree in education in 1986.

Lytle is married (Jane) with one son (Joe Jackson). Joe Lytle has played professionally, most recently with the Windy City ThunderBolts (Ill.) of the Frontier League.