"I feel privileged and honored to follow a coaching legend in Larry Hays," Spencer said in the release. "I will treat the entire program and this university with the utmost respect and honor."

"Dan is a phenomenal coach and recruiter and he will be a perfect fit for this program," Hays said in a statement. "I thought that it was very important that we establish some continuity here so that our players and future players will know that this staff will still be in place when I decide to retire.

"Dan has a great love for this university and his passion for this community and the Red Raiders is very real."

"We have one of the finest young assistant coaches in the country who is currently serving our program in that capacity now, "said Director of Athletics Gerald Myers. "I am pleased to announce that Dan Spencer has been named the designate head coach of Texas Tech Baseball upon Coach Hays' retirement. Coach Spencer is widely recognized as one of the top assistant and pitching coaches in college baseball. He was vital in developing the pitching staffs at Oregon State where he served as the head recruiter and helped lead the Beavers to two NCAA titles. Dan is a former player who has great enthusiasm and passion for Texas Tech."