Tom Holliday Named Manager of Drillers TCL Team

The new Tulsa Drillers team that will play in the Texas Collegiate Baseball League this summer now has a manager and a coaching staff. The names will be recognizable to most baseball fans in Oklahoma.

The Drillers announced today that longtime Oklahoma State University coach Tom Holliday will be the team’s manager. Joining Holliday on the coaching staff will be 14-year major league veteran Mickey Tettleton and former Tulsa Drillers and Cincinnati Reds coach Randy Whisler. The fourth member of the staff will be former Tampa Bay Rays minor league player Cody Smeler.

Holliday brings a massive amount of experience to the Drillers dugout, as he was an NCAA baseball coach for four decades, predominantly at OSU. He was the Cowboys pitching coach for 19 years, from 1978 to 1996 and became the school’s head baseball coach in 1997. He remained in that role for seven seasons, with his 1999 Cowboys squad reaching the College World Series.

After leaving Oklahoma State, Holliday served as the pitching coach at the University of Texas (2004-2006), North Carolina State University (2007-2014) and Auburn University (2015). While at UT, the Longhorns won the National Championship in 2005.

In his 40 years as a collegiate coach, his teams made 17 College World Series appearances.

It will not be Holliday’s first experience with a summer, collegiate league. He has managed the Chatham Anglers in the historic Cape Cod League the past two summers. His club qualified for the playoffs in both seasons, reaching the league championship series in 2018.

Holliday is the father of Matt and Josh Holliday. Matt played 15 seasons in the major leagues and was named an MLB All-Star seven times. Josh is the current Head Baseball Coach at Oklahoma State.

Tettleton and Whisler were both players at OSU during Holliday’s time there. Tettleton was a part of the 1981 Cowboys squad that advanced to the title game of the College World Series.

Following that season, he was drafted by the Oakland A’s and eventually spent parts of 14 seasons in the major leagues from 1984-1997. In addition to his time in Oakland, Tettleton also played for Baltimore, Detroit and Texas.

He was a two-time MLB All-Star and won three Silver Slugger Awards.

He is currently a coach at Oklahoma Christian University

As a player at OSU, Whisler’s teams made four straight appearances in the College World Series from 1982-1985.

He was drafted by Toronto following the 1985 season and eventually transitioned into coaching. He was a coach in the Texas Rangers farm system from 1990-1994, and spent three seasons with the Drillers.

He also coached in the Padres and Marlins systems before moving to the majors with the Cincinnati Reds in 2004. He spent two seasons in the big leagues as the first base coach for the Reds.

Whisler currently lives in Broken Arrow and has assisted Holliday in the Cape Cod League the last two summers.

Semler is a native of Allen, Texas and played collegiate baseball at Weatherford College (TX), West Virginia University and Angelo State University. He signed with the Rays after a stellar senior season at Angelo State.

He was also on Holliday’s staff at Chatham last summer.

Holliday and the Drillers will begin this week announcing the players that will be a part of the Drillers TCL squad this season. Tulsa’s first game is scheduled for Tuesday, June 30 when the Drillers host Frisco at ONEOK Field.

The TCL season will consist of 30 games, with the 15 home games all played at ONEOK Field.

Anyone interested in supporting the team’s 2020 season with tickets or a sponsorship can contact the Drillers Office at (918)744-5901.