2014, 2021 & 2025 Summit League Tournament Champions
2022 Summit League Regular Season Champions
2025 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament Fayetteville Regional qualifiers
2021 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament Stanford Regional qualifiers
2014 NCAA Division I Baseball Tournament Corvallis Regional qualifiers
2022 Summit League Coach of the Year
Coached 21 All-Summit League pitchers and two Summit League Tournament MVP's
Coached Joey Danielson, who was picked by the Texas Rangers in the 17th round of the 2024 MLB Draft
Coached Cade Feeney, who was selected by the Boston Redsox in the 13th round of the 2023 MLB Draft
Coached pitcher Jay Flaa, who was drafted in the sixth round of the 2015 MLB Draft by the Baltimore Orioles
Coached pitchers Luke Lind and Kevin Folman. Lind signed a minor league deal with the Los Angeles Angels in 2017, while Folman was signed by the Chicago White Sox in 2018
Coached 22 Bison to earn Summit League Pitchers of the Week
Helped the 2018 NDSU pitching staff post a 4.62 team ERA, second-best in The Summit League
Helped the Bison post back-to-back single-season shutout records with seven in 2017 and 2018
Guided the North Dakota State pitching staff to a single-season record 474 strikeouts and 27 saves in 2021

Tyler Oakes was named the North Dakota State head baseball coach on June 22, 2021. Oakes first joined the Bison staff as the team's pitching coach in December 2013. He was appointed as the recruiting coordinator for the Bison in the summer of 2016, and elevated to associate head coach in the summer of 2018.

In 2025, Oakes helped the Bison navigate through the No. 1 non-conference schedule in the nation on their way to their third Summit League Tournament championship in program history. NDSU went on to make its third appearance in the NCAA Tournament in the Fayetteville Regional. The Bison picked up their second win in program history in the NCAA Tournament after upending Kansas, 4-3, in an elimination game. NDSU earned seven All-Summit League selections in the 2025 season, including Jake Schaffner, who became the first player in program history to be named the Summit League Defensive Player of the Year. Nolan Johnson was also named the Summit League Pitcher of the Year for the first time in program history.

In 2023, Oakes helped lead NDSU to a second place finish in the Summit League to go along with nine All-Summit League selections. It was the most all-conference selections in a single season since the Bison joined the Summit League in 2008. Peter Brookshaw, Druw Sackett, Cade Feeney and Tristen Roehrich were named to the 2023 All-Summit League First Team.

Feeney went on to be selected by the Boston Redsox in the 13th round of the MLB Draft. Additionally, Carson Jacobs went on to sign with the Chicago White Sox as free agent following the conclusion of the MLB Draft. Parker Puetz rounded out the group of pitchers in 2023 after he was named to the All-Summit League Second Team and D1Baseball Freshman All-America Second Team. The Bison followed it up in 2024 after Joey Danielson was picked by the Texas Rangers in the 17th round of the MLB Draft. It marked the second straight season NDSU had a pitcher selected in the draft.

In his first season as head coach in 2022, Oakes guided NDSU to its first Summit League regular season title in program history after assembling a 30-17 (17-5 Summit) overall record. It marked only the seventh time in program history the Bison have reached the 30-win mark. NDSU began the season playing each of its first 37 games on the road and were the last Division I team to play a home game. Oakes became the first coach in NDSU baseball history to earn Summit League Coach of the Year honors.

Eight Bison earned All-Summit League honors in 2022, including two first team selections. Logan Williams and Calen Schwabe both earned first team honors for the first time in their careers. Oakes also helped develop a pitching staff that totaled 17 saves, which led the Summit League and ranked tied for second in NDSU history. Offensively, the Bison set a program record for stolen bases in a single-season with 87. NDSU also connected on 50 home runs, which ranked second in the Summit League and fifth in NDSU history. Additionally, it marked the most home runs in the NDSU Division I era and was only the fifth time in program history the Bison have tallied 50 or more in a single season.

Four Bison pitchers earned All-Summit League honors during the 2021 campaign, the most in school history. NDSU's pitching staff included ABCA All-American closer Parker Harm and starting pitcher Cade Feeney, who was named to the Collegiate Baseball News Freshman All-America Team. Harm and Feeney were both All-Summit League First Team selections, while Max Loven and Evan Sankey were named to the second team as starting pitchers. Harm also earned a spot on the ABCA All-Central Region First Team. Harm went on to sign with the Kansas City Royals organization as an undrafted free agent following a shortened 20-round MLB Draft in 2021.

Under Oakes, the Bison pitchers have recorded seven of the top 10 strikeout totals in school history. Oakes' staff first broke the record in 2015 with 371 and has pushed that record to 474 in 2021. The top five single-season totals have all come under Oakes. In 2021, the Bison pitchers also set team school records in wins (42), saves (27) and innings pitched (522.1).

During the 2019 season, freshman Max Loven earned Summit League Newcomer of the Year honors, while also being named an All-Summit League First Team selection as a starting pitcher. Loven was also named to the Collegiate Baseball News Freshmen All-America Team. Loven ranked 13th in the nation with three complete games and 87th with a 2.74 ERA. Loven allowed just 1.52 walks per nine innings, the 28th best in the nation, while ranking 56th with a 1.05 WHIP. The Bison ranked 72nd in the nation and second in the league with a 4.26 ERA

Tyler Oakes In 2018, North Dakota State posted an overall record of 26-24 and finished third in The Summit League with a 15-13 league tally. Under Oakes' guidance, the 2018 NDSU pitching staff compiled a 4.62 team ERA, the second-lowest in The Summit League, and tied the single-season shutouts record with seven.

Sophomore right-hander Riley Johnson became the first Bison to throw a solo no-hitter since 2004 in NDSU's 2-0 victory over Central Connecticut State Feb. 23 in Punta Gorda, Fla., while senior left-hander Blake Stockert threw a one-hitter against Western Illinois in The Summit League tournament May 25.

Senior closer Kevin Folman, who finished his Bison career tied for second in career saves with 15, was voted second team all-league.

During the 2017 season, when the Bison compiled an overall record of 31-25 and a program-record Summit League mark of 19-11, he worked with seniors Luke Lind and Reed Pfannenstein, who were named All-Summit League second team. In addition, Lind was named one of Collegiate Baseball Newspaper's National Players of the Week after tossing the first one-hitter since 2002 and striking out a career-high 11 batters in NDSU's 3-0 shutout win at South Dakota State on April 28, 2017, while Pfannenstein earned Summit League Baseball Championship All-Tournament Team accolades. The Bison pitching staff set a new single-season record with seven shutouts and compiled 398 strikeouts -- the second most in program history. NDSU pitching also secured 13 saves, which tied for fourth on the North Dakota State single-season record list.

Lind signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Angels on June 21, 2017.

Oakes also worked with David Ernst and Parker Trewin, who were selected to the 2014 Summit League Baseball Championship All-Tournament Team and All-Summit League second team, as well as All-Summit League second team honoree Trevor Jaunich and 2014 Summit League Tournament MVP Reed Pfannenstein.

Oakes also coached Jay Flaa, who was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the sixth round of the 2015 MLB Draft, and Kevin Folman, who was signed by the Chicago White Sox organization in 2018. Flaa went on to make his MLB debut in 2021 with the Orioles.

Oakes was a graduate assistant pitching coach at South Dakota State in 2010 and 2011 before spending two years as a volunteer assistant at Minnesota. He was a three-time Academic All-Big Ten performer from 2006-09 at Minnesota, where he pitched in the starting rotation as a sophomore and worked out of the bullpen for three seasons. Oakes graduated from Minnesota in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in sports management and received his master’s degree in health, physical education and recreation from South Dakota State in 2012.

Oakes signed with the Tampa Bay Rays as an undrafted free agent and played one season with the Princeton Rays of the Appalachian League.

The Oakes File
Years: 12th at NDSU in 2025
Hometown: Jordan, Minn.
High School: Jordan
Spouse: Ingrid Scantlebury
Education: Bachelor's degree from Minnesota in 2010; Master's degree from South Dakota State in 2012
College Career: Pitcher at Minnesota from 2006-09
Professional Career: Signed with the Tampa Bay Rays organization as a free agent in 2009

Charting Oakes Coaching Path

Seasons	School	Position
2010-11	South Dakota State	Graduate Assistant
2012-13	Minnesota	Volunteer Assistant
2014-16	North Dakota State	Pitching Coach
2017-18	North Dakota State	Pitching Coach/Recruiting Coordinator
2019-21	North Dakota State	Associate Head Coach
2022-Current	North Dakota State	Head Coach

Oakes Year-By-Year

Season	School	Overall	Conference	Postseason
2022	North Dakota State	31-19	17-5 (1st)	SL Tournament
2023	North Dakota State	23-30	16-7 (2nd)	SL Tournament
2024	North Dakota State	20-30-1	14-12-1 (3rd)	SL Tournament
2025	North Dakota State	21-34	13-15 (3rd)	SL Tournament Champions / NCAA Regional
Totals	4 Seasons	95-113-1	60-39-1

Name	Title	Email
Tyler Oakes	Head Coach	Tyler.Oakes@ndsu.edu
Brandon Hunt	Assistant Coach/Recruiting Coordinator	Brandon.Hunt@ndsu.edu
Tanner Neale	Assistant Coach	Tanner.Neale@ndsu.edu
Nick Belzer	Assistant Coach	Nick.Belzer@ndsu.edu

Upcoming Events

Upcoming Event: Baseball versus South Dakota State on May 1, 2026 at 6:30 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Baseball versus South Dakota State on May 2, 2026 at 2 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Baseball versus South Dakota State on May 3, 2026 at 1 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Baseball at Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks on May 6, 2026 at 6 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Baseball versus Northern Colorado on May 8, 2026 at 6:30 p.m.

Coaching Staff

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