A member of one of Denver's first families of baseball, Ryan Strain is set for his eighth season as the head coach at Metropolitan State University of Denver in 2024.
He has compiled a record of 196-133 (.595 winning percentage), including 131-75 (.635) in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference play. MSU Denver has made its first two appearances in the NCAA Division II Tournament over the past three seasons. A total of 28 MSU Denver team records and 17 individual records have been set during Strain's tenure.
In 2024, the Roadrunners finished the season with a 28-24 record and a 19-13 mark in the RMAC. Strain has led the program to six straight RMAC Tournaments. Zach Schuler (3rd Team) and Jesse Velders (2nd Team) were named D2CCA All-Americans last season. Schuler and Velders also brought home first team all-region honors by the D2CCA, while Jake Williams and Caleb Albaugh earned second teams honors. Williams was named the RMAC's Academic Player of the Year. Zane Covey earned the RMAC's Summit Award after sporting a 4.0 GP in Business Administration. The Roadrunners had seven All-RMAC honorees, which included two first teamers in Schuler and Velders.
Strain directed MSU Denver to a record-setting season and a second straight trip to the NCAA Division II Tournament in 2023, with the team compiling an overall record of 42-14 while finishing second in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference at 25-7. The Roadrunners, who set the program-record for wins, had a school-record 17-game winning streak from March 18 through April 28, and were ranked as high as No. 13 in Division II during the season. They had four different players -- center fielder Tanner Garner, designated hitter Zach Schuler, first baseman Jake Williams, and second baseman Cody Schultz -- earn All-America honors, and Schultz was the Division II Gold Glove winner for fielding excellence at his position. Closer Eric Cox became the RMAC's all-time saves leader, finishing his career with 26, while Garner had a program-record 97 hits for the second and set the program's single-game record of nine RBIs (tying the RMAC record). Ross Smith had program records of 31 doubles, 178 total bases and 81 runs in a season, while Schultz also scored a program-record 81 runs. On the mound, both Jack Slominski and Andrew Hayes tied the program record win nine wins.
The 2023 MSU Denver team led Division II in runs (11.2 per game), slugging percentage (.627), doubles (168) and doubles per game (3.0), ranked second in batting average (.357), home runs (115) and home runs per game (2.05) and were third in hits (708). Smith led Division II in doubles, Garner was first nationally in hits per game (1.87), second in batting average (.453) and third in doubles (26).
Garner was one of three RMAC Co-Players of the Year and was joined on the All-RMAC first team by Schuler, Schultz, Slominski, Smith, Williams, pitcher Reichle Arcilise and outfielder Cam Yuran, while Cox made the All-RMAC second team. Garner, Schultz and Willams were all RMAC Gold Glove winners. Hayes and catcher Colin Stone were All-RMAC honorable mention selections.
Strain took the Roadrunners where they had never been before in 2022, as MSU Denver reached the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time in program history. MSU Denver was 35-22 overall and tied for second in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference at 20-12. Then the Roadrunners earned the RMAC Tournament championship title with an 8-5 victory over top-seeded host Colorado Mesa, ranked 10th and 14th nationally, on the Mavericks' home field. It was the Roadrunners' first RMAC Tournament title since 2002. It was another prolific offensive season for MSU Denver, which ranked second in Division II in doubles (157) and third with a school-record 118 home runs while compiling Division II's third-best slugging percentage (.615). The Roadrunners were eighth in Division II with an average of 9.9 runs per game.
Third baseman Bill Ralston earned All-America third team honors from the ABCA, while closer Eric Cox was named to all three All-South Central Region first teams. Also snagging all-region honors were Ralston (ABCA first team), catcher Colin Stone (NCBWA second team), outfielder Cam Yuran (ABCA and D2CCA second team), shortstop Caleb Albaugh (ABCA second team) and outfielder Ross Smith (ABCA second team). Ralston and Cox were named All-RMAC first team, Stone, Albaugh, Smith, pitcher Reichle Arcilise and second baseman Cody Schultz were named All-RMAC second team along with Yuran, who was the RMAC's Freshman of the Year.
Strain guided the 2021 Roadrunners to the program's best-ever record at 34-10, and it took a condensed national tournament field due to the COVID-19 pandemic and upsets in the RMAC Tournament to prevent MSU Denver from being invited to the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time in program history. The Roadrunners' 28-8 RMAC record is the best second-place finish for any Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference team ever. The program was nationally ranked as high as 17th and finished the season ranked as the No. 19 team in the nation.
The season’s highest point was perhaps on March 27, when Cade Crader threw the program’s and RMAC’s first-ever perfect game. His nine-inning perfect game against CSU-Pueblo was the only 11th nine-inning perfect game in the history of Division II baseball.
Utility player Chase Anderson (second team) and third baseman Ralston (third team) each earned All-America honors, while pitchers Logan Soole and Cade Crader picked up All-South Central Region accolades.Ten members of the MSU Denver baseball team earned honors from the RMAC, including All-RMAC first team selections Crader, Ralston and Soole and Co-Freshman Pitcher of the Year Arcilise. Others selected in voting by league coaches included second-team picks Anderson, Niko Piazza, Owen Reynolds and Jake Williams
and honorable mention honorees Albaugh and Cox. Additionally, Crader was awarded the Gold Glove for fielding excellence at his position.
Soole and Piazza were Academic All-America second team selections, and as a team MSU Denver received a Team Academic Excellence Award from the American Baseball Coaches Association.
Offensively, MSU Denver ranked 11th nationally in batting average (.332), seventh in doubles (115), seventh in runs (428), seventh in slugging percentage (.589), and eighth in home runs (81). The pitching staff's 4.85 team ERA was the fifth lowest in program history and pitchers set the program strikeout record with 410 despite playing only 44 games. The opponent batting average of .250 is tops in program history, and was first in the RMAC in 2021 as well.
When the 2020 season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Strain's third Roadrunners team was 7-11 overall and 2-2 in the RMAC but was gaining momentum, having won five of its last seven games after a rough start. While the MSU Denver pitching staff was on or near a program-record pace in both ERA and strikeouts, the offense was just beginning to round into form.
In his second season, the Roadrunners led the RMAC for most of the season and had a school-record 14-game winning streak before finishing 28-24 overall and 19-17 for fifth place. MSU Denver finished fourth in the RMAC Tournament. The Roadrunners set a school record with 79 home runs as well as a school record with a .972 fielding percentage. Under Strain's tutelage, catcher Matt Malkin and pitcher-outfielder Logan Soole each earned All-American honors. Malkin was the RMAC's Co-Player of the Year and signed a professional contract with the San Francisco Giants organization after the season and played at four levels in 2019, including a stretch in Class AAA. Joining Malkin and Soole in receiving all-region honors was catcher Draven Adame. Meanwhile Malkin, Soole and outfielder Chase Anderson earned All-RMAC recognition.
In 2018, Strain's first season as the MSU Denver skipper, he coached the Roadrunners to a 22-28 overall record and 18-16 mark in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. MSU Denver qualified for the RMAC tournament as the fifth seed as the Roadrunners led the league in stolen bases with 51. Strain coached Trent Maloney, Donny Ortiz and Logan Soole to All-RMAC honors in his first year as skipper, while Ortiz was also named a D2CCA and ABCA All-South Central Region player.
Prior to his time at MSU Denver, Strain spent seven seasons as assistant men's baseball coach at the University of Southern Illinois. As the hitting coach at SIU, Strain helped lead the program to 13 All-MVC honors and coached one All-American. He also coached six eventual MLB draft picks at SIU, bringing his career total to 19.
In 2017, Strain implemented a new running game for the Salukis, helping them record twice as many stolen bases than any other team in the conference and the 11th-highest total in the country.
Prior to Southern Illinois, Strain spent three seasons as an assistant coach at Northern Colorado from 2008-2010. At Northern Colorado, Strain was in charge of hitting and infield defense as well as serving as the recruiting and camp coordinators. Strain helped lead the team set 28 school records. In 2010, the Bears went 34-24 overall and 22-6 in the Great West Conference. That year, UNC also saw its first freshman All-American and the Great West Conference Newcomer of the Year.
Previous to Northern Colorado, Strain spend two years as the graduate manager with the Nebraska Cornhuskers. At Nebraska, he assisted the coaching staff with on-field duties, including helping with batting practice, overseeing the undergraduate managers, and helping with team video. Strain also assisted with on-campus recruiting and day-to-day program operations and was an instructor in the Nebraska Baseball Academy.
In 2006 Strain served as the assistant coach for St. Cloud Riverbats in the Northwoods League. With the Riverbats, he was the hitting and infield coach, helping St. Cloud lead the league in hitting during the 2006 season.
Strain began his career playing at North Carolina State before transferring to Nevada. Following his collegiate career, he played two seasons in the San Francisco Giants organization and one year for the Rockford RiverHawks in the independent professional Frontier League.
He earned his undergraduate degree in secondary education-history from Nevada in 2003 and his master's degree in educational administration from Nebraska in 2007.
Strain and his wife, Katie, reside in Aurora, Colo., with their daughter Addison and sons Colt and Mickey. Katie Strain also serves the MSU Denver community as a beverage analysis lab manager and lecturer in the Brewing Industry Operations Department.
Strain's Collegiate Head Coaching Record
| Year |
School |
Overall |
Conf. |
Postseason/Championships |
| 2018 |
MSU Denver |
22-28 |
18-16 |
|
| 2019 |
MSU Denver |
28-24 |
19-17 |
|
| 2020 |
MSU Denver |
7-11 |
2-2 |
|
| 2021 |
MSU Denver |
34-10 |
28-8 |
|
| 2022 |
MSU Denver |
35-22 |
20-12 |
RMAC Tournament champions, NCAA Tournament |
| 2023 |
MSU Denver |
42-14 |
25-7 |
NCAA Tournament |
| 2024 |
MSU Denver |
28-24 |
19-13 |
|
| 7 years |
Overall Record |
196-133 |
131-75 |
|
