Keith Hill has been the head coach of the El Reno Indians baseball team for seven years. And while it was not his initial career choice, it is something that he loves doing.
“My dad, Glen, was a coach,” Hill said. “He coached me, my brothers, and my sister all the way through little league. It was very rewarding for him. I saw the positive impact he had on players, and I always felt that was what I wanted to do, although I took a different career path for a while. I did coach my son, Cameron, who was a seventeenth-round draft pick of the Cleveland Indians in 2014, and my daughter, Ashlea, through little league. Now my daughter is coaching her son in t-ball, and my son will get into coaching when his career is done. After I retired from my first career, where I spent 24 years working for the federal government, I decided to pursue coaching. I’m glad I did; I really enjoy it.”
Hill says that his coaching style comes from watching his dad, but he was also influenced by other coaches that were part of his life.
“My dad influenced me the most because I saw how he handled players with patience but at the same time he coached his players up,” he said. “When you are around that every day it leaves an impression. My junior college coach, Steve Carel, was a fiery competitor and my four-year coach, Allan Barker, was more of a tactician of baseball, so I took a little bit from both of them, my dad, and created my own style.”
Throughout his coaching career, Hill has enjoyed some great moments and he has coached some outstanding players.
“Our 2018 team finished as a state semifinalist at 25-14,” he recalled. “I got to coach my two nephews, Gage and Brice, through high school which was a blessing for me. One of my players, pitcher Rhett Kouba was on that 2018 team as well. He went on to North Central Texas Junior College and then to Dallas Baptist where after his junior season he was a twelfth-round selection by the Houston Astros in 2021. I’m very proud of what he has accomplished.”
Hill loves the game of baseball, but he says that coaching gives him the opportunity to get to build relationships with his players.
“I enjoy the relationships with the players the most, and the development process,” he said. “It is extremely rewarding for me to see my players prosper and grow, as a player and as a person.”
