Inductees

Underdogs are easy to appreciate. They scrap, fight the good fight and never take anything for granted. When they win, our tears are tears of joy for them.

Keith Guttin was that way as a baseball player and, when hired to lead the Missouri State Bears some 32 years ago, it turned out to be a perfect fit.  In those three-plus decades, he has earned 1,089 victories, which ranks 15^th among active D-I coaches through the 2014 season.

“He kept his eyes open, knew talent when he saw it and signed them,” since-retired Missouri State athletic director Bill Rowe said of Guttin, noting that the coach’s father, Sam, would have been proud of his meticulous work ethic. “He got guys known for hard work but they knew they had to earn it.”

Those words are significant, considering Rowe built the Bears baseball program from its inception and took the program to four NCAA Division II College World Series. He recommended his former player Guttin for the job in 1983, when the university promoted Rowe to full-time AD.

In Guttin, you’re talking about a coach who stands roughly 5-foot-9 but whose dogged determination – with the cold, dead stare of a sniper — raised Missouri State baseball’s profile.

The Bears moved to D-I in his first year on the job and have since won 61 percent of their games, averaging more than 34 victories a year, including eight 40-win seasons. The 2003 team achieved unbelievable success, advancing to the sport’s dream destination, the College World Series.

The Bears also have won 11 regular-season or conference tournament championships and qualified for eight Division I NCAA Tournament appearances since 1987.

Among Guttin’s great finds was slugger Ryan Howard, the 2005 National League Rookie of the Year and the 2006 NL Most Valuable Player. He also helped the Phillies win two pennants and the 2008 World Series, plus was the MVP of the 2009 NLCS.

As a player at Missouri State, Guttin was a second baseman in his two seasons after transferring from Mineral Area College. He earned MIAA all-conference honorable mention in 1977 as the Bears made their first NCAA Division II Tournament appearance in seven seasons.

A University City native, he finished his undergraduate degree at Missouri-St. Louis in 1978 and earned a master’s in 1984 at Truman State. He and his wife, Marianne, have three daughters: Lauren, Lindsey and Samantha.

Guttin has been part of the Bears’ baseball program for 37 of its 51 years.