COLUMBIA, Mo. — The Missouri Tigers baseball team is now on the hunt for a new coach after Director of Athletics Desireé Reed-Francois announced coach Steve Bieser won’t return.

During the 2023 season, Mizzou went 30-24 overall, but 10-20 in their conference, pitting them last in the SEC East for the third straight season.

Bieser spent seven seasons with Mizzou, leaving with an 188-155-1 record. The Tigers did qualify for the SEC Tournament this season, making it their first appearance since 2012.

“Coach Bieser represented the university with a high level of character and integrity. We are grateful for his contributions to our program, on and off the field, and we wish him, Diahann, and their family the very best in the future,” Reed-Francois said.

The Tigers will begin their search for a new coach immediately.

“Baseball is important to our university, our conference, and our state. We understand the vital role baseball plays, and we are committed to further increasing our investment in the program and look forward to future successes. We will work quickly and expeditiously to find the candidate who is best fit to return Mizzou baseball to the national stage.”

Mizzou has not made the NCAA Tournament since 2012, the year in which they also won the SEC Tournament.

Coach Bieser shared a statement after his departure from the program:

“I would like to thank the University of Missouri for entrusting me to lead this program for the past seven years. We have faced many challenges along the way, but the bottom line is we just didn’t win games in a tough and rugged conference. I want to thank all of the players that I have had a great opportunity to coach. You’ve always represented this program in a first-class manner and I’m proud of you. I wish our current players great success and I will be pulling for you. God has a different plan for me. Keep representing the C2E way.”

The terms of Bieser’s contract will be honored by Mizzou.