Sooners and Aggies begin pivotal Big 12 series Friday at 6:30 p.m. on Cox Ch. 3
April 22, 2010
WEEKEND PREVIEW
• The No. 17 Sooners (27-10, 6-7 Big 12) return to the road for a pivotal three-game conference series at Texas A&M (21-14-1, 6-8-1). The series gets started on Friday, April 23 at 6:30 p.m. , while game two is scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday is slated for a 1 p.m. first pitch.
• OU is 5-5 in the last 10 games and is ranked as high as No. 17 this week by the NCBWA poll (No. 18 - USA Today/ESPN Coaches’, No. 20-Collegiate Baseball and No. 24-Baseball America).
• Texas A&M returns 17 letterwinners from the 2009 team that was 43-18-1 overall and 14-13 (sixth) in the Big 12. The Aggies finished 1-2 in the NCAA Fort Worth Regional. Texas A&M has struggled as of late with a 3-6-1 mark in its last 10 games. Since winning series against Missouri (2-1) and Texas Tech (2-1), the Aggies have fallen to Baylor (1-2) and Texas (0-3) and split with Kansas (1-1-1). On Tuesday night, Texas A&M snapped a seven-game skid with an impressive 7-1 win over No. 23 Rice at home.
TEXAS A&M ROTATION
No. 1
RHP Barrett Loux (5-2, 2.32 ERA)
No. 2 RHP Ross Stripling (3-3, 4.43 ERA)
No. 3 TBA
OU ROTATION
No. 1 TBA
No. 2 RHP - Zach Neal (5-1, 4.08 ERA)
No. 3 RHP - Bobby Shore (5-2, 3.35 ERA)
BROADCAST INFORMATION
• The OU broadcast with Chuck Kelly calling the play-by-play can be heard all weekend long on the Sooners Sports Network (KREF 1400 AM) in Oklahoma City and Norman and free online at SoonerSports.com. Check local listings for coverage around the state.
• Fans inside Olsen Field can listen to OU's broadcast on 88.1 FM.
• Friday’s game will be televised locally in College Station and can be seen live on Cox Channel 3 in Oklahoma City and Tulsa with Will Johnson and Alan Cannon calling the game. Sunday’s game will be aired nationally on Fox College Sports (DirecTV 617) with Dan McLaughlin and Keith Moreland on commentary. The game will air on a tape delay on April 25 (11 p.m.) and April 26 (noon) on Fox Sports Southwest (Cox Ch. 37).
• Live stats are available on SoonerSports.com via the baseball schedule page.
SERIES HISTORY
• Texas A&M swept OU in College Station in 2008 but the Sooners rebounded with a sweep of their own last year in Norman to conclude the regular season. The two have also met in the Big 12 Championship each of the last two years, with Texas A&M winning last year’s meeting, 17-5, and OU claiming the 2008 game, 4-1.
- OU leads 30-25 and has won four out of the last five games.
- OU has won five out of the six five series meetings.
- Texas A&M has won the series opener in five of the last six series meetings, but OU has come back to win the final two games in 2004-2007.
- Texas A&M has won seven of the 13 series in Big 12 play.
- The teams have entered the series finale after splitting the first two games in eight of the 13 series meetings. In that scenario, OU has won the last four meetings and Texas A&M the previous four.
- In Big 12 play, 27 of the 39 games have been decided by three runs or less (OU is 16-11). Since 1997, 17 games in the series have been decided by one run and OU is 11-6 in those contests.
PLAYER TO WATCH - TYLER OGLE
The sophomore catcher has hit safely in the last nine games. The career-high nine-game hitting streak is the third longest by a Sooner this season. The San Antonio, Texas native is hitting .313 in that span (10-for-32) with a homer, two doubles, seven runs scored and four RBIs. Ogle has started each of the nine games behind the plate for the Sooners.
2010 Season Stats: .260, 3 HR, 21 RBI
QUICK HITS
- OU ranks second in the Big 12 in ERA (3.76), fourth in fielding percentage (.974) and fifth in hitting (.308). OU leads the conference with 49 home runs.
- The OU pitching staff ranks second in the Big 12 with 333 strikeouts and has 18 games with 10 or more K’s, including the six of the last 13.
- The Sooners have homered in 29 of the 37 contests with 14 multiple-homer games. OU homered in 14 straight games from March 2 to March 26.
- The OU bullpen is 12-2 (lost to Missouri and OSU) with 11 saves on the season and a 2.49 ERA and 169 Ks in 148.1 IP.
- Cameron Seitzer hit for the cycle in the Sooners’ 26-3 win over UAPB. Seitzer had a homer and a triple in the second inning.
- Seitzer ranks fourth in the Big 12 with nine homers and third with a .694 slugging percentage.
- Garrett Buechele (8) is tied for seventh in the Big 12 in homers with freshman Max White.
- White has eight homers after starting just 21 games.
- Ryan Duke is a perfect 10-for-10 in save situations this year and ranks fourth in the nation in that category with 10.
- Jeremy Erben’s scoreless streak ended after 22 2/3 innings on April 1 vs. Texas. He has not allowed a run in 10 of his 13 relief appearances with a 6-0 record (one save).
- Zach Neal tossed the Sooners’ first complete game of 2010 with a nine-inning performance at Texas Tech. The last Sooner to throw a complete game was Garrett Richards in the 2009 NCAA Norman Regional on May 29 vs. Washington State.
- Neal has 26 strikeouts and five walks in his last four starts which lasted a combined 29 2/3.
- Caleb Bushyhead (SS) is the only Sooner to play in all 37 games and he leads the team with 36 starts.
- Bushyhead registered one hit in 22 games last season and already has 43 hits. He is second on OU with 12 multi-hit games.
- Casey Johnson’s 13-game hitting streak ended on April 1. It is was a career best and the longest by a Sooner in 2010.
- Oklahoma has started 19 different players in the lineup after Cale Ellis made his first start vs. Texas on April 2.
UP NEXT
Oklahoma returns to Norman to begin a five-game home stand starting on Tuesday, April 27 against Dallas Baptist at 7 p.m. OU and DBU met in Dallas on March 9 and the Sooners won 8-4. Following the midweek game, OU hosts Kansas State (April 30-May 2) in the final home Big 12 series of the season.
LAST TIME OUT
The Sooners completed their third straight season sweep of TCU with an 8-3 win on Tuesday night. OU has won six straight games over the Horned Frogs. Michael Rocha improved to 5-1 after 4 2/3 innings of solid relief while Cameron Seitzer and Danny Black homered in the contest.
STREAKING
Chris Ellison (eight games) was one of three Sooners to extend their hitting streaks on Tuesday. Garrett Buechele and Caleb Bushyhead have hit safely in the last nine games. Tyler Ogle has also hit safely in the last nine games. Complete list on page 20.
TWO HOME GAMES ADDED TO SCHEDULE
OU added two games to the regular season schedule in order to make up for games lost in March against Baylor due to inclement weather. The two non-conference home games include Arkansas Little Rock on May 4 and Texas Southern on May 19. Both games will get underway at 7 p.m. at L. Dale Mitchell Park. The OU Athletics Department will celebrate Fan Appreciation Day at both games with free admission into the park.
LATE-INNING PRODUCTION
OU has scored 121 of its 281 runs, or 43 percent, in the sixth inning and later. In addition, the Sooners have outscored the opposition, 53-16, in the eighth and ninth innings combined, which includes eight home runs.
SCORING FIRST
OU has scored first in 11 of the last 29 games and in 15 overall. OU has a 13-2 record in those contests. The opposition has tallied the game’s first run in 22 games and OU is 14-8. In Big 12 play, OU has scored first in just two games (GM2 at Nebraska and GM1 vs. Texas Tech).
ONE-RUN GAMES
The Sooners have recorded one-run victories in five games this year. OU is 5-3 in those situations in 2010 and the Sooners are 55-22-1 (.712) under head coach Sunny Golloway. The Sooners’ skipper entered 2010 with the best winning percentage among Big 12 coaches over the last five years (.721).
HOME VS. AWAY
The Sooners have recorded 14 of their 26 wins in the friendly confines of L. Dale Mitchell Park. OU is hitting .300 at home with 9.6 hits per game and 7.7 runs scored per contest, including 27 homers. In addition, the Sooner hurlers have combined for a 3.52 ERA. On the road, OU is 13-6 (9-5 away, 4-1 neutral) and is hitting .318 with 11.2 hits and 7.5 runs per game, including 22 homers. The pitching staff has a 3.99 ERA away from home.
THE BIG INNING
OU has hit through the batting order already 13 times this season, three times in game one of the UAPB series, twice in game two of the SDSU series, and once each against Richmond, Mississippi State, Texas A&M-CC, UMass (GM2), Nebraska (GM1), UAPB (GM2), Missouri (GM3) and TCU (GM2). OU accomplished the feat on 23 occasions last year.
That 2009 team also scored five or more runs in 22 different frames. In 2010, OU has scored five or more runs in 12 different frames, including a season-high 10 runs in game one of the UAPB series (second inning). OU had three five-plus run innings in that UAPB game and also accomplished the feat twice in game two of the SDSU series and once versus Valparaiso, Western Illinois, Mississippi State, Baylor, Nebraska, Missouri and TCU.
TIME FOR A RALLY
The Sooners have come from behind to win 14 of the 37 games this season. Of Sunny Golloway’s 197 wins at OU, 100 (.508) have been in come-from-behind fashion, including 22 last year.
WINNING STREAKS
The 10-game winning streak from Feb. 28-March 13 marked the fifth time under head coach Sunny Golloway that OU has won 10 or more consecutive games and the 26th in program history.
DOUBLE DIGITS
The Sooners have recorded 10 or more hits in 23 of the first 37 games of the season, including a season-high 19 vs. Mississippi State and UAPB (March 30). OU is averaging 10.5 hits per game despite losing five regular starters from last season’s club. The Sooners are also averaging 7.6 runs per game with 12 games with 10 or more scores, including the 26 posted in game one of the UAPB series, the most since exploding for 29 runs on March 22, 2009 at Kansas State.
EXTRA INNINGS UNDER GOLLOWAY
OU is 0-1 in extra-inning games this season but 15-3-1 overall since Sunny Golloway took over the helm of the Sooner program at the end of the 2005 season. The other two losses included Arkansas (April 28, 2009) and Mizzou (April 19, 2009. The Sooners tied Nebraska in 2008. OU was 3-1 in 2009 in games played in extra innings.
DUKE MOVING UP SAVES LIST
Ryan Duke recorded two saves on the opening weekend to move into sole possession of second place on OU’s all-time saves list (below). Duke led the Big 12 in saves with 16 last year (ranked sixth in the nation), the second most in a single season by a Sooner (Jeff Bajenaru - 20, 2000). He currently leads the Big 12 with 10 saves and is the first Sooner in school history to have 10 or more in two seasons. He ranks fourth in the nation as of April 18 with 10 saves. Below is a look at where he ranks in OU history.
1. 28 - Jeff Bajenaru (1999-00)
2. 26 - Ryan Duke (2008-present)
BLAIR - SPRING CHICK-FIL-A COMMUNITY OF CHAMPIONS
Junior Elliot Blair, a petroleum engineering major, was named by the Big 12 Conference, in conjunction with Chick-fil-A, to the Spring Community of Champions. During the fall, winter and spring terms, one student-athlete from each institution has been honored based on the following criteria:
Academics: An academic standard of a 3.00 grade point average or higher must be maintained.
Community Service: The designated student-athlete should be involved with at least one community service program.
Leadership/Sportsmanship: The student-athlete should demonstrate leadership and sportsmanship on and off the field.
The institution of the student-athletes’ on this list will be awarded $3,000 each year from Chick-fil-A for their efforts.
DRAFTED SOONERS
Eight current Sooners have been drafted in their careers (third most in Big 12 this season), including four newcomers on the 2010 squad that were selected in 2009. (Danny Black, Ryan Gibson, Chad Kettler and Bobby Shore). Last season, OU led all Big 12 programs with nine players selected off the 2009 roster. Below is a look at the eight Sooners and when and where they were drafted:
Danny Black 2009 - New York Yankees - 42nd Rd.
Jason Chowning 2007 - New York Yankees - 43rd Rd.
Jeremy Erben 2006 - Cincinnati Reds - 41st Rd.
Ryan Gibson 2009 - Florida Marlins - 48th Rd.
Kaleb Herren 2008 - Milwaukee Brewers - 44th Rd.
Chad Kettler 2009 - Los Angeles Dodgers - 24th Rd.
J.R. Robinson 2008 - Toronto Blue Jays - 31st Rd.
Bobby Shore 2009 - Baltimore Orioles - 40th Rd.
Michael Whitney 2005 - Baltimore Orioles - 18th Rd.
BASEBALL ON KREF 1400 AM IN 2010 | RADIO SCHEDULE (PDF)
The 2010 season marks the first with KREF 1400 AM serving as the flagship station of Sooner baseball and the new partnership provides expanded coverage for OU fans to listen to 50-plus regular season games over the air. Additionally, 22 of the Big 12 games are set to be carried on the Sooners Sports' Network, enabling fans to listen to OU baseball on various stations across the state starting on April 1, nearly double the amount from previous seasons.
The entire 56-game regular season schedule will be broadcast live for free on SoonerSports.com.
SOONER SPORTS NETWORK TO TELEVISE 20 OU GAMES | TV SCHEDULE (PDF)
The University of Oklahoma will locally televise 20 home baseball games for the 2010 season. The broadcasts will air via the Sooner Sports Network on Cox Channel 7 in Oklahoma City and Cox Channel 3 in Tulsa. The games will be simulcast with the OU radio broadcast on the Sooner Sports Network with Chuck Kelly calling the play-by-play and DeWayne Vaughn providing the color analysis. The first game can be seen on Wednesday, March 10 against Houston Baptist at 3 p.m.
OU FOURTH IN BIG 12 COACHES' POLL | Big 12 Coaches' Poll | Feb. 16 Media Teleconference
The No. 22 Oklahoma baseball team was picked fourth in the 2010 Big 12 Coaches' preseason poll released on Feb. 16. The Sooners' projected finish is the highest under head coach Sunny Golloway and the best since a third-place vote in 2003.
