Midweek Bedlam Up Next For Cowboys

Wednesday, April 20

Norman, Okla.

6:00:00 PM

Oklahoma State University

Oklahoma

April 18, 2016 | Cowboy Baseball

#25 Oklahoma State (22-13)

at Oklahoma (18-18-1)

L. Dale Mitchell Park (3,180)

Norman, Okla.

Tues., April 19: 6 p.m.

GAME NOTES

Oklahoma State

Oklahoma State rides a three-game winning streak into a midweek Bedlam Series showdown in Norman, with the Cowboys squaring off against Oklahoma in a non-conference affair Tuesday at 6 p.m. The 25th-ranked Cowboys are 22-13 overall after sweeping a three-game series at Baylor last weekend. Following Tuesday's game, OSU returns to Big 12 Conference action this weekend in Stillwater when the Cowboys host No. 4 TCU.

Led by Donnie Walton and his .339 batting average, the Cowboys are hitting a collective .243, while the pitching staff has posted a Big 12-best 2.83 ERA

The Cowboys are coming off a 38-20 season in which they made their third consecutive NCAA Regional appearance, and expectations are again high. OSU was ranked in the top 10 nationally in four different preseason polls and returns seven starters from 2015, including All-Big 12 Conference performers Donnie Walton, Ryan Sluder and Corey Hassel.

The 2016 season marks OSU's fourth under Holliday, who compiled a 127-57 record in his first three seasons at his alma mater.

About The Sooners

Oklahoma is 18-18-1, which includes an 11-6 mark on its home field. Led by junior Sheldon Neuse (.371, 6 HR, 25 RBI), OU is hitting .254, while the pitching staff sports a 4.03 ERA.

Expected to start on the mound for OU is freshman right-hander Jake Irvin, who is 2-0 with a 5.55 ERA in nine appearances (three starts).

OSU is 164-150 all time against OU and was 4-1 against the Sooners last season. The Cowboys are 11-4 vs. OU in three seasons under Josh Holliday.

Watch, Listen, Follow

Tuesday's game will be televised live by Sooner Sports TV and will air on FOX Sports Oklahoma-Plus and FOX College Sports Central, witch Chad McKee and George Frazier on the call.

All OSU baseball games are carried live by Stillwater Radio and air on KSPI 93.7 FM or 780 AM. Rex Holt, who is in his 34th season on the air with Cowboy baseball, will call the action, with Matt "Chief" Davis providing color commentary. Radio broadcasts are also available online at okstate.com/watch.

Live stats for all games can also be found at okstate.com, with links available under the Schedule tab on the baseball home page. Additionally, fans can follow the official OSU Baseball Twitter account, @OSUBaseball, for in-game updates.

In The Polls

OSU once again maintained a spot in this week's national rankings, with the Cowboys checking in at No. 25 in the NCBWA poll.

OSU has been ranked in at least one national poll for 61 consecutive weeks dating back to 2013, when the Cowboys were in the polls for the final 14 weeks of the season. During that time, they have spent 16 weeks in the Top 10 and been ranked as high as No. 3 (by the NCBWA in 2014). They finished the '14 season ranked 10th in each of the final polls, marking the 19th time in program history OSU ended the season in the top 10 in the national polls.

Big 12's Best

Oklahoma State's .690 winning percentage (127-57) from 2013-15 marked the highest in the Big 12 Conference during that span. TCU came in second at .677, with the Cowboys only trailing the Horned Frogs by one in the win column.

OSU has also finished first or second in the league standings each of the last three years, and the Cowboys are the only Big 12 team over that span to finish over .500 in conference play each year.

Close Calls

OSU is 35-20 in one-run games since 2013, including a 9-7 mark this season. After losing their first five one-run games this season, including four via walk-off, the Cowboys won nine in a row before dropping two at West Virginia. Under head coach Josh Holliday (2013-pres.), 36 of the Cowboys' 70 losses have come by two runs or less.

Strong-Armed

In three seasons under the direction of coach Rob Walton, OSU's pitching staff has turned in impressive numbers.

The Cowboys' success under Walton includes 12 All-Big 12 pitchers, two consensus first-team All-Americans, a Big 12 Pitcher of the Year and a first-round Major League Baseball Draft pick.

Here's just a sampling of how the Cowboys have performed under Walton:

• OSU's pitching staff led the Big 12 in ERA in conference-only games in 2014 (2.43) and 2015 (2.50).

• The Cowboys' 2.84 ERA in 2015 ranked eighth nationally and was the lowest by an OSU pitching staff since 1973.

• OSU recorded seven shutouts in both 2013 and 2014, marking just the fourth and fifth times in program history the Cowboys had reached that mark. In the 26 seasons prior to 2013, the program had reached seven shutouts only once.

• Over the last three seasons, OSU has seen Jason Hursh drafted in the first round of the 2013 Major League Baseball Draft, Brendan McCurry (2014) and Michael Freeman (2015) named first-team All-Americans and Freeman garner Big 12 Pitcher of the Year honors.

• Freeman's 1.31 ERA ranked sixth in the NCAA in 2015 and was the fifth lowest in a single season in OSU history.

• McCurry set OSU records for single-season saves (19) and career saves (27).

Dealing

OSU leads the Big 12 and ranks 12th nationally with a 2.83 team ERA, and a pair of Cowboys rank in the top 10 in the league in ERA – Tyler Buffett (first at 1.48) and Thomas Hatch (fifth at 1.98).

OSU also leads the conference with 299 strikeouts, and its .237 opponent batting average and 11 saves rank second.

Back In The Saddle

Donnie Walton spurned professional baseball last summer to return for his senior season with the Cowboys in 2016.

Walton has established himself as one of the Big 12's elite players since arriving on campus in 2013. In 195 career games, the switch hitter owns a .312 batting average to go along with nine home runs, 113 RBIs, 39 doubles and an OSU-record 54 sacrifice bunts (which ranks ninth on the NCAA's all-time list).

Primarily a shortstop throughout his career, Walton is one of just nine players in OSU history to earn All-Big 12 First Team accolades twice (in 2014 & 2015), with no Cowboy ever achieving that status three times.

A 23rd-round draft pick of the Milwaukee Brewers last June, Walton chose not to sign a pro contract and instead starred in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League. He was named the CCBL All-Star Game MVP and then earned the Star of Stars Award as the most valuable player of the CCBL playoffs after leading the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox to the league championship.

Walton is one of 50 players on USA Baseball's 2016 Golden Spikes Award Preseason Watch List. The award is given to the top player in amateur baseball.

The Candyman Can

Tyler Buffett was a reliable performer on the mound in his first two seasons in Stillwater, but he has taken on a starring role in 2016.

In a team-high 20 appearances, 19 of those in relief, the junior right-hander is 5-1 with five saves and a 1.48 ERA, with the five wins and five saves already marking career highs. He leads the Big 12 in ERA and opponent batting average (.176) and is tied for second in the league in saves. He's also among the conference leaders in wins, appearances and strikeouts (45).

In the month of March, Buffett appeared in 11 of OSU's 18 games and went 4-0 with four saves and a 1.54 ERA to go along with 27 strikeouts in 23 1/3 innings. He was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week twice (March 7th and 28th).

Hit Man

Garrett Benge put up video game numbers at the junior college level last season, and he's proving to be a valuable hitter in his first season in an OSU uniform.

As a freshman at Cowley County CC, Benge was the 2015 NJCAA Division I Player of the Year after hitting .502 with 19 home runs, 97 RBIs, 26 doubles and four triples. In 59 games, he collected 103 hits and a .946 slugging percentage.

Now manning the hot corner in Stillwater, Benge is has swung a consistent bat for the Cowboys as he's hitting .303 with a team-leading .484 slugging percentage and ranks second on the club with 25 RBIs.

Building A Winner

In the first three seasons as head coach at his alma mater (2013-15), Josh Holliday has built quite an impressive resume. Just a few of the highlights:

• OSU's .690 winning percentage was the highest among Big 12 teams from 2013-15;

• OSU has finished first or second in the conference standings each year (1st in 2014, 2nd in 2013 and 2015);

• The Cowboys finished in the top 10 in the national rankings in 2014 after ending the 2013 season ranked as high as No. 19. Counting the 2016 preseason polls, they've been nationally ranked for 52 consecutive weeks.

• In 2014, OSU advanced to the third Super Regional in program history and won its first-ever Big 12 Conference regular season championship;

• OSU has hosted two NCAA Regionals and been the top-seeded team both times;

• The Cowboys have earned three NCAA Regional berths and advanced to the regional championship round twice;

• OSU has won at least five of its eight Big 12 Conference series each season (5 in 2013, 7 in 2014, 6 in 2015).

The Cyclist

J.R. Davis made history in the series finale at West Virginia when he joined Josh Fields (2003) and Zach Johnson (2011) as the only OSU players to hit for the cycle during the Big 12 era (since 1997). The Cowboy second baseman is also one of just 18 Big 12 players to ever hit for the cycle.

After leading off Sunday's game vs. WVU with a walk, Davis delivered an RBI triple in the third and a leadoff single in the sixth. In the eighth, he hit his first-career home run, a two-run shot, and then in the ninth he recorded an RBI double to complete the cycle. He finished the historic day 4-for-4 with a career-high four RBIs and three runs scored.

Davis, a JUCO transfer who had not played since 2014 prior to joining OSU this season, appeared in just one of the Cowboys' first nine games this season but was inserted in the starting lineup at second base March 1 vs. Indiana State and has not left since. He owns a .327 batting average in 27 games, and the Cowboys are 14-4 with Davis batting in the leadoff spot.

Award Tour

OSU has had eight Big 12 weekly award winners in 2016, the fifth-most in a single season in conference history (the record is 11). The Cowboys are also only the seventh team in league history to record five or more Big 12 Pitcher of the Week honors in a single season and first since 2013.

Tyler Buffett (March 7 and March 28) and Trey Cobb (April 4 and April 18) have each been named Big 12 Pitcher of the Week twice, while Jensen Elliott has been the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week (April 4) and Newcomer of the Week (April 18). Other winners are Dustin Williams (Player of Week on March 14 and J.R. Davis (Newcomer of Week on April 4).

Short Hops

OSU is 27th in the latest official NCAA RPI ... The Cowboys have turned 44 double plays this season, which ranks fourth nationally ... OSU is 5-7 against ranked teams this season.