Oklahoma State University Athletics
2008 Oklahoma State Baseball Preview
February 11, 2008 | Cowboy Baseball
Oklahoma State enters the 2008 season looking to build on its best showing in nearly a decade.
The Cowboys are fresh off the second Super Regional appearance in school history and hungry to take the next step and return to the College World Series.
Coach 's ballclub lost six position starters from a year ago, including the entire outfield, but returns a pair of veterans among the best in the Big 12 Conference at their respective positions along with a strong mix of newcomers.
Among the Cowboy newcomers are a pair of high-profile transfers in and who are expected to contribute immediately, along with a solid group of recruits from the junior college and high school ranks.
“We lost a lot of veteran guys from last year's team, but we've got some returning that have had some success and we've brought in a strong group that is working hard,” Anderson said. “We've got some guys that we feel like can step up and get the job done for us to continue to be successful.”
Last year, OSU sported one of the nation's top offenses, and while the Cowboy lineup will feature many new faces, Anderson believes the parts are there for his club to continue to produce at the plate.
“The lineup should be pretty solid from top to bottom,” Anderson said. “It'll be kind of a different look for us, but we have the ability to do some damage.”
Anderson also likes the look of his squad in the field.
“Defensively, I think we'll be better on the infield than we were last year,” Anderson said. “The outfield we had last year was the best defensive outfield we've ever had or that I've ever been a part of. We've got to replace that, but we're working hard and have a bunch of candidates out there.”
Catcher
The Cowboys have a number of players who could see time behind the plate.
is a transfer from Houston who was a freshman All-American in 2006. He hit 17 home runs and drove in over 50 runs in his two seasons with the Cougars.
Sophomore played in 18 games as a redshirt freshman and proved to be solid behind the plate and with the bat.
saw action in a dozen games as a freshman a year ago, including starting 10 times, and hit .278 with nine RBIs.
First Base
First base will be manned once again by all-conference senior .
A second-team All-Big 12 pick last season, Ridling started all 63 games at first and hit .336 with 14 home runs and 68 RBIs.
Freshman could also see action at first base and is a strong candidate to fill the designated hitter spot. Green slugged 32 homers and drove in over 220 runs in his standout prep career.
Second Base
Several players will battle for playing time at second base.
was a JUCO All-American last season and was a 15th round draft pick of the Baltimore Orioles. The Aussie hit .470 as a sophomore and led his club to a conference championship.
Junior gained valuable experience a year ago as the switch-hitting infielder played in 28 games and collected nine RBIs.
is another recruit from the Oklahoma high school ranks whom the coaches are high on. He earned All-State honors as a prep senior at Tulsa Union.
Shortstop
Entrenched at shortstop for the third-consecutive season is .
Mercer has started nearly 100 games at short in his first two seasons in Stillwater and is a two-time All-Big 12 selection. Also the Cowboys' closer, Mercer hit .299 with five homers and 24 RBIs during a sophomore season in which he missed almost two months with a knee injury.
One of the Cowboys most highly-touted recruits could also see time in the middle infield. comes to OSU after a storied career at Cincinnati's Archbishop Moeller High School. As a senior, Belza topped Ken Griffey Jr.'s school record by hitting .556 and was named All-Ohio.
Third Base
For the third-consecutive season, the Cowboys will count on a transfer to man the hot corner. cornes to Stillwater after three standout seasons at Washington. Two years ago, Hague was an All-American and All-Pac peformer, and as a junior last season he hit .353 with 13 homers and 49 RBIs. He was drafted in the 11th round of last June's MLB Draft by the Cleveland Indians.
JUCO transfer will also battle for playing time at third. Davis hit .364 with 13 homers and 61 RBIs at Seward County Community College last season.
Left Field
Several players will look to fill the huge void in left field left by the departure of , who spent three seasons as the starter in that spot for the Cowboys.
struggled as a freshman but coaches are confident that he can make good on his immense talent and fulfill the promise he brings to the field.
Junior is a switch hitter who played in 24 games a year ago, hitting .256 with a home run and seven RBIs.
Another player in the mix in left is junior college transfer , who followed an all-conference sophomore season at Lassen College by slugging 11 homers over the summer in the Jayhawk League and leading his team to a runner-up finish at the NBC World Series.
Center Field
appeared in 29 games for the Cowboys last season and will battle to replace in the middle of the OSU outfield. Harvard hit .250 in limited action as a freshman.
is a freshman whose speed sets him apart both on the basepaths and in the field. Thomas was an all-state performer at Lufkin High School in Texas and was a 31st round draft pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers following his prep career.
Right Field
Another huge pair of shoes to fill are 's in right field.
will be among those trying to do just that. Dabbs was drafted by the Kansas City Royals out of high school but spent the last two seasons at Cowley County College, where he was an All-American and the Jayhawk Conference Player of the year in 2007.
Another JUCO transfer, , won the Big Stick Award and was named an All-American in 2007. He was drafted by the Los Angeles Angels following a standout high school career.
Freshman led Leedey High School to six state tournament appearances in eight seasons (fall and spring) and hit .466 as a senior to earn All-State honors.
Pitchers
OSU lost two of its top hurlers from last season's staff in and . But the Cowboys return a strong crop of young arms who gained valuable experience last year and who Anderson believes are ready to flourish.
“We've got a bunch of returning guys on the mound who are a year older, and that maturity on the mound will help them,” Anderson said. “They've had some tough times and pitched well at times. But what they've gained from last year to this year has been outstanding.”
One of the veterans whom Anderson hopes can return to form is . The senior right hander missed much of last season with an arm injury but was 7-3 as a sophomore and is 11-3 in his OSU career.
The Cowboys' other senior on the mound is . In his first season at OSU, Weinhardt proved valuable out of the bullpen as he was 3-1 in 21 appearances.
Juniors and are each entering their third years in the OSU program. Breedlove has made 44 appearances over the last two seasons and is valuable as a starter or out of the pen, while Kent came on strong as a sophomore, finishing 4-3 with a 3.88 ERA and ranking third on the team in strikeouts.
A trio of sophomores got a taste of Division I baseball a year ago and will be expected to step up and be even more productive in '07.
Southpaw was 6-1 last season and is coming off a strong summer in the Cape Cod League, while fellow lefty made 20 relief appearances as a frosh and could be moved into the starting rotation this season.
Another sophomore is hard-throwing righty , who appeared in 11 games a year ago and compiled a 2-0 mark with a 3.52 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 23 innings of work.
Sophomore pitched in five games, while coaches are high on left hander , who redshirted last season due to injury.
Anderson also brought in several newcomers who could be significant contributors on the mound in 2007.
Junior is a transfer from Arizona State who is coming off an arm injury and is looking to return to the form that saw him win 14 games at the JUCO level.
and were teammates at Cowley County Community College and both are former Major League Baseball draft picks.
The Cowboys signed out of Choctaw High School, and the 6-foot-6 right hander has shown promise on the mound.
The Schedule
Oklahoma State's 2008 schedule is highlighted by nine NCAA Tournament teams from a year ago.
“We feel like this schedule is very competitive,” Anderson said. “There are a bunch of preseason Top 25 teams in it, and we play those opponents at home and on the road.
“It's going to be challenging. It's a great R.P.I. schedule, and our league will be tough top to bottom as always.”
The Cowboys will play 31 home games at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium. Non-conference highlights include four games against Gonzaga to open the season, a two-game midweek series against Arizona in late March and a showdown against Wichita State on April 23. Arizona was an NCAA Regional team last season, while the Shockers advanced to a Super Regional.
OSU also has some attractive non-conference road outings. The Cowboys will travel to Tampa, Fla., Feb. 28-March 2 to play games against South Florida and Northwestern, and the following weekend they will face four teams in four days at a tournament hosted by San Diego State. That tourney will afford the Cowboys a chance to play a game in PETCO Park, home of the San Diego Padres, and will pit OSU against the likes of San Diego and San Diego State. And on May 7, OSU will travel to Houston to face Rice, which advanced to the College World Series in 2007.
In Big 12 Conference action, Anderson's club will play host to Texas A&M, Nebraska, Kansas and Texas Tech. The Cornhuskers and Aggies were both NCAA Tournament teams a year ago.
The Cowboys open Big 12 Conference play March 14 when they travel to Waco, Texas, to take on Baylor. They also have conference road tests at Kansas State, Missouri and Texas.
Another highlight on the schedule is the annual Bedlam series against Oklahoma. Considered one of the top college baseball rivalries in the nation, the Cowboys and Sooners will open their series May 16 at Drillers Stadium in Tulsa, Okla. The series then shifts to Oklahoma City's AT&T Bricktown Ballpark for the final two games.
The Big 12 Baseball Championships will be held at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark May 21-25, while NCAA Regionals get underway on May 30.
