Oklahoma State University Athletics
Cowboy Baseball Season Preview
February 18, 2010 | Cowboy Baseball
Feb. 18, 2010
Oklahoma State enters the 2010 season looking to continue the string of success the Cowboys have enjoyed under seventh-year head coach Frank Anderson.
The Cowboys are coming off a 34-24 showing in 2009, a season in which they advanced to the NCAA Clemson Regional finals. OSU is the only Big 12 Conference team to advance to the Regional finals each of the last four seasons.
Anderson's ballclub lost four position starters from last season's squad, including a pair of All-Big 12 performers, and two-thirds of the Cowboys' weekend starting pitching rotation is also gone. But the Cowboys return two of the league's top hitters in Tom Belza and Kevin David and several key components of its pitching staff from a year ago, highlighted by southpaw Tyler Lyons.
"We've got better team speed, and our pitching depth is better," Anderson said. "We're excited to have Lyons back. We'll throw some young guys into the fire on the mound early, but they're talented guys.
"We're fortunate to have good leadership with Belza, Dusty (Harvard) and Kevin (David) so we feel comfortable in the middle of the field. Those guys have been through it and had success."
Among the 17 Cowboy newcomers are several prep stars and a solid group of recruits from the junior college ranks that should bolster OSU's lineup and pitching staff.
"We do have a lot of new guys, but when they're talented new guys it makes it easier," Anderson said. "There will be bumps in the road, but they are a very talented group."
Catcher
The Cowboys have a number of players who could see time behind the plate, highlighted by 2009 All-Big 12 honorable mention pick Kevin David.
David started the majority of the Cowboys' games behind the plate last season. He ranked second in the Big 12 with 23 doubles and turned in a .311 batting average.
Eric Walker played in 21 games last season and provides valuable depth behind the dish.
A highly touted freshman from Nacogdoches, Texas, Dane Phillips holds his high school's season and career records for batting average, home runs, on-base percentage and slugging percentage and was a prep All-American.
First Base
Sophomore Dean Green returns for his junior season after starting nearly 100 games at designated hitter and first base in his first two seasons.
Prep star Kevin Chambers brings a strong left-handed back to the lineup and was a draft pick of the Detroit Tigers last June.
Kevin David could also be in the mix at first base.
Second Base
Tom Belza could return to second after playing shortstop last season. Belza, who spent much of his freshman year at second base, has led the Cowboys in hitting each of the last two seasons and was a Freshman All-American two years ago. He enters the season with a career .363 batting average.
Also battling for playing time is Davis Duren, who started 49 games last season and led the Cowboys with 14 stolen bases on 15 attempts.
Shortstop
Sophomore Randy McCurry is in the mix for playing time at shortstop. Last season McCurry, who also serves as OSU's closer, collected 11 hits in 31 at bats, including slugging three home runs.
Tom Belza proved himself a capable player at short last season and could see playing time at the position again in 2010.
JUCO transfer Daniel Zylstra hit over .300 with 24 stolen bases in his lone collegiate season and was an all-conference selection.
Third Base
The Cowboys will look to replace Tyrone Hambly, last year's starter at the hot corner, with sophomore Mark Ginther. In 37 games last season, Ginther hit .303 with five homers and 19 RBIs and showed the versatility to play a variety of positions.
Outfield
The Cowboys will have to replace all three of their starting outfielders from a year ago, including All-Big 12 performers Micheal Dabbs and Neil Medchill.
Center fielder Dusty Harvard is the lone returner with experience in the Cowboys' outfield, and the speedy senior is a standout defensively.
Nico Rosthenhausler is one of several JUCO recruits who could fill an outfield spot. Rosthenhausler was drafted by the Detroit Tigers last June after hitting .426 as a sophomore at South Mountain Junior College.
Luis Uribe brings a poweful bat to the lineup. The Dominican Republic native hit 21 homers and drove in 95 runs in two JUCO seasons.
The son of a former major leaguer, Devin Shines is another junior college standout. He hit well over .300 in both of his JUCO seasons and collected nearly 100 RBIs.
Commerce, Okla. native Josh Botts spent two seasons at NEO and slugged 23 homers while turning in a career batting average of nearly .400.
Freshman Kevin Chambers is another player in the mix to earn playing time in the OSU outfield.
Pitchers
OSU returns a strong group of veteran hurlers who have worked productive innings for the Cowboys, and Anderson is also excited about several newcomers to the pitching staff.
"We've got really good depth with a lot of guys returning who have given us some good innings and had success, along with some really talented young arms," Anderson said. "We've got a chance to have a really good staff, and that will be a big key for us."
Senior Tyler Lyons anchors the staff. The southpaw was drafted in the 10th round of last June's draft by the New York Yankees but chose to return to school where he'll be the ace of the staff.
Lyons enters his final collegiate season with 19 career wins, including going 12-2 as a sophomore. He has tossed six complete games in 30 starts over the last two seasons and has worked over 220 innings in his career.
Looking to join the weekend rotation is another seasoned lefty in junior Thomas Keeling. In 16 appearances last season, including six starts, Keeling was 5-1 and racked up 73 strikeouts in 51 innings of work.
Returning as OSU's closer is Randy McCurry, who tied the school's single-season saves record as a freshman with 10. In 28 appearances, the righthy was 4-1 with a 2.16 ERA.
Brad Propst returns in his role out of the bullpen in which he had 15 outings last season and was 1-1 with a save and a 2.20 ERA.
The Cowboys are also hoping senior Matt Peck can successfully recover from an injury and return to the form that saw him go 2-1 with five saves and a 2.38 ERA in 25 appearances two years ago.
Also returning to the mound this season is sophomore Uriah Fisher, who was 2-0 with a 3.49 ERA last season. As a freshman, Fisher worked in 10 games with three starts.
Among the newcomers, highly touted freshmen left-handers Andrew Heaney and Kevin Chambers are expected to be immediate contributors on the mound. Heaney compiled a 7-2 record with 114 strikeouts and a 1.32 ERA as a prep senior and was a 24th round draft pick of Tampa Bay, while Chambers won eight games on the mound as a high school senior.
Fellow freshman Trevor Walch, a native of Eufaula, Okla., was a strikeout machine in high school and had a 1.25 ERA in his final season.
Freshman Ian McCarthy was a California high school star who was 12-3 with a 1.42 ERA as a senior at Mater Dei High School.
OSU also signed a pair of JUCO hurlers who should work their way into the pitching rotation.
Don Lisi won 16 games in two seasons at Crowder College and was a two-time All-Region pick. Mike Strong was an all-conference selection as a sophomore at Iowa Western Community College.
The Schedule
Twelve NCAA Tournament teams from 2009 highlight Oklahoma State's 2010 baseball schedule.
"It's a challenging schedule, and we're going to face some great competition that will really test us," Anderson said. "We continue to upgrade our schedule, and this schedule will be one of the toughest we've had and one that should allow us to do well in the RPI."
OSU opens the 2010 season against Oklahoma Christian on Feb. 20 in Stillwater at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium, and the Cowboys follow that with a pair of tournament appearances. On Feb. 26, OSU faces USC in Los Angeles at the Dodgertown Classic, where the Cowboys will also take on tourney-host UCLA and Vanderbilt. The following weekend, OSU will compete in the Dairy Queen Classic, which is held in the Metrodome in Minneapolis, and will battle host Minnesota, Northwestern and Loyola Marymount.
Following the back-to-back road trips, OSU will open a 12-game home stand at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium on March 12 against Massachusetts. The home stand includes a pair of games against Wright State, which was an NCAA Regional team last season. That stretch will take the Cowboys into Big 12 Conference play, where they open on the road at Kansas State on March 26.
In Big 12 Conference action, Anderson's club will play host to Nebraska, Texas Tech, Kansas and Texas A&M. The conference home opener is against the Cornhuskers on April 2.
Among the Cowboys' other non-conference opponents are Missouri State and Wichita State, both of which OSU will face at home and on the road this season. Anderson's club will host a showdown against Rice on May 11.
OSU also has a non-conference game against Bedlam-rival Oklahoma in Stillwater on April 13. The two teams will alternate hosting a non-conference game each season, with the Cowboys making the trip to Norman in 2011. The games will not count towards either team's Big 12 record.
"It's been in the works for a while to get a game back on our campuses every year, and we're excited to get this first one back in Stillwater," said Anderson of the non-conference game agreement with OU. "It will be something the fans will enjoy, and it will only enhance the rivalry."
The Cowboys and Sooners will continue their conference rivalry with the usual Bedlam Series, with the opener May 7 at the new Oneok Field in Tulsa, Okla., and the final two games at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City.
The Big 12 Baseball Championship will be held at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark May 26-30, while NCAA Regionals get underway on June 4. The College World Series begins play on June 19 in Omaha, Neb.
