Oklahoma State University Athletics
Oklahoma State Baseball Retires Borland's Number
May 09, 2013 | Cowboy Baseball
May 9, 2013
STILLWATER - Former Oklahoma A&M baseball star Tom Borland will have his uniform number 11 retired in a ceremony prior to Oklahoma State's game against West Virginia on Thurs., May 16, which will be designated "Tom Borland Night" at Allie P. Reynolds Stadium.
Borland, who passed away in March at the age of 80, will become the fourth member of the OSU program honored by having his number retired, joining Robin Ventura (21), Pete Incaviglia (29) and Gary Ward (20). Each of them is also a member of the College Baseball Hall of Fame, with Borland set to be inducted in June.
During next week's pregame ceremony, a sign with Borland's No. 11 will be unveiled on the right field wall at Reynolds Stadium, and members of his family will throw out the first pitch. The first 1,000 fans at the game will receive a special commemorative Tom Borland baseball card.
"We're excited to honor Tom Borland and his great career and contributions to this program and the game of baseball," said OSU head coach Josh Holliday. "His place in the College Baseball Hall of Fame is something we're very proud of, and we're also very proud of his family and his longstanding relationship with the Stillwater community. We hope everybody that knew Tom and his family will come out to recognize his number on the fence with our three other great hall of fame members and celebrate his life and enjoy some Cowboy baseball the way he would have liked."
A native of McAlester, Okla., Borland was a left-handed pitcher for the Aggies from 1953-55. He was the second baseball All-American in Oklahoma State history and was inducted into the Cowboy Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998. He helped lead the Aggies to back-to-back College World Series appearances in 1954 and 1955 and was named the CWS Most Valuable Player in 1955.
During his three seasons in Stillwater, Borland compiled a 19-2 record and 2.63 ERA. His 16 career complete games are tied for sixth on OSU's all-time list, while his 258 strikeouts are tied for eighth.
As a junior in 1954, Borland was 8-1 with a 2.50 ERA and 100 strikeouts in 104 innings pitched, and he topped those numbers the next season when he tossed 10 complete games and went 11-0 with a 2.13 ERA and 143 strikeouts in 117 2/3 innings.
Borland also had a career .253 batting average to go along with a home run, six doubles and 10 RBIs.
Borland signed with the Boston Red Sox in 1955 and pitched in 27 games over two major league seasons (1960-61).
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