Cowboy Baseball In The Pros, Aug. 5

Oklahoma State currently has 20 former players on professional baseball rosters, including a pair of big leaguers in Pittsburgh shortstop Jordy Mercer and Los Angeles Angels pitcher Andrew Heaney, and several have made the move up the professional ranks of late. Two ex-OSU stars are MLB managers — Robin Ventura of the Chicago White Sox and John Farrell with the Boston Red Sox.

Andrew Heaney, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim – OSU Career: 2010-12
Heaney was called up to the Angels on June 24 and has excelled as a member of Los Angeles' starting rotation. In seven starts, the southpaw is 5-1 with a 1.97 ERA and has recorded 34 strikeouts and only seven walks in 45.2 innings.

Heaney was named the American League Rookie of the Month for July after going 4-0 with a 1.98 ERA in four starts. He racked up 19 strikeouts and issued just two walks in 27 1/3 innings, and opponents hit only .233 against him.

Heaney leads all AL rookies in ERA and has not given up more than three runs in any start. He is only the second pitcher and the first lefty in Angels history with at least six innings pitched and two or fewer runs allowed in each of his first six starts for the team.

Jordy Mercer, Pittsburgh Pirates – OSU Career: 2006-08
Mercer went on the 15-day disabled list on July 20 after suffering a lower leg contusion and sprain of the medial collateral ligament in his left knee during a play at second base, but reports are he isn't expected to return before September. In 80 games this season, his fourth in the big leagues, Mercer is hitting .242 with two home runs, 14 doubles and 19 RBIs, and over his last 30 games, his average is .266. He also owns a .981 fielding percentage and has committed just seven errors on the year.

Mercer established himself as Pittsburgh's starting shortstop last season, playing in 149 games and hitting .255 with 12 home runs and 55 RBIs.

In 374 career games with Pittsburgh, Mercer is hitting .258 with 23 homers, 62 doubles and 106 RBIs.

Seven former Cowboys are currently at the Triple A level.

Scott Baker, Oklahoma City Dodgers (Dodgers) – OSU Career: 2001-03
Baker started the season with Oklahoma City and after going 1-1 with a 1.06 ERA and a complete game shutout, the right-hander was called up to Los Angeles. In two starts with the Dodgers, he was 0-1 with a 5.73 ERA before being designated for assignment by the club. He's now back in OKC, where he's 7-3 with a 3.39 ERA and two complete games in 13 starts, but he is currently on the 7-Day Disabled List.

Baker has played parts of 10 seasons in the big leagues with Minnesota, the Chicago Cubs, Texas and the Dodgers and is 66-53 with a 4.26 ERA.

Corey Brown, Durham Bulls (Rays) – OSU Career: 2005-07
Brown joined his hometown Tampa Bay organization in the offseason after spending 2014 in the Boston system. He is hitting .212 with 15 home runs and 44 RBIs in 87 games this season, with his 15 round trippers ranking sixth in the International League.

In nine seasons in the minor leagues, Brown owns a .258 career average to go along with 155 homers and 495 RBIs.

Brown spent parts of three seasons with the Washington Nationals and played in three games for the Red Sox last year. He's appeared in 39 games at the Major League Baseball level and is hitting .171 with two homers and four RBIs in those games.

Matt Hague, Buffalo Bisons (Blue Jays) – OSU Career: 2008
Hague is living up to the nickname given to him by Pirates manager Clint Hurdle. In 108 games, "The Hit Collector" leads the International League with a .345 batting average and 77 RBIs and is second with 28 doubles and a .475 slugging percentage. An International League All-Star, Hague's .345 average is 31 points higher than the next closest competitor as he attempts to become the second former OSU player to lead a professional league in hitting.

Hague was named the International League Player of the Month for July. He hit .376 during the month and led the league with 44 hits and 27 RBIs. Eleven of his hits were for extra bases, including four homers, and he led the Bisons to the league's best record in July.

Hague has two years of MLB experience with Pittsburgh in 2012 and 2014, where he played in 32 games and hit .222 with seven RBIs.

Tyler Lyons, Memphis Redbirds (Cardinals) – OSU Career: 2007-10
Lyons has bounced between Triple A Memphis and the big league club in St. Louis this season but is currently back with the Redbirds, where he's 8-5 with a 3.21 ERA and two complete games in 15 starts on the year. He has recorded 90 strikeouts in 89.2 innings.

In six starts with St. Louis this season, the southpaw is 2-1 with a 5.02 ERA and 31 strikeouts in 28.2 innings of work. For his MLB career, which spans parts of three seasons with the Cardinals, Lyons is 4-9 with a 4.72 ERA in 29 appearances, including 18 starts.

Andrew Oliver, Norfolk Tides (Orioles) – OSU Career: 2007-09
Oliver is with a new team after opting out of his minor league deal with Tampa Bay last month and signing with Baltimore.

Oliver won his debut with the Norfolk Tides on July after pitching two scoreless innings of relief, and the southpaw is 1-0 with a 2.31 ERA in six appearances with the team.

Prior to joining Norfolk, he made 21 relief appearances in Durham and was 1-1 with a save and a 3.86 ERA to go along with 32 strikeouts in 28 innings.

Oliver spent parts of two major league seasons in Detroit (2010-11), where he was 0-5 with a 7.11 ERA in seven starts; he played the 2013 and 2014 with Pittsburgh's Triple A affiliate in Indianapolis.

Luke Scott, Buffalo Bisons (Blue Jays) – OSU Career: 2000-01
Scott is continuing his efforts to return to Major League Baseball. He started 2015 in the Mexican League, where he hit .292 with seven homers and 27 RBIs in 28 games, before being signed by Toronto in May. At Triple A Buffalo, he's hitting .244 with 13 doubles, three homers and 25 RBIs in 47 games.

Scott played nine major league seasons with Houston, Baltimore and Tampa Bay from 2005-2013 before spending last season in Japan. In 889 games and nearly a decade in the bigs, Scott hit .258 with 135 homers and 436 RBIs.

Mike Strong, Colorado Springs Sky Sox (Brewers) – OSU Career: 2010-11
Strong was recently called up to Colorado Springs after starring at Double A Biloxi for much of the season.

In two relief appearances with the Sky Sox, the southpaw is 0-1 and has struck out three in two innings of work.

Strong is in his fifth minor league season, all in the Brewers organization. In 38 relief appearances at Biloxi, he was 4-1 with five saves and a 2.54 ERA, and he recorded 49 strikeouts in 49.2 innings of work with opponents hitting just .167 against him.

At the Double A level, three OSU baseball alums are looking to move up the ranks.

Tom Belza, Mobile BayBears (Diamondbacks) – OSU Career: 2008-10
Belza has spent time at both the Triple A and Double A levels in 2015 and is currently with Mobile, where he's hitting .240 with four homers and 15 RBIs in 67 games. At Triple A Reno earlier this season, he hit .162 in 16 games.

A 2014 Southern League Postseason All-Star, Belza is in his sixth minor league season and second with Mobile, where he hit .305 with 31 RBIs a year ago.

Jason Hursh, Mississippi Braves (Braves) – OSU Career: 2011-13
In his second season with Mississippi, Hursh was recently moved to the bullpen, and he is 3-6 with two saves and a 5.14 ERA in 24 appearances. He has allowed just three earned runs in 12 innings in his last nine games.

Hursh was named the Atlanta Braves organization's minor league pitcher of the year in 2014 after going 11-7 with a 3.58 ERA in 27 games (26 starts).

Brendan McCurry, Midland RockHounds (A's) – OSU Career: 2013-14
McCurry's standout season at Class A Advanced Stockton was recently rewarded with a call up to Double A Midland, and in three appearances with the RockHounds, the right-hander has six strikeouts in 4.2 innings.

In 36 appearances at Stockton, McCurry was 1-2 with 21 saves — a total that led the California League — and a 1.94 ERA; he racked up 56 strikeouts in 46.1 innings and opponents hit only .182 against him.

An All-American for the Cowboys in 2014 and the school's all-time leader in saves, McCurry was 2-0 with two saves and a 0.34 ERA to go along with 34 strikeouts in 26.1 innings at Class A Beloit last year.

A pair of recent Cowboy stars is currently playing at the Class A Advanced level.

Michael Freeman, Lancaster JetHawks (Astros) – OSU Career: 2014-15
The 2015 Big 12 Pitcher of the Year, Freeman has moved up to Class A Advanced Lancaster after going 1-1 with a 1.50 ERA in eight relief outings for Quad Cities. He has yet to make an appearance for the JetHawks.

Freeman was a seventh-round draft pick of Houston in June.

Tanner Krietemeier, Carolina Mudcats (Braves) – OSU Career: 2013-14
Krietemeier began the year at Class A Rome and hit .243 with a homer and 23 RBIs before moving up to the Braves' Class A Advanced team at Carolina. In 13 games with the Mudcats, he's hitting .146.

A trio of Cowboys who completed their OSU careers in 2015 has moved from the Rookie League to the Class A level.

Tim Arakawa, Burlington Bees (Angels) – OSU Career: 2014-15
A 23^rd-round draft pick of the Angels, Arakawa began his pro career at Orem in the Rookie League. After just four games there, he moved up to Class A Burlington, where he's hitting .299 with three home runs and 16 RBIs and a .441 slugging percentage in 33 games.

Over his last 10 games, Arakawa is hitting .317 with two homers and six RBIs.

Koda Glover, Hagerstown Suns (Nationals) – OSU Career: 2015
Glover inked a pro contract following one season in Stillwater after Washington drafted him in the eighth round in June. He made three appearances and recorded a save for Auburn at the Class A-Short Season level before moving to Class A Hagerstown. In eight outings for the Suns, he has a 0.82 ERA and two saves and has recorded 12 strikeouts in 11.0 innings of work.

Jon Perrin, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (Brewers) – OSU Career: 2012-15
After going 2-0 with a 0.90 ERA in three appearances for the AZL Brewers in the Rookie League, Perrin is with Class A Wisconsin. In six outings with the Timber Rattlers, including four starts, the right-hander is 1-2 with a 4.79 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 20.2 innings.

OSU also has three former players in the Rookie League.

Bryan Case, AZL Giants (Giants) – OSU Career: 2014-15
A 27^th-round draft pick by San Francisco, Case has played in four games for the Giants' Rookie League team and is hitting .188 with an RBI.

Zach Fish, Great Falls Voyagers (White Sox) – OSU Career: 2012-14
The 2014 Big 12 Conference Player of the Year, Fish started the season at Class A Kannapolis where he hit .125 with a homer and 10 RBIS in 20 games. He is now playing for Great Falls of the Pioneer League and is hitting .306 with nine homers and 28 RBIs in 31 games.

Fish spent his first professional season in 2014 in the outfield but has moved to catcher this year. He was named a Pioneer League All-Star, and he ranks second in the league in home runs and fourth in RBIs. He was named the Pioneer League Player of the Week on July 20 after going 9-for-24 with four homers and nine RBIs in games the week of July 13-19.

Gage Green, Ogden Raptors (Dodgers) – OSU Career: 2012-15
A two-time All-Big 12 First Team catcher and 35^th-round pick of Los Angeles, Green played in 14 games for the AZL Dodgers before joining the Ogden in the Pioneer League. In 22 games with the Raptors, Green is hitting .280 with a home run, four doubles and 11 RBIs.

For informative links on former Cowboys in the pros, click here.

Oklahoma State University Athletics

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Players Mentioned

Tim Arakawa

Bryan Case

Zach Fish

Michael Freeman

Koda Glover

Gage Green

Tanner Krietemeier

Brendan McCurry

Jon Perrin

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