Oklahoma State University Athletics
McCain Named Semifinalist For Breakout Player of Year Award
June 05, 2017 | Cowboy Baseball
OMAHA, Neb. – Oklahoma State junior Garrett McCain is a semifinalist for the 2017 Gregg Olson Award, which honors college baseball's breakout player of the year, it was announced today.
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McCain, a native of Wylie, Texas, is one of 25 semifinalists for the Olson Award, which is given annually to an amateur baseball player who elevates his game to an elite level throughout the season.
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An All-Big 12 First Team selection in 2017, McCain finished his junior season with a Big 12 Conference-best .388 batting average, and he led OSU in 11 offensive categories, including hits (87), doubles (14), triples (5), total bases (123), slugging percentage (.549), on-base percentage (.491) and stolen bases (19).
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McCain was one of only two OSU players to start all 57 games this season and helped the Cowboys to the third Big 12 championship in program history and a fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. He also led the Pokes with 27 multi-hit games and was second with 13 multi-RBI efforts.
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In his first two seasons in an OSU uniform, McCain appeared in 73 games, 39 as a starter, and hit .260 with seven extra-base hits and 19 RBIs. He far surpassed those combined totals in his breakout 2017 season
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The Olson Award is named in honor of former Auburn pitcher Gregg Olson and was developed to honor college baseball's success stories and showcase players who raise the level of their game through hard work, strength of mind and determination. Eligible players are those who were omitted from major publications' preseason All-American prognostications but who by the end of the season had demonstrated they are among the top players in the nation.
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McCain could become OSU's third-straight Olson Award finalist when that list is announced next week. Thomas Hatch was a finalist for the award last season, while Michael Freeman was among the finalists in 2015.
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McCain, a native of Wylie, Texas, is one of 25 semifinalists for the Olson Award, which is given annually to an amateur baseball player who elevates his game to an elite level throughout the season.
Â
An All-Big 12 First Team selection in 2017, McCain finished his junior season with a Big 12 Conference-best .388 batting average, and he led OSU in 11 offensive categories, including hits (87), doubles (14), triples (5), total bases (123), slugging percentage (.549), on-base percentage (.491) and stolen bases (19).
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McCain was one of only two OSU players to start all 57 games this season and helped the Cowboys to the third Big 12 championship in program history and a fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance. He also led the Pokes with 27 multi-hit games and was second with 13 multi-RBI efforts.
Â
In his first two seasons in an OSU uniform, McCain appeared in 73 games, 39 as a starter, and hit .260 with seven extra-base hits and 19 RBIs. He far surpassed those combined totals in his breakout 2017 season
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The Olson Award is named in honor of former Auburn pitcher Gregg Olson and was developed to honor college baseball's success stories and showcase players who raise the level of their game through hard work, strength of mind and determination. Eligible players are those who were omitted from major publications' preseason All-American prognostications but who by the end of the season had demonstrated they are among the top players in the nation.
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McCain could become OSU's third-straight Olson Award finalist when that list is announced next week. Thomas Hatch was a finalist for the award last season, while Michael Freeman was among the finalists in 2015.
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