Tuesday, February 20

Stillwater, OK

4:00 PM

Oklahoma State University

Oral Roberts

Colin Simpson & Cade Cabbiness

Cowboy Baseball Faces In-State Rival In 2018 Home Opener

February 19, 2018 | Cowboy Baseball

OSU Game Notes (PDF)

Oklahoma State (2-1) vs. Oral Roberts (3-0)

Tues., Feb 20/4 p.m.

Allie P. Reynolds Stadium (4,000) • Stillwater, Okla.

Video: okstate.com/live (Dave Hunziker & Tom Holliday)

Radio: KSPI 93.7 FM (Rex Holt & Matt Davis)

Live Stats: okstate.com

Twitter In-Game Updates: @OSUBaseball

Promos: • Cowboys & Carhartts - Fans have a chance to win an OSU Carhartt jacket each inning (enter to win at game; must be present to win; sizes limited; jacket winner only able to win once)

• Music Bingo

About Oklahoma State

• OSU is 2-1 on the season after opening 2018 with a road series win at Texas State, with the Cowboys winning the season opener and Sunday's finale.

• OSU is coming off a 2017 season in which it made its fifth consecutive NCAA Regional appearance and finished 30-27 overall. The Cowboys went 8-14 in conference play a year ago to finish eighth in the standings but made history when they became the first-ever team to win the Big 12 Championship title as a No. 8 seed; OSU swept through the tourney field with a 4-0 mark.

• The Cowboys return six position players who started at least 30 games last season, while nine pitchers who combined for 16 wins return to the staff.

• The 2018 season marks OSU's sixth under head coach Josh Holliday, who has compiled a 200-106 record at his alma mater.

About Oral Roberts

• Oral Roberts finished the 2017 season with a 43-16 overall record and made its third consecutive NCAA Regional appearance.

• The Golden Eagles are led by a pair of preseason All-Americans, pitcher Miguel Ausua and reigning Summit League Player of the Year, outfielder Noah Cummings, who hit .321 with 15 home runs and 75 RBIs as a junior last season.

• Ryan Folmar is in his sixth season as ORU head coach and owns a 180-111 career record. Folmar was a four-year letterwinner at Oklahoma State as a catcher from 1994-97.

• ORU is scheduled to start left-hander Taylor Varnell against the Cowboys. A senior southpaw, Varnell has not pitched this season but was 3-2 with a save and a 2.02 ERA and 33 strikeouts in 26.2 IP in 13 appearances last season. He pitched in all four games against OSU in 2017, starting two of those, and was 2-0 with a 3.09 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 11 2/3 innings of work.

Cowboys vs. Golden Eagles

Oklahoma State is 35-36 all time in the series against Oral Roberts, including a 3-8 mark under Josh Holliday.

Last 11 Meetings

2013 - OSU 4, ORU 2 (Tulsa/ONEOK Field)

2014 - ORU 15, OSU 8 (Tulsa); OSU 8, ORU 3 (Stillwater)

2015 - ORU 4, OSU 2 (Tulsa); ORU 15, OSU 5 (Stillwater)

2016 - ORU 4, OSU 0 (Stillwater); ORU 3, OSU 1 (Tulsa)

2017 - OSU 7, ORU 6 (11 inn./Stillwater); ORU 4, OSU 1 (Tulsa); ORU 11, OSU 7 (Tulsa); ORU 14, OSU 6 (NCAA Fayetteville Regional)

In The Polls

From March 4, 2013 to April 3, 2017, OSU was ranked in at least one national poll, a streak of 77 consecutive weeks. During that time, the Cowboys spent 18 weeks in the Top 10 and were ranked as high as No. 3 (by the NCBWA in 2014). They have finished in the top 10 in the final national polls twice in the last four seasons — 10th in 2014 and fourth in 2016 — and have ended the season in the top 10 in the national polls 20 times in program history.

High Five

OSU entered the 2018 season as the fifth winningest team in NCAA history in terms of winning percentage at .663.

Team Seasons Wins Losses Ties Pct.

1. Texas 121 3,443 1,283 31 .727

2. Florida State 70 2,839 1,066 11 .726

3. Miami (Fla.) 73 2,567 1,058 18 .707

4. Arizona State 106 2,836 1,413 8 .667

5. Oklahoma State 106 2,586 1,315 4 .663

25 For 2,500

Oklahoma State began 2018 as one of only 25 programs in Division I history to reach 2,500 victories, beginning the year with 2,586 all-time wins to rank 15th all time. Of the 25 teams with 2,500 wins, only four have played fewer season's than OSU's 106 (Florida State - 70; Miami (Fla.) - 73; Fresno State - 89; and Florida - 103).

Omaha

The Cowboys' coaching staff is no stranger to the College World Series, with Josh Holliday and Rob Walton combining for 11 CWS appearances as either a player or coach.

Prior to leading his alma mater to Omaha in 2016, Holliday previously played on a pair of CWS teams at OSU (1996 & 1999) and coached in the CWS as an assistant at Georgia Tech (2006), Arizona State (2009) and Vanderbilt (2011).

Holliday is one of only 17 people to reach the College World Series as both a player and head coach.

Walton spent four seasons as a pitcher at OSU from 1983-86, and each of those teams appeared in the CWS.

HOFers

Oklahoma State's coaching staff includes three hall of famers. Josh Holliday was inducted into the Cowboy Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003, while Rob Walton joined him in 2018; James Vilade is a member of the the University of Dallas Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2011.

Holliday's playing days for the Cowboys saw him hit .311 with 53 homers and 237 RBIs in 256 games, while Walton was 20-4 with a 3.74 ERA and 10 complete games in 54 appearances.

Vilade spent four seasons as the head coach at UD and compiled a 118-52 record.

Home Sweet Home

Allie P. Reynolds Stadium has been home to Oklahoma State baseball since April 4, 1981, and in those 37 seasons, the Cowboys have been nearly unbeatable on their home field.

OSU is 914-229 (.800) all time at Reynolds Stadium and has lost more than two consecutive games on its home turf only eight times (six in a row in 2007; five straight in 2017; four in a row in 2016; three straight in 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2017).

The Cowboys were 16-14 on their home field in 2017 and won the 900th game at Reynolds Stadium against Texas State on Feb. 26.

Building A Winner

In the first five seasons as head coach at his alma mater, Josh Holliday built quite an impressive resume. Among the highlights:

• The Cowboys have earned five NCAA Regional berths, advanced to two Super Regionals and played in the College World Series for the first time since Holliday was a senior for the Cowboys in 1999.

• OSU finished first or second in the Big 12 Conference standings each season from 2013-16.

• The Cowboys finished in the top 10 in the national rankings in 2014 (10th) and 2016 (4th) after ending the 2013 season ranked as high as No. 19. In 2015, they were ranked as high as 17th in the final polls

• In 2014, OSU won its first-ever Big 12 Conference regular season championship, and the 2017 club captured the second Big 12 Championship title in program history.

• OSU hosted NCAA Regionals in 2014 and 2015 and was the top-seeded team both times.

• Holliday has coached 42 All-Big 12 performers, six All-Americans, two Big 12 Pitcher of the Year honorees and a Big 12 Player of the Year.

Comeback Cowboys

Come-from-behind victories have been a trend for the Cowboys under Josh Holliday; OSU has overcome deficits to win 82 games in Holliday's six seasons.

Close Calls

OSU is 50-32 in one-run games under head coach Josh Holliday (2013-pres.), and 53 of the Cowboys' 107 losses under Holliday have come by two runs or less.

In 2017, 13 of OSU's 22 conference games were decided by two runs or less; the Cowboys were 4-9 in those games with six one-run defeats and three two-run setbacks.

Armed & Dangerous

In five seasons under the direction of coach Rob Walton, OSU's pitching staff has turned in impressive numbers.

The Cowboys' success under Walton from 2013-17 includes 16 All-Big 12 pitchers, two consensus first-team All-Americans, two Big 12 Pitcher of the Year winners and a first-round Major League Baseball Draft pick.

Here's just a sampling of how the Cowboys have performed under Walton, who was named the 2016 ABCA/Baseball America Assistant Coach of the Year:

• Four of OSU's five pitching staffs under Walton recorded an ERA of 3.29 or lower.

• In 2016, the Cowboys led the Big 12 with 574 strikeouts, 10 shutouts and 21 saves, each totals that ranked as the second highest in a single season in school history.

• OSU's pitching staff led the Big 12 in ERA in conference-only games in 2014 (2.43) and 2015 (2.50).

• The Cowboys' 2.84 ERA in 2015 ranked eighth nationally and was the lowest by an OSU pitching staff since 1973.

• OSU recorded seven shutouts in 2013 and 2014 and had 10 in 2016, the second most in a single season in program history. Those totals also marked three of only six times in program history the Cowboys have tallied seven shutouts or more in a season; in the 26 seasons prior to 2013, OSU reached seven shutouts only once.

• Jason Hursh was a first-round pick in the 2013 MLB Draft, Brendan McCurry (2014) and Michael Freeman (2015) were first-team All-Americans and Freeman (2015) and Thomas Hatch (2016) were named Big 12 Pitcher of the Year.

• Freeman's 1.31 ERA ranked sixth in the NCAA in 2015 and was the fifth lowest in a single season in OSU history.

• McCurry set OSU records for single-season saves (19) and career saves (27).

Go Pro

During Josh Holliday's tenure as head coach (2013-17), Oklahoma State has had 32 players selected in the Major League Baseball Draft. Eleven of those Cowboys have been picked in the top 10 rounds, including 2013 first-rounder Jason Hursh.

In 2016, OSU tied a program record with 11 MLB Draft picks. (The 2007 Cowboys also had 11 draftees). The 11 draft picks tied the Cowboys with Mississippi State for the third most of any Division I program in 2016 behind only Texas A&M (13) and Southern California (12). Five of those went in the first 10 rounds, which marked the most top-10-round picks for OSU since five Pokes were taken in the top-10 rounds in 2008. Seven of the OSU players drafted were pitchers.

Year OSU Draft Picks

2013 2

2014 5

2015 8

2016 11

2017 6

Tank Smash

Colin Simpson, aka "Tank", enjoyed a breakout sophomore season for the Cowboys in 2017. The catcher/DH collected honorable mention All-Big 12 honors and led OSU with 11 home runs while ranking third in RBIs (40) and slugging percentage (.492).

Simpson did the majority of his damage against Big 12 competition as in 22 conference games he hit .272 with seven homers and 23 RBIs — no other Cowboy had more than two homers or 19 RBIs in league play. During one stretch, Simpson went deep in four-straight Big 12 contests, including smacking two homers vs. West Virginia on April 2.

Simpson was named to the Big 12 Championship All-Tournament Team after hitting .368 (7-for-19) with two doubles, two homers and five RBIs in four tourney games.

Off to a hot start in 2018, Simpson was 6-for-3 (.462) with a pair of homers and five RBIs on opening weekend against Texas State; he started all three games at catcher for the Cowboys.

An All-American Streak

The Cowboys have had a player earn first-team All-American status in each of the last four years. The streak began with pitcher Brendan McCurry (2014), who was followed by pitchers Michael Freeman (2015) and Thomas Hatch (2016). Outfielder Garrett McCain extended the streak in 2017.

OSU has had 25 different players earn first-team All-America status in program history.

Outfield Veteran

A constant in Josh Holliday's lineup card over the last three seasons has been outfielder Jon Littell. The senior is by far the Cowboys' most experienced player, having appeared in 138 games, and his 126 starts is 60 more than the next closest player on the OSU roster.

Littell has the versatility to play either corner outfield spot — he's started 79 games in left field and 47 games in right field during his career.

At the plate, Littell caught fire in OSU's 2017 run to the College World Series as he was OSU's second-leading hitter in the NCAA tourney with a .379 batting average (11-for-29) in nine games. He carried that into 2017, where he was hitting over .300 with three homers and 21 RBIs before suffering injuries in an outfield collision at TCU on March 26 and missing nine games; the injuries lingered throughout the remainder of the season.

Littell showed a penchant for clutch hitting in 2017 as he hit .306 (15-for-49) with runners in scoring position while 16 of his 28 RBIs came with two outs.

Experienced Sophomores

The Cowboys were one of the Big 12's youngest teams in 2017 with a number of freshmen playing prominent roles, and much will be expected of the group again in 2018. Five of those — Ryan Cash, Cade Cabbiness, Trevor Boone, Cameron Dobbs and Michael Neustifter — were position players who combined for 146 starts. On the mound, Jonathan Heasley was among the team leaders with 22 appearances, while C.J. Varela (13), Brady Basso (12) and Peyton Battenfield (5) also played key roles on the mound.

Teel Time

Carson Teel joined the OSU program as a walk-on in 2015 and spent that season redshirting for his hometown team. Since then, Teel has flourished into a scholarship player with a significant role in the Cowboys' pitching rotation.

In 2017, the southpaw led OSU with 28 appearances, 25 of those in relief, and topped the Pokes with a 3.06 ERA and three saves while ranking second on the pitching staff in wins (5) and strikeouts (77).

In OSU's run to the Big 12 Championship title, Teel appeared in all four games, striking out 10 and allowing only one run in 8.1 innings out of the bullpen.

Teel was a 27th-round draft pick of the Boston Red Sox in last June's MLB Draft but put a professional career on hold to return for his junior season.

New Faces

OSU's active roster includes 17 newcomers — nine from the junior college ranks along with eight high school recruits.

On opening weekend at Texas State, nine Cowboy newcomers made their OSU debut; four of those saw their names in the starting lineup.

Of the Cowboys' nine JUCO signees, four of those started their collegiate careers at the Division I level — Matt Kroon (Oregon), Reza Aleaziz (Oregon State), Jacob Ruder (Kansas State) and Ryan Van Leeuwen (UT Arlington).