OSU Game Notes

#16 Oklahoma State at UT Rio Grande Valley
Fri., Feb. 15/7 p.m. • Sat., Feb. 16/2 p.m. • Sun., Feb. 17/Noon
UTRGV Baseball Stadium (5,000) • Edinburg, Texas

Video/TV: WAC Digital Network
Radio: KSPI 93.7 FM (Fri./Sun.) KVRO 101.1 FM (Sat.)
   okstate.com/watch & TuneIn
   (Rex Holt & Matt Davis)
Live Stats: www.goutrgv.com/sidearmstats/baseball
Twitter In-Game Updates: @OSUBaseball

About Oklahoma State
   • The Cowboys are coming off a 31-26-1 season in 2018 in which they earned a sixth consecutive NCAA Regional berth. OSU advanced to the finals of the NCAA DeLand Regional where they lost to host Stetson.
   • OSU finished second in the Big 12 Conference standings in 2018 with a 16-8 mark, one game back of league champion Texas. It marked the fifth time in the last six seasons the Cowboys earned a top-two league finish.
   • OSU had 11 players earn All-Big 12 status a year ago, led by 2018 Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Matt Kroon and All-Big 12 First Team starting pitcher Carson Teel. Seven of those all-conference Cowboys return in 2019.
   • Four Cowboys position players who started at least 35 games last season return in 2019 — catcher/outfielder Colin Simpson, outfielder Trevor Boone, first/third baseman Christian Funk and outfielder Carson McCusker.
   • The 2019 season marks OSU's seventh under head coach Josh Holliday, who is 231-132-1 at his alma mater.

About UT Rio Grande Valley
   • UT Rio Grande Valley finished with a 23-31 record in 2018 and finished seventh in the WAC standings at 8-16.
   • Juniors Coleman Grubbs (.329, 3 HR, 26 RBI) and Elijah Alexander (.281, 4 HR, 23 RBI) return to lead the Vaqueros offense in 2019. Last season, UTRV recorded a .243 team batting average and averaged 4.5 runs per game.
   • UTRGV's pitching staff sported a 4.67 ERA last season and recorded 435 strikeouts in 475 2/3 innings.
   • Derek Matlock is entering his second season as UTRGV's head coach. Prior to arriving in Edinburg, Matlock spent five seasons (2013-17) as West Virginia's pitching coach and recruiting coordinator.
   • UTRGV's starting pitching rotation vs. the Cowboys is expected to be:
   Friday: RHP Chase Adams — Senior was 5-5 with a 4.97 ERA in 13 starts last season; 80 K, 31 BB in 79.2 IP
   Saturday: RHP Trevelle Hill — Senior was 4-4 with a 4.60 ERA in 19 appearances in 2018; 46 K, 20 BB in 76.1 IP
   Sunday: RHP Nick Hollas — JUCO transfer from Western Texas College

Cowboys vs. Vaqueros
   Oklahoma State is 12-17 in the all time in the series against UT Rio Grande Valley (formerly Texas-Pan American), including a 2-1 mark under Josh Holliday. The Cowboys have not faced UTRGV in Edinburg since 1983, but they did make a trip to the city in 2007 to play in the Citrus Tournament hosted there by UTPA.
   Last 5 Meetings
   2014 - UT Pan American 3, OSU 1; OSU 4, UTPA 3; OSU 7, UTPA 6 (Stillwater)
   2003 - OSU 24, UTPA 1; OSU 17, UTPA 7 (Stillwater)

In The Polls
   OSU is ranked in five national preseason polls, coming in as high as No. 16 by Collegiate Baseball. The Cowboys are also ranked 18th by D1Baseball and Perfect Game, 20th by the NCBWA and 21st by USA Today.
   Last season, OSU entered the national rankings for the first time on April 23 and remained in at least one poll for five consecutive weeks before dropping out.
   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 five seasons — 10th in 2014 and fourth in 2016.

2,600 Club
   Oklahoma State began 2019 as one of only 19 programs in Division I history to reach 2,600 victories, beginning the year with 2,617 all-time wins to rank 15th all time. Of those 19 teams with 2,600 wins, only Florida State (71) has played fewer seasons than OSU's 107.

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 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.

Baseball In Their Blood
   Baseball — and Oklahoma State — is a family affair for Josh Holliday.
   Josh's father, Tom, served as an OSU assistant coach for 19 years then took over as the Cowboys' head coach from 1997-2003, leading the program to a College World Series appearance in 1999 (and coaching Josh in his final three college seasons). Tom spent four decades as a collegiate coach and was inducted into the OSU Cowboy Baseball Hall of Fame in 2016.
   Josh's younger brother, Matt, is a Major League Baseball veteran who has been named to seven All-Star teams in his 15 career seasons.
   Josh's uncle, Dave Holliday, was an OSU assistant coach from 1981-87 and has since held a variety of roles in Major League Baseball, including his current spot as a professional scout for the Atlanta Braves.

One More Season At Allie P.
   The 2019 season will mark the 39th and final season of OSU's historic ballpark, Allie P. Reynolds Stadium, with the Cowboys set to begin playing in the new O'Brate Stadium in 2020.
   Allie P. has been home to Oklahoma State baseball since April 4, 1981, and in those 38 seasons, the Cowboys have established a decisive home-field advantage.
   OSU is 926-239-1 (.795) all time at Reynolds Stadium and has lost more than two consecutive games on its home turf only 10 times (six in a row in 2007; five straight in 2017; four in a row in 2016 and 2018; three straight in 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2017 and 2018).
   The Cowboys were 12-10-1 on their home field in 2018.

Building A Winner
   In his first six seasons as head coach at his alma mater, Josh Holliday has built an impressive resume. Among the highlights:
   • The Cowboys have earned six 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 has finished first or second in the Big 12 Conference standings in five of its six seasons under Holliday — first in 2014, second in 2013, 2015, 2016 and 2018.
   • 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 53 All-Big 12 performers, six All-Americans, two Big 12 Pitcher of the Year honorees, a Big 12 Player of the Year and a Big 12 Newcomer of the Year.

Let's Get It Started
   OSU is 3-3 in season openers under Josh Holliday. The Cowboys opened last season with a 6-2 win at Texas State.

All-American Boys
   The Cowboys have had a player earn first-team All-American status in four of the last five 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.

Close Calls
   OSU is 57-34 in one-run games under Josh Holliday, and 60 of the Cowboys' 132 losses under Holliday have come by two runs or less.

Comeback Cowboys
   Come-from-behind victories have been a trend for the Cowboys under Josh Holliday; OSU has overcome deficits to win 96 games in Holliday's first six seasons. The largest deficit OSU overcame in 2018 was six runs — the Cowboys trailed both Missouri State (3/7) and TCU (3/31/Gm. 2) by a 6-0 score but came back to win both games.

Armed & Dangerous
   In six seasons under the direction of coach Rob Walton, OSU's pitching staff has turned in impressive numbers.
   The Cowboys' success under Walton includes 20 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 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, Oklahoma State has had 37 players selected in the Major League Baseball Draft. Eleven of those Cowboys were 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.

Chicks Dig The Long Ball
   The Cowboys' 71 home runs during the 2018 season were the most by an OSU team since 2009 when the Pokes had 81. OSU ranked 17th in the NCAA in homers last season.
   Colin Simpson led OSU's power surge a year ago, with his 18 homers, the most by an OSU player since Rebel Ridling had 18 in 2008. The last Cowboy to reach 20 round trippers in a season was Corey Brown, who smashed 22 in 2007.
   OSU smacked 11 homers in its series at Baylor, including posting seven in the game two win. That total marked OSU's most home runs in a game since the Pokes had eight against Kansas in 2006; the school record is 11 set against Chicago State in 1999.
   Led by Simpson, OSU returns a group that combined for 47 of its homers (66 percent) last season.

SOS
   Oklahoma State's strength of schedule appears stout in 2019 as the Cowboys will face 10 NCAA Regional teams from a year ago, including defending national champion Oregon State. Eight of OSU's opponents are nationally ranked in the preseason polls — UCLA (3), Michigan (17), Missouri State (24), TCU (16), Texas (14), Texas Tech (3), Oregon State (2) and Baylor (12).
   OSU finished the 2018 season No. 36 in the RPI.

Tank Smash
   Colin Simpson, aka "Tank", has established himself as one of the Big 12's top sluggers over the last two seasons, a span during which he smacked 29 home runs and collected 91 RBIs, and he enters his senior season on Preseason All-American and All-Big 12 lists.
   An All-Big 12 Second Team and ABCA/Rawlings All-Midwest Region performer last season, Simpson started all 58 games for the Cowboys and hit .280 with a career-high 18 home runs, a total that ranked 17th nationally. He also topped OSU in RBIs (51), total bases (130), walks (37) and slugging percentage (.578) and was second in hits (63), runs (48) and stolen bases (8).
   Primarily a catcher, Simpson started 43 games behind the plate in 2018 but is expected to get more time in left field this season; he started six games in left a year ago and also played the position in the Cape Cod League over the summer.
   Simpson enjoyed a breakout sophomore season for the Cowboys in 2017, collecting honorable mention All-Big 12 honors and leading OSU with 11 home runs while ranking third in RBIs (40) and slugging percentage (.492).

Boone Goes The Dynamite
   Trevor Boone had a breakout sophomore campaign for the Cowboys in 2018, starting 51 games in center field and earning honorable mention All-Big 12 honors.
   Boone went on a tear at the plate with the start of Big 12 Conference play; he was hitting .192 in 17 games prior to the conference-opening series at Texas but over the next 39 games he raised his average to .270.
In OSU's 24 Big 12 games, Boone hit .293 with seven homers and 24 RBIs in Big 12 play, both of which ranked second on the team.
   Included in Boone's surge was a game against Baylor in which he tied an OSU record by becoming only the 12th player in OSU history to hit three home runs in a game (it's been done on 14 occasions). Boone homered in each of his first three at-bats against the Bears in Saturday's contest.

Hit The Slugging Switch
   Over the first five weeks of his first season in an OSU uniform in 2018, Carson McCusker made just one start and collected only one hit, a single, in 11 at-bats.
   Things changed in a hurry for the sophomore in a doubleheader sweep of TCU on March 31. McCusker started both games of the twin bill in right field and went 4-for-6 with three home runs, all solo shots, while also making several highlight-reel defensive plays in the outfield.
   Following that breakout performance, McCusker started 34-straight games in right field and was one of the Cowboys' most consistent performers, hitting .314 with six homers and 11 RBIs in league play and earning honorable mention All-Big 12 accolades.

Back On The Bump
   OSU was without three key pitchers and potential weekend starters for most of 2018 — Jensen Elliott, Parker Scott and Mitchell Stone — but the return of that trio is expected to give the Cowboys a boost in 2019.
   A Freshman All-American in 2016 after going 9-3 in 17 starts, Elliott was 3-0 through four outings in 2017 before undergoing Tommy John Surgery last April. The righty returned to the mound for his 2018 debut on May 13 and pitched in four games over the final few weeks of the season.
   Scott pitched in six games as a freshman in 2017, starting twice, before an arm injury ended his season. The southpaw suffered another setback when he underwent TJS that November.
   Stone started games on the first two weekends of his freshman season in 2018 but broke his foot on March 2. He did not return to action and was granted a medical redshirt.

Cowboy Baseball Set To Open 2019 Season

OSU Game Notes

#16 Oklahoma State at UT Rio Grande Valley
Fri., Feb. 15/7 p.m. • Sat., Feb. 16/2 p.m. • Sun., Feb. 17/Noon
UTRGV Baseball Stadium (5,000) • Edinburg, Texas

Players Mentioned

Trevor Boone

Jensen Elliott

Michael Freeman

Christian Funk

Thomas Hatch

Matt Kroon

Garrett McCain

Carson McCusker

Parker Scott

Colin Simpson

Mitchell Stone

Carson Teel

Oklahoma State University Athletics

Cowboy Baseball Set To Open 2019 Season

OSU Game Notes

#16 Oklahoma State at UT Rio Grande Valley Fri., Feb. 15/7 p.m. • Sat., Feb. 16/2 p.m. • Sun., Feb. 17/Noon UTRGV Baseball Stadium (5,000) • Edinburg, Texas

Players Mentioned

Trevor Boone

Jensen Elliott

Michael Freeman

Christian Funk

Thomas Hatch

Matt Kroon

Garrett McCain

Carson McCusker

Parker Scott

Colin Simpson

Mitchell Stone

Carson Teel

Related Videos

#16 Oklahoma State at UT Rio Grande Valley
Fri., Feb. 15/7 p.m. • Sat., Feb. 16/2 p.m. • Sun., Feb. 17/Noon
UTRGV Baseball Stadium (5,000) • Edinburg, Texas