Sooners ready for Bedlam on the diamond
Whatever that was, Sooners baseball hopes it’s now gone. Swept away like a wrapper in the Oklahoma winds. It wasn’t great. Two weeks of baseball in its own backyard resulted in a 2-6 record and a tumble out of the polls.
Tuesday night’s trip to Wichita was a step in the right direction.
Now begins a stretch that will decide the Sooners season, starting with a trip to Bedlam rival Oklahoma State on Friday night at O’Brate Stadium. The three-game set concludes Sunday.
“I think it was a lot better. I mean, I think we played better baseball. A little more present. Played pitch and catch better. Got big hits at big moments. Even pitched out of a jam,” said Skip Johnson of his squad’s 11-2 bounce back win versus Wichita State.
Most ironic about the bad stretch? Oklahoma heads into the weekend trip to Stillwater in first place in the conference. As bad as the season-long eight-game homestand treated the tenants of L. Dale Mitchell Ballpark, all is not lost. The 7-2 mark in league play is the best start to a conference season since 2018.
There’s obviously a lot to play for as Johnson’s club heads into the main dish of conference play.
“Oh, there’s no doubt about that. It’s more about winning and learning and trying to teach these guys of staying in the moment and the learning process of taking it one pitch at a time. Just trying to win innings and trying to stay in that process as we go through a difficult time,” said Johnson.
WHAT WENT WRONG?
The answer might be better answered with the question: what went right? Just 15 of Lamar’s 31 runs scored last weekend were earned. Oklahoma committed eight errors over the course of the three-game affair and the pitching staff combined to walk 19 batters. The Cardinal scored 11 runs Thursday night with two outs. Friday was a combo of poor pitching and defense. Saturday’s finale was closer to a clean bill but still fell short. An embarrassing amount of miscues that led to a sweep.
“I think it started on Sunday. We played a little bit better. We were more present on Sunday when we got beat and with guys coming off the bench. Rocco (Garza-Gongora) coming off the bench getting a hit, Jaxon Willits coming off the bench getting a hit to state sustain the rally I think that was huge,” said Johnson.
In turn everything that went wrong last weekend went right on Tuesday. Wichita State walked 13. Oklahoma took advantage of the resulting scoring opportunities. Former Shocker Jace Miner turned a bases loaded jam into a double-play ball to end the sixth.
Oklahoma has played good baseball this season. But now is the time to make a move.
WILLITS EXCITED FOR FIRST BEDLAM
Jaxon Willits was practically born into the Bedlam rivalry. His first baseball game was a Bedlam affair.
This season the freshman shortstop gets his first taste of the rivalry he’s watched from afar.
“I mean I’ve been coming to OU games since I was about 8 or 9. One of my first baseball games was a Bedlam game so going into Stillwater with a beautiful stadium and hostile crowd. It’s fun. It’s one of those games you look forward to for a long time,” said Willits.
Add another notch to the freshmen’s belt as he makes his way through his first season in a Sooner uniform alongside father and OU assistant Reggie Willits. Following a pair of hits Tuesday night in Wichita, there’s hope Willits is starting to turn the corner offensively after a slow start to the year.
Staying with the process – especially for a freshman– can be tough. You’re reminded by it every time you go up to the plate. Just look at the scoreboard in the outfield.
“Everywhere shows your batting average and shows that you don’t have any home runs and you’re like, man, I want to get four hits in this one at bat,” Willits said. “But you can’t do that. You’ve got to worry about seeing pitches, battling and ultimately winning pitches and winning at bats.
“It’s nice to get some confidence and be able to go out there and feel that you belong and feel like you should be out there competing. So it was nice to get some confidence and go out there and play.”
An understandable mindset as he looks to create a Bedlam moment of his own this weekend for the Sooners.
Projected weekend rotation:
Friday (6p) – LHP Braden Davis vs. LHP Sam Garcia (3-3, 3.11 ERA, 37.2 ip, 9 BB, 52 SO)
Saturday (2p) – RHP Kyson Witherspoon vs. RHP Brian Holiday (2-1, 1.75 ERA, 51.1 ip, 8 BB, 56 SO)
Sunday (1p) – LHP Grant Stevens vs. RHP Gabe Davis (1-2, 3.32 ERA, 21.2 ip, 12 BB, 26 SO)
NEWS & NOTES
* Good news, bad news. Skip Johnson says John Spikerman got the stitches out of his hand (hamate bone surgery) and could be available to pinch-run this weekend. However, Carter Frederick (thumb), most likely will miss the rest of season. Johnson told reporters on Thursday that Frederick would ‘need a miracle’ with a cast on his thumb for the next month.
* After throwing the first two innings on Tuesday in Wichita, it’s expected left-hander Grant Stevens makes a move to the Sooners starting rotation this weekend. What that does to Brendan Girton and Jamie Hitt will be interesting in how they are used this weekend out of the bullpen. Hitt’s appearance on Tuesday out of the Sooners bullpen shouldn’t be overlooked. Most importantly, it was a clean two innings. Allowing just one hit and walking none. Jason Bollman’s (LSU transfer) season debut in the ninth looked sharp for a guy that was throwing in a real game for the first time in two years.
