Tag: Oklahoma Sooners Baseball

OU Baseball adds juco transfer Jeffrey Martz via portal

OU baseball adds a junior college transfer in the portal to continue a strong month.

The Oklahoma Sooners baseball team continued their hot July in the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] this weekend. OU added utility player Jeffrey Martz to the team from the junior college ranks.

Martz transfers in from GateWay Community College, after hitting .320 with a .402 on-base percentage over his two years of JUCO ball. He hit 12 home runs, 12 triples and 35 doubles.

Martz is capable of playing a variety of positions, primarily seeing time at catcher in his collegiate career. He is able to play first and third base as well. He arrives in Norman with two years of eligibility left.

Head coach Skip Johnson has been very active in the transfer portal in the month of July. He’s added players like Texas A&M‘s Jason Bodin and Liberty’s Brayden Horton after losing eight players to the 2024 MLB Draft this month. The Sooners won the outright [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] regular season conference title in 2024, and will now make the transition to the [autotag]SEC[/autotag].

Oklahoma Baseball lands commitment from infielder Mason Hamlin

Skip Johnson continues his hot streak on the portal trail, adding Mason Hamlin out of Division 2’s UT Permian Basin.

Oklahoma Sooners baseball head coach [autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag]’s hot streak in the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] has continued into the weekend.

OU added infielder [autotag]Mason Hamlin[/autotag] out of the portal from Texas Permian Basin, a Division II school in Odessa, Texas, on Saturday.

Hamlin entered the portal on June 25th after a coaching change at UTPB, but was very productive for the Falcons in his two seasons in West Texas. He hit the ball at a .370 clip with 154 hits and seven home runs, and stole 49 bases while starting all 109 contests he played for UT Permian Basin.

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During both of his seasons at UTPB, Hamlin was instrumental in the program’s turnaround from an also-ran to a contender in the Lone Star Conference. In 2024, Hamlin helped the Falcons to the Division II NCAA National Championship Tournament, the first appearance in the program’s history.

Hamlin’s timely hits and stellar play at shortstop will now be tested at the Division I level, as he joins pitcher Jason Bodin and utility player Brayden Horton as portal additions this week for Johnson and his staff.

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Oklahoma baseball adds Liberty Flames’ Brayden Horton via transfer portal

OU continues to stay hot on the portal trail, adding Liberty’s Brayden Horton.

The Oklahoma Sooners added to their roster via the [autotag]transfer portal[/autotag] on Friday, picking up a commitment from utility player Brayden Horton. Oklahoma stayed hot on the portal trail after adding pitcher Jason Bodin earlier this week.

Horton, who transfers from Liberty, announced his decision to join OU on social media.

Horton played two years with the Flames, and he has has two seasons of eligibility to work with as he makes his way to Norman. Last season, he hit .274 with an on-base percentage of .403 to go with 11 home runs and 39 RBIs.

In 2023, as a true freshman, Horton hit at a .341 clip with an on-base percentage of .471 to pair with six home runs and 40 RBIs. In the last two years, Horton has played in 100 total games and made 90 starts.

Defensively, Horton brings a .984 career fielding percentage with 361 putouts and 18 assists with just six total defensive errors across his 100 games. [autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag] needs to replace all of last year’s starting outfielders, and he lost eight players to the draft earlier this week.

Johnson and the Sooners head into the snake pit that is [autotag]SEC[/autotag] baseball, after winning the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] regular season title outright in 2024.

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Skip Johnson named ABCA Central Region Coach of the Year

Oklahoma baseball coach Skip Johnson is the ABCA Central Region Coach of the Year.

Oklahoma Sooners head baseball coach [autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag] was been named the ABCA Central Region Coach of the Year, the university announced earlier this week.

The ABCA/ATEC Regional Coaches of the Year are selected by members of the ABCA All-America & Coach of the Year Committees in all nine divisions: NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA, NJCAA Divisions I, II and III, Pacific Association Division and high school.

Oklahoma won the program’s first [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] regular season championship and made its 41st NCAA Tournament appearance in 2024. The Sooners also hosted an NCAA Regional in Norman for the first time since 2010.

The excellent season had an impact on attendance, as plenty of attendance records were set at L. Dale Mitchell Park in 2024. Three of the top four single-game crowds in school history came through the gates, with a program single-game record 4,812 in attendance on April 26. Oklahoma also broke the single-season attendance record with 60,962 fans attending regular-season games in 2024 and a single-game postseason record crowd of 4,332 for OU’s 14-0 regional-opening win over Oral Roberts.

OU got to 40 wins for the second time in the last three seasons and 25th time in program history. On their way to winning the Big 12 regular season title, OU swept a program record six conference series, tying the Big 12 record for sweeps in a season, and finished with a program record 23 wins in Big 12 play (23-7). Those 23 wins were good for the second most conference wins in Big 12 history. OU won 23 of its final 30 games, including 14 of its last 16 conference games, with sweeps in four of the last six weekends.

In his seventh season in Norman, Johnson collected OU’s first [autotag]Big 12 Coach of the Year[/autotag] honor.

The regional coach of the year award is Johnson’s second in the last three seasons. He also received the honor in 2022 when he led the program to a runner-up finish in the [autotag]College World Series[/autotag].

With all of the talk this week about coaching movement in college baseball at a couple of programs not too far from home, Johnson remains a steadying hand ready to guide the Sooners into the [autotag]SEC[/autotag].

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‘Program Guy’ Bob Stoops spotted enjoying OU baseball’s win over TCU

Oklahoma’s former head coach kicked back in Arlington to watch the Sooners take down the Horned Frogs.

The Oklahoma Sooners baseball team shutout the TCU Horned Frogs in their [autotag]Big 12 Conference Tournament[/autotag] opener on Wednesday, and they had at least one famous fan in attendance.

Former Oklahoma head football coach [autotag]Bob Stoops[/autotag] took in the game, played in Arlington, Texas at Globe Life Field. The broadcast couldn’t help but find Big Game Bob enjoying the action from the stands.

George Stoia of On3 and SoonerScoop caught the moment and shared it for OU fans on social media. Stoops enjoyed a beer and a pretty loaded hot dog, and you know he enjoyed seeing the Sooners take down the Horned Frogs in dominant fashion.

The 2000 national champion, and the all-time winningest coach in OU football history has enjoyed his semi-retirement. He’s been popping up all over the place since he stepped away from coaching in the summer of 2017. The Rock ‘N Roll Tequila spokesperson is always there to support the Sooners at any sporting event. He supported them even more when he served as the interim head coach for the 2021 Alamo Bowl win.

Stoops was able to catch the game in Arlington during a day off from coaching the Arlington Renegades of the United Football League. Though the 2024 season isn’t going how Stoops had hoped, the Renegades won the XFL championship last season. Stoops got a milestone 200th career victory earlier this month.

Sports can be an uncertain world sometimes, but one thing you can count on is that Bob Stoops is a Program Guy and a Sooner For Life.

Oklahoma will match up against the Kansas Jayhawks for their second game of the tournament, with first pitch set for 12:30 p.m. on Thursday. Kansas defeated Kansas State on Tuesday to advance to this semifinal round. They’ve got an extra day of rest on the Sooners, following an off day on Wednesday.

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Skip Johnson wins Big 12 Coach of the Year, 12 Sooners earn conference accolades

After a fantastic season, Skip Johnson was named Big 12 Coach of the Year and 12 Sooners received Big 12 honors.

The Oklahoma Sooners baseball team has had a remarkable season in 2024. They were picked to finish fifth in the Big 12 in the preseason poll and went on to win the conference’s regular season title.

Oklahoma finished the year 34-18 and 23-7 in Big 12 play and 2.5 games up on Oklahoma State in the regular season race. The Sooners clinched the conference title with a three-game sweep of the Baylor Bears on the second to last weekend of the season.

After their incredible season, Oklahoma Sooners manager Skip Johnson was named Big 12 Coach of the Year on Monday. It was the Sooners first Big 12 regular season title in school history.

Michael Snyder, who led the league in batting average during conference play earned first-team All-Big 12 honors. So did DH Easton Carmichael and sophomore pitcher Braden Davis. Carmichael led the Sooners in batting average on the year, hitting .363 with four triples, six home runs, and 59 RBIs. Davis was 8-3 on the season, but 7-1 in Big 12 play and earned two Big 12 Pitcher of the Week awards during the season.

Earning second-team honors were outfielder Bryce Madron and pitcher Kyson Witherspoon.

Madron led the league with 65 runs scored and finished in the top 10 in conference play in runs scored, RBIs, total bases, slugging percentage, and stolen bases. On the season, he paced Oklahoma with 11 home runs.

Witherspoon was 6-1 in Big 12 play and 7-3 on the season. He leads the team with a 4.24 ERA and 75 strikeouts in 70 innings.

Jaxon Willits earned Big 12 Freshman of the Year after hitting .341 in conference play.

Reliever Carter Campbell, utility player Anthony Mackenzie, catcher Scott Mudler, infielder Jackson Nicklaus, outfielder John Spikerman, and Willits earned Big 12 honorable mention honors.

The Sooners now get ready for the Big 12 tournament, which begins on Tuesday in Arlington. Oklahoma’s first game comes Wednesday.

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Huge weekend coming for Sooners as Big 12 Baseball Tournament Bracket Revealed

Oklahoma will be the top seed in the Big 12 Championship Tournament, and will play on Tuesday.

The Oklahoma Sooners baseball team won the Big 12 regular season conference title outright last week. Now, they know how the rest of the conference tournament bracket will look.

Oklahoma will be the No. 1 seed in the [autotag]Big 12[/autotag] Conference Championship Tournament, another achievement in a historic season for OU Baseball. It’s the final Big 12 Tournament for the Sooners before they join the [autotag]SEC[/autotag] next season.

[autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag]’s club beat the Cincinnati Bearcats two games to one in a three-game series on Thursday and Friday. Oklahoma won the first two games in the Queen City, before dropping a 10-6 decision in Game 3. The Sooners finished the regular season with a record of 34-18.

Oklahoma will now head to Arlington, Texas for the [autotag]2024 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship[/autotag] at Globe Life Field.

The tournament begins on Monday, but the Sooners will be getting a bye and won’t play until Tuesday afternoon.

Oklahoma will play the lower-seeded winner of Games 1 and 2 of the tournament. Their opponent will be the lower-ranked winner of the games between No. 7 Kansas and No. 6 Kansas State (Game 1) and No. 9 TCU vs. No. 4 West Virginia (Game 2). This means OU will play either TCU, Kansas or Kansas State first, as a West Virginia win would have the Mountaineers play on Thursday against the winner of Oklahoma’s first game (Game 6). The Oklahoma State Cowboys are the other team with a bye in the tournament, as the No. 2 seed.

Oklahoma’s first game of the week will begin at 12:30 p.m. CT on Tuesday.

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Skip Johnson, Sooners earn first Big 12 championship

OU baseball has won the regular season Big 12 championship, after the Sooners defeated the Baylor Bears, and Oklahoma State’s game against Texas Tech was cancelled.

The Oklahoma Sooners baseball team has captured the regular season title in the Big 12 Conference for the first time in school history.

OU took down the Baylor Bears in seven innings on Saturday night, winning by a score of 19-7. It was the final game of a three game series between the two teams.

The No. 17 Sooners swept the Bears, with the second and third wins coming on Senior Day at L Dale Mitchell Park.

[autotag]Skip Johnson[/autotag]’s team won the first conference title for the program since the Sooners won the Big Eight in 1995. It’s the school’s 23rd baseball conference championship overall.

“The accomplishment belongs to the players,” said Sooners head coach Skip Johnson. “You play one pitch at a time, that’s our mantra. We play one pitch at a time and one game at a time and that’s what we have to continue to do. That’s what we will continue to talk about, continue to work on and continue to practice.”

 

Oklahoma originally clinched a share of the Big 12 title with the sweep of Baylor. Then, Oklahoma State’s third game against Texas Tech was canceled due to weather on Sunday. This gave Sooners the conference crown outright.

OU will face Xavier on the road on Tuesday afternoon before the final series of the regular season against Cincinnati. That series against the Bearcats is scheduled for Thursday, Friday and Saturday in the Queen City.

The Big 12 Championship Tournament will take place from May 21-25 in Arlington, Texas.

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Best Photos from the Oklahoma Baseball’s win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers

A look at the best photos from the Oklahoma Sooners walk-off win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

The Oklahoma Sooners Baseball team opened the season on a high note with a 2-1 weekend in the Shriners Children’s College Showdown in Arlington, Texas.

After dropping their season opener 4-2 to the Oregon Ducks, Oklahoma knocked off a top 10 ranked Tennessee team 5-1 in extra innings before beating Nebraska in walk-off fashion.

Down 6-5 heading into the bottom of the ninth, the Sooners rallied. Michael Snyder drove in John Spikerman with an RBI double, and with the bases loaded, Jaxson Willits drove in the winning run off Cornhuskers closer Casey Daiss.

Jaxson Willits won the day for the Sooners with an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth.

After getting eliminated in the regional round of the NCAA tournament in 2023, this was a great start to the 2024 season for Skip Johnson’s crew.

Here are some of the best photos from the Oklahoma Sooners’ win over Nebraska.

Kyler Murray encourages Taylor Tatum after commitment to OU football and baseball

Former Sooner and two-sport star Kyler Murray encouraged Taylor Tatum after the five-star running back’s commitment to Oklahoma.

“Two-sport U” has made a couple of splashes in the 2024 recruiting cycle with the commitments of James Nesta and, most recently, Taylor Tatum to Oklahoma football and baseball.

On Friday, Tatum, the No. 1 running back in the nation and a 247Sports composite five-star player, pledged to the Sooners’ 2024 recruiting class, choosing OU over USC.

Sooners baseball coach Skip Johnson’s success working with the football team to manage the schedule of a former two-sport star had to play a big role in earning Tatum’s commitment. It certainly helps that he boasts a recent trip to the College World Series championship.

Oklahoma’s most notable two-sport star, Kyler Murray, took to Twitter on Saturday to encourage Taylor Tatum after his commitment, saying, “Great choice, play both for as long as you can! Boomer!” He also shared a hand emoji representing the sign for “I love you.”

Kyler Murray was the No. 1 pick by the Arizona Cardinals in 2019. Prior to that, the Oakland Athletics took him No. 9 overall in the 2018 MLB draft.

Like Murray, Tatum’s speed kills on the gridiron and is a terror on the basepaths. He’ll certainly be someone that provides ChaOUs for both Brent Venables and Skip Johnson. All that’s left to do is get him signed and on campus and let his athleticism do the rest.

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