Baseball Travels To ORU, Hosts Baylor

March 23, 2000

The Sooner baseball team (14-10, 4-2) heads to Tulsa, Okla., to face Oral Roberts (13-5) on Tuesday before hosting No. 21 Baylor (18-8, 5-4) this weekend. OU and ORU will battle it out for the second time this season in a single game at J.L. Johnson Stadium in Tulsa on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.

The No. 21 Baylor Bears come to Norman this weekend for the Sooners' second home conference series of the season. Game times for the three-game set are 6:35 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday.

LAST TIME OUT

Oklahoma dropped two of three games over the weekend against Nebraska at Buck Beltzer Stadium in Lincoln, Neb.

The Huskers' Shane Komine pitched a complete game and held the Sooners to four hits as Nebraska upended Oklahoma 10-1 on Friday afternoon.

In the first game of a doubleheader on Sunday, the Huskers continued their dominance of the Sooners with a 12-0 seven-inning run-ruled victory. However, OU fought back in the second game with a 4-3 win. The heroics in the victory were supplied by senior rightfielder/pitcher Jeff Bajenaru who hammered a three-run home run and the game-winning decision on the mound and shortstop Zach Lekse who drove in the the winning run with a RBI single.

THE HISTORY

Including an early season win this year versus Oral Roberts, head coach Larry Cochell holds a 5-4 record against his former team. The two teams have evenly split the series over the last three years. In the three games prior to this year's 15-2 blowout of ORU by OU in the Houston Tournament, neither team had won by more than two runs.

Oklahoma leads the series against Baylor, 9-6, during the Larry Cochell era. The Sooners dropped three out of four games to the Big 12 Conference regular season runner-ups last year. OU outlasted Baylor, 15-11, in Waco, Texas, for their lone win in 1999.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN EAGLES

Oral Roberts enters Tuesday's contest with a 13-5 overall record. The Golden Eagles are coming off a 2-2 week after winning two out of three at No. 21 Baylor, dropping a single game at No. 5 Texas and most recently winning at home against Oklahoma City.

Lefthander Jordan Gerk, who threw a two-hitter against No. 5 Texas, leads all ORU starters in ERA with a 4.75 average and a 2-2 record. Leftfielder Eric Vandeventer is batting .413 with two home runs and nine RBIs to lead the Golden Eagles offensively.

SCOUTING THE BEARS

The nationally-ranked Baylor Bears (18-8) are currently rated No. 21 by Collegiate Baseball, No. 16 by Baseball America and No. 17 by ESPN/Baseball Weekly. As of March 19, Baylor stood third in the conference with a 5-4 record after a three-game sweep at Texas Tech this weekend.

Catcher Kelly Shoppach carries the team with a .367 batting average and a team-high five home runs and 23 RBIs. Righthanded hurler Chad Hawkins posts a 3-4 record with a 1.18 ERA.

SOONERS VS. THE BEARS

OKLAHOMA CAREER STATS VERSUS BAYLOR

PITCHERS G W-L S ERA IP H R ER BB K Jeff Bajenaru 2 0-0 1 0.00 2.2 2 0 0 1 2 Michael Bradbury 1 0-0 0 0.00 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 Rocky Cherry 1 0-0 0 2.00 2.0 4 4 4 1 1 Evan Greusel 3 0-1 0 1.25 4.0 9 5 5 1 3 Rick Park 3 0-1 0 0.60 5.0 4 3 3 1 3

POSITION PLAYERS G AVG AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO Jeff Bajenaru 4 .625 16 5 10 0 0 3 7 2 1 Chad Cochell 3 .000 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 Tim Hooper 1 .000 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Zach Lekse 4 .188 16 1 3 0 0 0 2 2 2 Sean Murphy 4 .222 18 1 4 1 0 1 6 0 1 Rick Park 9 .361 36 12 13 1 0 5 9 3 6 Jeremy Vidales 3 1.000 2 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 Tommy Whiteman 4 .533 15 4 8 0 0 1 4 1 3 Josh Witcher 3 .125 8 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 3

THE BEARS' ROTATION

BAYLOR PROBABLE STARTERS vs. OKLAHOMA IN 1999

Friday's probable starting pitcher, righthander Chad Hawkins, faced OU once last season and pitched a complete game, 10-hitter and seven strikeout performance in the Bears' 3-2 win in Waco, Texas.
```
         W-L  IP   H   R  ER  BB SO

4/24/99  1-0  9.0  10  2  1   1  7
```
Righthander Kyle Evans, Saturday's probable, pitched 4.2 innings of relief, allowing eight hits and two runs in a no-decision performance in the Bears' 15-11 loss in Waco, Texas.
```
         W-L  IP   H   R  ER  BB SO

4/25/99  0-0  4.2  8   2  2   2  0
```
Josh Scott or Steven White are scheduled to throw on Sunday. White did not make an appearance against the Sooners last year, but Scott started two of the four games versus between the two teams last year. Scott picked up the win in the first start, a 7-3 victory over OU in the Houston Tournament. In his second start, Scott lasted only two innings and received a no-decision in the Bears' 15-11 loss.
```
         W-L  IP   H   R  ER  BB SO

2/20/99  1-0  8.1  7   3  3   2  10

4/25/99  0-0  2.0  5   7  6   2  4
```

DIAMOND NOTES

Nebraska's 12-0 seven-inning run rule win over the Sooners on Sunday marked the first time OU had been run-ruled during Big 12 Conference play. The streak covered a stretch of 101 consecutive games.
The 12-0 shutout also marked the first time the Sooners have been shutout since an 11-0 defeat to Arizona State last year.
OU posted two consecutive errorless games against Nebraska this weekend for the first time this year.
Through Austin Mix' first four starts, the freshman righthander has held all his opponents to under double-digits in the hits department.
Sooners amongst the Big 12 leaders: Jeff Bajenaru - saves (tied-third), Rick Park - home runs (fourth), Sean Murphy - stolen bases (tied-sixth) and Austin Mix - opponent batting average (eighth).

PARK IN THE RECORD BOOKS

As senior Rick Park enters his final season in a Sooner uniform, the Norman, Okla., native looks primed to climb his way to the top of several Oklahoma career offensive records. In addition to the categories listed, Park also has the opportunity to break into the top ten in career hits, career runs scored and career doubles.

CAREER HOME RUNS:

1. Casey Bookout        60    1996-99

2. Brian Shackelford    55    1995-98

3. John Russell         48    1980-82

4. Chris Ebright        45    1987-89

5. Kevin Pearson        43    1983-86

6. Jeff Kaye            39    1982-85

   Damon Minor          39    1993-96

   Rick Park            39    1997-

CAREER RBIs

1. Brian Shackelford    251    1995-98

2. Chris Ebright        239    1987-89

3. Casey Bookout        220    1996-99

4. Rich Hills           190    1992-95

5. Kevin Pearson        186    1983-86

6. Damon Minor          171    1993-96

7. Rick Park            169    1997-

CAREER EXTRA BASE HITS

1. Brian Shackelford    132    1995-98

2. Chris Ebright        120    1987-89

3. Casey Bookout        119    1996-99

4. Kevin Pearson         97    1983-86

5. Rich Hills            95    1992-95

6. Damon Minor           90    1993-96

7. Rick Park             85    1997-

SOONERS ON TELEVISION

The Sooner baseball team is scheduled to have three games televised this season on major cable television networks. The Oklahoma-Texas game on Sunday, April 2, at 1 p.m., will be broadcast by College Sports Southwest. OU will have its contest against Texas A&M on Saturday, April 8, televised by FOX Sports Net at 7 p.m. The second game of the Bedlam Series between Oklahoma and Oklahoma State at the Southwestern Bell Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City on Saturday, April 22 at 2 p.m., will also be broadcast by FOX Sports Net.

SOONERS IN MLB SPRING TRAINING

With the commencement of Major League Baseball Spring Training in recent weeks, the University of Oklahoma finds six former Sooners listed on several 40-man team rosters. The following are the names of the Sooner alums and the current Major League team with whom they are affiliated: Ryan Minor (Baltimore Orioles), Greg Norton (Chicago White Sox), Mark Redman (Minnesota Twins), Darron Cox (Montreal Expos) and Russ Ortiz and Damon Minor (San Francisco Giants). The six-player total is bettered only by one other Big 12 school (Texas - seven).

DEFENSIVE GEM

Senior Zach Lekse was recognized in October as a Division I runner-up for the 1999 Easton Redline Defensive Award. The annual award, which is published in Collegiate Baseball, is presented to an individual in each NCAA division and at the high school level who has displayed outstanding defensive skills in the field.

As a member of the OU baseball team that finished the season ranked third in the nation in fielding percentage, the Martinez, Calif., native was a main contributor to the team's defensive success. Starting all 59 games for the Sooners, Lekse made 75 putouts, a team-high 171 assists while committing only 12 errors. He also sported a .953 fielding percentage. Lekse's outstanding defensive numbers combined with a solid offensive effort earned the former junior college transfer second-team All-Big 12 honors at the shortstop position in his first season of Big 12 competition.

MILESTONE VICTORY

With the Sooners' 9-4 victory on opening day against Oklahoma Baptist, head coach Larry Cochell picked up his 350th win at Oklahoma. Beginning his tenth year at OU, Cochell has acheived the milestone quicker than any other baseball coach in school history. It is the second time in his coaching career that Cochell has surpassed the mark as he accomplished 428 victories as the head coach at Oral Roberts.

AYE, AYE CAPTAIN!

Head coach Larry Cochell, who has only named a team captain once during his tenure at Oklahoma, has chosen seniors Jeff Bajenaru, Zach Lekse and Rick Park to act as the team's co-captains for the 2000 season. The trio are the first team captains to be named by Cochell since 1995 when Rich Hills was appointed the duties.

SWITCHING PLACES

The heart of the Sooners' infield, returning starters Zach Lekse and Tommy Whiteman, have encountered position changes for the 2000 season. A second team All-Big 12 selection at shortstop last year, Lekse will spend the year securing the defense up the middle of the infield at second base, while Whiteman will move from third base, where he started last year, into the vacancy left at shortstop by Lekse.

YOUNG GUNS

Of Oklahoma's 14 pitchers on the roster, half are underclassmen and five are in their first year of pitching at the Division I level.

Freshmen Brandon Hankins, Austin Mix and Patrick Wyrick are expected to make immediate impacts on the team. Mix is expected to eventually find his way into the starting rotation, while Hankins and Wyrick will play substantial roles in relief. Following elbow surgery performed over the summer, Hankins is anticipated to be available for action beginning in March. Wyrick is the 2000 recruiting class' lone draft pick as he was the Montreal Expos' 18th round pick in the 1999 Amateur Draft held in June.

Returning sophomores Michael Bradbury, Rocky Cherry, Clint Dunbar and Evan Greusel picked up a wealth of pitching experience in their first year on the mound in 1999, in both starting and relief roles, combining to pitch a total of 153 innings and tally nine wins.

JUCO transfers Mike Hale and Chuck Thumann will face their first Division I action this year coming out of the bullpen.

TOUGH COMPETITION

Once again, the Sooners' 2000 schedule features some of the country's toughest opponents. This season's competition includes seven teams that were ranked in the final 1999 Baseball America Top 25 poll as well as three 1999 College World Series participants. In addition to last year's final rankings, 10 of OU's 2000 opponents are ranked in either the 2000 Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball or Baseball Weekly/ESPN preseason polls.

For the fifth consecutive year, national powerhouse Arizona State will engage in a home-and-home series with the Sooners. Other schedule highlights include an appearance at the Southwestern Bell Ballpark in Oklahoma City on March 29 by 1999 College World Series participant Cal State-Fullerton. Oklahoma faces Texas A&M, another College World Series qualifier, on April 7-9 in College Station, Texas. Big 12 rival Texas travels to Norman for a three-game series beginning March 31, and OU will head to Lafayette, La. (Feb. 25-27), to face Louisiana-Lafayette who finished the 1999 season ranked 18th in the nation.

Oklahoma's annual Bedlam Series with 1999 College World Series participant Oklahoma State will be held at the end of April. The first of the three games will be played in Tulsa on Friday, April 21 at 7:30 pm, at Driller's Stadium. The Southwestern Bell Bricktown Ballpark will host the final two games at 1 pm on Saturday, April 22, and Sunday, April 23. The series attracted over 42,235 fans over four games last year.

TAPPING THE JUCO CIRCUIT

Head coach Larry Cochell brought in a group of highly-touted junior college recruits to aid the Sooners' efforts in 2000. Cochell landed a first team Junior College All-American in Jerome Godsey. Godsey, a pitcher and outfielder at Santa Rosa (Calif.) C.C., batted .358, including 27 RBIs and 13 stolen bases, last season to also earn all-conference honors for the second year in a row.

Infielder Jason Bartlett and catcher/outfielder Eliot Joyner also highlight the JUCO unit. Bartlett averaged .457 with three home runs and 33 stolen bases in his final year at San Joaquin Delta C.C. (Calif.). Joyner garnered honorable mention conference honors in 1999 after hitting .326 with four home runs at Cerritos (Calif.) C.C.

CLASS OF 2001

The Sooners signed seven high school recruits during college baseball's early signing period in the fall to play for the Sooners beginning with the the 2001 season. Six of the signees hail from the state of Oklahoma, while the seventh hails from Arkansas. The recruiting class includes three pitchers, two outfielders, one infielder and one catcher.

Headlining the group is signee Jason Belcher, from Walnut Ridge (Ark.) High School, who is ranked as the 63rd top high school prospect in the nation by Baseball America and rated among the top three high school catchers in the country by Perfect Game scouting service.

SPEAKING OF RECRUITING CLASSES

The current group of newcomers was ranked as one of the top 30 recruiting classes in a recent issue of Collegiate Baseball. The class was rated as the 29th best recruiting class in the nation for 2000. Other Big 12 members listed in the rankings were Texas (3), Texas A&M (7), Oklahoma State (16) and Texas Tech (28).

OFF THE FIELD ACCOMPLISHMENTS

During the fall semester, 16 Sooners achieved a 3.0 or better grade point average for their efforts in the classroom. In addition, 13 players currently hold a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better.

BEAM CLAY FIELD OF THE YEAR AWARD

The Sooner baseball program was recently awarded second place in the Beam Clay Field of the Year Award competition for L. Dale Mitchell Park's quality field surface. Top honors are awarded to the most outstanding baseball fields in the nation at the professional, collegiate, high school and parks and recreation levels.

Oklahoma took first place honors in 1994, the last time OU was able to enter the contest. Programs can enter the competition only once every five years.

SOONERS ON THE AIR

Every Sooner baseball game will be broadcast on 1400 AM KNOR-Norman, and 1490 AM KOKC-Guthrie. There will also be 10 games aired on the Sooner Radio Network. The broadcast team will consist of Mark Mathew and Mike Treps.

In addition to the radio, each broadcast will be carried on the Internet. To hear Sooner baseball anywhere in the world, log on to the University of Oklahoma's athletic web site at www.soonersports.com.

BULLPEN BITS

Jeff Bajenaru:

Saves/blown saves: 5/0

Inherited runners/scored: 6/1

Last appearance: 3/19 at Nebraska - 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 SO
Two saves have come against top 25 nationally-ranked teams.
Perfect 13-for-13 in save opportunities over the last two years.

Michael Bradbury:

Saves/blown saves: -/-

Inherited runners/scored: 1/0

Last appearance: 3/14 vs. Murray State - 5.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 SO
Earned his first start of the season in his last appearance.

Clint Dunbar:

Saves/blown saves: -/-

Inherited runners/scored: 6/4

Last appearance: 3/15 vs. Murray State - 3.0 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO
Surrendered only three hits and one run through his first five outings.

Evan Greusel:

Saves/blown saves: -/-

Inherited runners/scored: 2/1

Last appearance: 3/17 at Nebraska - 2.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 SO
Has struck out eight batters in 7.1 innings pitched.

Mike Hale:

Saves/blown saves: -/-

Inherited runners/scored: -/-

Last appearance: 3/8 vs. Texas-Arlington - 4.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 SO, 1 W
Earned starts in his last two outings, both against Texas-Arlington.
In his first appearance, Hale allowed only four hits over two innings.

Jeff Wigington:

Saves/blown saves: -/-

Inherited runners/scored: 1/1

Last appearance: 3/15 vs. Murray State - 8.0 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO
Earned his first start of the season in his last appearance and posted career highs in innings pitched and strikeouts.

SOONERS AT A GLANCE

2 Zach Lekse

Starting second baseman.
Missed the Central Oklahoma game due to a slight ankle sprain, snapping a streak of 60-straight games started for the Sooners.
Broke out of a 2-for-17 (.118) slump this past week by going 7-for-19 (.368).
Currently on a five-game hitting streak which matches a season long.

3 Sean Murphy

Starting at second base.
Started in every game, making appearances in right field, second base, first base, left field and as the team's designated hitter.
Ranks first on the team in stolen bases (9) and tied for the lead in runs scored (19), total bases (47) and RBIs (16), second in slugging percentage (.495) and home runs (5), and third in hits (28).

6 Tommy Whiteman

Currently acting as the team's designated hitter.
Had a season-best six-game hitting streak snapped against Kansas State.
Caught in a hitting slump over the weekend after failing to collect a hit against Nebraska in eight at bats.
Leads the team in batting average (.348), hits (32), and tied for the lead in runs scored (19), second in on-base percentage (.417), third in total bases (45) and stolen bases (5), fourth in slugging percentage (.489), walks (9) and tied for fourth in home runs (2) and doubles (5).

8 Jerome Godsey

Starting centerfielder.
Only Sooner to hit a grand slam home run this season.
Failed to pick up a hit over the weekend against Nebraska.
Ranks in the top five in every major offensive category.

9 Eliot Joyner

Currently starting in leftfield.
Has also started in right field and at the catching position.
Picked up a hit in two of the three games against Nebraska last weekend.
Ranks second on the team in doubles (7) and fifth in runs scored (15), RBIs (15) and total bases (40).

22 Jason Bartlett

Starting third baseman.
Produced a 2-for-3 performance in the Sooners' 4-3 win over Nebraska.
Tied for the team lead in walks (13), second in stolen bases (7), third in runs scored (17), tied for fourth in doubles (5) and fifth in on-base percentage (.382).

27 Austin Mix

No. 3 pitcher in the starting rotation.
Held No. 25 Louisiana-Lafayette to three hits over seven innings in his first start.
Struck out a career-high 11 batters versus Kansas State.
Pitched a four-hitter over a career-high 7.1 innings against No. 15 Arizona State.
Leads the pitching staff in wins (4) and strikeouts (37), second in opponent batting average (.213) and innings pitched (38.2), third in games started (4) and fourth in appearances (8).

28 Jeff Bajenaru

Team closer and starting rightfielder.
His six strikeouts in the Oklahoma Baptist game matched a career high.
His five saves already puts him halfway to his save total of last year (8).
Ranks in the top five in every major offensive category except runs scored and total bases.
Ranks in the top five of every major pitching category.

32 Rick Park

Starting first baseman.
Has also served as the designated hitter and a starting pitcher.
Had an eight-game hitting streak snapped on Sunday against Nebraska.
Has collected at least one hit in the last 14 games.
Ranks in the top five in every major offensive category except runs scored and doubles.

38 Rocky Cherry

No. 1 starter in the rotation.
Allowed only one run on five hits in five innings to the 10th-ranked Houston Cougars in picking up his first win of the year.
Pitched a career-high 8.1 innings against Kansas State while picking up his second win of the season.
Struck out a career-high eight batters against No. 15 Arizona State.
Ranks third on the team in innings pitched (34.1) and strikeouts (22).

39 Austin Coose

No. 2 pitcher in the starting rotation.
Picked up his first win of the season in his first start in a Sooner uniform against Central Oklahoma.
Struck out a career-high nine batters against Kansas State.
Leads the pitching staff in innings pitched (47.0) and games started (7), second on the team in wins (3) and strikeouts (28) and third in ERA (4.21).

University of Oklahoma Athletics

SOONERS VS. THE BEARS

THE BEARS' ROTATION

BULLPEN BITS

SOONERS AT A GLANCE

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