Sooners Ready for Bedlam Baseball

No. 9 Oklahoma State (38-14, 16-8) vs. OU (31-21-1, 8-15-1)
Game 54	Friday, May 16 - 7:30 p.m.
Game 55	Saturday, May 17 - 7:35 p.m.
Game 56	Sunday, May 18 - 4 p.m.
Location	Friday - Tulsa; Saturday and Sunday - OKC
Television	Friday - Fox Sports Southwest; Saturday - Cox Ch. 7
Radio	Sooner Sports Radio Network
Online	Live Audio Free in All-Access
Live Stats	SoonerSports.com / GameTracker
Game Info	Game Notes (PDF) \| OU Media Guide

NORMAN, Okla. -- The Oklahoma Sooners (31-21-1 overall, 8-15-1 Big 12) will battle No. 9 Oklahoma State (38-14, 16-8) in the final series of the regular season this weekend.

The Ford Bedlam Series gets underway on Friday, May 16 at 7:30 p.m. at Drillers Stadium in Tulsa, Okla. Game two on Saturday and game three on Sunday will be played at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City at 7:35 p.m. and 4 p.m., respectively.

The top eight teams qualify for the 2008 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship. The Sooners sit in eighth place and hold a 1/2 game lead over Kansas State and trail Kansas in seventh place by a 1/2 game.

TV BROADCAST INFORMATION
The first two games of the series can be seen live starting with Friday's opener on Fox Sports Southwest (Cox Ch. 37 in OKC) with Chad McKee calling the play-by-play and Dave Garrett on color analysis.

On Saturday, the Sooner Sports Network will televise game two from AT&T Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City. The game can be seen live on Cox Ch. 7 in OKC and Cox Ch. 3 in Tulsa. Brian Brinkley and Kenny Mossman will provide the on-air talent. The game will also be shown live in Enid (KXOK), Lawton (KSWX), Ponca City (KTEW), Woodward (KOMI) and in Kansas City (Metro Sports).

Check local listings for coverage in your area.

RADIO BROADCAST INFORMATION
The Bedlam Series will be broadcast live on the Sooner Sports Radio Network affiliates with Chuck Kelly and DeWayne Vaughn providing the on-air talent. KOKC 1520 AM will carry games two and three depending on the OU softball team's results in the NCAA Norman Regional.

Check local listings for coverage in your area.

MORE OKLAHOMA BASEBALL ONLINE
LIVE AUDIO: A free internet broadcast will be available on SoonerSports.com for all three games.
LIVE STATS: Live stats are available on SoonerSports.com.

LIMITED TICKETS STILL REMAIN
There are a limited number of tickets available to the public for all three games of the Ford Bedlam Baseball Series.

For tickets in Tulsa, call the Drillers at (918) 744-5901. To order tickets for games in Oklahoma City, call the Redhawks (405) 218-1000.

PROBABLE PITCHING MATCH-UPS
Game 54: Friday, May 16
OSU: Andrew Oliver | LHP | So. | 5-2, 2.14 ERA, 84.0 IP, 78 K, 31 BB
vs.
OU: C.J. Blue | LHP | Jr. | 6-2, 4.50 ERA, 56.0 IP, 20 K, 6 BB

Game 55: Saturday, May 17
OSU: Tyler Lyons | LHP | So. | 9-2, 3.39 ERA, 85.0 IP, 73 K, 15 BB
vs.
OU: Andrew Doyle | RHP | So. | 7-3, 4.48 ERA, 80.1 IP, 57 K, 34 BB

Game 56: Sunday, May 18
OSU: Matt Gardner | RHP | Sr. | 5-2, 4.86 ERA, 50.0 IP, 33 K, 11 BB
vs.
OU: Ryan Duke | RHP | Fr. | 6-4, 3.28 ERA, 60.1 IP, 49 K, 24 BB

UPDATING THE SOONERS
The Sooners came back to win the Kansas State series with convincing wins in games two (10-5) and three (10-2) last weekend. After dropping the opener, 6-4, OU won the series with quality starts from Andrew Doyle and Ryan Duke in the final two games. The offense was strong yet again. OU has scored double-digit runs in nine of the last 16 games.

OU BASEBALL IN THE NEWS THIS WEEK
Johnson sets table for Sooners - Norman Transcript
While many volunteers spent time at Kennedy Elementary, two stuck out - Oklahoman
Teams Ponder Bonus Bedlam - Oklahoman
It's that time - Norman Transcript
Tough task for Sooners - Tulsa World

TUESDAY PRACTICE VIDEO
Golloway talks about the Bedlam Series
OU's head coach on the importance of winning game one
The Sooners' skipper discusses OU's offense
Golloway on the starting pitching last weekend

SCOUTING OKLAHOMA STATE
Record: 38-14 overall, 16-8 Big 12
Ranking: SW - 9, BA - 10, CB - 10, NCBWA - 8
Overall Series: OU leads 134-122 overall since 1942 and 19-14 in Big 12 play

Oklahoma State enters the final week of the regular season ranked No. 9 in the USA Today/ESPN Coaches' Poll. The Cowboys are 7-3 in their last 10 games and sit in third place in the Big 12 standings.

OSU is still in the hunt for the regular season Big 12 title despite losing two of its first three conference series against Baylor and Kansas State. Since then, the Cowboys have won their last five Big 12 series.

Offensively, Oklahoma State leads the Big 12 with a .330 team batting average. In Big 12 play, OSU is fourth with a .296 clip. Junior Jordy Mercer and senior Rebel Ridling pace the Cowboys offense. Ridling leads OSU with 15 homers and 54 RBIs while hitting .321. Mercer is hitting .345 and ranks second on the team with 10 homers and 51 RBIs.

On the mound, the Cowboys own a 3.82 ERA after 52 games and a 4.27 mark in Big 12 play. Sophomore Andrew Oliver is expected to start Friday's opener. The lefty is 5-2 in 12 starts with a 2.14 ERA and 78 strikeouts in 84 IP.

MORE ON THE BEDLAM SERIES
Oklahoma has lost the last two series meetings, including last season's sweep by the Cowboys in 2007. OSU topped OU, 8-7, in game one and game three and won the middle game, 10-2. OU earned some revenge in the 2007 Big 12 Championship with a 9-8 win after scoring five runs in the bottom of the ninth.

The 2005 series was the last time the Sooners won the Bedlam Bell, claiming victory in games two and three after dropping the opener in Tulsa.

Below is a closer look at the series between the Sooners and Cowboys.

- OSU has won three of the last four series meetings and the last six regular season games
- OU is 8-0 against OSU in games played in the Big 12 Championship
- The Sooners have won five of the 11 Big 12 series
- OU is 9-8 in games played in Tulsa (1991-present)
- The Sooners won nine of the first 10 meetings in Tulsa, but have lost the last seven
- Six of the last 13 regular season meetings have been decided by one run (OU is 3-3 in those games)
- Since the series shifted to its current setting (game one in Tulsa and games two and three in OKC) in 1991, OU is 12-18 in games played in Oklahoma City
- Each team has won 10 games during the regular season since Bricktown Ballpark opened in 1998
- Since 1997, six of the regular season series have been decided in the third game where OU is 4-2
- At least one game has been played in both Tulsa and Oklahoma City since 1991
- The last time the series was played in Norman or Stillwater was 1996
- Sunny Golloway has coached in 38 Bedlam games as an assistant coach and head coach
- The 2008 series will mark the third straight season that at least one of the teams is ranked in the top 25. The 2006 season is the last time both teams entered the three-game set ranked (No. 8 OU vs. No. 24 OSU)

SOONER TO WATCH - J.T. WISE
The junior catcher has hit safely in the last the last eight games, his second longest streak of the season, and has driven in 12 runs in that span off two homers and three doubles. Last weekend, Wise collected six hits and fi ve RBIs against Kansas State.

ACADEMIC BIG 12 TEAMS ANNOUNCED
The Big 12 Conference announced the 2008 Academic All-Big 12 teams on May 15 and three Sooners were named to the lists. Senior Jarod Freeman was honored for the second straight season with a first team selection. Freeman was named to the second team in 2007. Sophomore Aaron Baker and senior Drew Roberts made their first appearance on the lists as both were named to the second team.

NOTES ON THIS WEEK'S RPI
The Sooners moved up two spots in this week's RPI as released by the NCAA. OU is 47th with one week left in the regular season and has 10 wins over teams ranked higher than the Sooners this week.

HITTING .300 in BIG 12 PLAY
The Sooners are hitting .319 in Big 12 games this season, the top mark in the conference. OU has finished a season hitting over .300 in Big 12 play on four occasions (2006, 2000, 1998 and 1997).

In 2008, Jamie Johnson (.390-5th), Mike Gosse (.369-8th) and Aljay Davis (.366-9th) each rank in the top 10 in the Big 12 among conference games played.

WELCOME HOME
Oklahoma finished 2008 with a 21-10 record at home and has won 20 or more games at L. Dale Mitchell Park in each of the last four seasons. The Sooners hit .348 at home this season and averaging 8.5 runs per game.

SCORING FIRST
OU is 17-8-1 this season when scoring first, suffering losses to Nebraska (GM1), Baylor (GM3), Texas A&M (GM1&2), Missouri (GM1), Southern Nazarene, Texas Tech and Kansas (GM2). The Sooners have struck first in 12 of their 24 Big 12 games. OU has also scored in the first inning on 25 occasions and holds a 16-8-1 record in those contests.

OU UNDER GOLLOWAY IN EXTRA INNINGS
The Sooners have had success with games played in extra innings in 2008. OU is 5-1-1 this season with wins over then-No. 1 UCLA, Houston, Baylor, TCU, Wichita State and a tie at Nebraska. The only loss was suffered against then-No. 11 Missouri on April 19. In his fourth season at OU, head coach Sunny Golloway is 13-1-1 when his Sooners play in extra frames.

MIDWEEK SUCCESS
Oklahoma finished the season with a 15-1 record in midweek games, topping the opposition by an average of five runs. The Sooners have recorded quality wins over Dallas Baptist (2), TCU (2) and Wichita State. Until the loss to Southern Nazarene, OU was the only undefeated team in the Big 12 Conference in midweek play.

10 OR MORE IS A PLUS
OU has 10 or more hits in 31 games this season owns a 20-10-1 record in those contests. The Sooners have scored 10 or more runs on 16 occasions and hold a 14-2 record in those contests. In comparison, opponents have connected for 10-plus hits in 26 games (11-14-1 record) and scored 10 or more runs in seven games where OU is 1-6 (beat WSU).

FREEMAN NAMED A FINALIST FOR LOWE'S AWARD
OU senior Jarod Freeman was selected as one of 10 finalists for the 2008 Lowe's Senior Class Award on April 17. Freeman's selection marks the second consecutive year that a Sooner has appeared on the finalist list (Aaron Ivey - 2007). The 10 student-athletes were chosen from a list of 30 candidates based on personal qualities that define a complete student-athlete, including: classroom, community, character and competition. The 10 finalists will be placed on the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award baseball ballot for a nationwide vote (April 17-June 2. Fan balloting, available on the award's official website www.seniorclassaward.com, will be combined with votes from coaches, media and sponsors to determine the winner.

QUALITY STARTS AND RELIEF
The Sooners have found success on the mound when receiving quality starts from their pitchers. Fifteen starts turned in by OU pitchers have been under five innings and 16 have lasted six or more innings (OU 11-5 in those games).

TOUGH SCHEDULE
The Sooners are 6-12-1 so far this season against ranked competition with wins against then-No. 1 UCLA, then-No. 20 Baylor (2), then-No. 14 Texas, then-No. 11 Missouri and No. 8 Wichita State. OU also lost to UCLA, then-No. 9 Rice, then-No. 22 Nebraska (2), Baylor, Texas (2), then-No.11 Texas A&M (3) and Missouri (2). OU still has three games remaining against against a ranked team; No. 9 Oklahoma State.

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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