Baseball Returns Home to Begin Big 12 Play

March 17, 2011

No. 2 OU (16-3) vs. No. 11 Texas A&M (13-4)
Game 20	Friday, March 18 (6:30 p.m.) vs. Texas A&M
Game 21	Saturday, March 19 (2 p.m.) vs. Texas A&M
Game 22	Sunday, March 20 (1 p.m.) vs. Texas A&M
Location	Norman, Okla. \| L. Dale Mitchell Park
Tickets/Promos	$8 and $12 \| OU roll-out banners, mini helmets and more
Radio	Sooner Sports Network \| KREF 1400 AM
TV	Sooner Sports Network - Cox Ch. 3 in OKC and Tulsa
Webcast	All-Access on SoonerSports.com
Live Stats	SoonersSports.com
Game Information	Game Notes \| 2011 Media Guide \| Baseball Blog \| Twitter

WEEKEND PREVIEW
• No. 2 Oklahoma (16-3) returns home to begin Big 12 play against No. 11 Texas A&M (13-4). The series is a match-up of arguably the Big 12's top offense against the best pitching staff.
• The three-game series starts Friday at 6:30 p.m. Saturday's game is set for 2 p.m. first pitch and Sunday's game is a 1 p.m. start.
• OU is ranked No. 2 by Collegiate Baseball and No. 3 by USA Today/Coaches, Baseball America and the NCBWA.
• The Sooners return seven position starters from the 2010 squad that finished 50-18 and advanced to the program's 10th CWS.
• Texas A&M returns 19 letterwinners from the 2010 team that finished 43-21 overall and fourth in the Big 12 (14-12-1). The Aggies finished ranked No. 18 after ending their season in the Coral Gables Regional. TAMU, ranked as high as No. 2 (Collegiate Baseball) this week, is hitting .290 as a team, led by Tyler Naquin (.394, 1 HR, 14 RBI), and own a conference-best 1.73 team ERA.
• Aggies' rotation: 1. RHP John Stilson (1-0, 1.30 ERA) | 2. RHP Michael Wacha (2-1, 0.67 ERA) | 3. RHP Ross Stripling (3-1, 0.41 ERA)

BROADCAST INFORMATION
• The OU broadcast with Chuck Kelly (play-by-play) and Ross Hubbard (color analysis) can be heard this weekend on the Sooners' Flagship station, KREF 1400 AM and at SoonerSports.com. Air time is 30 minutes prior to first pitch.
• All three games will be televised by the Sooner Sports Network (Cox Ch. 3 in Oklahoma City and Tulsa). Toby Rowland (KWTV News 9) will call the play-by-play with color analyst Casey Bookout (OU letterwinner 1996-1999).
• Live stats are available on the baseball schedule page and a live webcast for each game can be found on OU All-Access.

OU ROTATION
No. 1 RHP Michael Rocha 4-0, 1.20 ERA, 24 SO, 4 BB
No. 2 LHP Dillon Overton 3-0, 1.04 ERA, 19 SO, 8 BB
No. 3 RHP Burch Smith 2-1, 3.52 ERA, 22 SO, 3 BB

TEXAS A&M SERIES
- OU leads 32-26 and has won six out of the last eight games.
- OU has won six out of the last seven series meetings.
- Texas A&M has won the series opener in five of the last seven series meetings, but OU has come back to win the final two games in 2004, 05, 06, 07, 09 and 2010.
- The two teams have split the 14 series in Big 12 play.
- The teams have entered the series finale after splitting the first two games in nine of the 14 series meetings. In that scenario, OU has won the last five meetings and Texas A&M the previous four.
- In Big 12 play, 28 of the 42 games have been decided by three runs or less (OU is 17-11). Since 1997, 18 games in the series have been decided by one run and OU is 12-6 in those contests.

PLAYER TO WATCH - MICHAEL ROCHA
The senior captain is tied for the Big 12 lead with four wins and ranks second in opponent batting average (.158) and innings pitched (30.0). The right-hander ranks seventh with a 1.20 ERA and 10th with 24 strikeouts (opposite four walks) ... Rocha has lasted at least seven innings in all four starts, including his second career complete game, a shutout at San Diego State on March 3.
2011 Season Stats: 4-0, 1.20 ERA, 24 SO, 4 BB

ON DECK
OU doesn't have a midweek game but faces its first Big 12 Conference series on the road with a weekend trip to Columbia, Mo., to battle the Missouri Tigers. The series begins on Friday, March 25 at 6 p.m. Saturday's game is slated for a 2 p.m. first pitch and the series concludes Sunday at 1 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT
The No. 2 Sooners suffered a two-game sweep at No. Arizona State on March 15-16. OU dropped game one, 6-2, and lost a 4-3 lead in the sixth inning in game two, which resulted in a 6-4 win for the Sun Devils.

BIG 12 OPENERS
The Sooners snapped a seven-game losing streak in Big 12 openers with a 7-6 win over Baylor at home on March 19. Despite the 1-7 record in the last eight series openers, the Sooners have bounced back in four of those series to claim the best-of-three victory. OU won the first Big 12 series last year against Baylor, 1-0, with the series getting canceled due to rain/snow in Norman. The Sooners are 6-8 all-time in Big 12 openers but have series victories in 10 of the 14 sets.

MISC NOTES
- After 19 games, OU leads the Big 12 in batting average (.346), and ranks fourth in earned run average (3.07) and sixth in fielding percentage (.970).
- OU leads the Big 12 with 19 home runs while the other nine teams in the conference have a combined 54.
- OU leads the conference with 171 runs, the next closest team, Texas Tech, has scored 121 runs. The Sooners lead the Big 12 in hits with 225, while Baylor is second with 184.
- The Sooner offense has outscored the opposition 171-73.
- Garrett Buechele, the Big 12 Player of the Week on Feb. 21 and 28, leads the Big 12 with five homers. With the exception of Texas A&M, Nebraska,Texas Tech and KSU, Buechele has more home runs than six of the teams in the conference.
- Buechele also leads OU and the Big 12 with a .438 batting avg., 35 hits, 25 RBIs and 52 total bases.
- Max White leads the Big 12 with 19 runs, while Tyler Ogle (18) and Evan Mistich (17) are second and third, respectively.
- In 13 of the Sooners' 19 starts, the hurlers have lasted at least five innings, including three complete games by Jordan John, Bobby Shore and Michael Rocha. OU owns three of the six complete games tossed in 2011.
- Seven freshmen saw playing time after 17 games and 10 newcomers overall have taken the field.
- Michael Rocha and the Sooner bullpen limited the Tribe to one hit on Feb.18, the fewest allowed since OU's last no-hitter, a combined effort on March 9, 2005 vs. Arkansas Pine Bluff
- Rocha is tied for the Big 12 lead with four wins and has lasted at least seven innings in each of his four starts. He ranks second in innings pitched (30.0) and opponent batting
average (.158).

SINGLE GAME TICKETS ON SALE | More Info
Single game tickets for the 2011 baseball season went onsale to the public on Tuesday, March 1 at 8 a.m. Tickets can be purchased online or by calling the OU Athletics Ticket Office at (800) 456-GoOU.

OGLE ON JOHNNY BENCH WATCH LIST
For the second straight season, junior catcher Tyler Ogle was named to the Johnny Bench watch list for the 2011 season. Ogle caught in 42 games last year as he hit .331 with 11 homers and 46 RBIs, while recording a .992 fielding percentage and throwing out 11 base stealers. The Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission released the Watch List for the 2011 Coleman Company-Johnny Bench Award delivered by Papa John's Pizza on March 10.

OU NO. 5 IN PRESEASON POLLS
The Sooners were tabbed No. 5 in Baseball America's preseason top 25 poll. Oklahoma was also ranked No. 5 in the preseason by the NCBWA. The Sooners have been ranked in the top 10 by Baseball America, at some point in the season, in each of the last three years. Only the 1984-1987 Sooners can claim a better streak among the nation's top 10 in program history. The 2011 preseason ranking is the highest for OU since 1995 when it was coming off the program's second National Championship and entered the season as Baseball America's No. 3 team in the nation.

Polls: BA | USA | CB | NCBWA

SOONERS FAVORED TO WIN BIG 12 REGULAR SEASON
For the first time since 1995, Oklahoma is the preseason favorite to claim the Big 12 baseball regular season championship heading into the 2011 season, in a vote of the league's head coaches.

In 2010, the Sooners made their 10th College World Series appearance and first trip to Omaha since 1995. It marks the first time since 1995 that OU was selected as the top pick in the preseason poll. The Sooners have twice been picked No. 2 in the Big 12 preseason poll (1999 and 2001) with the highest prediction under Golloway coming in 2010 (fourth). In 1995, OU was the No. 1 team headed into the Big Eight season after winning the program's second National Chamionship the previous year.

WHO's BACK
The Sooners return seven position starters and two weekend starting pitchers from last year's College World Series team that won 50 games for the fifth time in program history. Included in that bunch is 2010 All-American Garrett Buechele at third base, 2010 Freshman All-American Max White at second base and 2009 All-American Ryan Duke (closer). OU welcomes back all but 14 of the 105 home runs hit last year and 32 of the 50 wins registered by the pitching staff.

BLAIR, BUECHELE, OGLE & ROCHA NAMED CAPTAINS
Seniors Elliott Blair and Michael Rocha and juniors Garrett Buechele and Tyler Ogle were voted as the 2011 captains by their teammates back in October during the team's annual visit to Willow Springs Boys Ranch in Chandler, Okla. Buechele is is the only two-time captain (2010).

BUECHELE A PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN
Junior Garrett Buechele was named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and Collegiate Baseball preseason All-America teams. It marks the first such selection for Buechele, who was tabbed a second team All-American following the Sooners' 2010 postseason run. Buechele led OU in every offensive category en route to the program's 10th CWS appearance and first since 1995. The Arlington, Texas, was selected in the 18th round of the 2010 MLB Draft by the Texas Rangers.

He is the second Sooner to be named to a preseason list under head coach Sunny Golloway's watch (Ryan Duke in 2010).

DUKE TIED FOR CAREER SAVES LEAD
Ryan Duke, who is on the NCBWA Stopper of the Year watch list for the second straight year, recorded one save at the 2010 College World Series in OU's opening win over South Carolina and moved into a tie for first place on OU's all-time saves list (below). Duke finished with 12 saves, the nation's 12th best total in 2010 and ranked second in the Big 12. He led the Big 12 in saves with 16 in 2009 (ranked sixth in the nation), the second most in a single season by a Sooner (Jeff Bajenaru - 20, 2000).

Duke is the first Sooner in school history to have 10 or more in two seasons. Below is a look at where he ranks in OU history.

1. 28 Jeff Bajenaru 1999-00
2. 28 Ryan Duke 2008-present

BASEBALL ON KREF 1400 AM IN 2011 | PDF of schedule
The 2011 season marks the second with KREF 1400 AM serving as the flagship station of Sooner baseball. The partnership provides expanded coverage for OU fans to listen to 54 regular season games live over the air and extends into postseason play.

Additionally, 23 of the games are set to be carried on the Sooners Sports' Network, enabling fans to listen to OU baseball on the radio state-wide. The state-wide coverage begins on April 1 against Texas Tech and will continue for each of the games in Big 12 play. The network schedule also includes OU's midweek games at home vs. Oklahoma State (April 5) and TCU (April 12).

The entire 56-game regular season schedule will also be broadcast live on the internet via Oklahoma All-Access, OU's premium content site.

2011 TELEVISION SCHEDULE | PDF of schedule
In 2011, 13 baseball games will be televised locally for the 2011 season by Sooner Vision and Sooner Sports Properties. The broadcasts will air via the Sooner Sports Network on Cox Channel 3 in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. Local sports personality Toby Rowland from KWTV News 9 (Oklahoma City) will call the play-by-play along with color analyst Kenny Mossman, Oklahoma Associate Athletics Director for Communications.

On top of the local coverage, the Sooners can also be seen nationally for three contests. In the last six years, 69 OU games have been seen on regional or national television, with 20 telecasts in 2010.

Sooner Sports Network-Cox Ch. 3 in OKC/Tulsa)
March 12 - Arkansas Little Rock (2 p.m.)
March 13 - Arkansas Little Rock (1 p.m.)
March 18 - Texas A&M (6:30 p.m.)
March 19 - Texas A&M (2 p.m.)
March 20 - Texas A&M (1 p.m.)
April 3 - Texas Tech (1 p.m.)
April 5 - Oklahoma State (6:30 p.m.)
April 12 - TCU (6:30 p.m.)
April 17 - vs. Oklahoma State (4:05 p.m.)
April 19 - Dallas Baptist (6:30 p.m.)
May 6 - Kansas (6:30 p.m.)
May 8 - Kansas (1 p.m.)
May 15 - New Mexico (1 p.m.)

Fox Sports Southwest
April 30 - at Texas (2 p.m.)
May 7 - Kansas (2 p.m.)

ESPNU
May 1 - at Texas (1 p.m.)

Cowboy Sports Network
April 15 - vs. Oklahoma State (7:35 p.m.)

SOONERS INK 14 FOR 2012 SEASON
Oklahoma baseball head coach Sunny Golloway announced the signing of 14 student athletes as part of the 2012 signing class on Wednesday. The recruits signed National Letters of Intent in the early signing period and are set to join the Sooners next fall.

Overall, 12 of the 14 recruits are rated by Perfect Game Crosschecker as prospects for the 2011 MLB Draft. Four of the signees have already been selected in the draft, including three last season.

Clayton Blackburn | RHP | 6-2 | 210
Edmond, Okla. (Edmond Santa Fe H.S.)

Brian Brightwell | OF/1B | L/L | 6-0 |185
Oklahoma City, Okla. (Putnam City H.S.)

Tony Calhoun | RHP/ INF | R/R | 6-1 | 180
Temecula, Calif. (Howard College)

Garrett Carey | SS | R/R | 6-2 | 210
Hutto, Texas (McClennan C.C.)

Mason Hope | RHP | R/R | 6-3 | 185
Broken Arrow, Okla. (Broken Arrow H.S.)

Adrian Houser | RHP | R/R | 6-3 | 200
Locust Grove, Okla. (Locust Grove H.S.)

Nick Lee | LHP/ OF | L/L | 6-0 | 190
San Antonio, Texas (Weatherford College)

Hunter Lockwood | C | R/R | 5-11 | 189
Bedford, Texas (Lawrence Dale Bell H.S.)

Damien Magnifico | RHP | R/R | 6-1 | 190
Mesquite, Texas (Howard College)

Austin O'Donnell | RHP | R/R | 6-0 | 210
Magnolia, Ark. (Northeast Texas C.C.)

Steven Okert | LHP | L/L | 6-3 | 215
Rowlett, Texas | Grayson County College

Jacob Rhame | RHP | R/R | 6-0 | 190
Corinth, Texas (Denton Guyer H.S.)

Nick Sawyer | RHP | R/R | Fr. | 5-10 | 180
Carrollton, Texas (Howard College)

Ty Washington | INF | R/R | 5-10 | 165
Richardson, Texas (Plano East H.S.)