Completed Event: Baseball versus #25 Florida on May 1, 2026 , Win , 4, to, 3
Final
Baseball
4
vs #25 Florida
3
University of Oklahoma Athletics
Fourteen Newcomers Take to the Diamond
October 09, 2014 | Baseball
| 2015 Newcomers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| ## | Name | Pos. | |
| 5 | Kyle Mendenhall | IF | |
| 6 | Chandler Wagoner | C | |
| 7 | Alex Wise | IF/OF | |
| 8 | Cameron Frazier | IF/OF | |
| 12 | Keaton Hernandez | RHP | |
| 13 | Thomas McIlraith | RHP | |
| 15 | Blake Rogers | RHP | |
| 18 | Troy Chezem | LHP | |
| 28 | Shawn Hunter | LHP | |
| 29 | Quin Walbergh | IF | |
| 31 | Kenny Saenz | RHP | |
| 37 | Jacob Leal | C | |
| 39 | Chris Shaw | C | |
| 42 | Brock Barger | RHP | |
| What's Coming Up? | ||
|---|---|---|
| Next Week | 2015 Schedule Release | |
| October 30 | ALS Awareness Halloween Game | |
| November 7 | vs. Trinity (TX) University | |
| Nov. 14-19 | Fall World Series | |
NORMAN, Okla. – Seven pitchers and seven position players. That's what head coach Pete Hughes has brought into his University of Oklahoma baseball program for the upcoming 2015 season. The Sooners, coming off a 29-29 campaign in 2014, return 21 total players from a year ago, including seven starting position players and seven pitchers that saw significant time. The two groups took the field as one team for the first time on Monday, October 6 as fall ball started at L. Dale Mitchell Park, where OU is expected to open its season, the second under Hughes, on February 13.
The group of newcomers is comprised of seven freshmen and seven junior college transfers. Six of the newcomers hail from Texas, while three come to Norman from California and two locals from Oklahoma join the roster. Catcher Chris Shaw (Winnipeg, Man.) becomes the first baseball player in the Big 12 from the Canadian province of Manitoba.
“Shaw has been really good,” stated Hughes. “He's a plus right-handed bat; power guy too and his leadership skills are through the roof.”
Shaw is one of three players that join the Sooners' catching corps. He has twice been selected in the MLB First-Year Player Draft; most recently by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 14th round of last June's draft. In two seasons at Midland (TX) College, Shaw hit .390 with 25 home runs and 127 RBI.
Fellow right-handed hitters Jacob Leal (Grapevine, Texas) and Chandler Wagoner (Temecula, Calif.) will compete for time behind the dish. Leal arrives in Norman after a season at Howard (TX) College following a prep career at Grapevine (TX) High School where he was twice named to the All-District Team. At Great Oaks (CA) High School, Wagoner led his team to a league title in 2014 and finished his season by being drafted in the 36th round by the Chicago White Sox.
The Sooners have added a great amount of depth to their infield with three freshmen and one transfer.
“I'm excited about our freshmen infielders; Kyle Mendenhall (Carlsbad, Calif.) and Quin Walbergh (Edmond, Okla.) from Santa Fe [High School],” added Hughes. “Those kids are super athletic and super defensive. Alex Wise (Neosho, Mo.) is a junior college kid that was a Division I basketball recruit. He can play infield and outfield and runs very well.”
I'm excited about our freshmen infielders; Mendenhall and Walbergh. Those kids are super athletic and super defensive.
Pete Hughes
Mendenhall was a First Team All-League selection and team MVP for Carlsbad (CA) High School where he was a four-time letterwinner. A local recruit, Walbergh earned All-State and All-Metro as a senior in 2014 as well as Perfect Game All-Region Second Team.
Wise, who originally intended to attend Missouri State on a basketball scholarship, is coming off two seasons at Northeastern Oklahoma A&M College and a summer with the Redding Colt 45s. He provides depth on both the infield and in the outfield as does freshman Cameron Frazier (Boulder, Colo.). Wise was a three-time All-Conference performer in high school and earned All-OCAC honors in both seasons at NEO. Frazier was a four-time letterwinner at Fairview (CO) High School where he hit .500 as a senior, while earning All-State for the second straight season. In football, he was also an All-State wide receiver on a team that finished state runner-up.
Four right-handers and three left-handers join the Sooner pitching staff. Three of the righties arrive in Norman with Junior College experience.
“Keaton Hernandez (Palm Spring, Calif.) is a junior college arm from California,” stated Hughes. “He went to Weatherford Junior College. He's a big competitive right-hander. Thomas McIlraith (Amarillo, Texas) and Blake Rogers (Lewisville, Texas) are two other junior college kids that are power arms.”
Hernandez did not play baseball in high school, but was rather a four-time letterwinner in football at Desert Chapel (CA) High School where he was named the Division 2 Christian Schools National Quarterback of the Year. As a freshman at Northeastern Oklahoma, he earned NJCAA Division I All-America Second Team.]
McIlraith toed the rubber for 143 innings in two seasons at Midland (TX) College and totaled 149 strikeouts, while helping his squad to back-to-back regional championships. Rogers started his collegiate career at Lyon (AR) College and ended up at Cisco (TX) College a year ago. He hit .350 as a freshman before moving to the mound as a sophomore where he started 10 games and struck out 41 in 51.2 innings of work. Joining the fray is freshman right-hander Brock Barger (San Angelo, Texas) from Central (TX) High School where he was selected All-District three times and was the 2014 All-West Texas MVP.
Freshman southpaw Kenny Sanez (Corpus Christi, Texas) stands just 5-foot-8, but was a proven winner at Corpus Christi (TX) Moody as he earned All-State First Team three times and All-South Texas MVP twice.
“We're excited about Kenneth Saenz; a left-handed pitcher,” began Hughes. “Five-foot-eight may be an exaggeration. Honestly, he's a guy who could possibly be a Sunday guy for us because he's got a four- or five-pitch mix. His control is very advanced. When you've got a left-handed strike thrower with more than one pitch, you're going to have a chance to get deep in games. We recruited him and we don't care about his stature. He's got really good stuff.”
Along with Saenz, Oklahoma has added lefties Troy Chezem (Allen, Texas) and Shawn Hunter (Fort Supply, Oklahoma). Chezem earned All-District First Team twice at Allen (TX) High School and Hunter was named All-State at Woodward (OK) High School as a senior. Prior to arriving at OU, Hunter has seen stops at Northern Oklahoma College – Enid, Oklahoma State and Seminole State. Last season he went 8-3 with a 3.39 ERA in 13 starts for Seminole to go with 100 strikeouts in 85 innings pitched.
The fourteen newcomers will continue to battle for jobs on the diamond this fall where fans are welcome to attend open practices. The Sooners will also host the second annual ALS Awareness Halloween Game on October 30 followed by the first Breast Cancer Awareness Game against Trinity (TX) University on November 7.
Players Mentioned
RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
INF/OF
/ BaseballINF/OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ Baseball
C
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
INF
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballRHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballLHP
/ Baseball
C
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
INF/OF
/ BaseballBB Highlights: OU 15, Arkansas 10
Sunday, May 10
BB Highlights: OU 4, Florida 3
Friday, May 01
BB Highlights: OU 2, Auburn 1
Saturday, April 25
BB Highlights: OU 7, Oral Roberts 6
Tuesday, April 21
