Bases Loaded: 2016 Preseason Notes & Coverage

Top Returners
Jake Elliott // RHP Elliott has been a constant presence in the OU rotation since he arrived in Norman for the 2014 season. In the Friday role last season, he earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention with a 3.06 ERA.
Hunter Haley // OF Haley was an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention outfielder as a sophomore two years ago. Through injuries in 2015, he drove in 21 runs on 11 doubles and four home runs, while stealing seven bases.
Alec Hansen // RHP All-Big 12 Honorable Mention in 2015, Hansen collected 94 Ks and five wins as OU's Saturday starter. He struck out 12 in a win over Oregon State and pitched a complete game to beat Texas Tech.
Sheldon Neuse // SS-RHP Neuse transitioned to shortstop as a sophomore and earned his second All-Big 12 First Team honor. He slugged six home runs and 10 doubles, while driving in 43 runs.

NORMAN, Okla. – The 2016 baseball season is nearly underway and the University of Oklahoma baseball team is ready to hit the ground running. A new field and a new team look to cross between the lines for first pitch on Friday, February 19 when the Sooners host the Northeastern Huskies on opening day from L. Dale Mitchell Park.

Oklahoma, under the direction of third-year head coach Pete Hughes, is coming off a 34-27 season. The Sooners ranked among the top offensive lineups in the Big 12 for the second straight season with a collective .282 batting average, which ranked second in the league.

On the mound, Oklahoma looks to recover 58% of its innings pitched from a year ago, while returning 31 starts, 30 of which from Jake Elliott and Alec Hansen, and 10 wins. Over the course of the last four seasons, Sooner pitchers have been striking out batters at an alarming rate. After fanning 524, the third most in OU history, in 2015, the Oklahoma pitching staff ranks 10th, and one of just 11 teams with 2,000 or more strikeouts since 2012, with 2,022.

The third-place Sooners, with a 13-11 league record, lost a nation-leading 11 players to the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft back in June, but have restocked the roster with 21 newcomers, including three MLB draft picks and two high school All-Americans.

Jake Elliott

Crimson Colored Quest for Omaha

Peaking at No. 21 in the national preseason polls, Oklahoma baseball earned No. 4 in the Big 12 Coaches' Preseason Poll as the Sooners enter their third season under head coach Pete Hughes. Seeking a return to the NCAA Regionals, OU features a small, but extremely talented, crop of returning starters in the rotation and the lineup. Coming off the loss of 11 players, the most in the country, selected in the 2015 MLB Draft, the Sooners reloaded with 21 newcomers; ranking as the No. 10 incoming class in the nation.

Link: Complete Season Preview

Media Day Coverage

Eleven days out from opening day, Oklahoma baseball coach Pete Hughes met the media for the team's annual media day at the Lloyd Noble Center ahead of the Sooner men's basketball team's win over Texas. Hughes was joined at the podium by senior outfielder Alex Wise and junior shortstop Sheldon Neuse and junior pitcher Jake Elliott.

Link: Complete Media Day Quotes
Link: Media Day Video

L. Dale Mitchell Park, 2015

Be at the Yard

NORMAN, Okla. – Season tickets for the University of Oklahoma baseball 2016 season are now on sale to the public through SoonerSports.com. Tickets can also be purchased over the phone at 405-325-242 or toll-free at 800-456-GoOU.

The Sooners play 25 games at L. Dale Mitchell Park, including a home series against Texas (Apr. 1-3) and a non-conference Bedlam contest against Oklahoma State (Apr. 19).

Link: SoonerSports.com Release
Link: Purchase Tickets

Tune in to 2016 Broadcasts

Baseball Broadcasts
Radio Network	KREF 1400 AM
Radio Broadcasts	54
SSTV Broadcasts	17
National TV	4

In the Booth
Toby Rowland	Radio Play-By-Play
Ross Hubbard	Radio Commentary
Chad McKee	TV Play-By-Play
George Frazier	TV Commentary
Mickey Tettleton	TV Commentary
Brendan Flynn	Fill-In Radio Play-By-Play

NORMAN, Okla. – The University of Oklahoma baseball and softball teams will once again air local radio broadcasts in the Norman area with baseball on KREF 1400 and softball on KEBC 1560. The Sooner baseball team will have 54 of 55 regular season games broadcast, while the softball schedule features the most extensive coverage in program history with all 54 games to air.

Toby Rowland will anchor the play-by-play coverage for baseball following the end of the OU men's basketball season. Chris Plank moves from his spot as dugout reporter on baseball broadcasts to the booth as the play-by-play voice on softball games. Plank, the sideline reporter on OU football broadcasts, joined Sooner Sports Properties full time in the fall of 2015.

Link: SoonerSports.com Release
Link: National TV Broadcasts
Link: SoonerSports.tv Premium Subscription

Big 12 Coaches Poll

Big 12 Coaches Poll
Team (1st)	2015 W-L
1. TCU (3)	51-15 (18-5)
2. Oklahoma State (3)	38-20 (14-8)
3. Texas (3)	30-27 (11-13)
4. Oklahoma	34-27 (13-11)
5. Texas Tech	31-24 (13-11)
6. West Virginia	27-27 (9-13)
T-7. Kansas	23-32 (8-15)
T-7. Kansas State	27-30 (10-14)
9. Baylor	23-32 (9-15)

IRVING, Texas – The University of Oklahoma baseball team placed fourth in the Big 12 Coaches Preseason Poll as announced by the conference office on Thursday morning. The Sooners received 45 points on their way to their highest position since being the league's preseason favorite in 2013.

Last season, Oklahoma went 34-27 overall and finished third in the Big 12 with a 13-11 conference record, including series wins at Texas, Kansas State and West Virginia as well as home series wins over Texas Tech and Kansas.

Link: SoonerSports.com Release

Pete Hughes, 2015

Sooners In the Polls

Oklahoma enters the season ranked No. 21 by Baseball America. The Sooners last opened the season in the Top-25 of a major poll in 2013; peaking at No. 14 in the Collegiate Baseball News preseason ranking. OU also appears in the preseason rankings at Perfect Game USA as the No. 19 team in the nation.

In 2015, Oklahoma reached the polls on three occasions, including twice being ranked No. 23 by CBN. The Sooners have been ranked in eight polls since the Hughes era began in Norman for the 2014 season. In the last two years, OU is 16-17 when ranked in the polls under Hughes.

Link: Baseball America Preseason Top-25
Link: Baseball America Previews the Sooners
Link: Perfect Game USA Preseason Top-25

Sheldon Neuse, 2015

Preseason All-Americans

TUCSON, Ariz. – University of Oklahoma juniors Alec Hansen (Loveland, Colo.) and Sheldon Neuse (Fort Worth, Texas) each earned a spot on the Collegiate Baseball News/Louisville Slugger Preseason All-America Second Team as announced on Tuesday morning. Neuse, the Sooners' shortstop, claimed preseason All-America status for the second consecutive season.

Link: SoonerSports.com Release
Link: Collegiate Baseball News Preseason All-Americans

DURHAM, N.C. – Hansen and Neuse were honored together again as Preseason All-Americans by Baseball America, which ranked the Sooners No. 21 in its preseason poll. Hansen landed on the First Team, while Neuse grabbed a spot as the utility player on the Third Team, due to his status as an infielder and relief pitcher.

Link: Baseball America Preseason All-Americans
Link: Golden Spikes Award Watch List

2016 Draft Prospects

Alec Hansen, Jake Elliott and Sheldon Neuse all earned a spot on the Baseball America College Top 100 Draft Prospects List released on January 5. Hansen ranked number two, while fellow right-hander Elliott ranked 69. Neuse rounded out the group at number 82.

Link: Baseball America Article
Link: D1Baseball.com Draft Prospects

Hansen Stands Out Early

Alec Hansen claimed his second preseason honor with a spot on the Perfect Game Preseason All-America Second Team. The team was announced on Monday, January 11. Hansen is one of just three players from the Big 12, which didn't land a single player on the first team, to receive recognition from Perfect Game.

The preseason honors continued to roll in with a third preseason honor as Hansen was named to the D1Baseball.com Preseason All-America Third Team. Hansen's spot on the list marked the only representation for the entire Big 12 Conference.

Link: Perfect Game Preseason All-Americans
Link: D1Baseball.com Preseason All-Americans
Link: D1Baseball.com Previews the Sooners

QB Thomas Returns to the Diamond

NORMAN, Okla. – University of Oklahoma backup quarterback Cody Thomas is leaving the football program to focus on baseball, according to OU head football coach Bob Stoops.

Thomas, who just completed his redshirt sophomore season on the gridiron, played on the OU baseball team during the 2014 season as an outfielder, appearing in 14 games (one start) and registering one hit in 12 at bats. He did not play baseball during the 2015 season.

Link: SoonerSports.com Release
Link: The Oklahoman on Thomas' Decision