Walker Enjoying Summer in the Northwoods

The Walker File
Position	Outfielder
Hometown	Prosper, Texas
High School	Prosper
Major	Human Relations
2016 Stats	.290/.352/.414, 35 R, 17 2B

Steele Going
Walker lifted his batting average to .290 by season's end and was named to the All-Big 12 Rookie Team. For the Wisconsin Woodhucks, he is hitting .376, which leads the Northwoods League,

In the first 29 games of his collegiate career, Steele Walker appeared in the Oklahoma starting lineup as an outfielder 28 times, including 27 starts in center. To that point, he was hitting .220 with just five extra-base hits following a series win for the Sooners over Texas. OU welcomed Dallas Baptist to L. Dale Mitchell Park for its next game on April 5 and that game marked the beginning of a new season for Walker. On that day, Walker hit in his usual six spot, but was assigned the role of designated hitter for the first time.

“I can go back to one game,” Walker recalled. “I remember thinking to myself, 'why am I playing so tight?'. It was so frustrating for me because I had such a good fall and I couldn't take it over to the spring. I took a step back and thought about what I was thinking about at the plate and what I was thinking about before the games and I was putting way too much pressure on myself instead of playing the game like I enjoy it.”

Though he would make 46 starts as an outfielder and 10 at DH, that game allowed Walker to shift his focus to his performance at the plate and clear his head. Against DBU, he went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. He would lift his batting average to .290 by the end of the season with 35 runs scored and 32 driven in as he was named to the All-Big 12 Rookie Team. Walker's 17 doubles led the team and tied teammate Sheldon Neuse for the second most by a Sooner freshman on record.

“When you can relax, you're body does things that you don't even expect,” continued Walker. “It all falls together and I tried to mature as a player and relax. Once I started enjoying the game again and not letting the pressures of college ball get to me it started with a knock here, a couple there and the game was fun again.”

Walker played in 57 of Oklahoma's 58 games with 56 starts as a freshman in 2016. He continues to enjoy the game in the offseason as a member of the Wisconsin Woodchucks of the Northwoods League. There he leads the league with a .376 batting average.

Through 33 games with the Woodchucks, Walker is slugging .534 with five home runs and six doubles. He has scored 32 runs and knocked in 20. Sooner third baseman Cade Harris is also in Wisconsin, where he is hitting .244. As a team, the Woodchucks are 19-28 overall with 24 games remaining in the regular season.

Walker connects for one of his three hits in a 12-2 Oklahoma win over Dallas Baptist at L. Dale Mitchell Park on (4/5/16).

“In the Northwoods League, you play every day,” stated Walker. “It's hard on the body and teaches you to take care of yourself. You've just got to learn to get your workouts in when you can. It's also a grind from a mental aspect. You can go 0-for-5 one day and have to come around and be ready to play the next day. On the flipside of that, you can go 4-for-5 and can't get too cocky. It gets your prepared for a higher level of baseball and just doing your job, while not getting caught up in it. It's an adjustment.”

The adjustments have been many for Walker in Wisconsin. Habits at the plate, on the field and off have all been tweaked this summer. The Northwoods League, like most summer collegiate leagues, is a wood bat league. The Northwoods League is also famous for playing in front of large crowds that would rival many minor league stadiums. The grind of the schedule, the wood bats and the atmosphere are all integral parts of preparing players for professional baseball.

“There are some crazy atmospheres. We played in Madison at the Mallards ballpark three or four times and there are 7,000 people there every time. If you're in the outfield, you've just got to be ready to get crushed by fans. College kids, they'll say whatever they want. It's kind of funny; I don't mind it. I kind of like it actually when fans are getting on you. It makes you want to play a little better.

“The wood bat is a little different. It took me a couple weeks to get used to it because it is nothing like metal. The feel, the way it hits is not anything like using a metal bat. There's a coach up here that I like that helped me with the mental part of the game. He preaches to let the game come to you; don't try to press. Once I accepted that, it all kind of fell together for me. I just let the game flow and the wood bat started clicking and finding a lot of barrels. I'm not trying to pay attention to too many stats, but rather just go out and try and get a couple knocks every game.”

Adjusting from the college game to a wood bat summer league is always a challenge, but for Walker it is one that he has met head on with an open mind. His numbers have been some of the best around in one of the nation's most competitive summer leagues. A return to Norman for fall ball means the return of metal bats, but everything else that Walker has experienced in Wisconsin will carry over to his 2017 season with the Sooners.

“I have so much of a better idea of what my body can handle, what workouts I can do and how hard I can push myself. I've even learned that I can work out on gameday and be ready to go by 7:00. Playing four games per week will be a lot easier. I'll be able to work harder in the weight room. It's been a maturing experience for me.”

Riding a 14-game hit streak dating back to the end of June, Walker has already shown he has matured as a hitter. The experience and confidence built playing summer ball is something the Sooners can expect to find in their lineup in 2017. However, those who watched Walker play in Norman as a freshman know he has never lacked confidence on a baseball diamond. Yet it takes more than confidence, skill and a terrific baseball name to make things click at the collegiate level. After all the batting practices, live scrimmages and video work, Walker discovered that the best way to adjust his game was to begin enjoying it again.