NORMAN – The Oklahoma baseball team will play host to the Texas Rangers Instructional Team and McLennan College in exhibition scrimmages and hold an intrasquad world series beginning this month at L. Dale Mitchell Park.
The Sooners will host the Rangers' instructional squad at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 11, and McLennan College at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Oct. 22, both at Mitchell Park. Admission is free, and concessions and restrooms will be open.
The fall world series scrimmages are slated to be held Sunday, Oct. 30, Tuesday, Nov. 1 and Friday, Nov. 4 at Mitchell Park. All OU baseball fall scrimmages and practices are open to the public.
Coming off the program's 11th NCAA College World Series appearance and a Big 12 tournament championship, Oklahoma began fall workouts last month in preparation for the 2023 spring season.
The Sooners finished the 2022 season as national runner-up reaching the CWS finals for the third time in program history (and first since 1994) and are entering their sixth year under the direction of head coach
Skip Johnson.
Oklahoma returned 16 players from the 2022 roster and welcomed 31 newcomers, 17 of which are true freshmen. Seven newcomers are transfers from a four-year school and 12 others transferred from a junior college. The OU roster features four catchers, 10 infielders, nine outfielders and 26 pitchers.
Among the returning players are outfielders
Kendall Pettis and
John Spikerman, outfielder/utility player
Diego Muniz, infielders
Jackson Nicklaus and
Wallace Clark and pitchers
Carson Atwood,
Carter Campbell,
Braden Carmichael and
Aaron Calhoun.
Johnson brought in former OU player and assistant coach
Russell Raley as volunteer assistant after promoting
Reggie Willits to associate head coach. Assistant coach
Clay Overcash is also back for his sixth year with Johnson and the Sooners.