Sooners Open Big 12 Championship Wednesday

First Pitch

• Oklahoma (30-24, 11-13 Big 12) opens the 2023 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship against Oklahoma State (37-16, 15-9 Big 12) on Wednesday at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. Game time is set for 4 p.m.
• This will be the fifth meeting between the Sooners and Cowboys this season, and fourth in a row. The teams played a three-game set in Norman last weekend. OSU has won three of the four meetings.
• The Sooners won the 2022 Big 12 Championship, the first held at Globe Life Field. OU won all four games, defeating West Virginia (6-4), Texas Tech (6-3), Kansas State (4-3) and Texas (8-1).
• Oklahoma has played one game at Globe Life Field this season, a 4-3 defeat in 10 innings to Abilene Christian on Feb. 22. The Sooners have played a total of 16 games at Globe Life Field since the 2021 season (the ballpark opened for the 2020 MLB season): two in 2021, 13 in 2022 and one so far in 2023. OU is 10-6 at the current home of the Texas Rangers.
• Oklahoma is celebrating its 125th anniversary season in 2023. The program was established in 1898, and OU has competed in 118 seasons since (including 2023).

Watch/Listen/Follow

• The game will be televised via Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with Clay Matvick and Mike Rooney calling the action.
• Toby Rowland will have the radio broadcast, which will be carried on the Sooner Radio Network (locally on Sportstalk 99.3 FM/1400 AM KREF, Sportstalk1400.com and the Varsity Network app anywhere).
• Live stats will be available via OUStats.com.

Leading Off

• Oklahoma's overall strength of schedule is ranked 13th in the country and first among Big 12 schools while its non-conference strength of schedule is ranked 13th nationally and first in the Big 12. The Sooners are ranked 36th in the RPI as of May 23, which is the fourth-highest ranking among Big 12 schools.
• Oklahoma has eight top-25 wins (8-8) and 12 top-50 wins (12-11). OU leads the Big 12 and has the sixth-highest number of RPI top-25 wins nationally, and its 12-11 record vs. the RPI top-50 is tied with Texas and Oklahoma State for best in the Big 12. The Sooners also have 17 top-100 victories, which ranks third among Big 12 schools. Half of OU's 12 top-50 wins have been away from home (five road, one neutral site).
• Due to various injuries and illness, Oklahoma has played only 23 of its 54 games with every position player on the roster fully available for action — the first 12 games of the season and the last 11 games. OU is 14-9 in those 23 games, and 7-4 in the last 11 contests. With Brooks Wallace Award semifinalist Dakota Harris in the lineup, OU is 25-15.
• Oklahoma ranks 18th nationally and third in the Big 12 with its 314 walks, and ranks 25th nationally and fourth in the Big 12 with its 104 stolen bases. OU batters have also been hit by a pitch 63 times, totaling 377 free passes (an average of 7.0 free passes per game).
• The Sooners also rank 10th nationally with their 34 sacrifice flies (second in the Big 12 to Texas Tech's 38) and 22nd nationally with 18 triples (second in Big 12; league leader Texas Tech has 19 triples).
• Junior right fielder Bryce Madron has registered 54 walks, a figure that leads the Big 12 and ranks ninth nationally, and is tied for the ninth-most in program history. He also ranks 17th nationally and second in the Big 12 by averaging 1.00 walk per contest. Freshman catcher Easton Carmichael ranks second in the Big 12 and tied for second nationally among catchers with his four triples, despite missing 10 starts with an illness. Sophomore center fielder John Spikerman and junior infielder Anthony Mackenzie and rank fifth and sixth in the Big 12 with their 22 and 21 stolen bases.

Series History

• Oklahoma and Oklahoma State have met 312 times. OSU leads the series 166-146. The Cowboys hold a 26-25 edge in Norman.
• OU and OSU split four games last season. The Sooners won the midweek contest, played in Tulsa, 7-6 and won the first game of the Big 12 series in Stillwater 8-7. The Cowboys won the next two games 8-7 and 9-4, and also won earlier this season 19-8 in a midweek non-conference contest in Stillwater.
• Oklahoma won two of three games of the teams' 20212 Big 12 series, split between Stillwater and Norman. OU won 16-2 on Friday night in Stillwater and 5-3 in Norman on Saturday, before OSU won the finale 8-7 in 12 innings.
• This will be the first Bedlam conference series played entirely in Norman since 1982. Oklahoma won the first of that four-game set before OSU won the final three contests.

Player Notes

• Junior Carter Campbell ranks 11th nationally and first in the Big 12 with his 31 pitching appearances (national leader has made 36 appearances). Jackson Nicklaus ranks 25th nationally and third in the Big 12 in walks (48) and 44th nationally in walks per game (0.9).
• Anthony Mackenzie has reached base in 51 of 54 games this season (the only exceptions were March 4 vs. California, and May 18 and May 20 vs. OSU). He reached safely in 42 consecutive games from March 4 through May 14 (his streak ended on May 18). He has at least one hit in 45 of his 54 contests, and has either scored a run or recorded an RBI in 43 contests. Mackenzie is batting .313 with 51 runs scored, 36 RBIs, eight doubles, six home runs and 21 stolen bases.
• Dakota Harris, who was named a Brooks Wallace Award Semifinalist last week, is batting .335 (54 for 161) and is tied for the team lead with 43 RBIs. He has 11 doubles, one triple and seven home runs in 40 games, despite missing 14 games with an injury.
• In the last 34 games, Bryce Madron has raised his batting average 128 points from .182 to .310 while going 49 for 131 at the plate (.374) and hitting nine of his 11 home runs, 11 of his 14 doubles, recording 35 of his 43 RBIs and 35 of his 52 runs scored. He also has 22 walks in that span. He drew a ton of walks by comparison in the first 20 games of the season (32 walks, 12 hits, five extra base hits). He leads the team with 27 extra base hits (14 doubles, two triples, 11 homers) and 52 runs scored, and is tied for the team lead with 43 RBIs.
• Fourth-year junior outfielder Kendall Pettis leads the Sooners with a .342 batting average (54 for 158) and has 43 runs scored, six doubles, three triples, one home run, 29 walks and 16 stolen bases. He has hit .374 (46 for 123) with 30 runs, five doubles, three triples, a home run, 15 walks and 12 steals in his last 33 games (32 starts) since March 19.
• In his last 22 games, John Spikerman is batting .350 (28 for 80) with 16 RBIs, 14 runs scored and 16 walks. Ten of his 22 stolen bases this season (10 for 10) have come in the last 22 contests.
• Harris (11 doubles, one triple, seven homers) is second on the team with 19 extra base hits. Nicklaus (eight doubles, three triples, six homers) and Spikerman (13 doubles, one triple, three homers) each have 17 extra base hits this season.

Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship

• Oklahoma has won the Big 12 Championship three times: the league's first tournament in 1997, again in 2013 and in 2022.
• The Sooners have a 42-41 overall record in the Big 12 Championship. OU swept through four wins in the 2022 event to claim its third title.
• Oklahoma won 10 of its 14 Big 12 tournament contests from 2010-13, but was 7-14 in the seven league tournaments from 2014-21.
• OU is the only school to qualify for all 26 postseason championships that have been played in the league's history. No tournament was held in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• In its history, OU is 80-73 overall in postseason conference tournaments, encompassing the Big 12 and Big 8 conferences. In addition to its three Big 12 Championships, the Sooners won Big 8 tournament titles in 1977 and 1979.