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Oklahoma baseball: Sooners head into Bedlam against Big 12 leaders

By Chip Rouse

MESA, ARIZONA - APRIL 02: General view of action during the MLB spring training game between the Chicago Cubs and the Los Angeles Angels at Sloan Park on April 02, 2022 in Mesa, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
MESA, ARIZONA - APRIL 02: General view of action during the MLB spring training game between the Chicago Cubs and the Los Angeles Angels at Sloan Park on April 02, 2022 in Mesa, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) /
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For the second weekend in a row, the Oklahoma baseball team is off to do battle with a primary rival.

A week ago, it was the Red River baseball showdown with Texas, and that series was preceded by a midweek game against Oklahoma State. The March 29 game with OSU — which, incidentally, the Sooners won 7-6 on a walk-off walk in the bottom of the ninth — did not count against the conference standings.

But the three-game OU-OSU Bedlam series this weekend does count against the Big 12 standings, and it’s against the conference leaders. Oklahoma State is 5-1 after two Big 12 series. The Cowboys swept Kansas two weeks ago and won two of three against the other team from the Sunflower State, Kansas State, last weekend.

This will also be the second consecutive weekend that Oklahoma (17-10, 3-3) has faced an opponent ranked in the top-10 nationally. The Sooners lost two of three to No. 8 Texas a week ago, and this week it’s No. 6 Oklahoma State (21-8, 5-1) (according to D1baseball) as the opponent.

These two longtime rivals have met a total of 308 times with Oklahoma State owning a 163-145 advantage. The Sooners and Cowboys played six times a year ago. OU won two of the three games in the regular-season conference series, but OSU won both midweek games and in the first round of the Big 12 Championship Tournament.

What fans need to know about this weekend’s Bedlam baseball series

  • Both teams head into the weekend series coming off midweek nonconference wins. The Sooners defeated Oral Roberts 8-2 on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Texas rolled over University of Texas Rio Grande Valley 13-5.
  • Oklahoma State is not the best hitting team in the Big 12. The Cowboys’ .266 team batting average ranks seventh out of the nine Big 12 schools that participate in baseball. OSU’s success this season is largely based on outstanding pitching and fielding. The Cowboys are one of just two Big 12 teams with a staff ERA under 4.00 (Texas is the other).
  • Cowboys’ pitchers sport a collective 3.84 ERA.  Sophomore right-hander Justin Campbell leads the team with a .305 ERA and is the best in the Big 12 with a .166 opponents’ batting average.and 66 strikeouts. Defensively, OSU is the best in the Big 12. The Cowboys have committed just 13 errors in 29 games and ranks No. 2 in the country with a .988 fielding average.
  • Oklahoma his hitting .284 as a team and averages 6.0 runs and 9.0 hits a game. The Sooners lead the Big 12 with 62 stolen bases in 79 attempts. That total ranks sixth best in NCAA Division I baseball.
  • First baseman Blake Robertson leads Oklahoma with a .344 batting average. Peyton Graham is next with a .314 average and seven home runs and veteran outfielder Tanner Tredaway is batting .304.
  • Through the first 10 games of the season, the Sooners averaged 3.5 runs per game. During the past 17 games, they’ve averaged 7.5 runs per contest.
  • OU left-hander Jake Bennett (2-1, 2.09 ERA) will get the Friday start against the OSU ace Justin Campbell. The Sooners will go with the regular Friday-Sunday rotation with David Sandlin (2-2, 5.24) on the mound to start Saturday’s game and Chazz Martinez (2-2, 4.04) in the series finale on Sunday.

The home-field advantage will weigh in Oklahoma State’s favor in this series. Oklahoma needs to win at least one game and cannot afford to get swept to keep pace in the Big 12 standings.

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