Baseball Drops Two of Three

Photo Attribution: Nebugeater

by: Anthony Slater

Oklahoma State baseball opened up conference play this past weekend in Columbia. After winning the first game 3-2, the Cowboys lost 4-1 and 4-2 to lose the series to Missouri. OSU is now 13-11 overall, 1-2 in the Big 12.

Here’s a quick synopsis of the weekend’s events:

Stars

LHP Andrew Heaney – In college baseball, an ace like Heaney is such a luxury. Regardless of the opponent, OSU enters any weekend series as heavy favorites in the Friday night game. It puts the team at ease. Get that opening game, then you get two shots to win the series (easier said than done for OSU lately). He was brilliant again this past weekend, getting the complete game win (his third consecutive CG) in OSU’s 3-2 opening win. His stat line this season: 5-1 record, 1.12 ERA (leads Big 12) and 65 strikeouts (leads nation). The dude is dealing.

3B Mark Ginther – If not for Ginther’s late-game heroics, OSU spoils Heaney’s start and gets swept this weekend. Down to their last out in game one, trailing 2-1, Mark Ginther ripped a two-run game-winning home run, as part of his three-hit day. Biggest AB of the season so far. The Cowboys may have left Columbia disappointed with the series loss, but 1-2 sounds A LOT better than a clean sweep.

Goat

Entire OSU lineup – Six runs in three games. That’s not going to get it done. After narrowly escaping the opener, OSU spoiled a good relief effort by Blake Barnes in game two and a great start by Kyle Ottoson in game three. From a pitching perspective, the Cowboys should have swept the series. From a hitting standpoint, they were lucky to win one game. While the lineup has been explosive and powerful at times (OSU leads the Big 12 with 20 home runs), it has been wildly inconsistent. That doomed them in Columbia.

Up Next

In a scheduling oddity, Baylor has three straight home series to begin conference play. They’ve taken advantage. In the first two weekend matchups (against Tech and KU), Baylor has rolled, sweeping the six games by a combined score of 48-16. OSU heads to Waco on Friday trying to hand Baylor its first Big 12 loss. It will be a tough task. And oh yeah, the Cowboys have Ark. Little Rock in Stillwater on Tuesday. That game only becomes noteworthy if OSU slips up and loses.