The Big 12 Tournament is underway in Arlington Texas, and College Baseball Nation has all of the coverage you need.
Big 12 Championship Final: Oklahoma 8, Texas 1
Oklahoma ran away with the Big 12 Championship by defeating Texas 8-1 on Sunday night at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
After two quick outs to open the game, Ivan Melendez hit his first home run of the Big 12 Championship over the wall in right-center field. The blast was the 29th home run of the season for Melendez.
The 1-0 Texas lead stood until the bottom of the third inning when Oklahoma came alive. The Sooners put up eight runs on three different pitchers to take a commanding 8-1 lead into the fourth inning.
Tanner Tredaway delivered a two RBI single which chased Texas reliever Aaron Nixon from the game as the Longhorns went to Tristan Stevens for the fourth time out of the bullpen this week to stop the bleeding. Jimmy Crooks hit the first offering from Stevens deep into the right field seats, a three-run blast, to cap the scoring.
Cade Horton pitched the Sooners into the sixth inning when he took his exit with one out as he approached one hundred pitches. Horton went 5 2/3 innings pitched and allowed just the one run on two hits. Horton was also selected as the Player of the Game for the Championship Game.
Horton was followed out of the bullpen by Chazz Martinez and Trevin Michael who closed the door on the Longhorns. Two ninth inning hits inflated the overall total, but Sooner pitching only allowed four hits in the game.
Tredaway, who had the most hits of any player in the Big 12 Championship with nine, was proud of his team's performance on Sunday, and he was especially mindful of the rivalry between the two schools.
"This is just unbelievable, and to do it against Texas, is even greater," Tredaway said. "We showed up and we had a big inning, and that was all we needed. We're Big 12 Champs."
Oklahoma head coach Skip Johnson simplified the winning approach of his team after the victory.
"Just taking it one pitch at a time and try to win pitches, that's all we're trying to do as a team," Johnson said.
Peyton Graham was selected as the Most Outstanding Player of the 2022 Big 12 Championship for his performance over the entire week. Graham was 6-for-16 with two home runs and seven RBI in the Big 12 Championship. Graham was joined on the All-Tournament Team by three of his teammates, while their Sunday opponent, Texas, had three players make the team.
During the final two innings of the game, the NCAA Selection Committee released its selections for host sites next weekend. Oklahoma State and Texas were both selected to host NCAA Regionals. Oklahoma, Texas Tech, and TCU will play in Regionals, but they will be leaving town to do so.
Game 13: Texas 9, Oklahoma State 2
Updated Saturday, May 28, 9:03 p.m. CT
For as lopsided as Saturday morning's first game was when No. 13 Oklahoma State routed No. 19 Texas 8-1, the afternoon contest was just as unbalanced in the opposite direction as Texas advanced to the Big 12 Championship final with a 9-2 win over the Cowboys. Oklahoma State got out to an early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. The rest of the game was all Texas after that as the Longhorns plated nine runs before the Cowboys scored again. Despite a first inning run, Andre Duplantier II was good in his two-inning start for Texas and he gave his team what it needed: room to breathe. Already with one RBI, which came in the second inning of the game, Trey Faltine (3-for-5) batted with the bases loaded in the third inning and cleared the bases with a double. Texas led 7-1 by the time their half of the third inning was over. Jared Southard with 1 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball and Marcus Olivarez with two scoreless innings out of the Texas bullpen preceded a scoreless ninth inning by Tristan Stevens to close out the victory. Luke Harrison was also a piece of the puzzle out of the Texas bullpen, going 2 1/3 innings and allowing just one run. Faltine was modest in his postgame comments about his bases-clearing double that drove in three runs. "I knew that he loved his fastball and he tried to pitch up in the zone, so I was just trying to get him down," Faltine said. "But it could have been anybody right there. Our team puts in the work. Anybody could come up right there in that situation and do what I did." The win by the Longhorns sets up a Big 12 Championship final between Texas and Oklahoma at 5 p.m. CT on Sunday afternoon.
Game 12: Oklahoma 4, Kansas State 3
Updated Saturday, May 28, 5:18 p.m. CT
If there is any such thing as a quiet game that really mattered, it was on display in Arlington at the Big 12 Championship on Saturday afternoon as Oklahoma eliminated Kansas State 4-3.
The Wildcats scored their three runs on RBI singles in the second, fifth, and eighth innings.
Oklahoma erased a 2-1 deficit in the sixth inning on a Jimmy Crooks (2-for-4) double to the wall in center field. Peyton Graham (2-for-4) added a solo home run in the seventh inning to give the Sooners a two-run lead.
Kansas State got to within a run in the eighth inning, but the Wildcats did not have enough as they fell 4-3 and had their season come to an end.
David Sandlin was superb for Oklahoma in his start. Sandlin allowed just one run on five hits over seven innings pitched and struck out ten Kansas State batters.
Sandlin lost his sister earlier in the week and she was obviously in his thoughts as he worked with a heavy heart on Saturday.
"I was just, of course, playing for my sister that passed away this last week," Sandlin said after the game. "I knew she was going to be there today, so I had to go out there and play for her."
Oklahoma is headed to the Big 12 Championship game on Sunday afternoon at 5pm. The Sooners will face either Texas or Oklahoma State after those two teams decide matters in a Saturday afternoon matchup, their second game against each other on Saturday.
Game 11: Oklahoma State 8, Texas 1
Updated Saturday, May 28, 1:38 p.m. CT
Oklahoma State set up another matchup with Texas later on Saturday by winning the first game of the day 8-1 at the Big 12 Championship in Arlington.
The Cowboys jumped out to a 2-0 lead on a Jake Thompson (2-for-4) two-run home run in the bottom of the first inning. Thompson then doubled in the second inning driving in two more runs. Griffin Doersching added a RBI double and the Cowboys led 6-0 going to the third inning.
The game felt finished at that time, but it was still a few more innings before Texas started to rest players that they would need in Saturday’s second game against Oklahoma State.
Ryan Bogusz (3-0) was outstanding for the Cowboys in his start. Bogusz allowed just one run on five hits as he pitched eight complete innings, exiting in the ninth inning with one runner on base. That runner eventually scored, after Bugusz left the mound.
The long outing by Bogusz spared the Oklahoma State bullpen, which has not been heavily taxed this week in Arlington.
Oklahoma State head coach Josh Holliday was hoping for three, four, or five good innings from Bogusz, who is typically a relief pitcher.
Asked about getting a start instead of pitching in relief on Saturday, Bogusz seemed unfazed.
“I think it’s just the same,” Bogusz said. “Take inning by inning, out by out and do the same thing out of the bullpen, but start the game that way.” These two teams will square off again later Saturday, after the Oklahoma and Kansas State contest. The winner goes to the Big 12 Championship game tomorrow and likely earns a hosting spot, the loser heads home and awaits to find out their postseason fate on Monday morning.
Game 10: Kansas State 6, Texas Tech 5
Updated Saturday, May 28, 1:08 a.m. CT
It took eleven innings and just over four hours but Kansas State outlasted Texas Tech on Friday night and into Saturday morning with a 6-5 victory to stay alive in the Big 12 Championship. Kansas State jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the second inning with a three-run frame. Nick Goodwin led off the inning with a solo home run to get the scoring started. Wildcats starter German Fajardo tossed five solid innings and allowed just two runs on two hits against the Red Raiders before departing in the sixth inning. Kansas State got to Big 12 Pitcher of the Year William Birdsell for four runs over six innings, but Birdsell departed with the lead in the seventh inning after a very serviceable start for the right-hander. Ty Coleman drove in three runs for the Red Raiders. One run scored on a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning, while two runs came home on a double to right-center field in the sixth inning which tied the game at three. After Kansas State tied the game at five in the top of the ninth inning, Texas Tech had no answer in the bottom of the frame, sending the game to extra innings. In the top of the eleventh inning, the Wildcats played small-ball as Josh Nicoloff put down a perfect sacrifice bunt to plate the go-ahead run. Dylan Phillips took the mound for the bottom of the eleventh inning for the Wildcats with a 6-5 lead. For Phillips, the Wildcats first baseman for the first ten innings, it was his second relief appearance in as many days. Phillips faced on three batters, and struck out two, to close out the victory. Texas Tech had just seven hits in the ballgame, none of them home runs, as they simply could not figure out Kansas State pitching. Texas Tech is done at the Big 12 Championship, and they are not in the hosting conversation. The Red Raiders will play in a Regional next weekend, but this year the question is: Where? Kansas State has a quick turnaround after an emotional win. The Wildcats face Oklahoma in just over twelve hours, early on Saturday afternoon needing to defeat the Sooners twice in order to advance to the championship game on Sunday against either Texas or Oklahoma State.
Game 9: Oklahoma State 8, TCU 4
Updated Friday, May 27, 8:28 p.m. CT
Oklahoma State rallied from an early three-run deficit to extend their Big 12 Championship run for at least another day with a convincing 8-4 victory over TCU on Friday afternoon. The regulation game lasted well over four hours at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
The Horned Frogs were without head coach Kirk Saarloos in the game as he was suspended for two games after a Thursday night ejection for arguing with the umpiring crew.
TCU took a 2-0 lead in the first inning with Kurtis Byrne and Bobby Goodloe each bringing home a run. Neither starting pitcher made it past the third inning on Friday, which left the fate of the game to bullpens that were in their third straight day of high-pressure work. Trailing 3-0 in the third inning, Griffin Doersching launched a baseball 449 feet to center field. The two-run blast got the Cowboys back within a run. With the game tied at four in the top of the fifth inning, Oklahoma State loaded the bases with no one out. Singles by Caeden Trenkle (3-for-4) and Zach Ehrhard each drove in two runs and the Cowboys built an 8-4 lead. Roman Phansalkar was tremendous out of the bullpen for the Cowboys. Phansalkar stabilized things over the middle innings as he went five innings and allowed just one run on two hits while striking out six. After the game, Phansalkar talked about what was working for him against the Horned Frogs. “The sinker was working,” Phansalkar said. “I hadn’t thrown the change-up a lot, it’s mainly a pitch I throw to lefties, and I just don’t face as many lefties as we saw with TCU today, so they kind of forced me me to be good with that pitch.” Griffin Doersching has been a spark for his team the last two days and he is relishing what that means to his guys. “I love it,” Doersching said. “I love getting our team going. I love bringing the energy.” The Horned Frogs are finished in the Big 12 Championship having gone 1-2. TCU will await their postseason fate over the weekend. The Big 12 regular season champion seems like an automatic host, though their short effort in Arlington likely ended talk of a national seed. Oklahoma State will face Texas at 9am on Saturday. A loss for the Cowboys ends their run in Arlington, while a victory gives them a fighting chance with another game later on Saturday against Texas. Since being shut out by Texas on Wednesday, the Cowboys have scored nineteen runs in two games and a good win against TCU continues to have them in the hosting discussion.
Game 8: Oklahoma 6, Texas Tech 3
Updated Thursday, May 26, 11:45 p.m. CT
Oklahoma continued its late season surge by defeating Texas Tech 6-3 in the final game of Thursday's Big 12 Championship action in Arlington.
Jackson Nicklaus got the Sooners on the board first with a three-run line drive home run that just made it over the right field wall in the top of the second inning.
Leading 3-1 in the seventh inning, Peyton Graham (2-for-4) drove in two more runs for the Sooners with a bases-loaded two-out single into right field. Oklahoma added a run on an error and took a commanding 6-1 lead to the stretch. Graham was the only Sooners hitter with multiple hits in the contest.
Left-hander Jake Bennett made the start for Oklahoma and he turned in a dominant performance over 7 2/3 innings. Bennett allowed just two hits and one run while striking out twelve. Bennett was still hitting the mid-nineties with his fastball in the eighth inning as he neared and then crossed the one-hundred pitch threshold. The two hits allowed by Bennett both came in the third inning. Kurt Wilson added a one-out, two-run home run deep to left-center in the bottom of the ninth inning, but that was as close as the Red Raiders got as they fell 6-3. “When you have good pitchers, you become a good pitching coach,” said Sooners head coach Skip Johnson after the game. “Jake was outstanding tonight. It was really awesome to watch.” The late season surge has Oklahoma in the potential hosting discussion. The Sooners are not there yet, but a trip to the finals in Arlington, or better, winning the final game, would greatly increase the odds of postseason play in Norman next weekend.
Texas Tech will face Kansas State on Friday night at 7 p.m. CT. Oklahoma is off until early Saturday afternoon when they will play the winner between Kansas State and Texas Tech.
Game 7: Texas 5, TCU 3
Updated Thursday, May 26, 8:47 p.m. CT
The No. 19 Texas Longhorns bolstered their case for postseason in Austin by defeating No. 23 TCU on Thursday night in Arlington at Globe Life Park in the Big 12 Championship Murphy Stehly hit a three-run home run in the opening frame to give Texas a 3-0 lead before the Horned Frogs even got to the plate on Thursday. Having cut the deficit to 3-2, TCU balked in a run in the eighth before a RBI single made it 5-2 Texas going to the bottom of the inning. Left-hander Lucas Gordon was masterful on the mound in his start for Texas. Gordon allowed one earned run and limited the Horned Frogs to just two hits before he exited after 7 2/3 innings pitched having thrown 111 pitches, but he was cramping in his left hamstring and head coach David Pierce opted to go to the bullpen. Tristan Stevens entered the game in the eighth to record the final four outs for the second day in a row. Gray Rodgers got to Stevens with two outs in the bottom of the ninth for a solo home run on an 0-2 pitch in a losing cause. Stevens has pitched in relief in each of the Longhorns first two games in Arlington, so Texas probably needs a solid start from someone else if they are to play long enough to get the ball back in Pete Hansen's hand by the time the Big 12 Championship ends.
The Longhorns have boosted their resume over the first two days with wins over Oklahoma State and TCU. While hosting a Regional seems a distant possibility right now, the longer they play in Arlington, the more that could become a reality. Gordon was calm and collected and met with the media after the game, despite leaving the game with the injury. "The big thing today was mid-game adjustments. So I just made an adjustment and went back to attacking the hitters and it worked out," Gordon said. Asked about the injury that drove him from the game, Gordon said, "I cramped. I've never cramped before." All indications are that Gordon will be ready for his next start. The Longhorns will now have Friday off and will next play on Saturday at 9 a.m. CT against the winner of a Friday afternoon elimination game matchup between TCU and Oklahoma State.
Game 6: Kansas State 8, West Virginia 5
Updated Thursday, May 26, 5:33 p.m. CT
Kansas State scored at least one run in six of nine innings to defeat West Virginia 8-5 Thursday in Arlington at Globe Life Field in the Big 12 Championship. The Wildcats jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning. West Virginia tied the game at three in the bottom of the third inning. Dominic Johnson (2-for-3) hit a line-drive home run into the left field seats in the sixth inning, the only home run of the game for either team, and the Wildcats led 5-3. Kansas State starter Blake Adams provided his team with a solid start against the Mountaineers. Adams struck out nine in 6 2/3 innings pitched, allowing four runs over two different innings.
Dylan Phillips (3-for-5) had two RBI singles, one of two Kansas State hitters with multiple RBI. The other was Cash Rugely who was walked with the bases loaded, in two different innings on Thursday to account for two of the Wildcats' runs. Phillips, who played first base for the first eight innings of the game, took the mound in the ninth with two runners on and no outs to close out the 8-5 victory. The left-hander earned his seventh save of the season for his effort. Kansas State head coach Pete Hughes loved what he got from his team in a tough spot. "Life in the losing bracket is a tough life to live. We hadn't been playing well and our kids are pretty resilient," Hughes said. "It's important for us to jump out and get the lead early, we hadn't done that in a while. It makes everything so much easier with the pitch calling and playing defense, when you can build a lead early." West Virginia is the second team today to be eliminated from the Big 12 Championship having lost both of their games in Arlington. Kansas State will face the loser of tonight's game between Oklahoma and Texas Tech, on Friday night at approximately 7pm.
Game 5: Baylor 1, Oklahoma State 11
Updated Thursday, May 26, 12:33 p.m. CT
Oklahoma State run-ruled Baylor 11-1 in the seventh inning to take Thursday morning's opening game of day two of the Big 12 Championship at Globe Life Field in Arlington.
Oklahoma State ace Justin Campbell pitched a complete game (shortened to seven innings), and he was dominant. Campbell allowed Baylor just three hits and struck out ten batters while allowing no earned runs
Baylor took advantage of some sloppy defense by the Cowboys to tie the game at one in the top of the third inning. The game was not tied for long.
After two Cowboys reached base in the bottom of the third, Griffin Doersching sent a baseball into the second deck in left field for a three-run home run and a 4-1 lead. The home run also forced the Bears to go to the bullpen.
A home run by Roc Riggio (4-for-5) in the sixth inning helped add to the Cowboy run total, and a Jake Thompson two RBI single to left in the bottom of the seventh inning brought the game to a close. The Cowboys collected sixteen base hits in the seven-inning game.
Oklahoma State head coach Josh Holliday was highly technical in describing what pleased him about Campbell’s performance. “His touch and his rhythm and tempo were excellent. He was working fast,” Holliday said. “He just came out and had a winning look on his face and he pitched like a winner.”
Asked postgame what was different on Thursday versus his previous outing against Baylor, Campbell knew immediately. “My efficiency on the mound,” Campbell said. “Being able to locate every pitch I have in my arsenal, fastball all the way down to the slider, I think that was the key difference in this game compared to my last outing against Baylor.”
Asked what he saw different from his offense today as opposed to the Texas game where his team was shutout, Coach Holliday responded simply, “Eleven runs.”
Baylor’s season ends with the loss. The Bears went 0-2 in Arlington. Oklahoma State survives to play another day. The Cowboys will face the loser of the game between Texas and TCU, and they will play at 3:15 p.m. CT on Friday, which will be the first of only two games on Friday in Arlington.
Game 4: West Virginia 4, Oklahoma 6
Updated Thursday, May 26, 9:43 a.m. CT
Oklahoma took advantage of a big early lead over West Virginia on Wednesday night on the way to a 6-4 victory to complete day one of the Big 12 Championship.
Scoreless in the bottom of the second inning, Oklahoma scored five runs in the frame, led by a Peyton Graham grand slam off the batter’s eye in center field and the Sooners were on their way to the winner’s bracket. The grand slam was Graham’s only hit of the game while his teammates John Spikerman went 3-for-4 and Tanner Tredaway went 4-for-5. The trio accounted for eight of the nine Sooners hits in the win.
A host of Oklahoma pitchers kept West Virginia scoreless through seven innings including starter Carson Atwood and relievers Carter Campbell and Chazz Martinez.
Carlson Reed was the first pitcher out of the bullpen for the Mountaineers and he stopped the hemorrhaging, allowing just one run over 4 1/3 innings in an outstanding performance for the right-hander.
West Virginia scored their four runs in the eighth and ninth innings; two home runs in the ninth accounted for three late runs. But the Sooners staff got the job done and preserved the two-run win.
Asked about his home run prowess at Globe Life Field and how he likes to hit in the ballpark, Graham said, “That’s my fourth one so far here.”
“I was just trying to see the ball up in the zone. I just let the ball get deep, and it ended up working out pretty well,” Graham added.
Oklahoma’s potential for hosting a Regional got one win closer with the victory, the Sooners will need more wins to be sure, but Wednesday was a good start. The Sooners have the luxury of pitching their ace on Thursday night as left-hander Jake Bennett will be ready on regular rest according to head coach Skip Johnson. Oklahoma moves on to face Texas Tech in Thursday’s final game. West Virginia will face Kansas State early Thursday afternoon with both teams hoping to extend their season for another day.
Game 3: Kansas State 3, Texas Tech 5
Updated Wednesday, May 25, 10:03 p.m. CT
No. 10 Texas Tech and Kansas State played the highest-scoring game of the first three games on Wednesday afternoon as the Red Raiders took the game, 5-3.
Texas Tech took a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning and the game had to the potential to get out of reach from the Wildcats early. Parker Kelly drove in a run in the frame and scored from first base on an attempted steal of second base. The throw to second base was kicked into left field by a sliding Kelly, who got up and ran all the way home easily beating a throw toward the plate.
Dillon Carter, batting in the nine-spot with a .198 batting average for the Red Raiders, unloaded a two RBI triple to deep left-center field with two outs to break the game open at 5-0 in the sixth inning.
Texas Tech starter Mason Molina allowed his first base hit of the ballgame in the seventh inning. The Wildcats got to Molina for three runs in the innings, which led to Molina’s exit with two outs having struck out ten batters in a tremendous outing for the left-hander. Tech’s bullpen closed the door on a Kansas State comeback the rest of the way.
After the game, Molina spoke about what helped him dominate through six innings, crediting others more than his own effort. “Just felt really good,” Molina said. “Everything was kind of working and clicking and we were just able to get ahead of guys early in the count and we just went from there. It was nice to have some really good defense behind me, they make it way easier.”
Texas Tech will face the winner of Wednesday’s late game between Oklahoma and West Virginia on Thursday evening, while Kansas State awaits the loser of that Sooners/Mountaineers contest in the second game on Thursday.
Game 2: Baylor 2, TCU 4
Updated Wednesday, May 25, 6:28 p.m. CT
The Baylor Bears jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning in game two of the Big 12 Championship on Wednesday afternoon against the TCU Horned Frogs. The Bears added a run in the sixth inning to take a 2-0 lead, and they also chased TCU starter Brett Walker in the frame after 5 1/3 innings pitched and both Baylor runs on his ledger.
The Horned Frogs were unable to get to Baylor starter Blake Helton until the bottom of the sixth when TCU tied the game. A double by Bobby Goodloe (2-for-3), which should have been caught on the fly, instead fell behind two outfielders closing in on each other, rather than on the ball. Then a bizarre inning-ending double play on a fly-out to left and the doubling-up of a runner who lost count of the number of outs, allowed a run to score as the Baylor defense took its time recording the out at second base on a runner who was completely around third base. The runner, tagging from third base, crossed home plate before the third out of the inning was recorded at second base, so the run counted and the game was tied.
Helton left the game with one out in the seventh, his 6 1/3 innings pitched resulted in just two runs and he struck out seven Horned Frogs batters.
Still tied at two in the bottom of the eighth, a wild pitch gave the Horned Frogs a one run lead before a RBI single by Kurtis Byrne (2-for-4) pushed the lead to 4-2. That would be the final score as TCU finished off the Bears in the next frame.
Baylor will face Oklahoma State in the first game Thursday morning, with elimination from the Big 12 Championship on the line. For Baylor, a loss means the of the season. Meanwhile for Oklahoma State, a loss and elimination this early in the Big 12, would end their national seed hopes and likely their possibility of hosting a regional at all.
Texas and TCU will face-off on Thursday afternoon in the winner’s bracket with a little more breathing room on the line beyond Thursday.
Game 1: Texas 4, Oklahoma State 0
Updated Wednesday, May 25, 12:08 p.m. CT
Maybe it was the 9am local start time, maybe it was a prime time matchup of two top pitchers, or maybe it was a combination of those things that led to a speedy Big 12 Championship opener in Arlington at Globe Life Field in which Texas walked away a 4-0 winner over Oklahoma State.
Pete Hansen and Victor Mederos competed in a classic, fast-paced pitchers duel in which neither pitcher yielded anything until the latter half of the contest. The game was scoreless through five innings when Texas finally broke through in the sixth inning. A sacrifice bunt attempt to move Trey Faltine from first to second base ended with Texas leading 1-0 as Mederos made an errant throw past first base and up the first base line, allowing Faltine to score from first base. Austin Todd led off the seventh inning with an eight pitch at-bat that resulted in a home run to left field to give the Longhorns a 2-0 advantage. Mederos took his exit one batter later having pitched six complete innings. Hansen left in the eighth after 7 2/3 innings pitched without allowing a run and striking out twelve Cowboys batters. Texas catcher Silas Ardoin added a lead off home run in the ninth inning to push the lead to 4-0. Right-hander Tristan Stevens, a Texas starter all season, pitched in relief of Hansen and recorded the final four outs of the game. Texas head coach David Pierce pointed to the start times in his postgame comments. “I like the way we started,” Pierce said. “We get a little rest now, we play the four o’clock now instead of another nine o’clock.” Oklahoma State already moves into the loser’s bracket and they will face the loser of today’s game between TCU and Baylor, Thursday at 9am. Texas awaits the winner of that game and they will play Thursday afternoon.
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