Skip Johnson, Sooners baseball collect hardware from Big 12

With the Oklahoma Sooners baseball regular season complete, Monday was a day for hardware in Norman. Skip Johnson was tabbed as the Big 12 Coach of the Year, following a program-best 23 conference wins en route to the school’s first Big 12 regular season title. Michael Snyder, Easton Carmichael and Braden Davis were named first-team All-Conference, as voted on by the league’s head coaches. 

Bryce Madron and Kyson Witherspoon were All-Big 12 second team selections, while freshman shortstop Jaxon Willits was named to the Big 12 All-Freshman team. 

The five combined first- and second-team selections are the third most in program history. 

Oklahoma (34-18 overall, 23-7 Big 12) opens the Big 12 Tournament on Wednesday as the No. 1 seed and will face the lowest-seeded winner out of games between No. 4 West Virginia vs. No. 9 TCU and No. 6 Kansas State vs. No. 7 Kansas. Those two games are Tuesday.

The Sooners have won three Big 12 Tournament titles in 1997, 2013 and 2022. 

JOHNSON EARNS COACH OF THE YEAR HONORS

Skip Johnson’s club accomplished a lot of firsts in their final season in the Big 12 Conference. The Sooners’ 34 wins were the most regular season wins since 2018, leading to the school’s first regular season title. 

On the brink of bringing postseason baseball back to L. Dale Mitchell Ballpark for the first time since 2010, Oklahoma’s 23 conference wins were the most in school history. 

It’s the first time an Oklahoma head coach has received Big 12 Coach of the Year honors.

 SNYDER, CARMICHAEL AND DAVIS FIRST-TEAM ALL-BIG 12

Oklahoma placed three players on the All-Big 12 first team ballot, second most in the conference. 

Senior infielder Michael Snyder started all 52 regular season games leading the conference in league play with a .408 batting average, 14 doubles and 91 total bases. He also ranked in the top five in conference play in hits (49), RBIs (34), stolen bases (10), runs scored (35), on-base percentage (.492) and slugging (.758). 

Sophomore designated hitter Easton Carmichael led the Big 12 in hits (52), RBIs (39) and triples (4), while ranking in the top five in runs scored (37), doubles (10), total bases (85) and stolen bases (8). Carmichael closed his sophomore campaign hitting .363 with six home runs, 17 doubles and a team-high 59 RBIs. 

Sophomore starter Braden Davis earned first team All-Big 12 honors after posting a 7-1 record in conference play. He won his final six appearances on Fridays, ranking third in conference play with 76 strikeouts, fifth in innings pitched (59.2) and sixth in opponent batting average (.195). 

Davis led OU with 98 strikeouts during the regular season, striking out a career-high 12 batters during seven innings of a combined no-hitter against West Virginia on March 22. 

MADRON, WITHERSPOON NAMED SECOND TEAM ALL-BIG 12

Simply put: Oklahoma doesn’t claim its first conference title in program history without senior outfielder Bryce Madron and sophomore starter Kyson Witherspoon. 

Madron heads into the postseason leading Oklahoma in home runs (11), stolen bases (14) and walks (39), ranking top 10 in conference play with 38 runs scored, 33 RBIs, 71 total bases, slugging percentage (.634) and eight stolen bases. 

Witherspoon settled into the Saturday starter role for Oklahoma. He ranks third in Big 12 play with six wins (6-1 record) and seventh in strikeouts (57). He struck out a career-high 11 on March 23 against West Virginia in 7.2 innings of relief in what would be his final outing out of the Sooners bullpen. 

WILLITS NAMED TO ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM

Jaxon Willits lived up to the expectations and then some. After becoming the first freshman to start opening day at shortstop since Brandon Zaragoza in 2017, Willits hit .341 in conference play ranking sixth in the league. His .670 slugging percentage ranked seventh, hitting all eight of his home runs over the last month and a half of the regular season. 

SIX SOONERS NAMED ALL-BIG 12 HONORABLE MENTION

Senior relief pitcher Carter Campbell, infielder Anthony Mackenzie, catcher Scott Mudler, infielder Jackson Nicklaus, outfielder John Spikerman and freshman infielder Jaxon Willits were all named All-Big 12 honorable mention.