In the thick of it for Oklahoma baseball

This time of the year everything gets magnified for Oklahoma baseball. Major League Baseball has the playoffs. NCAA baseball’s version comes in the form of regional games. There’s something different when a season is on the line in atmospheres that can be a distraction. High-leverage situations in May hit different than early season games in the middle of March.

When the calendar turns to May in the college baseball world, games become more important. There’s Big 12 seeding at stake. Regional host bids up for grabs. And most certainly the most sports cliche of ‘playing your best ball at the right time’.

You better get used to it. It’s going to be a rollercoaster as Oklahoma heads into the final three weeks of the regular season with a majority of time spent living out of a suitcase. 

LIFE ON THE ROAD HAS TREATED OKLAHOMA WELL

It’s no secret. Oklahoma has played well away from home. They’re a league-best 7-2 away from the friendly confines of L. Dale Mitchell Park, with half of its school-record four conference sweeps coming in Fort Worth and Provo. 

Maybe it’s the time spent on a bus together. Maybe it’s the downtime at the team hotel. Whatever goes into it, Skip Johnson hopes to see it continue. His Sooners are going to be around each other a lot over the next month, playing eight of its final 11 games on the road.

“I can’t tell you why the differences on the road or not. I don’t know. I think those kids are around each other a lot more,” said Johnson on Thursday during his weekly appearance on The Franchise Morning Show. “We would like to think as coaches that they hangout together and do all of that stuff.

“We’d like to think that. I know they do that when we’re on the road cause they have to right? I don’t know if they do that at home. It’s kinda odd.”

The Sooner skipper isn’t hinting at issues in the clubhouse. Far from. But there is an unexplainable level of comfort this year’s club has found in playing away from home.

Oklahoma, obviously, has a lot to play for in the coming weeks. It holds a one-game lead over Oklahoma State in the conference standings. Hosting a regional is still a very real conversation. How Oklahoma fares while closing the season on the road will play a deciding factor. It all starts this weekend in west Texas. 

SHAKE UP IN WEEKEND ROTATION?

It should have raised an eyebrow when Grant Stevens came trotting out of the Sooners bullpen Tuesday night in Tulsa. The senior left-hander has been a weekend starter the last four weeks against Oklahoma State, Kansas State, BYU and Texas.

The obvious next question that came to mind as he toed the rubber at J.L. Johnson Stadium: what does this mean for the Sooners weekend rotation?

Skip Johnson has options if he gets the inkling to look elsewhere on getaway day. The first name that comes to mind is Brendan Girton. Since moving out of the weekend rotation, Girton has made four appearances out of the Sooners bullpen with a lone start in two innings of works against Wichita State. The lone poor outing coming last weekend when Texas tagged the former weekend starter for five runs on four hits in 2.2 innings. Overall, the move has been a successful builder of confidence ahead of a return trip to Lubbock where Girton spent two seasons playing for Tim Tadlock. 

As for the rest of the weekend? It’ll be your normal weekend rotation with reigning Big 12 Pitcher of the Week Braden Davis on Friday and Kyson Witherspoon on Saturday. 

Davis was excellent in the Sooners lone victory last weekend, limiting the Horns to just a run over six innings and striking out nine. Along the way to his third consecutive victory, he ranks second in the league with four Big 12 wins.

NO CONCERNS AT THE PLATE

If you’re looking for overreaction to Oklahoma’s lackluster offensive performance in a 3-1 loss to Oral Roberts, you might want to stop reading. No one is hitting the panic button. 

“No, I’m not worried about anyone’s performance. I think the biggest thing is you can’t panic because if you show panic, then the kids feel it,” Johnson said. “That’s the thing. All you’ve got to do is play the game.

“They tried extremely hard in that first game on Sunday. They started trying in about the fourth or the fifth inning up there in Tulsa and it was just one of those weird deals. Maybe we’re going through this weird spell. Maybe we’re not. Who knows?” 

This weekend’s series in Lubbock features the top two hitting teams in the league. In fact, statistically speaking, Oklahoma and Texas Tech are mirror images of one another. Statistical neighbors, if you will. Tech leads the Big 12 in team batting average (.314). Oklahoma ranks second (.304). The Sooners rank eighth in team ERA (5.39). Tech ranks ninth (5.40). Fielding percentage? Exact same (0.969). Oklahoma has committed 48 errors, Tech has made 52.

“We’re fixing to play a talented Texas Tech team. I can tell you that. I’ve watched them on film,” Johnson said. “They’re good and it’ll be a good opportunity.”

First pitch is 6:30 p.m. Friday, followed by 2 p.m. starts Saturday and Sunday. All games on ESPN+.