Baylor
Oklahoma State
BSB Rounds Out Regular Season Against No. 8 Oklahoma State
5/18/2022 5:07:00 PM | Baseball
Bears can clinch spot in Big 12 Championship with win over Cowboys
 |
BAYLOR BEARS (25-24, 6-15 Big 12) Location: Waco, Texas Conference/Affiliation: Big 12 Head Coach: Steve Rodriguez (Pepperdine, 2001) Roster | Stats | Game Notes (PDF) |
BAYLOR (25-24, 6-15) vs OKLAHOMA STATE (34-17, 13-8) May 19, 2022 • 6:30 p.m. CT May 20, 2022 • 6:30 p.m. CT May 21, 2022 • 3:00 p.m. CT Waco, Texas • Baylor Ballpark (5,000) LIVE STATS: BaylorStats.com WATCH: Big 12 Now on ESPN+ Talent: John Morris (Play-by-Play), Pat Combs (Analyst) LISTEN: Learfield / ESPN Central Texas 1660 AM & 92.3 FM Talent: Derek Smith, Ryan Boyd Baylor Social Media:    |
 |
OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS (34-17, 13-8 Big 12) Location: Stillwater, Okla. Conference/Affiliation: Big 12 Head Coach: Josh Holliday (Oklahoma State, 1999) Roster | Stats | Game Notes |
By Jerry Hill
Baylor Bear Insider
More than what could have been, Baylor baseball's series against Kansas State last weekend showed what could be.
The Bears (25-24, 6-15), who host No. 8 Oklahoma State (34-17, 13-8) in a weekend series at Baylor Ballpark, got great starts out of grad transfer Jake Jackson and senior Blake Helton in a series that K-State took two of three by scoring six eighth-inning runs in a 7-5 win on Sunday.
Jackson (4-4, 7.87 ERA) had his best outing in a Baylor uniform, giving up one run on six hits and one walk with three strikeouts in seven innings in last Friday's 4-2 series-opening win to earn Big 12 Pitcher of the Year honors.
"That's one of the great things about having older guys, sometimes, is that you may not start out well, you may have a bad outing, but it doesn't stop what you do," Baylor coach Steve Rodriguez said.
"I tell our guys, 'how you work is how you work.' That's a great testament to exactly that, for (Jackson), is that he comes out and does everything as hard as he can every day. And he was able to reap some of those benefits against Kansas State. Just had a phenomenal outing on a Friday night, something we really needed."
A native of Lake Forest, Calif., who transferred from Nevada, Jackson will get the start in Thursday's 6:30 p.m. series opener against the Cowboys and sophomore righthander Victor Mederos (3-3, 6.60).
"I think it's just a testament to the work and everything I've gone through to this point," said Jackson, who has bounced between the weekend rotation and bullpen this season. "There's been a lot of ups, a lot of downs. I'm just embracing the fact that I've got to keep working, keep going about my business in the right way and trust God's plan."
Helton (0-1, 2.92), who was making just his second start since being sidelined for over two months with a back injury, was arguably even more impressive in Sunday's 7-5 loss. He gave up just one run on three hits through the first seven innings while throwing 92 pitches, but the bullpen couldn't hold a 5-1 lead when he left.
"That's what we were hoping for most of the year, but obviously that didn't happen," Rodriguez said of Helton, who's scheduled to start Saturday's 3 p.m. series finale. "Being able to get that this past week was a great sign for us coming into this weekend and hopefully for the Big 12 tournament."
Leading the Big 12 race going into last weekend, OSU was swept by Texas Tech and has lost four in a row. The Cowboys can still grab a share of the regular-season title with TCU (32-18, 16-8) by sweeping Baylor.
"I know they've got some really good arms and they can swing it a little bit, too," said junior shortstop Jack Pineda, who's hitting .300 with five home runs and 33 RBI. "It's just like any other team in this conference. The talent level between teams, there's not such a huge gap, and it's just whoever plays better. It's our job to play better this weekend."
A returning All-American and the probable Big 12 Pitcher of the Year, third-year sophomore Justin Campbell (7-2, 3.39) leads the Big 12 and ranks fifth nationally with 118 strikeouts. Campbell will start Friday's 6:30 p.m. Game 2.
"I think Campbell might actually be one of the best pitchers in the country," Rodriguez said. "He doesn't fall into a lot of patterns. So, for us, it's going to be a matter of how quickly we can get him comfortable in a lot of different ways, then forcing their defense to play defense. We have to make him get uncomfortable, put the ball in play and make them have to do some things."
The Bears are coming off one of their most explosive offensive performances of the season, collecting 13 hits in a 12-0 win over Stephen F. Austin on Tuesday. They had seven hits in a nine-run third inning and got solo homers from Pineda and Ian Groves.
"That one felt good, I needed that," said Pineda, who led off the game with a homer on the second pitch. "I haven't had that in a while, so that one felt really good."
While Jackson and Helton will pitch the first and third games of the series, respectively, Rodriguez lists Friday's Game 2 starter as TBD (to be determined). Sophomore left-hander Kobe Andrade (3-3, 5.88) is not available this weekend.
Eighth in the Big 12 standings, Baylor has a magic number of one to qualify for next week's Big 12 Tournament at Globe Life Field in Arlington. The Bears need either a win against OSU or a Kansas loss to Texas to make the eight-team field.
"We need to focus on the first game. And then after that game, get to the second game," Rodriguez said. "If you're looking five games down the line . . . we need to focus on the game at hand. We just have to make sure we're in the tournament. But when we do get in, then we start focusing on that one team. And then, we deal with the next game the next day."
At 78th in the latest RPI rankings, Baylor will have to win the Big 12 Tournament to make its first NCAA regional since 2019.
"It's the only way to get a regional berth, and this program deserves to be in a regional," Jackson said. "We know what we have to do."
All three games this weekend will be streamed by Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with "Voice of the Bears" John Morris and former Baylor pitcher Pat Combs calling the action.
STORYLINES
LEADING OFF
• Baylor hosts No. 8 Oklahoma State for its final three-game series of 2022.
• BU currently sits in 8th place in the Big 12 standings at 6-15 in conference play, with one Big 12 series remaining.
• Baylor's magic number to clinch a spot in the Big 12 Tournament is one. It would take just one win over Oklahoma State, OR just one Kansas loss to Texas to book BU's spot to Arlington.
• Entering the final weekend of the regular season, the Bears lead the nation with 58 double plays turned, and 1.18 twin killings per game.
• BU has recorded at least one extra-base hit in each of its last 28 games and have notched at least two XBH in 17 of its last 18 games.
• Senior RHP Jake Jackson was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week after his performance on Friday at Kansas State, tying a season-high with 7.0 IP and allowing just one run on six hits with three strikeouts and a walk.
• Jackson is Baylor's fourth weekly Big 12 award recipient, BU's most in a season since 2018 (8).
• Junior INF Jack Pineda leads the Big 12 and is tied for 17th nationally with five triples. He sits three behind the nation's leader with three regular-season games to play.
• Five triples are the most by a Bear in a single season since Richard Cunningham led the team with five in 2016.
• Baylor also ranks second in the league with 12 total triples on the year.
• The Bears will honor 13 seniors on Saturday as part of their Senior Day ceremonies in Nicolas Balsano, Esteban Cardoza-Oquendo, Ian Groves, Blake Helton, Jake Jackson, Anderson Needham, Hambleton Oliver, Jack Pineda, Tyler Thomas, Antonio Valdez, Matt Voelker, Chase Wehsener and Beau Wimpee.
BY THE NUMBERS
• Baylor is 43-51 all-time against Oklahoma State.
• Under seventh-year head coach Steve Rodriguez, the Bears are 6-9 against the Cowboys.
• The last time OSU came to Waco, Baylor took two of three to win the series.
• BU is 2-5 this season against top-10 teams with wins against No. 7 LSU and No. 9 Texas Tech
PROBABLE STARTERS
Thursday, May 19 • 6:30 p.m. CT • RHP Jake Jackson (4-4, 7.87 ERA) vs. RHP Victor Mederos (3-3, 6.60 ERA)
Friday, May 20 • 6:30 p.m. CT • TBD vs. RHP Justin Campbell (7-2, 3.39 ERA)
Saturday, May 21 • 3:00 p.m. CT • RHP Blake Helton (0-1, 2.92 ERA) vs. RHP Bryce Osmond (4-2, 4.75 ERA)
BROADCAST INFORMATION
• This weekend's series will be streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+, with John Morris (Play-by-Play) and Pat Combs (Analyst) providing the commentary.
• Fans can also tune in to ESPN Central Texas 1660 AM and 92.3 FM for the Baylor radio broadcast, featuring Derek Smith and Ryan Boyd on the call.
TURNING TWO
• Baylor leads the country with 58 double plays turned in 2022 (1.18 per game).
• Third-year sophomore 2B Tre Richardson leads the team with an assist in 41 of the Bears' double plays.
• The Bears rolled just 33 double plays in all of 2021 (0.65 per game).
• The last time Baylor led the nation in any statistical category as a team was in 2015, when BU was tied for the country's top mark in triple plays with one.
JACKSON NAMED PITCHER OF THE WEEK
• Senior RHP Jake Jackson was named the Big 12 Pitcher of the Week on Monday after his impressive outing in Friday's series opener at Kansas State.
• The veteran righty matched his season best with seven innings pitched and held the Wildcats to one run on six scattered hits.
• He picked up three strikeouts and walked only one, capping his efficient day at 92 total pitches.
• Jackson faced four or fewer batters in five of his seven frames.
• Since moving into Baylor's Friday role as part of the weekend rotation, Jackson has gone six and seven innings in his two starts with a 4.85 ERA.
• Against K-State, he earned his fourth win of the year to improve to 4-4 and lowered his season ERA to 7.87.
-BaylorBears.com-
