Texas Tech Athletics
Oklahoma State
Preview: No. 9 Tech, No. 3 OSU set for Top 10 clash
May 12, 2022 | Baseball
No. 9Â TEXAS TECH at No. 3 OKLAHOMA STATE
Stillwater, Okla. | O'Brate Stadium
May 13-15, 2022
- Friday, 6 p.m.: Watch | Listen | Follow | Stats
- Saturday, 6 p.m.: Watch | Listen | Follow | Stats
- Sunday, 1 p.m.: Watch | Listen | Follow | Stats
STARTERS
It doesn't get much better. A Top 10 matchup and Big 12 regular season championship implications on the line in mid-May. That's what's in store as No. 9 Texas Tech travels to face No. 3 Oklahoma State - one of two Top 10 matchups on the docket this weekend joining No. 7 Louisville at No. 5 Virginia Tech (D1Baseball rankings).Â
Coverage will be provided via Big 12 Now on ESPN+. Dave Hunziker will have the call, alongside Tom Holliday providing the analysis, from inside O'Brate Stadium. The broadcast can be accessed from any desktop or laptop computer, any personal cellular device and television streaming services using the ESPN app. Registration for the subscription service can be found at ESPNPlus.com.
Texas Tech Sports Network will also broadcast the game over 46 affiliates throughout the state of Texas and New Mexico as Geoff Haxton will have the call alongside analyst, Jamie Lent.TEXAS TECH IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
- D1Baseball: No. 9
- Baseball America: 15
- NCBWA: No. 8
- Collegiate Baseball: 30
- USA Coaches: No. 13
- Perfect Game: No. 15
PROJECTED PITCHING MATCHUPS
- Friday, May 13: RHP Andrew Morris (3.44 ERA, 6-0) vs. RHP Justin Campbell (2.91 ERA, 7-1)
- Saturday, May 14: RHP Brandon Birdsell (2.07 ERA, 7-2) vs. RHP Bryce Osmond (4.47 ERA, 4-1)
- Sunday, May 15: TBA vs. TBA
RECENT HISTORY FAVORS THE RED RAIDERS
The trip to Stillwater marks the first for the Red Raiders since 2018, following nine-straight contests in Lubbock and a 2018 pairing in Oklahoma City during the Big 12 tournament - Tech owns an 8-2 advantage over the last 10 games. The Red Raiders hosted the Pokes in 2019 and 2021 for regular season matchups and also hosted Oklahoma State for the 2019 NCAA Super Regional that ended in Tech going to its fourth College World Series since 2014.Â
FATE IN OWN HANDS
With six games remaining on the regular season schedule, Texas Tech is in control of its own destiny to win its fourth Big 12 title since 2016. Oklahoma State, the current league-leader, is also in the same position. Should Tech lose one game, standing in Tech's way is TCU, who owns the tie-breaker over the Red Raiders having won all three contests in Fort Worth, April 14-16.
RPI vs. POLLS
Texas Tech is the only school in the country that has hosted an NCAA Regional five consecutive times since 2016, if it is to extend to six, the Red Raiders need their RPI rank to catch up with the respect they're receiving from the national polls. While Tech checked in at No. 9 in the D1Baseball poll for the fourth-straight week on May 9, Tech's most recent RPI ranking was No. 41 (as of games through May. 11). Tech's final two opponents, Oklahoma State and Oklahoma, rank No. 5 and No. 31, respectively in the RPI. Two possible boosts for the Red Raiders.Â
RBI MACHINES
While Ivan Melendez (Texas) sits atop the Big 12 in RBIs, Texas Tech's 3-4-5 hitters rank 2-3-4 in the Big 12 in that category. Kurt Wilson leads the team with 59, followed by Jace Jung and Ty Coleman each with 50.
As a fifth-year senior, Wilson entered the 2022 season with 45 RBIs. Similarly, teammate Parker Kelly's production spiked, also a fifth-year, he entered 2022 with 17 RBIs, and owns 44 after 48 games in 2022.
SCOUTING - OKLAHOMA STATE
- The Cowboys' seven-game win streak was snapped last time out by Dallas Baptist. DBU defeated Oklahoma State 8-7 thanks to a 2-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth.
- Oklahoma State is 34-14 overall and leading the Big 12 with a 13-5 record,
- Oklahoma State is ranked No. 3 by five different national ranking systems (see page 5).Â
- A look at the Cowboys' 2022 Big 12 schedule:
- Big 12 Series #1: Swept Kansas at home.
- Big 12 Series #2: Won 2-of-3 at Kansas State.
- Big 12 Series #3: Won 2-of-3 versus Oklahoma at home.
- Big 12 Series #4: Won 2-of-3 at West Virginia.
- Big 12 Series #5: Lost 2-of-3 versus TCU at home.
- Big 12 Series #6: Swept Texas on the road.
- The Cowboys rank No. 5 nationally in strikeouts per nine innings (11.1).Â
- OSU ranks eighth nationally in average home attendance (5,341)
- In a vote of the league's head coaches, Oklahoma State was selected to finish second in the 2022 Preseason Big 12 Baseball Coaches Poll.Â
- IF/RHP Nolan McLean, IF/OF Jake Thompson and RHP/DH Justin Campbell were each honorees on the Big 12 preseason team.
TEXAS TECH-OKLAHOMA STATEÂ SERIES HISTORY
- Friday's meeting will be the 88th all-time between the two programs in a series that dates back to 1983.
- Oklahoma State holds a 44-43 lead in the all-time series.
- Since the formation of the Big 12, Tech leads the overall series 40-37.
- Tech has won 8 of the last 10 meetings dating back to 2019 (which includes the 2019 Super Regional).
- Tech swept Oklahoma State in its last trip to Stillwater in 2018.
- Tech has won three consecutive series against Oklahoma State and four of its last five against OSU.
- Tech's last loss in Stillwater was April 6, 2014.
- Josh Holliday, Oklahoma State head coach, and Red Raiders' head coach Tim Tadlock both became head coaches of ther respective institutions prior to the 2013 season.
- The Red Raiders have won 18-of-29 matchups since Tadlock took over in 2013.
- The Red Raiders are 18-21 in Stillwater against the Pokes.
THIS-N-THAT
- The Red Raiders are 12-13 in road and neutral games while 20-3 in home games this season.
- Texas Tech went 22-5 in the months of February and March.
- Texas Tech went 9-10 in April - while more than nine wins would have been preferred, Tech won nine games that mattered as all nine were Big 12 wins, posting a 9-5 record in conference games.Â
- Tech has scored six runs or more in 33 of 48 games this season.
- TTU is 29-4 in those games.Â
- Tech has scored in double-digits 18 times out of 48 games.
- TTU is 17-1 in those games. Tech lost with double-digit scoring for the first time at UNM (11-10) on April 19.Â
- Tech is fifth in the NCAA in runs scored with 439 despite not playing since May 3.
- Tech has hit five grand slams. If Tech hits a sixth this season, it would be the first time in a season to have six grand slams since 2004 - Blair (3), Brady (1), Fuller (1), Mask (3).
- Texas Tech is 26-9 this season when having at least one home run.
The 2022 Phillips 66 Big 12 Baseball Championship,  will be hosted at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, May 25-29. For info on attending and tickets, visit Big12Sports.com.
 --TECH--
Â
