The opening pitch of the 2023 season will be thrown at 3 p.m. on Friday against California Baptist Who will throw that pitch for Oklahoma is yet to be announced.
Head coach Skip Johnson has embraced the challenge of replacing an entire starting rotation that was selected in the MLB draft after last season.
“It’s been a really fun deal going through that process and dealing with that everyday,” Johnson said. “We are making sure that they understand what our expectations are, what the fundamentals are, as we go through from the pitching side of it.”
As Johnson looks ahead to the new season, he expects several new players to make an impact on the mound.
One of those players is Kale Davis, who transferred from Oklahoma State this offseason. The redshirt junior appeared mostly in the bullpen last season, but is the likeliest answer to be OU’s Friday night starter this season as he recorded 56 strikeouts in 26 appearances with a 4.25 earned-runs average last year..
Johnson thinks Davis’ passion for pitching makes him a weapon.
“He has a strong will and sometimes he forgets about that,” Johnson said “I mean you can pitch with your head or your heart, and he pitches with his heart. When he stays with his heart, he is really good. I mean he’s really competitive.”
Other starting prospects are junior McLennan Junior College transfer Will Carsten and Lamar transfer Braxton Douthit.
Returner Aaron Calhoun, Texas Tech transfer Jamie Hitt and Virgina transfer Blake Bales are likely to contribute in relief roles.
Johnson says that he will be gauging the matchups as the season goes along, but one can expect to see two freshmen in the bullpen this season.
“We have a couple freshmen that have been really good,” Johnson said. “Carson Turnquist and Julien Hachem. I think those are two of the guys that you’re going to see a lot of this year in spats.”
Who will replace Jimmy Crooks at catcher?
After last year's catcher Jimmy Crooks was drafted in the fourth round by the Cardinals, the team needed a new leader to fill the empty spot.
Freshman Easton Charmichael, the younger brother of redshirt senior pitcher Braden Carmichael, is expected to contribute at catcher this season along with BYU transfer Mason Strong, who spent the last month of the offseason nursing a broken thumb.
Another option is sophomore third baseman Wallace Clark.
Ironically Clark hasn’t caught since his days in middle school, but his defensive presence has proven to be a good fit. Despite only recently taking on the new role, Johnson thinks that Clark has a lot of potential behind home plate.
“He’s only been doing it a few months,” Johnson said. “There’s going to be some transition. There’s going to be some ups and downs with it. He’s done a great job.”
Clark says that he still identifies as an infielder but will do whatever he needs to do for his team.
“It was definitely an interesting transition for me at the beginning,” Clark said. “Obviously an interesting transition going from being really comfortable over at third base or anywhere in the infield to having to kind of be a rookie in a sense at a new position. I’m just ready to see how often I get to play back there and do whatever the team wants me to do.”
Fifth-year senior Diego Muniz, who received his diploma in December, decided to stick around for one final season and Johnson thinks that he could also catch this season.
“You can always use Diego,” Johnson said. “He can play anywhere on the baseball field. He’s really enthusiastic. He gets after it. I always talk about needing that one guy that’s sort of your spiritual leader. I think he’s one of them.”
Bryce Madron making waves
Cowley County Junior College transfer Bryce Madron has received plenty of hype ahead of this season.
He is expected to start in right field this season after batting .420 with 20 home runs and 72 RBIs last season.
Fellow outfielder junior Kendall Pettis had high praise for the transfer.
“Bryce is a ball of energy,” Pettis said. “We always talk about how small he is, and how tiny he is but he really is a great ball of joy. I really do enjoy Bryce. He’s also just really good. He’s a genuine person. In the outfield he’s always yelling, dancing, screaming. We’re always having a conversation, but he’s really good. Like every time I see him hit, I’m like I don’t know how this guy’s going to get out. He hits the ball wherever it’s pitched, whatever pitch it is.”
The outfielder stands at only 5-foot-8, but Johnsoh believes his size isn’t a factor.
“He’s a dynamic player in a small package and he’s exciting to see,” Johnson said. “He’s really competitive. He’ll get after it. I mean he’s not a guy that’s going to back away from being aggressive. That is what our program is about.”
