Skip Johnson has returned to the College World Series championship, and he has done it with freshman pitchers.
OU’s (41-22) 11-4 win over No. 3 overall seed Georgia (53-14) in the College World Series semifinals on Wednesday makes Johnson the only head coach in program history to take the Sooners to two CWS championships. The Sooners will have a shot at winning their first College World Series championship since 1994 and are the second team (Texas Tech, 2016) since 1999 to start three freshman pitchers in Omaha.
And the Sooners put together the CWS championship run after entering the NCAA Tournament unranked and losing their last four series of the regular season.
“We never stopped believing,” Johnson said.
Johnson started three freshman pitchers, Cord Rager, Xander Mercurius and Nick Wesloski, in the College World Series to reach the championship. They combined to record 21 strikeouts and allow seven runs in 20 innings pitched. Wesloski threw four strikeouts and allowed four hits in 5.2 innings of work against Georgia on Wednesday after Mercurius finished with a career-high nine strikeouts on Monday.
Wesloski nonchalantly recognized his impact in Wednesday’s win.
“Uh, I think it was a positive day,” Wesloski said.
Wesloski also kept the Bulldogs scoreless through the first three innings, with Johnson noting the right-hander’s early confidence. Johnson has been known to help pitchers stay calm, even on big stages.
“He’s settled in,” Johnson said on the ESPN broadcast after the third inning.
Wesloski feels he could have performed much better, though.
“There’s definitely room for improvement,” Wesloski said.
Johnson added that Wesloski is always looking to improve, no matter how well he plays.
“He’s a perfectionist a little bit,” Johnson said. “So when you’re handling perfectionists and pitching, you got to say, ‘Hey, it’s all right if you miss a target.’ And you got to just pat them on the back and try to get them away from it.”
As Wesloski has found success, he has also leaned on fellow freshman pitchers, Rager and Mercurius. The three are roommates and build each other up on and off the field, according to Wesloski.
“Cord and Xander, I think those two have been the most inspirational, influential (people) for me going throughout the season, …” Wesloski said. “Seeing the way that they dominate and the way they carry themselves, … those guys are just elite in everything that they do. Being able to watch them go throughout their process on the mound has honestly made me a better pitcher.”
If Rager and Mercurius can do it, he can do it, according to Wesloski.
“Because they're freshmen, they make me think I can do it too,” Wesloski said. “Going out there, these guys look like they're unbeatable; they're unstoppable. No matter how young I am, what year I am, like, those guys make it look like it's possible. So I think, for me, it's just added to my confidence level and the way that I go out and compete.”
Johnson felt a heavy heart as he watched Wesloski strongly round out a three-game stretch of freshman starters in the College World Series. Jim Gatewood, a former Texas high school baseball coach, who died earlier in the year, helped Johnson find Wesloski.
“Nick was really good,” Johnson said. “It was on my heart at the end of the game, during the game, watching him pitch. So I’d really like to thank the late Jim Gatewood.”
Johnson and the freshman trio have booked their tickets to the College World Series championship, against No. 5 overall seed North Carolina (53-12-1), which will begin at 7 p.m. Saturday at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha on ESPN.
This story was edited by Josh Franklin.
