Bedlam Baseball: Freeman Shuts Down Sooners

Oklahoma State pitcher Michael Freeman didn't play a huge part in the Cowboys' success a year ago, but this season has been a different story

The big senior hurled a complete-game gem on Saturday night at The Brick, stymieing the Oklahoma bats as the Cowboys took the second game of the Bedlam series, 8-1.

Freeman gave up just five hits and walked four, striking out seven on 119 pitches as his low arm slot and off-speed stuff kept the Sooners off balance all night.

“It always starts on the mound,” OSU coach Josh Holliday said. “When this guy pitches, he has a confidence about himself that our team feels and you could just see it build as the game went along.”

What changed for Freeman since last year? Holliday cited an important 3-week stint in summer league last year, and Freeman mentioned all the work he's put in with OSU pitching coach Rob Walton. But more than anything, Freeman's just more comfortable.

“I've worked hard and stuck with it,” Freeman said. “There have been some tough times. The plays the guys are making behind me, turning double plays, keeping the pitch count down and scoring runs every time I go out there, it's a lot easier to pitch whenever you trust all the guys you play with.”

OU managed to hit the ball hard several times, but a Cowboy was almost always there to turn it into an out. Oklahoma grounded into three double plays, including a crushing one in the bottom of the fourth with the bases loaded and already facing a 5-1 deficit.

“I thought we had some quality at-bats and got the barrel on it,” OU coach Pete Hughes said. “When you've got a four-run lead with that guy (Freeman) on the mound, it builds a lot of confidence in the other dugout.”

The final score was a bit lopsided, but the Sooners left four men in scoring position, never coming up with the big hit when they needed it most.

“We're just not executing whenever we have runners in scoring position,” OU catcher Anthony Hermelyn said. “We had lead off guys on but then hit into double plays. We had guys on third with less than two outs and we just couldn't get the job done.”

The Sooners struck first, grabbing a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, but the Cowboys quickly retook the lead for good, scoring three runs in the very next frame, two of those on an RBI triple from catcher Bryan Case.

Case's triple set the tone for the night for the bottom third of the Cowboys' lineup. The OSU catcher finished 3-for-4 with two doubles and three RBI to go with his triple.

Altogether, Case, Ryan Sluder and Jacob Chappell went 5-for-9 at the plate with four RBI. They also scored seven of the eight Oklahoma State runs, consistently putting themselves on base for the top of the OSU lineup to bring them home.

“We're just trying to win one pitch at a time,” Chappell said. “We're just trying to find a way on base and have quality at bats and it worked out for us tonight.”

Not only did the Cowboys do a good job at the bottom of the lineup, but they also did a good job with two outs, collecting six hits with two gone, forcing OU starter Alec Hansen to work harder and pushing his pitch count up.

Hansen took the loss for OU and gave up six runs on nine hits with two walks and four strikeouts.

The Sooners have now lost five straight games, games they simply can't afford to lose if they want to make the NCAA tournament after missing out a year ago.

“It's a long season and we may feel our backs are against the wall right now but we just have to come out and keep on fighting,” Hermelyn said. “Unfortunately we're not playing our best right now and we just have to turn it around.”

Saturday night was not the time to turn things around. Not against Freeman and his new-found dominance on the mound.

Oklahoma State has turned another Bedlam series into a Cowboy celebration, picking up steam for another NCAA tournament run. And there's no telling how long the run can last with another dominant ace in the fold.