Cowboys enter season confident after 2017’s strong finish
STILLWATER —
Coach Josh Holliday is not shy about his goals for the Oklahoma State baseball program.
“We want to win the national championship, absolutely,” Holliday said. “That’s what we’re shooting to do. We’re here to try to be the very best.”
Holliday and the Cowboys will begin that pursuit Friday, when their 2018 season begins at Texas State. OSU has made an NCAA Regional in each of Holliday’s five seasons as coach, the latest postseason trip coming only because the Cowboys won the Big 12 Tournament, becoming the first No. 8 seed to do so.
Pieces of that conference championship remain. Left-hander Carson Teel will be a weapon whether he starts or relieves. Catcher Colin Simpson brings the power. Ryan Cash will provide grit in the batter’s box and at second base.
Most importantly, those feelings of jubilation from last year’s finish planted momentum for this season.
“That was just such an amazing experience to share with the kids,” Holliday said. “... Does it carry any weight in this season? It’s not gonna give us a point on the scoreboard, but it’s part of how we felt when we left here and how we felt about coming back and getting started on a new year.”
OSU is after its second College World Series appearance in three years, with senior outfielder Jon Littell saying that’s an annual goal.
“That’s been the expectation all four years that I’ve been here,” Littell said. “Each one of our individual goals is to be back playing in Omaha.”
In the Cowboys’ first Big 12 series of last season, Littell suffered a shoulder injury in an outfield collision that hampered him for the remainder of the year. OSU also dealt with injuries in its rotation, losing weekend starters Parker Scott and Jensen Elliott to Tommy John surgery, and infield, as Cash missed time with a sprained AC joint in his right shoulder.
The Cowboys fell out of every national poll for the first time since 2013. A 4-0 sprint through the conference tournament put them in the Fayetteville Regional, though their season ended there.
Teel appeared in each of the four tournament games, allowing only a run in 8 innings. He will anchor the Cowboys’ staff again this season.
“All of us are just looking at that as that’s what we could’ve been all year long,” Teel said, “and that’s what we’re going to be this year.”
As OSU begins its sixth season under Holliday, it does so with a mix of experience and freshness.
New faces gloss the infield and pitching staff, while veterans arms and an outfield of returners will provide a familiar feel.
Starting Friday in San Marcos, Texas, the Cowboys will try to prove last season’s finish was no fluke.
“Every year, you want to see, where can we take this?” Holliday said. “How can we grow our kids? What does that look like when the team is at its best? We’re here to win a national championship. We believe we can be the best, and we’re gonna work toward that every single day.”