# 2023 Oklahoma State Cowboys baseball team

The 2023 Oklahoma State Cowboys baseball team represented Oklahoma State University during the 2023 NCAA Division I baseball season. The Cowboys played their home games at O'Brate Stadium as a member of the Big 12 Conference. They were led by head coach Josh Holliday, in his eleventh season at Oklahoma State.

## Previous season

The 2022 team finished the season with a 42–22 record and a 15–9 record in the Big 12. In the 2022 Big 12 Conference baseball tournament, the fourth-seeded Cowboys made a run to the semifinals where they fell to fifth-seeded Texas in Game 7, 2–9. They earned an at-large bid into the 2022 NCAA Division I baseball tournament, where they were seeded seventh overall and the top seed in the Stillwater Regional. There, the Cowboys were eliminated by second-seeded Arkansas.

## Preseason
### Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released
| Award | Player | Position | Year |
| Big 12 Preseason Pitcher of the Year | Juaron Watts-Brown | RHP | Sophomore |
| Big 12 Preseason Newcomer of the Year | Juaron Watts-Brown | RHP | Sophomore |
| Golden Spikes Award watchlist | Nolan McLean | U | Junior |
| Golden Spikes Award watchlist | Juaron Watts-Brown | RHP | Sophomore |

### Big 12 media poll

Big 12 media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | TCU | 61 (5) |
| 2 | Oklahoma State | 59 (4) |
| 3 | Texas Tech | 48 |
| 4 | Texas | 43 |
| 5 | Oklahoma | 38 |
| 6 | West Virginia | 28 |
| 7 | Kansas State | 17 |
| 8 | Kansas | 16 |
| 9 | Baylor | 14 |
Source:

### Preseason Big 12 awards and honors

Preseason All-Big 12 Team :
| Player | No. | Position | Class |
| Marcus Brown | 19 | INF | Junior |
| Nolan McLean | 13 | U | Junior |
| Roc Riggio | 7 | INF | Sophomore |
| Juaron Watts-Brown | 23 | RHP | Sophomore |

### Preseason All-Americans

Second Team All-Americans :
| Player | No. | Position | Class | Selector(s) |
| Nolan McLean | 13 | U | Junior | Collegiate Baseball D1Baseball |
| Juaron Watts-Brown | 23 | SP | Sophomore | Baseball America D1Baseball |
Third Team All-Americans :
| Player | No. | Position | Class | Selector(s) |
| Nolan McLean | 13 | U | Junior | Baseball America NCBWA |
| Roc Riggio | 7 | INF | Sophomore | Baseball America D1Baseball |
| Juaron Watts-Brown | 23 | SP | Sophomore | NCBWA |
Sources:

## Schedule and results

2023 Oklahoma State Cowboys baseball game log :
Regular season (37–16) :
February (5–3) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | B12 Record |
| State Farm College Baseball Showdown ||||||||||||
| February 17 | vs. Missouri* | No. 9 | Globe Life Field Arlington, TX | W 5–3 | Drew Blake (1–0) | Chandler Murphy (0–1) | Nolan McLean (1) | FloSports | 15,721 | 1–0 | — |
| February 18 | vs. No. 10 Vanderbilt* | No. 9 | Globe Life Field | L 9–11 | Andrew Dutkanych IV (1–0) | Brennan Phillips (0–1) | Nick Maldonado (1) | FloSports | 20,295 | 1–1 | — |
| February 19 | vs. No. 8 Arkansas* | No. 9 | Globe Life Field | L 1–18$^7$ | Hunter Hollan (1–0) | Bayden Root (0–1) | — | FloSports | 17,567 | 1–2 | — |
| February 21 | Cal Baptist* | No. 15 | O'Brate Stadium Stillwater, OK | W 2–0 | Evan O'Toole (1–0) | Brandon Downer (1–1) | Nolan McLean (2) | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,928 | 2–2 | — |
| February 24 | Loyola Marymount* | No. 15 | O'Brate Stadium | W 1–0 | Evan O'Toole (2–0) | Diego Barrera (0–1) | Nolan McLean (2) | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,562 | 3–2 | — |
| February 25 | Loyola Marymount* | No. 15 | O'Brate Stadium | L 8–10$^{10}$ | Merrick Baldo (2–0) | Gabe Davis (0–1) | — | | 4,562 | 3–3 | — |
| February 26 | Loyola Marymount* | No. 15 | O'Brate Stadium | W 11–1$^7$ | Brennan Phillips (1–1) | Owen Hackman (0–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,326 | 4–3 | — |
| February 28 | at Missouri State* | No. 12 | Hammons Field Springfield, MO | W 12–10 | Bayden Root (1–1) | Scott Youngbrandt (0–2) | Nolan McLean (4) | B12N/ESPN+ | 1,031 | 5–3 | — |
March (15–4) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | B12 Record |
| March 3 | Austin Peay* | No. 12 | O'Brate Stadium | W 19–2$^7$ | Juaron Watts-Brown (1–0) | Nick James (1–2) | — | | 4,729 | 6–3 | — |
| March 4 | Austin Peay* | No. 12 | O'Brate Stadium | W 2–1 | Isaac Stebens (1–0) | Lyle Miller-Green (0–2) | Nolan McLean (5) | | 5,348 | 7–3 | — |
| March 5 | Austin Peay* | No. 12 | O'Brate Stadium | W 12–4 | Bayden Root (2–1) | Jacob Kush (0–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,006 | 8–3 | — |
| March 7 | Arizona State* | No. 13 | O'Brate Stadium | W 8–4 | Isaac Stebens (2–0) | Blake Pivaroff (0–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,233 | 9–3 | — |
| March 8 | Arizona State* | No. 13 | O'Brate Stadium | W 7–4 | Ben Abram (1–0) | Owen Stevenson (0–1) | Nolan McLean (6) | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,086 | 10–3 | — |
| March 10 | Utah Tech* | No. 13 | O'Brate Stadium | W 11–1$^7$ | Juaron Watts-Brown (2–0) | Brett Porthan (2–2) | — | | 4,312 | 11–3 | — |
| March 11 | Utah Tech* | No. 13 | O'Brate Stadium | W 10–4 | Bayden Root (3–1) | Ryan Hardman (0–4) | — | | 5,095 | 12–3 | — |
| March 11 | Utah Tech* | No. 13 | O'Brate Stadium | W 9–3 | Brian Hendry (1–0) | Jake Dahle (0–3) | — | | 5,095 | 13–3 | — |
| March 12 | Utah Tech* | No. 13 | O'Brate Stadium | W 9–4 | Isaac Stebens (3–0) | Carsten Herman (2–1) | — | | 4,304 | 14–3 | — |
| March 14 | Dallas Baptist* | No. 12 | O'Brate Stadium | W 20–4$^7$ | Ben Abram (2–0) | Zach Heaton (1–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,167 | 15–3 | — |
| March 17 | at Texas Tech | No. 12 | Rip Griffin Park Lubbock, TX | L 7–8$^{10}$ | Ryan Free (2–1) | Nolan McLean (0–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 3,713 | 15–4 | 0–1 |
| March 18 | at Texas Tech | No. 12 | Rip Griffin Park | W 9–4 | Ben Abram (3–0) | Mason Molina (2–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,021 | 16–4 | 1–1 |
| March 19 | at Texas Tech | No. 12 | Rip Griffin Park | L 1–12$^7$ | Brandon Beckel (3–0) | Juaron Watts-Brown (2–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 3,746 | 16–5 | 1–2 |
| March 22 | at Wichita State* | No. 20 | Eck Stadium Wichita, KS | W 10–1 | Carson Benge (1–0) | Cameron Bye (0–3) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 1,835 | 17–5 | — |
| March 24 | Baylor | No. 20 | O'Brate Stadium | W 11–9 | Nolan McLean (1–1) | Hambleton Oliver (2–2) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,776 | 18–5 | 2–2 |
| March 25 | Baylor | No. 20 | O'Brate Stadium | W 15–8 | Ben Abram (4–0) | Mason Marriott (1–3) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 6,556 | 19–5 | 3–2 |
| March 26 | Baylor | No. 20 | O'Brate Stadium | W 13–2$^7$ | Juaron Watts-Brown (3–1) | Will Rigney (2–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,736 | 20–5 | 4–2 |
| March 28 | at Dallas Baptist* | No. 17 | Horner Ballpark Dallas, TX | L 0–8 | Zach Heaton (2–1) | Carson Benge (1–1) | — | | 1,376 | 20–6 | — |
| March 31 | No. 21 Texas | No. 17 | O'Brate Stadium | L 3–5 | Lucas Gordon (3–0) | Ben Abram (4–1) | Zane Morehouse (4) | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,876 | 20–7 | 4–3 |
April (10–6) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | B12 Record |
| April 1 | No. 21 Texas | No. 17 | O'Brate Stadium | W 4–1 | Juaron Watts-Brown (4–1) | Travis Sthele (2–3) | Isaac Stebens (1) | B12N/ESPN+ | 6,489 | 21–7 | 5–3 |
| April 2 | No. 21 Texas | No. 17 | O'Brate Stadium | W 4–3 | Isaac Stebens (4–0) | Zane Morehouse (4–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,655 | 22–7 | 6–3 |
| April 4 | Wichita State* | No. 16 | O'Brate Stadium | L 6–13 | Matt Boyer (4–0) | Ryan Bogusz (0–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,273 | 22–8 | — |
| April 6 | at TCU | No. 16 | Lupton Stadium Fort Worth, TX | W 7–6 | Evan O'Toole (3–0) | Chase Hoover (1–1) | Isaac Stebens (2) | B12N/ESPN+ | 3,728 | 23–8 | 7–3 |
| April 7 | at TCU | No. 16 | Lupton Stadium | L 3–7 | Kole Klecker (6–2) | Ben Abram (4–2) | — | ESPNU | 3,996 | 23–9 | 7–4 |
| April 8 | at TCU | No. 16 | Lupton Stadium | L 5–12 | Garrett Wright (2–1) | Evan O'Toole (3–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,385 | 23–10 | 7–5 |
| April 11 | Oral Roberts* | No. 18 | O'Brate Stadium | L 5–8 | Caleb Isaacs (5–0) | Gabe Davis (0–2) | Cade Denton (8) | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,781 | 23–11 | — |
| April 14 | West Virginia | No. 18 | O'Brate Stadium | L 3–6 | Ben Hampton (3–1) | Juaron Watts-Brown (4–2) | Carlson Reed (3) | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,055 | 23–12 | 7–6 |
| April 15 | West Virginia | No. 18 | O'Brate Stadium | L 5–9 | Aidan Major (2–2) | Isaac Stebens (4–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,817 | 23–13 | 7–7 |
| April 16 | West Virginia | No. 18 | O'Brate Stadium | W 11–6 | Brian Hendry (2–0) | David Hagaman (0–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,576 | 24–13 | 8–7 |
| Bedlam Series ||||||||||||
| April 18 | Oklahoma* | | O'Brate Stadium | W 19–8 | Evan O'Toole (4–1) | Gray Harrison (0–2) | Isaac Stebens (3) | B12N/ESPN+ | 6,769 | 25–13 | — |
| April 21 | at Kansas | | Hoglund Ballpark Lawrence, KS | W 15–10 | Evan O'Toole (5–1) | Collin Baumgartner (3–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 682 | 26–13 | 9–7 |
| April 22 | at Kansas | | Hoglund Ballpark | W 14–3 | Ben Abram (5–2) | Sam Ireland (4–5) | Gabe Davis (1) | ESPNU | 893 | 27–13 | 10–7 |
| April 23 | at Kansas | | Hoglund Ballpark | W 8–3 | Bayden Root (4–1) | Ethan Bradford (2–4) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 964 | 28–13 | 11–7 |
| April 25 | Wichita State* | | O'Brate Stadium | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions |
| April 28 | at Michigan* | | Ray Fisher Stadium Ann Arbor, MI | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions | Canceled due to weather conditions |
| April 29 | at Michigan* | | Ray Fisher Stadium | W 5–3 | Bayden Root (5–1) | Connor O'Halloran (7–3) | Isaac Stebens (4) | BTN | 1,619 | 29–13 | — |
| April 30 | at Michigan* | | Ray Fisher Stadium | W 8–5 | Ben Abram (6–2) | Noah Rennard (6–3) | Isaac Stebens (5) | BTN | 1,410 | 30–13 | — |
May (7–3) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | B12 Record |
| May 2 | at Oral Roberts* | | J. L. Johnson Stadium Tulsa, OK | L 7–9 | Jacob Widener (2–2) | Brian Hendry (2–1) | — | | 2,273 | 30–14 | — |
| May 5 | East Tennessee State* | | O'Brate Stadium | W 7–4 | Juaron Watts-Brown (5–2) | Colby Stuart (1–4) | Isaac Stebens (6) | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,007 | 31–14 | — |
| May 6 | East Tennessee State* | | O'Brate Stadium | W 17–7 | Bayden Root (6–1) | Nathanial Tate (6–4) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 5,435 | 32–14 | — |
| May 7 | East Tennessee State* | | O'Brate Stadium | W 20–7$^7$ | Ryan Bogusz (1–1) | Cade Carlson (3–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,620 | 33–14 | — |
| May 12 | Kansas State | | O'Brate Stadium | L 9–10 | Owen Boerema (7–1) | Juaron Watts-Brown (5–3) | Tyson Neighbors (10) | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,990 | 33–15 | 11–8 |
| May 13 | Kansas State | | O'Brate Stadium | W 19–5 | Bayden Root (7–1) | German Fajardo (3–3) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,816 | 34–15 | 12–8 |
| May 14 | Kansas State | | O'Brate Stadium | W 12–2$^7$ | Carson Benge (2–1) | Mason Buss (4–3) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 4,599 | 35–15 | 13–8 |
| Bedlam Series ||||||||||||
| May 18 | at Oklahoma | No. 25 | L. Dale Mitchell Baseball Park Norman, OK | W 13–2 | Evan O'Toole (6–1) | Braxton Douthit (4–5) | — | ESPN+ | 2,571 | 36–15 | 14–8 |
| May 19 | at Oklahoma | No. 25 | L. Dale Mitchell Baseball Park | L 0–5 | Braden Carmichael (7–0) | Juaron Watts-Brown (5–4) | — | ESPN+ | 3,044 | 36–16 | 14–9 |
| May 20 | at Oklahoma | No. 25 | L. Dale Mitchell Baseball Park | W 11–1 | Ben Abram (7–2) | James Hitt (5–1) | — | ESPN+ | 3,371 | 37–16 | 15–9 |
Postseason (4–4) :
Big 12 Tournament (4–2) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | B12T Record |
| May 24 | vs. (7) Oklahoma | (2) No. 18 | Globe Life Field | L 5–9 | James Hitt (6–1) | Carson Benge (2–2) | Carter Campbell (2) | B12N/ESPN+ | 7,406 | 37–17 | 0–1 |
| May 25 | vs. (3) No. 21 West Virginia | (2) No. 18 | Globe Life Field | W 3–2 | Juaron Watts-Brown (6–4) | Carlson Reed (2–1) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 6,325 | 38–17 | 1–1 |
| May 26 | vs. (7) Oklahoma | (2) No. 18 | Globe Life Field | W 8–3 | Ben Abram (8–2) | Will Carsten (1–3) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 10,745 | 39–17 | 2–1 |
| May 27 | vs. (6) Texas Tech | (2) No. 18 | Globe Life Field | W 8–1 | Brennan Phillips (2–1) | Zane Petty (3–1) | Bayden Root (1) | B12N/ESPN+ | — | 40–17 | 3–1 |
| May 27 | vs. (6) Texas Tech | (2) No. 18 | Globe Life Field | W 6–5 | Gabe Davis (1–2) | Brandon Beckel (5–2) | — | B12N/ESPN+ | 13,532 | 41–17 | 4–1 |
| May 28 | vs. (4) TCU | (2) No. 18 | Globe Life Field | L 5–12 | Luke Savage (3–3) | Ben Abram (8–3) | — | ESPN2 | 14,673 | 41–18 | 4–2 |
Stillwater Regional (0–2) :
| Date | Opponent | Rank | Site/stadium | Score | Win | Loss | Save | TV | Attendance | Overall record | NCAAT record |
| June 2 | (4) Oral Roberts | (1) No. 16 | O'Brate Stadium | L 4–6 | Caleb Isaacs (7–0) | Nolan McLean (1–2) | Cade Denton (13) | ESPN+ | 5,423 | 41–19 | 0–1 |
| June 3 | (2) No. 18 Dallas Baptist | (1) No. 16 | O'Brate Stadium | L 4–18 | Zach Heaton (5–1) | Juaron Watts-Brown (6–5) | — | ESPN2 | 5,033 | 41–20 | 0–2 |
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Canceled Bold = Oklahoma State team member :
"*" indicates a non-conference game. "#" represents ranking. All rankings are based on the team's current ranking in the D1Baseball poll. "" represents postseason seeding in the Big 12 Tournament or NCAA Regional, respectively. :

## Statistics
### Team batting

    As of March 24, 2023
| Team | AB | Avg. | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SB |
| Oklahoma State | 738 | .310 | 229 | 55 | 4 | 40 | 167 | 107 | 201 | 20 |
| Opponents | 704 | .246 | 173 | 32 | 5 | 21 | 100 | 82 | 224 | 7 |

### Team pitching

| Team | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | SV | ERA |
| Oklahoma State | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Opponents | 0.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | Final |
| Coaches' | 8 | 8* | 13 | 14 | 13 | 15 | 13 | 13 | 16 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Baseball America | 15 | 21 | 21 | 18 | 17 | 20 | 17 | 11 | 14 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Collegiate Baseball^ | 12 | 16 | 23 | 24 | 18 | 19 | 14 | 12 | 18 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| NCBWA† | 14 | 19 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 16 | 13 | 15 | 17 | | | | | | | | | | | |
| D1Baseball | 9 | 15 | 12 | 13 | 12 | 20 | 17 | 16 | 18 | | | | | | | | | | | |
^ Collegiate Baseball ranked 40 teams in their preseason poll, but only ranked 30 teams weekly during the season. † NCBWA ranks 35 teams in their preseason poll, but only ranks 30 teams weekly during the season. * A new poll was not released for this week, so for comparison purposes, the previous week's ranking is inserted in this week's slot.