The Oregon baseball team is officially back on track. After sweeping Washington and beating Portland on the road this past week, the Ducks have won six straight while climbing in the national polls. With star second baseman Drew Cowley back in the lineup, the team is in full swing as it takes on a tough upcoming schedule of Pac-12 games.
“We’ve had a good week and a good stretch,” head coach Mark Wasikowski said. “We did it during a time when we’ve had guys in and out of the lineup, which is a testament to the guys’ character and their willingness to come together and play as a team, which has been a strength of ours.”
All four of the Ducks’ wins were either by one or two-run margins, but they were able to emerge victorious each time. They still had issues with walks, especially on Tuesday against Portland when they walked eight. Oregon’s 4.95 BB/9 mark ranks a meager 208th in the country.
“There’s always blemishes on every team. We can focus on that as much as we want to,” Wasikowski said. “Nobody’s trying to do anything negative out there, that’s for sure. And so for us, we know those are issues of our weaker side, and we also look at our strengths and say, ‘Okay, well can our strengths overcome some of our deficiencies?’”
The Ducks used All-American closer Kolby Somers in all four games, including Sunday when he had thrown 43 pitches less than 24 hours earlier.
“He told us if he didn’t get the ball at the end of the game with a lead, he’d be furious with us,” Wasikowski said.
Somers ended up having a rough outing Sunday before bouncing back with a spotless performance on Tuesday.
“In this specific case, there wasn’t anything that I felt like I had to change,” Somers said. “Obviously the results were better against Portland, but it was the same mindset. I have the same mindset every time I go out there and just focus on executing pitches and competing.”
On Tuesday Oregon also saw the return of Cowley, who was the team’s best hitter before breaking his hamate bone on March 11. With Cowley back in the mix, the Ducks have an entire starting lineup of players hitting close to or above .300. Colby Shade, who’s batting .344 with a .442 OBP, was moved all the way down to the eight-hole, which showcases the absurd depth this Oregon offense carries.
“From top to bottom our team has got guys,” Cowley said. “Everybody’s good on our team. Everybody steps up when they need to. It doesn’t matter who’s in the lineup; we’re gonna be successful.”
The Ducks’ recent success has already made a difference in the rankings. After briefly falling out of D1Baseball and USA Today’s lists, Oregon is back in all six national polls and is ranked as high as No. 10 in the country. The Ducks are also No. 3 in RPI, a measure which takes strength of schedule into account.
“It is really cool to see that No. 3,” Oregon outfielder Tanner Smith said. “Obviously we want to be No. 1 in all categories. I think being able to host [a regional] and maybe this time sneak into that top-8 national seed to be able to host a Super Regional would be great.”
While the Ducks still have half their Pac-12 regular season schedule left to play, they’re starting to knock on the door of the postseason as it draws nearer. D1Baseball currently projects them to host a regional for the second consecutive year, dropping in as the No. 7 national seed.
“You play to get into postseason, and then make noise in postseason,” Wasikowski said. “Right now we’ve positioned ourself halfway through league in a very good spot being in first place in the Pac-12 conference.”
Oregon’s next 11 games are against Pac-12 opponents, including five against No. 2 Oregon State. That stretch starts Friday against Washington State at 6 p.m. in Eugene.
