Updated 122/17/2023 6:05 PM, 12/16/2023 10:45 AM

The 2024 season will be the last for Pac-12 baseball as we know it. It could become a memorable one for Oregon State.

The 2023 Beavers enjoyed a successful 2023 campaign, going 41-20 overall and finishing second in the Pac-12 behind Stanford at 18-12 before losing to LSU in the Regional held at Baton Rouge.

The ’24 Beavers want more. They’re not talking about it yet, but they have Omaha in their sights, and perhaps a roster built to get there.

Gone from the ’23 club are slugging first baseman Garret Forrester, third baseman Mikey Kane and pitchers Trent Sellers, Ben Ferrer and Ryan Brown to the pros and shortstop Kyle Dernedde to a transfer to Michigan. Everyone else of significance is back, and there is additional help coming aboard.

“We have a really good group of players and people,” says Mitch Canham, beginning his sixth season (can it really be?) at the OSU helm. “I’m excited to see what they can do.”

Fall ball went unusually well, in no small part to the once-in-four-years opportunity for an international trip in mid-September. With Covid and the pandemic, this was the first time a Canham team has made such a trip. The Beavers didn’t go far, traveling to Okotoks, Alberta, a half-hour south of Calgary, for nine days at the Okotoks Dawgs Baseball Academy.

“It was spectacular,” Canham says of the time spent there. He had never been to Okotoks, but centerfielder Micah McDowell had. “It was cool to see Micah’s name on their Hall of Fame board,” the coach says of the Halifax, Nova Scotia, native. Former OSU catcher Gavin Logan had trained there.

And the coaches had heard stories of ex-coach Pat Casey’s two seasons with the Triple-A Calgary Cannons of the Pacific Coast League (the soon-to-be Hall of Famer hit .307 in 116 games there in 1986).

Okotoks bills itself as Canada’s premier baseball training center for youths, featuring a stadium, three outdoor fields, an indoor field house and all the trimmings.

“Great facility, great set-up,” Canham says. “We were on the field all day with no distractions. We played against an Okotoks team one day, but mostly we were training and scrimmaging with ourselves.”

Canham liked the off-field experience just as much.

“The guys put their phones down and bonded together,” Canham says. “We’d mix it up day by day. Half the group would do weight training, the other half a walk together in early morning — it was ‘feel the chill.’ The guys had no headphones on the majority of the time we were there. The bonding created from that trip set us up right for the fall.”

Actually, the Beavers had started fall ball for a few days before leaving for the trip.

“We finished up (fall ball) a little sooner than we anticipated because the guys had been going for so long, working their tails off,” Canham says. “You’re limited to 45 days (of workouts) in the fall. We were probably five days short. We did enough.”

Oregon State’s 2023 lineup featured six starters who hit .300 or better, and five of them are back, including Travis Bazzana, the junior All-America second baseman who hit a team-high .374 with 20 doubles, 11 homers, 78 runs scored, 55 RBIs, an on-base percentage of .500 and a Pac-12-leading 36 stolen bases. It was one of the finest seasons in the program’s 116-year history.

Also returning are senior centerfielder McDowell (.342, 16 doubles, seven homers, 57 runs, 47 RBIs, .427 OBP), junior infielder Mason Guerra (.326, 18 doubles, 12 homers, 50 runs, 56 RBIs, .414 OBP), sophomore left-fielder Gavin Turley (.309, 14 homers, 42 runs, 46 RBIs, .438 OBP) and senior right-fielder Brady Kasper (.304, 12 homers, 39 runs, 41 RBIs, .400 OBP).

Add to that juniors Tanner Smith and Wilson Weber, who split catching duties a year ago, transfer shortstop Elijah Hainline from Washington State, freshman third base sensation Trent Caraway and a host of other returning position players and you can understand why OSU coaches are optimistic.

“We have excellent leadership, and we have some guys who didn’t perform as well as they’d like last year take big jumps,” Canham says. “Tanner and Wilson, for instance, had incredible falls. It’s like I’m thinking, ‘Can we put 10 guys in our lineup?’ It’s a very strong group (of position players).”

Five Beavers played in the prestigious Cape Cod League last summer, with four of them —  Bazzana, Hainline, Guerra and pitcher Aiden Jimenez— making the All-Star Game.

Bazzana led the league with a .375 regular-season average; overall he hit .382 with six homers and 16 stolen bases in 36 games with Falmouth. Guerra batted .276 in 21 games with Harwich. Hainline hit .218 in 26 games with Hyannis. Jimenez had a 1.14 ERA in eight appearances and 15 2/3 innings with Chatham.

The other OSU rep in Cape Cod was Turley, who hit .241 with three homers in 25 games with Falmouth.

Oregon State’s greatest strengths in ’24 will likely be in the keystone combination of Bazzana and Hainline and with an outfield that should rank among the best in college baseball. Turley was a Freshman All-American and one of four players who were unanimous selections for the All-Tournament team in Baton Rouge.

“Pretty nasty,” Canham puts it succinctly. “McDowell and Kasper are seniors. We know what they can do. Turley did well in the fall. He’s dangerous in the box. Any cycle, he can rip one a mile, but he still needs to make adjustments to provide for consistency.”

Hainline, a 5-10, 180-pound junior, was a two-year starter at Wazzu. He hit .337 with 12 homers as a sophomore, playing mostly second base, last season. Hainline is a solid defender and a much better hitter than was Dernedde in 2023.

“He’s pretty stinking good,” Canham says. “Good arm strength, he can run and hit, loves to compete. Elijah is a super kid. Wants to be a part of this kind of group. Wants to win. He is well-regarded in the clubhouse. It’s been a great fit.”

The 6-2, 205-pound Caraway, from San Juan Capistrano, Calif., was his state’s Mr. Baseball in 2023, hitting .377 with seven homers and 25 stolen bases as a senior. He was a likely third-round pick in the MLB draft but told pro scouts he was going to play college ball. Caraway — who at 19, will be draft-eligible after his sophomore season in 2025 — is ticketed as the Beavers’ third baseman next season.

“Trent had an incredible fall,” Canham says. “He’s very comfortable at third. The guys love him. He competes and he produces.”

Guerra could DH and share first base with Jacob Krieg, a 6-5, 240-pound sophomore who hit .333 in 18 at-bats last season.

“Krieg had a good fall,” Canham says. “He’s a big kid, young for his class, and still trying to find consistency with his swing. When he locks things down, he can be a big-time performer.”

Also returning in the infield are sophomores Jabin Trosky and Tyce Peterson and redshirt freshman Brandon Forrester. Trosky, who missed all of last season after undergoing elbow surgery, and Peterson, who hit .303 in 33 at-bats last season, seem likely to see some duty next season. Forrester is younger brother of Garret Forrester.

“Jabin is a tremendous defender who gives us flexibility in the infield,” Canham says. “Peterson can play anywhere, and offensively, he’s dangerous. Brandon continues to compete his butt off. He wants badly to play and, as the fall went on, he got better and better.”

Behind Turley, McDowell and Kasper in the outfield, and in competition for the DH job, are returnees Dallas Macias, Easton Talt and Canon Reader.

“They provide good depth,” Canham says. “They’re going to get their chances.”

Oregon State’s pitching staff is unlikely to be as good as it was in 2021, with a crew of starters featuring Kevin Abel, Cooper Hjerpe, Jake Pfennigs, Will Frisch and Jack Washburn and a strong bullpen. But it should be better than the contingent of a year ago, which struggled with injuries and command.

“I like what we have,” Pitching coach Rich Dorman says. “With some newcomers and some guys getting healthy and the returnees we have, it’s a very good group — night and day from last year.

And we’re young still.”

During the fall, senior Jaren Hunter and junior Jacob Kmatz had light loads and Jimenez — sharp in Cape Cod after his terrific six-inning, three-hit, no-run relief performance in OSU’s elimination-game win over Sam Houston State at Baton Rouge — was shut down entirely.

Hunter and Kmatz are likely weekend starters — “they have a ton of experience, and we know what they can do at this level,” Dorman says — and Jimenez, a 6-3, 225-pound sophomore, will be a key out of the bullpen.

Could the third weekend starter be Aiden May, the 6-2, 195-pound junior transfer from Arizona who was a high school teammate of Kmatz in Albuquerque?

“Absolutely,” Dorman says of the 6-2, 195-pound right-hander, who led the Wildcats with 77 strikeouts in 75 2/3 innings last season. “He is athletic and competitive, and his stuff is electric.”

Returnees AJ Lattery (6-5, 250 senior right-hander), Ian Lawson (6-7, 245 senior right-hander) and Nelson Keljo (6-4, 230 sophomore left-hander) will all be given an opportunity to start, be it in weekend of mid-week action.

“AJ and Ian are like Swiss Army knives,” Dorman says. “They could start, throw early or late out of the pen. I don’t know if Nelson is better-suited as a starter or reliever, but we’re going to take a look at him in a starting role.”

Returnees Jimenez, Tyler Mejia (6-3, 200 sophomore southpaw) and AJ Hutcheson (5-11, 190 sophomore) will all get looks at a closer role. So, too, will transfers Kyle Scott (6-3, 210 senior) from Cal Poly, Bridger Holmes (6-4, 210 junior) from Feather River JC in Quincy, Calif., and Tephon Montgomery (6-4, 195 sophomore) from Iowa Western NC.

“Scott has what I call a slow heartbeat,” says Dorman, the reference being to a pitcher who doesn’t get easily rattled. “He’ll pitch backward. He has enough fastball, but he doesn’t just have heat. He has options. The thing about Scottie is, he knows himself really well. He has some of those end-of-the-game qualities who can fill the zone with multiple pitches.

“Holmes is more a one-pitch guy, with a wipeout slider, but his fastball is in the low 90s from an awkward slot. He’ll be a tough matchup against good right-handed hitters. Montgomery is a crafty pitcher with a great changeup.”

The Beavers picked up another JC transfer late, including 6-3, 195-pound Kellan Oaks from Linn-Benton. “Off the radar,” Dorman says, “but with a big arm.”

The most immediate help from freshmen could come from Laif Palmer (6-6, 205 from Golden, Colo.) and Eric Segura (6-2, 195 freshman from Soledad, Calif.).

“They’re good ones,” Dorman says. “Palmer has been up to 94 with his fastball. The ceiling is huge. Segura is a smart kid with a slow heartbeat as well. Both of those kids have the intangibles. They come out and compete.”

Also in competition for a spot somewhere is 6-5, 215-pound redshirt senior Joey Mundt, who hasn’t pitched in a game since June of 2021. Mundt had shoulder surgery after the ’21 campaign and has missed the last two seasons.

“I brought him with us to Baton Rouge (at the Regional) in case we had a need,” Dorman says. “You’re going to hear about him this next season. He could be one of the best stories in college baseball, with what this kid has gone through. After the surgery, he was barely able to throw strikes. He had some serious command issues, and it has taken some time, but he has himself in a really good place now. He wants to pitch and have an amazing senior year.”

Oregon State has 21 pitchers on its staff and only two left-handers — Keljo and Mejia. A problem?

“You’d rather that be more balanced, but I don’t think it’s the end of the world,” Dorman says. “I just want the best guys to take the ball.”

The Pac-12 post-season tournament will be staged again in Scottsdale, Ariz. Oregon State fans remember it being a disaster a year ago. With the Beavers probably needing just one win to host a Regional, they lost to Arizona 13-12 and to Arizona State 14-10 in what amounted to a pair of road games in extreme heat. Dorman rested No. 1 starter Trent Sellers and, with Nos. 2 and 3 Kmatz and Hunter on the shelf due to injuries, OSU went with back-to-back bullpen games. The Beavers wound up going to perhaps the toughest Regional in the country.

“For a lot of reasons,” Dorman says now, “I’d like to go down there and win it (next season).”

When I ask Canham about conference realignment and where Oregon State baseball might end up in ’25, I can tell it’s an uncomfortable subject.

“I don’t like to sit around and worry or stress about things out of my control,” he says. “I know we have tons of supporters who want to help us out. We’re all waiting to see how all this stuff unravels.”

Though Oregon State football is aligning with the Mountain West Conference for scheduling in 2024, and the school’s athletic programs may eventually combine with the Mountain West, OSU baseball doesn’t have to follow suit. Only seven Mountain West members have baseball — Air Force, San Jose State, San Diego State, Fresno State, New Mexico, UNLV and Nevada. It’s not a strong conference.

The 11-team Big West is, though, with RPI-rich baseball schools such as Cal San Diego, Cal State Fullerton, Cal State Northridge, Cal State Santa Barbara, Cal State Irvine, Hawaii and Long Beach State. It would seem like a perfect fit for Oregon State — and Canham doesn’t think OSU has to necessarily align with Washington State in joining a conference.

“But are they interested in us joining them?” Canham says. “There are so many things I just don’t know.”

It’s just as likely — perhaps more so — that the Beavers will play an independent schedule in ’25. They could schedule non-conference series with all the former Pac-12 schools if desired, and put together a slate to face enough quality opponents to keep the RPI high enough for post-season eligibility.

Canham knows he has to get a handle on it soon. He has high school seniors who signed letters of intent in November and verbal commitments coming in from high school juniors. So far, he has not lost out on many recruits because of the uncertainty of the conference situation. But the longer the court case goes unsettled, the greater the risk.

“We’re left in this bubble, with all the litigation,” Canham say, “but I’m not going to panic. We’ll figure out a way to get the job done. Oregon State baseball will continue to thrive.

“We have a great thing going in the Pac for one more year. That’s what I’m going to focus on for now.”

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