BASEBALL: Corvallis Regional Preview
After two weeks off, suspense reached a fever pitch. Now, on Selection Monday, we finally know Oregon State's path through the postseason.
Mitch Canham's quest for the 2025 college baseball national championship - his 3rd with the school but his 1st as a coach - begins Friday May 30th at Goss Stadium in Corvallis. If the nation's #8 Oregon State Beavers advance to the Super Regionals, they will host the winner of the Tallahassee Regional the weekend of June 7th-10th.
Here is a brief summary of Oregon State's upcoming regional opponents.
2 Seed TCU Are Well Coached, and Experienced
Former MLB sinkerball specialist Kirk Saarloos commands the Horned Frogs, who he has honed into a national title contender: after Saarloos joined the TCU coaching staff as an assistant in 2012, the Fort Worth Texas school reached five College World Series'.
The one-time Oakland Athletics reliever was put in charge of the TCU program in 2022: in his four seasons at the helm, TCU have won a Big 12 regular season title in 2022, plus a Big 12 tournament championship and College World Series berth in 2023.
Buoyed by high profile transfers from Texas A&M, Ohio State, and a globe-spanning recruiting effort (including Southern Oregon's own Trey Newmann, from North Medford High School), the Horned Frogs are a legitimate threat to steal Oregon State's spot in the supers.
There's No Love Lost with 3 Seed USC
Two narratives dominate the Trojans' appearance in Corvallis.
The elephant (or perhaps a Trojan horse) in the room: Oregon State would not be playing an independent schedule without USC. When the men of troy left the Pac-12 for the Big Ten in the summer of 2022, buzzards circled for the old Pac-12. By the following Fall, 8 other members moved to other conferences, leaving Oregon State and Washington State behind.
If players don't feel an axe to grind, the fans in attendance, always one of college baseball's toughest crowds, will surely give their former Pac-12 rivals a piece of their mind.
On the diamond, the Trojans are a fascinating litmus test for Oregon State: they've played many common opponents including UCLA, UC Irvine, Oregon, Nebraska, and others, with mixed results. Like Oregon State, the Trojans went winless against Oregon. Unlike Oregon State, the Trojans picked up losses to Washington, Gonzaga, Indiana, and CS Fullerton.
4 Seed Saint Mary's Are On a Hot Streak
Despite playing an independent baseball schedule, Oregon State's path to a championship will involve the West Coast Conference after all. WCC Tournament champs Saint Mary's head to Corvallis, and will play Oregon State on Friday night.
The Gaels enter the matchup with a great story: they're playing their best baseball at the perfect time. After two mid-week losses to Oregon in early May, the Gaels closed the regular season on a 5-1 record, then stormed through the WCC Tournament, knocking out regular season title holders San Diego and runner ups Gonzaga.
More Reading Material From Oregon State Beavers On SI
Matt fell in love with radio during his college days at Oregon Tech, and pursued a nine year career in sports broadcasting with Klamath Falls' and Medford's highest-rated sports radio stations. He currently lives in McMinnville wine country and is excited to talk about the Beavers again.