Oregon State All-American Pitching Duo Unfazed by High Expectations

Dax Whitney and Ethan Kleinschmit, Oregon State's ace pitchers heading into the 2026 season, spoke to the media yesterday. Read highlights from their conversations in this piece.

Jun 13, 2025; Omaha, Neb, USA; Oregon State Beavers starting pitcher Dax Whitney (30) throws against the Louisville Cardinals during the first inning at Charles Schwab Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images | Steven Branscombe-Imagn Images

Oregon State starting pitchers Dax Whitney and Ethan Kleinschmit know how to handle pressure.

As a true freshman teenager last Spring, Whitney moved far away from his rural Idaho hometown (Blackfoot, population of twelve thousand) and stepped onto the mound in the College World Series. Kleinschmit helped him get there, with an incredible Corvallis Regional performance two weeks earlier. In a Sunday matinee marathon against St. Mary's, the sophomore from Mt. Angel threw 108 pitches in 7 2/3 innings with 6 strikeouts. Crucially, his pitches kept the Beavers' bullpen fresh, and helped Oregon State survive four straight elimination games.

Yesterday, with the full attention of the press upon them, the Beavers' All-American starting pitchers previewed their upcoming season. Whitney spoke first, then Kleinschmit. Read highlights of their conversations below.

Dax Whitney on Being Named a Preseason All-American

"I think it's a cool honor, but at the end of the day it's just someone else's opinion what they think is gonna happen. It's a cool honor to have, but you got to go out there and prove it."

Ethan Kleinschmit on his rise from small-school state champion (Kennedy HS) to All-American

"Yeah, it's happened pretty quickly. I mean, it has been three years now, going from a small town of three thousand people to being a preseason All-American, like you said, it has happened pretty quickly, which has been a lot of fun. Honestly I haven't really put a lot of thought into the perspective of it. I just try and take it day by day."

Dax Whitney on applying lessons from last season

"[Success] just puts me in a better starting spot than I was last year. I have a lot more experience under my belt and I think I'll be able to not make the same mistakes I made early on last year."

Ethan Kleinschmit on which of his teammates have stood out to him in training

"Trey Morris. He just threw really well the other day. Mason Pike, obviously, he's got some good stuff coming. We've got a few transfers that will also probably got a lot of innings, too."

Dax Whitney on the pitching staff's "competitive energy" in training

"Yeah, I mean, it starts in practice. We compete in practice. Everybody's showing energy and emotion in practice. Everybody's enthusiastic; happy to be there. When you see us scrimmaging, there's a real presence on the mound, we're attacking our hitters every pitch, and there's no doubt that the guy on the mound wants it more than the hitter."

Ethan Kleinschmit on the 2025 Beavers' elimination in Omaha, and the 2026 team's goal to return

"I would take it as a positive thing: obviously we didn't end up where we wanted to be, and just kind of using that fuel to just make us want to get back there, and succeed there."