Oregon State's Dax Whitney Generating Awards Buzz After Strong Start
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Oregon State sophomore right-handed pitcher Dax Whitney is having a tremendous start to the season for the No. 9 team in the nation.
The Blackfoot, Idaho native was named Wednesday to the Baseball America's midseason watch list for College Player of the Year and for College Pitcher of the Year. Whitney and USC's Mason Edwards were the only two pitchers included on both lists.
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"He blends pitchability, premium stuff and advanced bat-missing ability and has a chance to be the first-overall pick in the 2027 draft," Baseball America's Jacob Rudner said of Whitney.
Whitney has made seven starts this season, getting four winning decisions and zero losses. Through just over 40 innings, Whitney has an ERA of 1.55. The ace also leads Division I in strikeouts with 78. He has at-least 11 strikeouts in five different contests this season.
In his start against Baylor in February, Whitney tied the Oregon State program record for strikeouts in a single game with 17.
Whitney was also one of the country's top pitchers as a freshman last year, earning All-America honors from D1Baseball.com, Baseball America, Perfect Game, and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, finishing 2025 with 120 strikeouts.
Oregon State are 21-6 overall to start the 2026 season following their 18-2 loss to Washington on Tuesday night in Corvallis. They'll head to Beaumont, Texas for Easter Weekend and a three-game series with Lamar University. First pitch is set for Thursday afternoon at 4 p.m. PT on ESPN+. Whitney has usually started the first game of Oregon State's weekend series.
While moving on from the loss to Washington on Tuesday will be difficult, but Oregon State got more good new on Wednesday. Senior catcher Jacob Galloway was also named to the midseason watch list for the Buster Posey Award, given to the top catcher in college baseball annually.
Finalists for Baseball America's college awards will be announced on May 27.
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Joe Londergan joined the SI brand in 2023 with G5 Football Daily. With over 15 years of experience in covering and working directly in college and pro sports, Joe's expertise has been featured in Front Office Sports, SB Nation, and XRAY.FM. He is a member of both the Football Writers' Association of America and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association. Joe holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Louisville and a master's degree in sports administration from Seattle University. Outside of his writing career, Joe enjoys golfing, although he admits that while he hits driver decently, his short game is a liability.
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