Sunny Strikes (Out) Again - Chapter ?

[Old Titan]

In light of yet another improbable ORU win, this time coming from four runs down in the ninth at Missouri State, I can't help but contrast our good fortune with the debacle that is OU baseball.

Picture this:  Bedlam baseball Sunday, bottom of the ninth, tie game, OSU gets a runner to third base with one out and the heart of the line-up due up.

Let me repeat this:

1.  Tie game

2.  Bottom of the ninth

3.  Runner at third

4.  One out.

5.  Heart of the line-up due up.

What does ANY coach do?

YOU WALK THE NEXT TWO BATTERS TO LOAD THE BASES AND GIVE YOURSELF A FORCE PLAY AT ANY BASE AND PUT YOUR INFIELD AT DOUBLE PLAY DEPTH.

But what does "Mr February" Sunny Golloway do?

He pitches to Ty Wright of OSU with first and second base open.

Result?  Base hit, runner trots in from third - AND THAT'S YOUR BALL GAME!!

And what does Sunny say afterward?

Blames his team's defense for the loss.

...and to think this guy left ORU for an assistant's job at OU, like "anything, anywhere" was better than being here?

Let me say AGAIN, it's the best thing that ever happened to ORU baseball, him leaving - while OU's athletic administration has to be left wondering what the heck they've gotten themselves into by handing Golloway the reigns to their once-proud baseball program.

Seriously, Ray Hayward and Brian Hickman have GOT to be laughing their a$$es off right about now!

[vcboy2000]

Seriously, Ray Hayward and Brian Hickman have GOT to be laughing their a$$es off right about now!

Pardon my ignorance, but who are those guys, and why would they be laughing right now?

[ORUTerry]

Shortstop avenges OU snub

by JOHN E. HOOVER World Sports Writer

5/8/2007

So what gets into Oklahoma State shortstop Jordy Mercer when he plays Oklahoma?

In seven career games against the Sooners, Mercer has four home runs, six RBIs, four runs scored. At shortstop he's made just two errors in 37 chances. On the mound, he has a win and a save.

OU coach Sunny Golloway called Mercer a "Sooner killer," but it turns out that Golloway and the Sooners didn't recruit Mercer out of Taloga.

Mercer himself was reluctant to talk about it, but did admit there is some motivation there.

"It is kind of frustrating," Mercer said Sunday after pitching the final two innings in a wild comeback victory that completed the first back-to-back Bedlam sweep in 54 years.

"I didn't get a phone call or nothing," Mercer said. "If OU would have been in the picture at all -- because they're in-state and that's kind of where I wanted to go, because my family could watch me and stuff. My dad's been an OU football fan for a while. My mom and dad used to have season tickets to football. So I was kind of raised up as an OU fan and an OU fan. But it's in the past."

Mercer, a sophomore, dented the Sooners for two home runs in last year's regular-season series, and did it again this year.

The soft-spoken and humble Mercer noted that the Sooner roster contains just one player from a small Oklahoma high school in pitcher Brad Burns, who pitched with Mercer for the Elk City Travelers summer league team.

"I don't know if they just don't like small-school guys, or whatever," he said. "But I'm thankful to be here. I wouldn't change it one bit. I love it here. I love every minute of it."

Sooner desperation: The prospects are very real that Oklahoma could finish short of the Big 12 Tournament field.

The Sooners are currently tied for seventh place in the league standings with Baylor, but Baylor owns the tiebreaker because the Bears won two of three this season.

A half-game behind is Texas Tech, whom the Sooners host in the season-finale May 18-20.

And a game back of that is Kansas, who took two of three in Norman last week. And this week, OU visits second-place Missouri.

Even if OU makes the Big 12 field, teams that finish sub-.500 in conference play have a tough time making the NCAA Tournament. OU is five games under .500 (8-13) with six to play.

"I really believe you need to earn your way," Golloway said. "We can still be over .500. Our back's to the wall; it has been for quite some time. But I think we need to respond and go fight. It's not going to be easy. We understand what's ahead of us.

"I'm not saying a team under .500 in the SEC, ACC or Big 12 can't get in. I'm not saying that. I'm just saying we're baseball coaches, not politicians."

Mid-Con honors: ORU had two players honored by the Mid-Continent Conference after the Golden Eagles swept Oakland in Rochester, Mich.

Chad Rothford, a senior from Fresno, Calif., was named player of the week after hitting 11-for-17 (.647) with two doubles, two home runs, nine RBIs and four runs scored.

Erik Crichton, a senior from Seal Beach, Calif., was named pitcher of the week after throwing 7-2/3 innings of scoreless relief and earning one win and one save.

[Old Titan]

Pardon my ignorance, but who are those guys, and why would they be laughing right now?

I'm so glad you asked!

Ray Hayward is a former All-American and major leaguer who is arguably the best player to ever play at OU.

Brian Hickman is a former all-star catcher for ORU.

Both were assistant coaches at a very successful OU baseball program under Larry Cochell when Sunny Gollaway arrived in 2003.

But after OU suffered a surprisingly sub-par 2004 season in which Hayward, Hickman and Golloway were all quoted as saying there was dissension among the coaches on the OU staff, Hayward and Hickman were unceremoniously given the boot.  Gee, wonder who was causing the dissension?

Next thing you know, Cochell gets canned after uttering a racial slur to an ESPN announcer, and Sunny gets the job by default after Gene Stephenson from Wichita State first accepts the OU job, then changes his mind within a 24-hour period.

Hickman is now an assistant coach at ORU.  I'm not sure where Hayward is now, but I'll bet he's succesful.

And I'll bet they both wonder if the wrong guy was allowed to stay at OU.

[tmh8286]

Nice explanation of a series if circumstances I'd all but forgotten.  How do you remember all that stuff, OT???  I truly marvel at guys like you that can remember details like you do.  You're truly amazing!

[Old Titan]

...service is my middle name.

Now, order some darn t-shirts or something from me, will ya??

[Old Titan]

Sunny has a real gift off the field, too.  Remember this from last August?

KAISER LEAVING SOONERS

By John Helsley and George Schroeder

The Oklahoman

Oklahoma baseball player Kody Kaiser is leaving the program led by his uncle, Sooners head coach Sunny Golloway.

A two-year starter who would be a junior, Kaiser said he sought a release from OU to transfer, but was blocked by Golloway. OU has granted a release, but denied his request to apply the one-year transfer exception, which would have allowed him to be immediately eligible at another NCAA Division I school.

The outfielder, who was drafted in the 26th round by the Los Angeles Dodgers in June, said he would now either sign professionally or play next spring at Oklahoma City University.

Kaiser spoke of the troubles of playing for his uncle amid grumblings of nepotism among teammates.

?It?s very difficult to make friends and teammates when they think that?s going on,? Kaiser said.

Claiming strained family relations, Kaiser said that Golloway was more interested in his own image than his players, even a nephew.

?(Golloway?s) main reasoning for not wanting to give me my release has nothing to do with the idea it isn?t best for me,?? Kaiser said. ?It has nothing to do with my feelings or my desire to get a fresh start.

?He said to me, ?If you leave the University of Oklahoma, how am I going to recruit to the University of Oklahoma when my own nephew doesn?t want to be here???

A source close to the program said that when the school was conducting its coaching search last summer, Kris Kaiser, Kody?s father, called to say that his son would leave OU if Golloway wasn?t hired.

Golloway, who recruited Kody to OU, declined to discuss details of the issue, yet wished Kody well.

?It?s unfortunate that Kody Kaiser is seeking a release from the University of Oklahoma,? Golloway said. ?We give Kody the opportunity to transfer through a release and we wish him the very best.

?We hope Kody finds it in his heart to return to the University of Oklahoma. As everyone knows, Kody is my nephew. I will always love Kody.?

In 2005, Kody was named Second Team Freshman All-American by Baseball America. He was the only Sooner to start all 61 games and led the team in multiple-hit games, total bases, triples and stolen bases while hitting .305.

He hit .306 this past season as OU?s regular left fielder.

The former Edmond Santa Fe had hoped to leave the Sooners for another major college program, perhaps Arkansas. He said he told Golloway he would leave peacefully if given a release.

?I told him, ?We?ll be out of state, out of sight,?? the player said.

When a final appeal was denied Tuesday, Kody and his father reacted by initiating contact with The Oklahoman to voice their displeasure through an advisor, Jay Franklin.

?They would have been better off to let Kody go,? Kris Kaiser said. ?Kody is blood. If you?re going to do blood that way, we?ll do it back.?

The Tuesday appeal was made to an independent body comprised of OU faculty and administrators from outside the athletic department.

OU athletic director Joe Castiglione said Tuesday night he would reserve comment on the specific situation because he had not been informed of the outcome of the appeal.

Applying the one-year transfer exception has long been accepted practice in Division I college baseball. But Castiglione said OU has adopted a more restrictive policy on transfers because of the NCAA's Academic Progress Report (APR), which penalizes schools when too many athletes transfer.

?The institutional position on this issue is totally unrelated to any particular student-athlete or any particular sport,? Castiglione said. ?We aren't going to just willingly provide the one-year transfer exception to any student-athlete. There must be extenuating circumstances.?

Kody Kaiser is free to transfer to another Division I school, but would have to sit out a year before being eligible. If he were to transfer to a lower division, he would be immediately eligible.

Update:  Kaiser is hitting .439 with 18 home runs for Oklahoma City University, which is 3rd-ranked at 50-9 in the NAIA.

Wonder if OU could have used him this year?

[tmh8286]

Certainly a flattering article for Sunny !