Oklahoma State baseball rewind: David Mendham, Cowboys look like old selves in big week

STILLWATER — After a down two-week stretch, Oklahoma State looked more like the baseball team capable of overwhelming opponents this past week.

A dominant win over Bedlam rival OU and a three-game sweep at Kansas have the Cowboys feeling better entering a week of non-conference play.

And OSU got some help around the Big 12 with the Sooners sweeping Texas and West Virginia sweeping TCU, keeping the Cowboys within striking distance of the regular-season conference crown.

OSU enters the week second in the standings behind West Virginia.

Here is a look back at the week for the Cowboys:

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Oklahoma State

Overall record: 28-13, 11-7 Big 12 (second)

Last week: 4-0 (beat OU 19-8, beat Kansas 15-10, 14-3, 8-3)

This week: vs. Wichita State, 6 p.m. Tuesday (canceled); at Michigan, 3 p.m. Friday, 1 p.m. Saturday, 11 a.m. Sunday

Top player last week

David Mendham, 1B: After falling into a slump in which he did not have a hit in six of nine games, Mendham busted out in a huge way. He was 7 for 20 with two home runs, two doubles, 13 RBIs, seven runs scored and two walks in all four games. His biggest night was against OU when he doubled, homered and drove in five runs. Known as “Double Dave,” his left-handed bat is crucial to the Cowboys’ success.

Player on the rise

Colin Brueggemann, DH: A Johnson County (Kansas) Community College transfer, the 6-foot-6 slugger homered in three straight games, giving him four on the season. All four have come in the past seven games he’s played. He’s also driven in 10 runs over the past four games he’s played. And he’s doing it from near the bottom of the order, adding even more depth to a potent lineup.

Stat to know

8: Straight wins against Wichita State for the Cowboys until losing to the Shockers on April 4. The Cowboys’ last loss to Wichita State had come in the 2018 season. Wichita State is coming off a three-game sweep of East Carolina, a top-15 team.

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Cowboys’ offense comes alive

With Mendham as the catalyst, the Cowboys were their old selves swinging the bats.

OSU scored 56 runs in four games, homering nine times and totaling 19 other extra-base hits. The lone game the Cowboys did not hit a long ball was Sunday’s 8-3 win over Kansas.

They were the kind of performances that show exactly how dangerous OSU is when it clicks, even still without star Nolan McLean due to a knee injury.

But the biggest revelation was Mendham.

His presence makes the Cowboys dangerous.

“I thought he had better swings tonight,” OSU coach Josh Holliday said about Mendham after the Bedlam win. “I thought he was more patient, more relaxed. I think at times good players, older players, caring players, players that want to lead, when things don’t go well, they sometimes press and try to do too much.

“We just need these guys to be the best version of themselves. Hopefully, this will relax him.”

Mendham immediately followed Bedlam with a huge Friday at Kansas — homering, doubling and driving in four runs while scoring three.

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OSU bullpen settles down

The Cowboys’ bullpen had one of its best weeks of the season.

Five different relievers held OU to five runs over eight innings. And in the final two games at Kansas, OSU’s bullpen allowed just three total runs.

The lone hiccup was six runs allowed — two apiece by three relievers — in Friday’s win.

That’s big for a Cowboys team that has struggled to maintain leads at times this spring.

It’s even bigger to see Evan O’Toole emerge. He had four strong innings against OU and then another two lock-down innings against Kansas on Friday, earning his second win in as many games.

Lefty Michael Benzor recorded just two outs on the week, but each was crucial against a left-hander late in the game.

Also, Choctaw graduate Gabe Davis earned his first-career save, allowing one run and striking out seven in three innings Saturday.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma State baseball: Cowboys rise in Big 12 behind David Mendham