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Jordan John was exactly what Oklahoma needed their starting pitcher to be on Friday night. Oklahoma's lefty pitched a complete game against Kansas in which he fanned eight batters and only allowed one run off five hits. More importantly it broke a two-game losing streak for the Sooners and evened their conference record up at 8-8.
Offensively the Sooners weren't great but they certainly did enough to get by the Jayhawks. For the third time this week OU got started by scoring in the first inning. Erik Ross scored from third on a passed ball to put Oklahoma up 1-0 in the top of the first frame. Max White followed that up, as the next batter, with a double down the right field line that scored Jack Mayfield and expanded the lead.
Friday Night Big XII Baseball Scores
Baylor 5, New Mexico State 0
Texas A&M 6, Texas 5
Missouri 9, Texas Tech 0
Oklahoma State 5, Kansas State 0
Oklahoma 4, Kansas 1
From that point on it was all goose eggs on the scoreboard until the sixth inning when Mayfield and White went to work once again. Mayfield started the inning off with a single to center field. Following a Caleb Bushyhead pop out he stole second and then scored on a Max White single. White would then come home himself, when Cody Reine doubled to right field, to score OU's fourth run of the night and give the Sooners more than enough to beat Kansas.
The Jayhawks did get on the board in the seventh when Zac Elgie came home on a Dakota Smith single. The big story lines from Friday night though are defensive changes made by Sunny Galloway and the continued superb play of Max White.
When Oklahoma took the field in the bottom of the first Brian Brightwell was in left field, White was at third and Sophomore Chase Simpson was at first. That gave OU a freshman in the outfield and a sophomore at first, catcher and on the mound. Not a major youth movement but it was certainly enough to get some new blood on the field and change the lineup a bit.
Meanwhile, Max White entered the game with a .357 batting average and delivered two RBI off two hits, increasing his average to .360 and his team high RBIs to 38. The Sooners and Jayhawks will play game two tonight starting at 6:00.