CORVALLIS — And now the Oregon State baseball team waits.
The Beavers put a bow on its postseason resume Saturday afternoon at Goss Stadium, pummeling the Long Beach State Dirtbags 11-0 in seven innings before 4,113 in Corvallis.
Ethan Kleinschmit pitched six dominant innings, Wilson Weber had another monster performance and Easton Talt took another step away from his weekslong slump as the Beavers run-ruled the Dirtbags in the final game of the regular season.
The win delivered the seventh-ranked Beavers a three-game series sweep and nudged their May record to an impressive 9-1-1, leaving the NCAA baseball tournament selection committee an overwhelmingly positive final impression. For a team that played an independent schedule and will not compete in a postseason tournament next weekend, the closing stretch wasn’t merely a confidence-builder, but also essential.
“We still think we’re the best team in the nation,” Talt said. “And we still think we’re going to host a regional, host a super (regional), and then go to Omaha. We have all the confidence in the world of this team and we’re ready to go.”
Oregon State (41-12-1) certainly was ready to go against the Dirtbags (22-31). The Beavers scored 27 runs and mashed 34 hits, including seven home runs and five doubles, in the series, as the lineup took turns battering the Long Beach State pitching staff.
In Saturday’s finale, nine OSU players recorded at least one hit and seven drove in at least one run, sending the Beavers into the postseason with momentum and mojo.
Aiva Arquette had three hits, including two doubles, Weber went 3 for 4 with a homer, double and four RBIs, Tyce Peterson finished 2 for 3 with a double, two runs scored and a walk, and Talt officially waved goodbye to the longest slump of his career, going 2 for 5 with a homer and three RBIs.
Talt, who ended an 0-for-35 funk with a double on Friday, had his first multi-hit performance since April 21, just before he descended into a 14-game hitless streak.
“This series has been big,” Talt said, admitting that provided a much-needed boost to his confidence at the perfect time.
Kleinschmit (7-3), meanwhile, had one of his most impressive outings of the season. The 6-foot-3 sophomore left-hander breezed through the Dirtbags lineup over six shutout innings, striking out seven and allowing just one hit and two walks. He threw first-pitch strikes to 13 of 24 hitters and faced a three-ball count just seven times, escaping four of them with strikeouts. He retired 13 in a row during one overpowering stretch and ended the outing by sitting down 16 of the last 17 Long Beach State hitters.
As a result, the Beavers recorded their fifth shutout of the season and first since March 15 against Santa Clara.
“Kleiny is electric,” said OSU right-hander Noah Ferguson, who pitched a 1-2-3 seventh. “Every time he takes the mound, it’s so awesome to watch. I love being in the dugout, being down in the pen, watching him throw.”
And now Ferguson and the Beavers will be watching for their playoff seeding, which will be revealed on Memorial Day during Selection Monday. They are a lock to host a regional, but will have plenty of competition in the quest to land a top eight national seed and home-field advantage through the super regionals.
Oregon State is one of just 18 teams nationally to reach 40 victories and boast an impressive No. 6 ranking in the RPI. And no top-tier team in the country has played a more rigorous, road-heavy schedule, which featured 35 games away from Goss Stadium.
What’s more, the Beavers are the only team in the top 40 of the RPI to have played less than 20 home games.
Along the way, they recorded a statement victory against then-No. 2 Virginia, an impressive series win over No. 12 UC Irvine and a midweek win at No. 14 UCLA, among other resume-building moments.
But they also dropped a game to No. 6 Auburn, suffered a head-scratching series defeat at disappointing Nebraska and, of course, endured a four-game sweep against the Oregon Ducks. The rivalry flop, in particular, no doubt left a dent in their national seed hopes.
In its most recent Field of 64 predictions, national college baseball publications D1Baseball and Baseball America forecasted that Oregon State would not land a top eight seed.
Needless to say, the guys wearing orange and black Saturday at Goss Stadium disagree.
“The way I anticipate it is, (we will be) hosting regionals and super regionals,” OSU coach Mitch Canham said. “These guys earned every bit of it. They’ve been working their butts off.”
When asked what his message to the Selection Committee would be if he were given a chance to lobby for his team, Canham touted his team’s talent, resiliency and success on the road.
“Our humility is strong in that we don’t need to boast about everything that we’ve done or what we’re capable of doing,” he said. “But I am the biggest advocate for those guys, and I know the talent level that’s there, we all know what they’ve done throughout the entirety of the year. I’d say, ‘Try to put anyone else in this situation and see what their success is going to be like.’
“So I think there’s a handful of teams that deserve to host. But I know, without a doubt, this club and this brotherhood that these guys have assembled is right there at the very front of it.”
So now the wait begins.
Next up: The Beavers will play their postseason opener at a too-be-determined four-team regional on Friday, May 30. OSU is expected to be a host team.
— Joe Freeman | [email protected] | 503-294-5183 | @BlazerFreeman | @freemanjoe.bsky.social | Subscribe to The Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.