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4 area baseball players help Oregon State defend NCAA title

Published 1:30 am Tuesday, May 28, 2019

By Nick Patterson

4 area baseball players help Oregon State defend NCAA title
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4 area baseball players help Oregon State defend NCAA title
Oregon State’s Kyler McMahan plays catch between innings during the Seattle Baseball Showcase on March 10 at T-Mobile Park in Seattle. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Oregon State’s Kyler McMahan high-fives coaches and teammates before the start of the Beavers’ March 10 game against Coastal Carolina during the Seattle Baseball Showcase at T-Mobile Park in Seattle. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Oregon State’s Ryan Ober runs toward home plate during an April 26 game against Washington State in Corvallis, Oregon. (AP Photo/Chris Pietsch)

The NCAA Division I baseball tournament begins Friday, and the entirety of the Snohomish County presence in this year’s tournament resides in Corvallis, Oregon.

Four players who graduated from Snohomish County high schools are on the rosters of the 64 tournament teams, and all four play for the Oregon State University Beavers. Oregon State is the defending national champion, and the 16th-seeded Beavers (36-18-1) are hosting a regional this weekend. One team will emerge from the grouping of Oregon State, Creighton, Michigan and Cincinnati and advance to Super Regionals.

The Beavers open the regional at 7 p.m. Friday against Cincinnati. The regional is a double-elimination tournament that continues through Monday.

Here’s a capsule look at the four locals who play for the Beavers:

1. Jake Mulholland

Position: Relief pitcher

Year: Junior

High school: Snohomish

Stats: 3-2, 1.81 ERA, eight saves

The lowdown: Mulholland is in his third season as Oregon State’s closer. The left-hander played a crucial role in the Beavers’ championship run last year, making four appearances at the College World Series in Omaha and picking up a win and a save. He’s picked up right where he left off last season as he leads Oregon State in pitching appearances (26) and saves, and he ranks second on the staff in ERA among players with at least 25 innings pitched.

2. Ryan Ober

Position: First base

Year: Sophomore

High school: Glacier Peak

Stats: .271, three home runs, 22 RBI

The lowdown: After being a bit player for the Beavers as a freshman, Ober has started the majority of the games at first base for Oregon State this year, spending part of the season as the cleanup hitter, and he ranks fourth on the team in batting average, homers and RBI. Among his highlights was belting a grand slam for his first collegiate home run in a 10-5 victory over fellow NCAA tournament team California on March 24.

Kyler McMahan

Position: Outfield

Year: Sophomore

High school: Lynnwood

Stats: .246, 10 doubles, 14 RBI

The lowdown: McMahan, like Ober, played sparingly last year as a freshman, but has started the majority of Oregon State’s games this season, primarily in center field, though he’s also seen starts in right. This was after McMahan was recruited as a shortstop out of high school and played second base for OSU as a freshman. He’s been deployed all over the batting order.

Carter Booth

Position: Outfield

Year: Freshman

High school: Jackson

Stats: none

The lowdown: Booth has not appeared in a game for Oregon State this season.

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