Photo by: Oklahoma City Dodgers
Oaks Scheduled for First MLB Start
4/26/2018 3:23:00 PM | Baseball
RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Trevor Oaks has been called up to make his Major League Debut with the Kansas City Royals on Saturday against the Chicago White Sox. It will also be the debut of a California Baptist University Lancer on the big stage.
Oaks is penciled in to start the first game of a doubleheader with the Chicago White Sox on Saturday at 11:15 a.m. PDT at the Royals' Kauffman Stadium. The 24-year-old right-handed pitcher comes in ranked 13th in the Royals' list of Top-30 Prospects.
"We couldn't be more pleased for Trevor and his family," CBU Coach Gary Adcock said. "This opportunity is the culmination of hard work, perseverance and prayer."
This ascension to the peak of professional baseball for Oaks was accelerated by a January trade that moved Oaks to the Royals from the Los Angeles Dodgers in January of this year, as it moved him from a World Series team deep with top pitching to a team in the middle of a rebuild.
It is also a development some Royals fans have been eager for, as RoyalsReview.com made "The Case for Trevor Oaks in the Royals Rotation" in a blog post on Wednesday.
This year marks Oaks' fifth in professional baseball after spending the last four years in the minor leagues. The Dodgers drafted Oaks in the seventh round at 219 overall of the 2014 MLB First-Year Player Draft.
With the change of scenery, Oaks has impressed with his new coaches, teammates and followers in Kansas City. He has compiled a 1-2 record, 3.09 earned-run average and 1.07 WHIP in four starts so far this year with the AAA Omaha Storm Chasers. Over his minor-league career, Oaks has a 32-15 record, 3.26 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 303 strikeouts.
Earlier in 2014, Oaks was the ace of CBU's pitching staff and was one of eight finalists for the Brett Tomko award, which is given to the best NCAA Division II pitcher each season. He was a three-time Division II All-American after picking up honors from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, Daktronics and American Baseball Coaches Association.
While Oaks will be the first Lancer to debut in the MLB, there are several who are knocking on the door right now. Fellow pitchers Caleb Dirks and Adam Hofacket are currently at the Triple-A level of the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim organizations and have both been ranked as top-30 prospects before. Catcher Sharif Othman is in Double-A with the Miami Marlins after starting out at Triple-A this year.
"CBU Baseball and the CBU Athletic Department have had the privilege of being a part of the development spiritually, academically and athletically of so many wonderful athletes," Adcock said. "To have Trevor be the first to represent us at the highest level of professional sports, on such a grand stage is perfect."
This could be the next chapter of CBU's professional success, as Othman, Dirks and Hofacket could be joining an MLB roster very soon, as well. Thirty-one Lancers have been drafted in the MLB over the past 36 years, with Adcock having 20 of his players drafted over his 14 years coaching at CBU. At least one Lancer has been selected in the MLB Draft in each of the last eight years.
First things first, Saturday will be a chance for Oaks and the rest of the Lancer nation to enjoy the beginning of something special. Adcock and Assistant Coaches Andrew Brasington and Mark Van Meter will be there to witness it in person.
"We are immensely proud of him and excited to see him attack the zone and compete like we know he will," Adcock said before concluding, "Lance Up!"
Oaks is penciled in to start the first game of a doubleheader with the Chicago White Sox on Saturday at 11:15 a.m. PDT at the Royals' Kauffman Stadium. The 24-year-old right-handed pitcher comes in ranked 13th in the Royals' list of Top-30 Prospects.
"We couldn't be more pleased for Trevor and his family," CBU Coach Gary Adcock said. "This opportunity is the culmination of hard work, perseverance and prayer."
This ascension to the peak of professional baseball for Oaks was accelerated by a January trade that moved Oaks to the Royals from the Los Angeles Dodgers in January of this year, as it moved him from a World Series team deep with top pitching to a team in the middle of a rebuild.
It is also a development some Royals fans have been eager for, as RoyalsReview.com made "The Case for Trevor Oaks in the Royals Rotation" in a blog post on Wednesday.
This year marks Oaks' fifth in professional baseball after spending the last four years in the minor leagues. The Dodgers drafted Oaks in the seventh round at 219 overall of the 2014 MLB First-Year Player Draft.
With the change of scenery, Oaks has impressed with his new coaches, teammates and followers in Kansas City. He has compiled a 1-2 record, 3.09 earned-run average and 1.07 WHIP in four starts so far this year with the AAA Omaha Storm Chasers. Over his minor-league career, Oaks has a 32-15 record, 3.26 ERA, 1.16 WHIP and 303 strikeouts.
Earlier in 2014, Oaks was the ace of CBU's pitching staff and was one of eight finalists for the Brett Tomko award, which is given to the best NCAA Division II pitcher each season. He was a three-time Division II All-American after picking up honors from the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, Daktronics and American Baseball Coaches Association.
While Oaks will be the first Lancer to debut in the MLB, there are several who are knocking on the door right now. Fellow pitchers Caleb Dirks and Adam Hofacket are currently at the Triple-A level of the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim organizations and have both been ranked as top-30 prospects before. Catcher Sharif Othman is in Double-A with the Miami Marlins after starting out at Triple-A this year.
"CBU Baseball and the CBU Athletic Department have had the privilege of being a part of the development spiritually, academically and athletically of so many wonderful athletes," Adcock said. "To have Trevor be the first to represent us at the highest level of professional sports, on such a grand stage is perfect."
This could be the next chapter of CBU's professional success, as Othman, Dirks and Hofacket could be joining an MLB roster very soon, as well. Thirty-one Lancers have been drafted in the MLB over the past 36 years, with Adcock having 20 of his players drafted over his 14 years coaching at CBU. At least one Lancer has been selected in the MLB Draft in each of the last eight years.
First things first, Saturday will be a chance for Oaks and the rest of the Lancer nation to enjoy the beginning of something special. Adcock and Assistant Coaches Andrew Brasington and Mark Van Meter will be there to witness it in person.
"We are immensely proud of him and excited to see him attack the zone and compete like we know he will," Adcock said before concluding, "Lance Up!"
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