ROCHESTER, Mich. – Winning 29 games and advancing to Championship Saturday of the Horizon League Tournament for the second-straight season, Oakland University came within a whisker of the program's first NCAA Tournament appearance in 2023 and many of the student-athletes on this team, plus some incoming freshmen, have continued playing into the summer.
A full table of up-to-date hitting and pitching statistics will be included at the bottom of this article, but we will individually highlight a handful of Golden Grizzlies having strong summers on both sides of the baseball.
An athletic, speedy incoming freshman outfielder from Marine City Cardinal Mooney Catholic, Trent Rice is hitting .283 (17-60) through his first 15 games with the Burlington (Iowa) Bees in the Prospect League. Having registered one double and a triple, he has swiped five bags in seven tries.
Fellow 2023 signee Aidan Orr, a middle infielder, has been off to a head-turning start with the unaffiliated Western Nebraska Pioneers, going 25-73 (.342) with 11 doubles, two home runs, 18 RBI and 18 runs scored through 20 games.
Among returning Oakland student-athletes, standout third baseman
Brandon Nigh, who is entering his junior year, has been his usual self for the Kenosha Kingfish in the Northwoods League, hitting .262 with a pair of doubles, three long balls, 11 RBI and 22 runs scored in 28 contests.
Redshirt junior outfielder
Liam Pollock, who recorded his first career home run in the Golden Grizzlies' April 10 victory over the Rochester University Warriors, is playing in the Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League (GLSCL) for the Jet Box Baseball Club and is swinging the bat at a .281 clip with nine RBI thus far.
Incoming freshman outfielder Trent Rice singling for the Burlington Bees.
Photograph courtesy of the Burlington Baseball Association.
Drew Gaskins, an incoming freshman middle infielder from Sunbury, Ohio, turning a double play for the Burlington Bees.
Photograph courtesy of the Burlington Baseball Association.
On the mound, Horizon League Reliever of the Year
Brandon Decker has picked up right where he left off in the Appalachian League, recording three saves and two wins while striking out 27 in 24.2 innings for the Bristol State Liners.
A teammate of Nigh's with Kenosha, 6-foot-4 right-hander
Jaxson Easterlin, who is entering his sophomore season in 2024, has a 4.11 ERA through six appearances (15.1 innings) and classmate
Tanner Ware, a lefty, has made six starts for another Northwoods League club, the Kalamazoo Growlers, registering an 18/5 K/BB ratio over 25 frames.
Entering his second year with Oakland after redshirting in 2023, left-hander
Ryan Donley pitching for the Burlington Bees.
Photograph courtesy of the Burlington Baseball Association.
Here is a table of where the Golden Grizzlies are playing this summer, followed by their statistics, which are as of Monday, July 10.
| Student-Athlete |
Team |
League |
| Ben Clark |
Western Nebraska Pioneers |
|
| Landon Clark |
Kamloops NorthPaws |
West Coast League (WCL) |
| Ian Cleary |
Jet Box Baseball Club |
Great Lakes Summer Collegiate League (GLSCL) |
| Brandon Decker |
Bristol State Liners |
Appalachian League |
| Ryan Donley |
Burlington Bees |
Prospect League |
| Drew Gaskins |
Burlington Bees |
Prospect League |
| Jaxson Easterlin |
Kenosha Kingfish |
Northwoods League |
| Rhys Francis |
Western Nebraska Pioneers |
|
| Boston Halloran |
Kansas Dirtbag Baseball Club |
Kansas Collegiate League Baseball (KCLB) |
| Brandon Heidal |
Kenosha Kingfish |
Northwoods League |
| Josh Korson |
Jet Box Baseball Club |
GLSCL |
| Brody Krzysiak |
Kenosha Kingfish |
Northwoods League |
| John Lauinger |
Jet Box Baseball Club |
GLSCL |
| Brandon Nigh |
Kenosha Kingfish |
Northwoods League |
| Aidan Orr |
Western Nebraska Pioneers |
|
| Liam Pollock |
Jet Box Baseball Club |
GLSCL |
| Trent Rice |
Burlington Bees |
Prospect League |
| Carson Smith |
Kansas Dirtbag Baseball Club |
KCLB |
| Tanner Sonntag |
Licking County Settlers |
GLSCL |
| Tanner Ware |
Kalamazoo Growlers |
Northwoods League |
HITTING (Sorted by batting average)
| Student-Athlete |
G |
BA |
AB |
H |
R |
2B |
RBI |
SB |
Positions |
| Boston Halloran |
5 |
.368 |
19 |
7 |
7 |
0 |
3 |
1-1 |
3B/SS |
| Aidan Orr |
20 |
.342 |
73 |
25 |
18 |
11 |
18 |
2-4 |
2B/SS |
| Carson Smith |
4 |
.300 |
10 |
3 |
0 |
0 |
2 |
0-0 |
OF |
| Trent Rice |
15 |
.283 |
60 |
17 |
8 |
1 |
5 |
5-7 |
OF |
| Liam Pollock |
22 |
.281 |
64 |
18 |
7 |
3 |
9 |
0-1 |
OF |
| Brandon Nigh |
28 |
.262 |
107 |
28 |
22 |
2 |
11 |
3-5 |
3B |
| Ben Clark |
6 |
.217 |
23 |
5 |
5 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
C |
| Landon Clark |
16 |
.147 |
34 |
5 |
4 |
0 |
5 |
6-7 |
OF |
| Drew Gaskins |
19 |
.143 |
49 |
7 |
10 |
1 |
5 |
0-0 |
IF |
| Brandon Heidal |
13 |
.115 |
26 |
3 |
6 |
0 |
2 |
0-0 |
C |
| Tanner Sonntag |
4 |
.091 |
11 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0-0 |
SS |
| Ian Cleary |
1 |
.000 |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0-0 |
OF |
| John Lauinger |
1 |
.000 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0-0 |
OF |
PITCHING (Sorted by ERA)
