Linn-Benton baseball’s upcoming season hasn’t even loaded on the LB Athletics website yet, but the reigning NWAC champions are already back to work. Even though the NWAC baseball season doesn’t start until the spring, the Beaks played several exhibition games in the fall to stay sharp.
On Oct. 25, the Beaks took on Oregon State in an exhibition doubleheader in Corvallis. In the first game, Linn-Benton fell to one of the top Division I baseball programs in the country, 16-0.
“We played against them in 2022 and last year as well. We were a little more competitive in years past,” said Head Coach Andy Peterson of the matchup with the Beavers. “[We’re] good buddies with all the coaches, known them for a long time, and I’ve played and coached here as well. Obviously being right down the street, easy setup.”
Peterson didn’t have many positives to offer following the defeat, but a silver lining was that three of the Beavers’ players, pitchers Chase Reynolds, Kellan Oakes, and Ethan Kleinschmit, all began their college careers at LBCC.
“It’s pretty special to see them,” said Peterson. “I know they’re loving it. They have a blast. They love calling me and texting me – I get excited all the time, seeing the boys before the game and big hugs. Really, really happy for them, all of them are great kids. They deserve it.”
Peterson said there are aspects of Oregon State’s baseball program that he brings to LB’s: “The whole family aspect. It’s bigger than yourself, that kind of thing. You know, it really is a family here … trying to carry that same position over there at LB.”
The Roadrunners have been a powerhouse under Peterson, who’s led the team to a first place finish in the NWAC South in every full season he’s coached, including NWAC Championship victories in 2022 and 2024.
With the exhibition games over, the Beaks have plenty of time to prepare before the NWAC season, and the push for a championship repeat, begins. “We still have a good four months or so to dial some stuff in, and especially the JUCO thing – half our team is brand new every year,” said Peterson. “So it definitely takes a couple months to get everybody on board and thinking the same way.”
“We’ve seen them grow up really quick,” he said of the team’s freshmen. “They’re starting to figure it out. And you know, everybody shows up with big eyes and [you have to] kind of slow them down a little bit, not make the game so sped up, try to calm them down as much as we can. But they’re banding together pretty well. Practices are great. Weight room’s great.”
“They’re getting along, and it’s good fun.”
Ethan Birmingham contributed to this article.