Just over three weeks ago Oregon State University handed over the keys to a new 9,600 square-foot, state-of-the-art batting facility behind Goss Stadium.
“Shiny things are nice, but it’s the people that really make this place click,” said head coach Mitch Canham. “When it comes to facilities, this is just the first step of a handful of others that are going to follow and continue to make this place great.”
In July 2023, OSU Athletics and Vice President and Director of Intercollegiate Athletics Scott Barnes announced its just under eight million dollar construction.
Oregon State Baseball is one of two athletic programs that has a facility specifically dedicated to their program.
“It opens up a whole entire new opportunity of development for us,” said junior outfielder Gavin Turley. “It’s something that has been a long time coming but is going to help us in the long run.”
The facility includes four batting cages, a weight room, a meeting room and advanced technology for gathering data on hitters’ and pitchers’ development.
“Having four batting lanes allows all of our guys to get a more diversified approach to hitting,” Canham said. “If one guy wants to work off coach pitch, the other guys want to work off machine and the other guy wants to do rehab and do some tee work, there are enough lanes (that) guys can get work in without trying to fight over time.”
The Director of Baseball Operations Ryan Gorton stated in an interview in March 2024 that the facility will include technologies like HitTrax, Edgertronic slow-motion cameras and TrackMan.
One of the favorite features of junior outfielder Dallas Macias is the smart computerized pitching machine, iPitch.
“An iPitch has an iPad connected to it, where you can put the exact mile per hour on the pitch, RPMs, and you can program it to be a certain guy’s sequence and has similar metrics to his pitches,” Macias said.
Macias and the team toured the facility for the first time at the end of October.
“Growing up as a kid from Colorado, being able to go into a cage and have full access like this all the time is something that is pretty awesome,” Macias said. “It’s a dream come true for me and something I’m definitely going to utilize a lot.”
Each player has access through their keycard, which allows them to use the facility at any hour of the day.
“It’s freedom,” Turley said. “If I find myself not doing something, I can go in there all hours of the night, whether it is to hit or lift, I can always get in work when I need to.”
“It allows for our student-athletes to be flexible with their schedules and also continue to seek excellence at all times of the day,” Canham said. “Not only for our current guys but for our alumni to come back … and train.”
While it may seem like batting technology is the pride and joy of the facility, a bonus is its location.
Since the development center is located behind Goss Stadium, it allows the team to stay in one place.
Before the team would have to head across campus near Reser Stadium to the indoor athletics facility called Truax, shared with many of Oregon State’s athletic programs.
The OSU baseball program was established in 1907 and has won three National Championships and 26 conference championships.
“We are a crucial part of this University, so the support we get back really goes to show why we keep winning,” Turley said about what OSU’s commitment to their program means to him.
Last season, Beaver baseball had a record-breaking season, making it to the Super Regionals and having one of their players, Travis Bazzana, drafted first overall in the MLB.
While seven Beaver players were drafted in the 2024 draft, the majority of the team remained with the program because there is still work to get done.
“My main personal goal is to win this year and take the boys to Omaha,” Macias said. “(The facility) is definitely going to help us get all the work in we need to win a National Championship.”
Macias and Turley are just two of the star veteran players here to stay at Oregon State.
“All of our key players … they all stayed, why didn’t they leave?” Canham asked. “Because of the culture, the development and the brotherhood this year.”
Canham was a catcher at Oregon State from 2005 to 2007, winning back-to-back National Championships.
He returned to Corvallis in 2020 with hopes of bringing home more hardware to the university.
“I came into this job wanting to leave (the program) in a better place than when I first got here,” Canham said. “Our hearts driven behind this place allow us to overcome any kind of adversity that comes our way.”
Oregon State has captivated a culture with the construction of the facility that entices past, present and future players to stay at the school.
“The best way to describe it is that we are all very grateful for (the facility) and it shows a lot of commitment that Oregon State has to the baseball program,” Macias said. “All the guys and coaching staff are super grateful to have the opportunity to train in such a nice facility.”