Let's play some (more) baseball!

A few weeks ago, just before the Kansas baseball team welcomed West Virginia to town for a monster series late in the Big 12 Conference season, KU coach Dan Fitzgerald joked that the series was the biggest one during his time at Kansas because it was the next one. 

Same treatment here, as the Jayhawks (45-16) prepare to face Oklahoma (36-22) in a best-of-three Super Regional with a trip to the College World Series in Omaha on the line. 

Super Regional Schedule for Hoglund Ballpark

Game 1: Saturday, June 6, 5 p.m. (central) on ESPN2 

Game 2: Sunday, June 7, 5 p.m. (central) TV TBD 

Game 3 (if necessary): Monday, June 8, Time & TV TBD 

Don’t get me wrong. These guys fully understand what’s happening this weekend, even if no one at KU has ever seen anything like it on the baseball diamond. 

But part of the reason they’ve reached this point is that they’ve treated everything that’s come their way with the same mindset and approach from the start of the season to last week’s regional win. 

It’s just the way the Jayhawks are wired, both individually as people and players, and as it has been modeled for them at the top by Fitzgerald and his coaching staff, who have built this program on that very notion during the past four years. 

“Great practice, guys are ready to go,” Fitzgerald said Friday during his final meeting with the media before the first pitch of the series. “Incredible time of year to be playing baseball. … It's pretty special. Like, there's 16 of us left, and, yeah, we can’t wait.” 

This Jayhawk roster is full of guys who back up that claim with their energy, excitement and effort. Some see it as cliché to hear guys talk about what a blessing it is to show up to the park every day and play a kid’s game and compete with their teammates. But this group truly values all of that. 

And they’re not about to change their approach now. 

Take Game 1 starting pitcher Dom Voegele, for example. During the past 6 or so weeks, Voegele has been as good, as impressive and as dominant as just about any pitcher in America. 

And Saturday’s game — 5 p.m. central first pitch on ESPN2 — no doubt will be the biggest start of his life to date. 

But you wouldn’t know that from talking to him. Same dude. Same poise. Same even-keeled personality. Same pregame prep and approach. 

“I mean, personally, I like to just relax and try not to do too much, kind of save all my energy for tomorrow,” Voegele said Friday. “But in the weight room, we'll do like an explosive lift, and then out on the field, just light catch, make sure everything's still feeling good, and just prepare mentally tonight for the game.” 

That’s all standard stuff for the KU ace. So, does anything change at all, given the stakes or circumstances of Saturday’s opener? 

“I mean, not really,” he said. “It’s get a good night's sleep, hydrate, and just see my pitches at night, before I go to bed.” 

One of the things that makes that easier to do than, say, what this team was asked to do last week in winning a four-team regional, is that the Super Regional format features just one other opponent. 

Last week, the Jayhawks had to prepare three separate scouting reports for three teams and they did not know who they would play or when past the regional opener. 

As it turned out, Kansas, which went 3-0 in winning the regional, never even had to play one of the teams it scouted. They beat Northeastern in the opener and then Arkansas twice to clinch the regional, avoiding Missouri State altogether. 

This weekend, it’s all-Oklahoma all the time. 

“It's kind of like what we've been doing all year,” Voegele said. “Preparing for the three-game series, like in conference too. So, I mean, I feel like we're pretty well prepared for that.” 

Added KU senior Dariel Osoria: “It is like a better comfortability, just knowing, all right, we're just going one day and facing this team and the same thing the next. Going out there facing the same group of guys, it's just more easier.” 

“Incredible time of year to be playing baseball. … It's pretty special. Like, there's 16 of us left, and, yeah, we can’t wait.” 

— KU baseball coach Dan Fitzgerald on playing in a Super Regional

That fact works in the favor of both teams, so it’s not as if either really has an advantage because of it. It’s more of the benefits that come from the feeling of getting back to normal after the more unusual regional format. 

Oklahoma coach Skip Johnson, said his team has plenty of experience in both settings and made sure to point out that, no matter how the weekends are set up, baseball is anything but easy. 

“It’s an imperfect game,” Johnson said of baseball in general. “And so it reveals your character.”

So far, the character of this Kansas team has shown itself to be made up of three key ingredients. 

• A loose and light-hearted approach. 

• The ability to grind every game to the final out. 

• Extreme confidence. 

All three were on display Friday, both during KU’s open practice on the Hoglund Ballpark field and during their afternoon press conference. 

That’s impressive on the heels of the Jayhawks’ historic achievement of a week ago and in the face of an experience that might — and likely will — surpass even that. 

“I think back to last year when (Osoria) hit a walk-off home run against Nebraska-Omaha and our student section spilled out on the field, and (that was) kind of the start of the madness, and it's just continued to grow and grow,” Fitzgerald said. “But it's been amazing, and the way our administration has responded with, we built that ‘Backyard’ pretty quick, and now I've noticed we've got stuff going up in right field, as well. So, it's been amazing. I think that the energy around everything here right now is fantastic.” 

Fitzgerald continued: “Last weekend there were moments where you thought, ‘Man, this is tough to top.’ But I certainly anticipate it being really special tomorrow.”

R1S1 Sports coverage from KU's Regional Championship...

• Jayhawks clinch regional title

• Dariel Osoria delivered in more ways than one

• Ballinger born to be in The Backyard

• A generational joining of hands

• Cook goes toe-to-toe with likely 1st-round pick

• Juiced up Jayhawks top Arkansas to move to 2-0 in regional play

• Records fall in KU's 6-3 win in regional opener

Some of our favorite Jayhawk stories from the season so far

• Fitzgerald's philosophy proving true - KU coach believes teams that have the most postseason fun tend to do the best & boy are these Jayhawks having fun

• What drives Kansas centerfielder Jordan Bach? - Here's a hint, it's not stats or individual accolades.

• Jayhawks win outright Big 12 title - Putting KU's first ever Big 12 crown in the proper context and perspective

• Stop us if you've heard this one... - Jayhawks validate regular season title by winning school's second ever Big 12 tourney trophy

• Jayhawks draw No. 15 national seed for this weekend's regional at KU - KU opens postseason play at Noon on Friday against Northeastern at Hoglund Ballpark

• Meet the Jayhawks - A deeper look at who these guys really are, outside of their baseball stats and stardom

• Hoglund upgrades 20+ years in the making - and they may still be just getting started

• The man behind the mask - What catcher Augie Mungarrieta has meant to KU

• From France to Friday nights - The story of KU pitcher Mathis Nayral

• Coming out of his shell - This season has been so much fun even normally-reserved KU ace Dom Voegele has allowed his emotions to show

• All he does is win - KU shortstop Tyson LeBlanc has done nothing but win in the game of baseball since he started playing and he hasn't slowed down in Lawrence

• Ready and willing - How KU's starting infield set the tone for this team's incredible work ethic

• Red-hot Jayhawks working magic recipe for another memorable run - Juco recruiting, hard work, being incredible teammates, it's all part of the magic that KU coach Dan Fitzgerald has brought to Lawrence

— For tickets to all KU athletic events, visit kuathletics.com