Chris Osborne's big bat a welcome addition in the Southeast Missouri State baseball lineup

About a month ago, Southeast Missouri State hitting coach Matt Borgschulte and pitching coach Lance Rhodes were hanging out at the team's hotel prior to the Redhawks' first Ohio Valley Conference series of the season at Eastern Kentucky.

The pair was trying to think of some way to loosen the players up during games.

"It seemed like we were playing a little bit tight and we came up with this idea to take a little bit of pressure off of them and focus more on hitting the ball hard as opposed to getting hits," Borgschulte said, "and I think that loosened the guys up a little bit and let them play with a little bit more fun than the stress that the game can cause on you."

After a trip to the Dick's Sporting Goods store across the street from the hotel and the purchase of a red, plastic baseball bat, the Big Barrel Bat award was born.

The bat is handed out after each game with the recipient being the player who hit the most balls on the barrel of the bat that day. A Sharpie marker is also given to the player to sign his name to it, and at the end of the season whichever player's signature graces the little red bat the most gets to keep it.

Junior Chris Osborne's appears to be the front-runner -- he had it three consecutive games in a row, and Borgschulte said he probably could've gotten it on Tuesday in the Redhawks' win over Arkansas State.

But Osborne, who became the first Southeast player to hit for the cycle since 2003 on Sunday, is definitely not keeping track.

The right fielder, designated hitter and occasional pinch hitter -- who coach Steve Bieser called the "ultimate team player" -- tries not to think too much about the individual success he's having so far this season. As long as what he's doing is helping the Redhawks continue on in their quest for a third consecutive OVC regular-season title and more, then he's satisfied.

"He's a great kid, there's no question about that. He's a tough player, very competitive and you know that you're going to get everything he's got out of him every single time he's in there," Borgschulte said. "And the great thing about him is he's going to do whatever it takes -- if you need him to bunt, if you need him to do whatever, he's willing to do that and do whatever it takes for the team to help us win. To have a kid like that in the lineup and having the success that he has is key to success as a team offensively."

Osborne, from Edmonds, Wash., played two seasons at Edmonds Community College. It was through former hitting coach Dillon Lawson, who departed to take a coaching job in the Houston Astros' minor league system in January, and his connections that the Redhawks found Osborne.

His ability to hit for a high average, speed and strong arm in the outfield, as well as his hardworking nature, made him a perfect fit for Southeast's program, according to Bieser, and Osborne wanted to go somewhere and have a "chance to do something special."

His best may be yet to come, as Osborne works back from an ankle injury that's affected him the past two years. Osborne underwent surgery in December of 2014 and then against last March before redshirting for the 2015 season. He spent a lot of time in the weight room working on building strength and around the team to soak in as much as he could about the game, and was able to start batting again last May before playing ball throughout the summer.

Bieser said he's still struggling with some pains, including a wrist issue that keeps him out of the lineup occasionally, with his effectiveness decreasing after a playing a few games in a row.

He's played in 22 of the Redhawks' 33 games and been in the starting lineup 13 times. He's had six multi-hit games and seven games with multiple RBIs.

"He could be disappointed about maybe not playing every day of this season, but he also knows that's what's best for him right now," Bieser said. "The goal with him is to have him more healthy at the end of the year rather than beat him up right now and not have him down the stretch."

Osborne is hitting .411 on the season. Eight of his 23 hits have been home runs, which leads the team and is tied for second in the Ohio Valley Conference, and he's got a slugging percentage of .893. He's driven in 20 runs and scored 19 in 56 at-bats.

"Whatever's been working is going to keep working, so just keep the same mindset, keep going in there and just know how the pitcher's going to work me and go in there with a plan," Osborne said.

"I've really been trying to watch pitch sequences, and knowing what pitches are going to be coming in certain counts and try to be aggressive to the first pitch I can hit."

Borgschulte agreed that his approach at the plate right now is solid and that his increased confidence has kept him locked in to it.

"He knows that the first available pitch that he can hit he's going to take a good, confident swing at, and I think that's why he's been so successful," Borgschulte said. "He's not waiting around to get that perfect pitch. That first one that he can get a good swing on he's attacking it and putting a lot of barrels on it."

Osborne had no problem putting together good at-bats in Southeast's series finale versus Austin Peay on Sunday. After dropping their first two games to the Govs to snap an 11-game winning streak and their undefeated OVC record, the Redhawks rebounded for a 7-3 victory. Osborne went 4-for-5 with two RBIs and three runs scored as he hit for the cycle.

The last Southeast player to do so was Denver Stuckey in 2003.

Osborne singled in the second, struck out in the third, homered in the fifth, tripled in the eighth and doubled in the ninth to accomplish the feat.

He had no idea it had happened until he hit the final double and APSU's third baseman told him.

"I thought it was pretty cool, but I was focused more on the game because it was a big game for us, trying to come out and get a game in that series," Osborne said, adding with a laugh that his teammates were probably more excited than he was.

He followed that up by going 3-for-6 with a home run Tuesday against Arkansas State.

Osborne and the Redhawks, who are 23-10 and 13-2 in conference, begin a three-game series with Eastern Illinois tonight at 6 at Capaha Field.

"I think we're starting to work together as an offense," Osborne said. "We're starting to understand our roles and what we need to do to make the guy behind us more successful. I think that's what's starting to get our offense going."