College Baseball 360 » Adalberto Santos

Oregon State Knocks Off UCLA

Sean Stires — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 11:15:42 +0000

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OSU’s Peavey Wins Duel With UCLA’s Cole

Collegebaseball360.com’s West Coast correspondent, Chase Titleman from Road2rosenblatt.com, was at Friday’s Oregon State-UCLA game and shares his thoughts.

Corvallis, OR–Coming into Friday’s PAC-10 Conference clash between # 3 UCLA and #12 Oregon State, if you had the ability to look into a magical crystal ball which would foretell a 2-hit complete game victory by a starting pitcher, you would automatically assume a victory by Bruins over the Beavers since UCLA arguably has the best pitching staff in the country.

Especially considering the Bruins entered the game with a team batting average of .347 with four starters hitting over or near the vaunted .400 benchmark level, and a pitching staff with an overall team ERA of 2.43, nearly five points ahead of its opponents average (7.13 ERA).

Opponents in 2010, after all, have a cumulative .192 average versus UCLA’s entire arsenal of power arms.

#24 Greg Peavey is congratulated after OSU's win (Chase Titleman photo)

Many of the baseball experts around the country have voiced their opinion that the Beavers, with a struggling hitting line-up and a pitching staff frantically trying to stay healthy, would stand very little chance against the hot-hitting bats and powerful arms of the Bruins.

Think again folks, the experts were wrong.

RHP Greg Peavey pitched a complete game 2 hitter, with 7 strike-outs as Oregon State once again used its uncanny formula of outstanding pitching, phenomenal defense and timely hitting to shock the Bruins, 4-1 in the first game of a key PAC-10 series that could have regional and super-regional implications on the road to Omaha.

UCLA’s counter-part, RHP Gerrit Cole (2.49 ERA, 6-0) added to his league leading 61 strike-outs, garnering 9 more on the night, but after a 30 pitch first inning by Cole energized the Beaver dugout and the 2,500 rabid fans in attendance, the first inning momentum swing was an ominous sign of more misfortune to come for UCLA.

Cole started the game strong by striking out Oregon State lead off hitter Adalberto Santos on five pitches, but then proceeded to throw 9 straight balls out of the strike zone, culminating in three walks, sandwiched around a hit batter, and Gerrit forced in the first run of the game without a ball touching a Beaver bat.

Although Cole struggled in doing so, he proceeded to strike out the next two batters to end the threat, but he never really got control of his secondary pitches on the night, the slider in particular.

UCLA, the hot-hitting offensive team of the two entering the game, never had a chance to get started as Adalberto Santos ran down two deep fly balls hit by (SS) Niko Gallego and (3B) Cody Regis that were caught as he banged into the outfield wall in right-center field.

UCLA suffered its third loss of the season and the last week Friday.

Santos, together with middle infielders Carter Bell (SS) and Keith Jennette (2B) were busy on the night recording 12 of Peavey’s 27 outs. Overall, including the 7 strikeouts, only 6 balls left the infield all night, a rather uncharacteristic effort by what has been a fantastic Bruin offense this season.

While Cole continued to struggle with his pitch count most of the evening (he threw 120 pitches in 6 complete innings) the Bruins ran themselves out of a potential game changing big-inning in the 4th as (2B) Tyler Rahmatulla walked after (CF) Beau Amaral lined out sharply to left to lead off the inning.

Left-handed hitting (1B) Justin Uribe hit a perfectly executed opposite field hit and run through the six hole as Oregon State (SS) Carter Bell was covering the bag, and with one out in the inning, the Bruins were in business.

Peavey dug himself a bigger hole when he walked the next batter, (LF) Cody Keefer to load the bases.

Then, disaster struck for UCLA, further cementing an ominous tone for the Bruins in the first game of the series.

(3B) Cody Regis hit a fairly deep fly-ball to left-center, which scored Rahmatulla from third base on the sacrifice fly, but for whatever reason, Justin Uribe failed to advance all the way to third base after initially starting out for the bag, and Keefer kept running with his head down from first, assuming Uribe was headed to third.

By the time the two realized they both occupied second base, the ball was already in the infield and Uribe was tagged out by OSU (3B) Stefen Romero.

Inning over and the wave of momentum the Beavers were steadily building through the middle part of the game would soon crest over.

From here on out, the wind went out of the Bruin’s sail as they had just one other runner on the base paths the rest of the evening as Peavey retired 15 of the next sixteen UCLA hitters, getting six of his 7 strike-outs during the span of five scoreless innings through the middle portion of the game.

Although the hard-throwing right-hander from Vancouver (WA) struggled with a 24-pitch first inning and a 20-pitch fourth inning, he never threw more than 11 pitches in innings number 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 8.

This in itself was the story line of the game.

In talking with OSU Associate Head Coach Marty Lees before the game, he mentioned that UCLA’s strength this year was their ability to run the count deep and work a walk, where in years past they were largely an overly aggressive first ball hitting team that could be fished in to hitting pitchers pitches.

The ability to run the count deep has improved the team batting average and on-base percentage as it has forced Bruin opponents into using their bullpen sooner than anticipated, which has helped the Bruin batting averages in the process as they force the starters off the bump and get deep into the pen.

But on this night, the tables were turned.

Oddly enough, the statement by Lee’s proved prophetical, as the Bruins let Peavey off the hook in the middle innings by reverting back to old form, swinging at the first pitch and hitting a rather large number of balls into the “Field Turf,” which plays into Oregon State’s strength.

The Beavers stole the momentum and the game in the process.

The big blow for the Beavers occurred in the seventh as light hitting (RF) Michael Miller, who was hitting a meager .193 entering the game, hit a line drive opposite field double down the right-field line and OSU had a man in scoring position to lead off the inning.

On a 1-2 pitch, (3B) Stefen Romero (.326) was plunked by LHH relief pitcher Mitchell Beacom (3.75, 1-0) on an inside fastball, which prompted Oregon State head coach Pat Casey to pinch-hit bunt specialist Andy Quiring for Danny Hayes, an odd move since Hayes was hitting .353 entering the game, but Casey obviously felt the lefty-lefty match-up with the bunt in order was not in OSU’s best interest.

However, on the first pitch to Quiring, the Beavers caught another break as Beacom drilled the second batter of the inning, this time an inside breaking ball, to load the bases.

This prompted UCLA head coach John Savage to pull Beacom after just 12 pitches, bringing in RHP Eric Goedell (3.15, 2-0)

The Beavers had the right man in the right spot as the rally train sounded its horn coming through the campus area next to the ballpark in Corvallis, and (C) Parker Berberet launched a 2-1 fastball into left center for a double, driving in all three base runners on base.

This had been a tradition at Oregon State for years and it is uncanny how many times the Beavers start a game changing rally after the rally train rolls through town, tooting its horn.

The horn was right on cue for the Beavers tonight and with a win in game two tomorrow, the Beavers can begin to toot their horn around the country in their drive to get back to the Dog pile in Omaha.

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Pac 10 Baseball 2010 Preview

Sean Stires — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 12:01:53 +0000

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Can ASU Keep On Winning Without Murphy?

2009 Pac 10 Champion: Arizona State (No Pac 10 Postseason Tournament)

The More Things Change…: There wasn’t much change at the top of the Pac 10 ranks, but there was some turnover in the middle. Arizona State’s 2009 Pac 10 title was its third straight to give the Sun Devils their 10th straight NCAA appearance. However, Washington State went from the bottom of the conference in 2008 to a second-place finish last year. It was the Cougars’ first top five finish in the conference since 1991 and they earned their first NCAA Regional appearance since 1990. Meanwhile, Oregon brought back baseball & played its first games since 1981, Oregon State was back in the tournament after staying home in 2008 and Stanford missed the NCAAs after a 2008 trip to the CWS. The biggest news from the Pac 10 in 2009 though came in the off season with the departure of ASU head coach Pat Murphy. The big question now is: Can ASU continue its success with a new head coach?

2010 Pac 10 Baseball Preview

Arizona

2009 Record: (30-25, 13-14)

Mascot: Wildcats

Head Coach: Andy Lopez

Location: Tucson, AZ

Vitals: .314 BA, 46 HR, 71 SB, .387 OBP, .965 Fld%…5.46 ERA, 0 CG, 13 SV, 379 K, 215 BB, .293 opp. BA

Slight Returns: The Wildcats have just 12 returning players from last year’s roster. They will have as many as 16 freshman on the roster this season.

The Holes: Pac 10 batting champion Dillon Baird (.433, 8 HR, 55 RBIs) leads the list of departed players. Hunter Pace (.372, 15 SB) and Dwight Childs (.331) are gone from the line-up as well. Arizona also loses its top starting pitcher, Preston Guilmet (6-5, 3.74 ERA), as well as relievers Cory Burns (2-0, 3.80 ERA, 40 appearances) and Jason Stoffel (2-1, 4.67 ERA, 39 app., 11 SV).

Who’s Back: The top returning pitcher include Daniel Workman (3-1, 3.86 ERA), Joe Allison (5-1, 4.66 ERA) and Kyle Simon (3-5, 6.03 ERA, 11 starts). Bryce Ortega (.324, 16 SB) and Steve Selsky (.318 will lead the offense).

Family Ties: Brothers Michael and David Lopez will both wear the Wildcat uniform this season. Their dad is head coach Andy Lopez. Michael is a pitcher who redshirted last year, while David is a freshman infielder.

Tucson Time: Arizona plays its first 26 games, including its conference-opening series vs. Oregon, on its home

Tim Esmay (ASU photo)

field in Tucson, AZ. The Wildcats have a total of 44 home games in 2010.

Arizona State

2009 Record: (51-14, 21-6)

Mascot: Sun Devils

Head Coach: Tim Esmay

Location: Tempe, AZ

Vitals: .303 BA, 75 HR, 116 SB, .418 OBP, .969 Fld%…2.90 ERA, 11 CG, 12 SV, 608 K, 157 BB, .239 opp. BA

Meet The New Boss: Pat Murphy is gone after 15 seasons in the desert. Murphy’s last win in a Sun Devil uniform was a 12-5 victory over North Carolina in Omaha, and it was the 1,000th of his career. New head coach Tim Esmay is no stranger to the ASU

Kole Calhoun

program. He played in the College World Series for Jim Brock’s Sun Devils in 1987 and ’88, and he was also an assistant to Murphy for the last five seasons. Esmay was also the head coach at Utah from 1997-2004.

Line-Up Lowdown: ASU returns 7 of its top 9 hitters who saw significant action in 2009. The glaring losses are Pac 10 Player of the Year Jason Kipnis (.384, 16 HR, 71 RBIs, 27 SB) and catcher Carlos Ramirez (.338, 19 HR, 75 RBIs). However, Kole Calhoun (.313, 12 HR, 53 RBIs) is back for his senior season. Calhoun hit 3 HR with 11 RBIs in Omaha. Sophomores Johnny Ruettiger (.360, 12 SB) & Drew Maggi (.309, 21 SB) and junior Matt Newman (.305, 7 HR, 54 RBIs) all return as well.

Oh Brother: Senior co-captain Rauol Torrez (.250,15 SB) and soph. Riccio Torrez (.280, 6 HR) are the fifth set of brothers to play at ASU at the same time, but they are the first to start alongside one another in school history. All 54 of Rauol’s starts came at third base, while most of Riccio’s were at first base. The brothers are back as well to anchor the Sun Devil infield in 2010.

An Ace Down: RHP Mike Leake (16-1, 1.71 ERA, 7 CG) and LHP Josh Spence (10-1, 2.37 ERA) were both good enough to be any team’s ace last year, but only senior Spence is back this season. Leake signed after being taken in the first round of last year’s draft by Cincinnati. Spence decided to return for his year after going in the third round to the Angels. Other notable returning pitchers are LHP Mitchell Lambson (9-5, 3.01 ERA, 5 SV) and RHP Jordan Swaggerty (4-1, 4.50 ERA, 4 SV).

California

2009 Record: (24-29, 9-18)

Mascot: Golden Bears

Head Coach: David Esquer

Location: Berkeley, CA

Vitals: .298 BA, 65 HR, 66 SB, .375 OBP, .966 Fld%…5.74, 2 CG, 13 SV, 423 K, 249 BB, .284 opp. BA

Big Bear Losses: Cal loses three of its top four batters from last year, including two-way player Blake Smith (.319, 10 HR, 38 RBIs), who was drafted in the second round last year by the Dodgers. Smith had two saves out of the

Mark Canha (Cal photo)

bullpen while starting three games as well. Jeff Kobernus (.341, 8 HR, 20 SB) and Brett Jackson (.321, 8 HR, 11 SB) are both gone as well.

Top Bear Back: Cal’s top overall hitter, Mark Canha, is returns. The junior led Cal in average (.366), HR (12), RBIs (43), slg% (.634), and OBP (.444). Brian Guinn (.315, 10 SB) and Danny Oh (.303, 7 HR) is back as well.

Plenty Of Pitching: The Golden Bears return most of their pitchers from a staff that finished with the worst ERA in the conference last year. Reliver Dixon Anderson (3.98 ERA, 3 SV), LHP Chris Petrini (4-3, 3.98 ERA) and Erik Johnson (3-6, 4.41 ERA, 9 starts, CG, 4 SV) are among the top returnees.

No-Nonsense Non-Conference: In consecutive weeks Cal plays non-conference games vs. 2009 CWS team Arkansas (3 at home), 2009 Super Regional team Rice (4 in Houston) and ’09 NCAA team Cal Poly (3 on the road). They follow that with their Pac 10-opening series at Arizona State.

Call From The Hall: Former Cal head coach Bob Milano was inducted into the ABCA Hall of Fame in January. He won 688 games at Cal from 1978-1999 and led the Golden Bears to the College World Series in 1980, 1988 and 1992.

Oregon

2009 Record: (14-42, 4-23)

Mascot: Ducks

Head Coach: George Horton

Location: Eugene, OR

Vitals: .227 BA, 16 HR, 60 SB, .296 OBP, .961 Fld%…5.07 ERA, 4 CG, 8 SV, 357 K, 239 BB, .271 opp. BA

Growing Pains: Oregon fielded its first baseball team since 1981 last year, and things looked bright early when the Ducks beat St. Mary’s 5-3 in their season opener. They lost the next two games of the series, but then won 2 of 3 games at home vs. defending national champion Fresno State. That would be the high point of their inaugural season though, as they won just three games after March 31 en-route to a 14-win campaign. Oregon finished last in the Pac 10 in these (and a few other) statistical categories: Batting average, HR, runs, slg%, OBP, hits, RBIs, doubles, total bases, walks, strikeouts (by pitchers), saves. They also committed the second most errors (85) in the conference behind USC”S 101.

The Bright Side: After a bumpy first year George Horton returns all but five players who saw action last year, while nine freshmen and a handful of junior college transfers join the team. Here’s a look at some of the returnees with the category in which they led the Ducks last year Curt Raulinaitis (batting avg.-.291), K.C. Serna (RBIs-19 & HR-3), Danny Pulfer (starts-55 & BB-19), Drew Gagnier (ERA-2.70, appearances-23, saves-7). Starting pitchers Erik Stavert (5-6, 3.04 ERA, 14 starts) & Tyler Anderson (2-9, 15 starts) are both gone.

Homecoming: Oregon opens the season at Cal State Fullerton, where Horton played and later spent 11 seasons as the Titans’ head coach. Horton guided Fullerton to six College World Series appearances and the 2004 National Championship. Current Fullerton head coach Dave Serrano was an assistant under Horton.

Oregon State

2009 Record: (37-19, 15-12)

Mascot: Beavers

Head Coach: Pat Casey

Location: Corvallis, OR

Vitals: .278 BA, 23 HR, 53 SB, .392 OBP, .977 Fld%…3.93 ERA, 3 CG, 13 SV, 431 K, 199 BB, .245 opp. BA

Sam Gaviglio (OSU photo)

Locked Line-Up: Oregon State returns six starters from last year’s team. All-Pac 10 honoree Adalberto Santos (.320, 4 HR, 43 RBIs, 15 SB) and team HR and RBI leader Stefan Romero (..291, 5 HR, 51 RBIs) head the group.

Plus Pitching: The Beavers’ 3.93 team ERA ranked second in the Pac 10 last year to Arizona State, and they return two starters, Sam Gaviglio (10-1, 2.73 ERA) and Tyler Waldron (6-4, 4.15 ERA), and closer Kevin Rhoderick (3-3, 4.18 ERA, 9 SV). Gaviglio was a Freshman All-American last year.

Turn The Page: Baseball America recently named Oregon State the #2 team of the past decade, while tabbing head coach Pat Casey the coach of the decade. The Beavers won back-to-back National Championships in 2006 and 2007 and made an additional trip to Omaha. They averaged 35.6 wins a season from 2000-2009.

Stanford

2009 Record: (30-25, 13-14)

Mascot: Cardinal

Head Coach: Mark Marquess

Location: Palo Alto, CA

Vitals: .279 BA, 49 HR, 46 SB, .360 OBP, .977 Fld%…5.12 ERA, 2 CG, 8 SV, 381 K, 222 BB, .268 opp. BA

Rare Absence: After a trip to the 2008 College World Series Stanford missed the NCAA Tournament last year. It was

Colin Walsh (Stanford photo)

the second time in three seasons that the Cardinal failed to receive a post season bid, but it’s also just the third time since 1990 that Stanford did not at least go to an NCAA Regional.

Core Cardinals: Stanford returns 2B Colin Walsh (.320, .466 OBP), SS Jeff Schlander (.232), catcher Zach Jones (.239, 3 HR), and OF Kellen Killsgard (.313, 9 HR, 46 RBIs). Walsh was the team’s top hitter as a sophomore and was named a Cape Cod League All-Star last summer, while Schlander was named the 2009 Pac 10 Defensive Player of the Year. The team loses top run producer Brent Milleville (.306, 14 HR, 52 RBIs).

Cardinal Arms: Starting pitchers Jordan Pries (4-4. 4.62 ERA) and LHP Brett Mooneyham (6-3, 4.14 ERA) are back to lead the weekend rotation. The duo combined to make 22 starts last year as freshmen.

Gerhart’s Gone: Two-sport sensation Toby Gerhart (.288, 7 HR, 36 RBIs, 7 SB) burst on the national scene on the football field in 2009. He was the Heisman Trophy runner-up and won the Doak Walker Award after rushing for a school record 1,871 yards and 28 TDs. Gerhart hit 16 home runs in three years with the Cardinal baseball team. He was an outfield starter on the 2008 CWS squad. He won’t play baseball this year as he prepares for the April NFL Draft.

Tough Tests: Stanford opens the season by hosting a 3-game series with perennial power Rice. They go to Austin, TX the next weekend for a 3-game set with 2009 national runner-up Texas.

UCLA

2009 Record: (27-29, 15-12)

Mascot: Bruins

Head Coach: John Savage

Location: Los Angeles, CA

Vitals: .285 BA, 54 HR, 55 SB, .382 OBP, .969 Fld%…4.28 ERA, 5 CG, 12 SV, 509 K, 197 BB, .259 opp. BA

Power Outage: UCLA loses its top two run producers, Cody Decker (.322, 21 HR, 53 RBIs) and Casey Haerther

Gerrit Cole

(.305, 9 HR, 42 RBIs) from last year’s team. Haerther was selected in the 5th round of last year’s MLB Draft by the Angels, while Decker was tabbed in the 22nd round by San Diego.

The Line-Up: Justin Uribe (.318, 3 HR, 23 RBIs) and Blair Dunlap (.301, 7 HR, 39 RBIs, 15 SB) are the top hitters back in the Bruin batting order. Uribe will move from the outfield to first base this year. Junior college transfer Dean Espy will be expected to step-in at third base as well.

Bruin Pitching: Sophomores Gerrit Cole (4-8, 3.49 ERA) and Trevor Bauer (9-3, 2.99 ERA, 4 CG) will lead the pitching rotation. Bauer had pitched a team-high of 105 1/3 IP last year. Cole is a Preseason All-American who struckout 104 in 85 IP last year. He pitched for the USA Collegiate National Team last summer.

Big 12 West: UCLA plays five games against three Big 12 teams in 2010. The Bruins host Oklahoma State in one of their three games in the Dodgertown Classic (Vanderbilt & USC are the other two opponents there). They also host a 3-game series vs. Nebraska and play Oklahoma in their last game of the Whataburger College Classic in Corpus Christi, TX.

USC

2009 Record: (28-28, 13-14)

Mascot: Trojans

Head Coach: Chad Kreuter

Location: Los Angeles, CA

Vitals: .274 BA, 41 HR, 58 SB, .359 OBP, .954 Fld%…4.06 ERA, 5 CG, 10 SV, 438 K, 231 BB, .259 opp. BA

Top Losses: USC loses three players, Grant Green (.374, 4 HR, 32 RBIs, 16 SB), Brad Boxberger (6-3, 3.16 ERA) and Robert Stock (5-4, 2.90 ERA, 4 SV), who were taken in the first two rounds of last year’s MLB Draft. Green went with the 13th overall pick to Oakland.

Returning Trojans: Ricky Oropesa (.314, 13 HR, 48 RBIs) was named a Freshman All-American last year. He and Mike O’Neill (.319) are the top returning players in the USC line-up. Sophomore RHP Andrew Triggs (5-3, 3.96 ERA) is expected to be the staff’s #1 starter. Fellow Soph. Chad Smith (3-4, 3.40 ERA) and Sr. Kevin Couture (3-3, 5.66 ERA) return as well.

New Faces In Many Places: A total of 15 newcomers (7 transfers and 8 freshman) will look to contribute for USC in 2010. One of them is redshirt sophomore Mike Greco, who hit .250 with 2 HR and 27 RBIs in 46 games as a freshman at Army. He sat out last year after transferring and will battle for a spot at first base this year.

Washington

2009 Record: (25-30, 13-14)

Mascot: Huskies

Head Coach: Lindsay Meggs

Location: Seattle, WA

Vitals: .265 BA, 64 HR, 42 SB, .357 OBP, .967 Fld%…4.88 ERA, 1 CG, 14 SV, 387 K, 194 BB, .276 opp. BA

Lindsay Meggs

New Skipper: 2010 will be Lindsay Meggs’ first season as head coach at Washington. He arrives after three seasons at Indiana State. Meggs was named the 2009 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year after guiding the Sycamores to a 33-21 record and a second-place conference finish. Prior to that Meggs spent 13 seasons at head coach at Chico State, where he won Division II National Championships in 1997 & 1999.

Draft Losses: The Huskies lose their top run producer, Ryan Conley (.303, 19 HR, 55 RBIs), who was taken by St. Louis in the 7th round of last year’s draft. Top reliever Brian Pearl (3.05 ERA, 8 SV) and starter Jason Erickson (5-4, 4.34 ERA) were both drafted and signed as well.

Husky Returns: Pierce Rankin (.299, 6 HR, 26 RBIs) and Troy Scott (11 HR, 31 RBIs) are the top returnees in the line-up. Sophomore Andrew Kittredge (4-5, 4.27 ERA, 3 SV, 7 starts) and LHP Geoff Brown (4-4, 5.01), who made 31 relief appearances, are among the top returning pitchers.

Big Home Slate: Washington’s first nine home games are three 3-game series vs. 2008 National Champion Fresno State, perennial power Cal State Fullerton and intrastate rival Washington State.

Washington State

2009 Record: (32-25, 19-8)

Mascot: Cougars

Head Coach: Donnie Marbut

Location: Pullman, WA

Vitals: .273 BA, 56 HR, 44 SB, .358 OBP, .971 Fld%…4.34 ERA, 1 CG, 15 SV, 453 K, 184 BB, .279 opp. BA

The Drought Is Over: Last year’s NCAA Regional appearance was the first for the program since 1990. The Cougars swept five series in 2009, including three in Pac 10 play. All of the sweeps came on their home diamond, where they had just three series sweeps in the previous 11 seasons combined.

Leaving & Staying: WSU loses its top three hitters, Alex Burg (.346, 7 HR), Jared Prince (.343, 7 HR) and Greg Lagreid (.332, 5 HR), from last year’s NCAA squad. They return stolen base leader Garry Kuykendall (.299, 11 SB), Matt Argyropoulos (.277), Shea Vucinich (.230, team-high 40 runs), and Derek Jones, who hit a team-best 12

Chad Arnold

home runs despite just a .223 batting average.

On The Mound: Junior Chad Arnold (8-3, 4.39 ERA) will lead the weekend rotation. Arnold got the team’s only NCAA win with an elimination game victory vs. Wichita State in the Norman, OK Regional. He’s joined by David Stilley (3-3, 4.64 ERA) and reliever Seth Harvey (2.25 ERA, 22 app.). The Cougars lose starter Matt Way (8-4, 2.43 ERA) and closer Jeremy Johnson (6-2, 2.90 ERA, 10 SV).

Texas Time: Washington State plays 12 of its first 18 games in the state of Texas. After four games in Lubbock they return home for a 4-game set vs. Utah and then return to the Lone Star State for three games at Texas A&M and two games at Dallas Baptist. They end their spring trip with a 3-game series in Wichita, KS vs. Wichita State.

2010 Pac 10 Conference Predictions

Player of the Year: Kole Calhoun – Arizona State

Pitcher of the Year: Sam Gaviglio – Oregon State

Conference Champion: Arizona State, with Oregon State giving the closest challenge