'Runners Pound Out 19 Hits in 13-3 Win Over Lions

Baseball April 12, 2010 CSU Bakersfield Athletic Communications

Baseball Takes One More Shot At Fresno State

THIS WEEK
On Tuesday, the Roadrunners travel to Fresno State for their final match-up of the season. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. at Beiden Field.

ON DECK
CSUB returns to Hardt Field for a three-game set against Big West member UC Davis. Play begins on Friday, Apr. 16 at 2:30 p.m. The teams also face off at 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday.

LIVE STATS
Live statistics are available for all four CSUB games this week. The link for both home and away games can be found on the baseball schedule page at GoRunners.com.

PROJECTED PITCHING MATCH-UPS
TUESDAY, APR. 13, 2010
CSUB: Mike McCarthy (RHP) (2-3)
FRESNO: Sean Bonesteele (RHP) (0-0)

'RUNNER REPORT
The Roadrunners went 2-2 last week, dropping a close 4-3 decision to Pac-10 member USC, then taking 2-of-3 from Cal State Northridge.

An eighth-inning long ball by the Trojans' home run leader Ricky Oropesa broke a 3-3 tie and thwarted CSUB's chances of taking down the historic program that has 12 national championships to its name.

The Roadrunners bounced back, however, earning a 6-3 win over Cal State Northridge on Friday. They followed with a 5-0 shutout of the Matadors on Saturday before dropping a 3-2 final in the series finale.

SCOUTING FRESNO STATE
Fresno State opened WAC play last week in Hawaii, taking three of four games against the Warriors. The Bulldogs are now 20-13 overall.

Hitting .313 as a team, the Bulldogs have eight regular members of their lineup batting over. 300. Extra-base hits are a favorite for Fresno State as they have knocked 76 doubles, eight triples and 35 home runs for a .485 team slugging percentage. Jordan Ribera leads the way with 10 doubles and 13 home runs for a team-high 33 RBIs. Brennan Gowens has a team high 13 doubles, while 11 total Bulldogs have hit at least one home run this season.

On the mound, the Bulldogs will start RHP Sean Bonesteele on Tuesday. He has recorded 11 strikeouts to go along with four walks and16 hits allowed in 17.1 innings. Bonesteele holds a 3.63 ERA, while the entire Fresno State staff averages 5.20 earned runs per game.

SERIES HISTORY VS. FRESNO STATE
This will be the fourth meeting between the Roadrunners and Bulldogs during the 2010 season. Fresno State swept the first three games, 10-4, 13-9 and 13-9, coming from behind in each game. The teams also met seven times during CSUB's inaugural season (2009), with Fresno State holding a slight 4-3 edge.

MIDWAY POINT
CSUB's Apr. 9 game against Cal State Northridge marked the midway point of the 56-game season. The Roadrunners made the best of the outing, collecting their 13th win of the season, matching last year's final win total.

At last year's midpoint, 25 games in, the Roadrunners held a 5-20 overall record. In that 25th game, they broke a 13-game losing streak with a 4-3 walk-off win over then defending national champion Fresno State. CSUB went on to go 8-17 in the second half of the season to finish 13-37.

HOT HITTERS
Jason Kudlock and Jeremy Rodriguez have held the hot bats for CSUB as of late.

Kudlock is riding an nine-game hit streak, going 15-for-39 (.385) during the span. He has collected three doubles, two triples and two home runs to go along with six runs scored and eight RBIs during the streak.

Rodriguez has safely hit in the past eight games, going 13-for-32 (.406) with seven runs, three RBIs and three doubles.

STREAK SNAPPED
Brandon Boren's 16-game hit streak came to an end on Apr. 10 at Cal State Northridge. The senior second baseman went 0-for-4 on Saturday, and 0-for-3 on Sunday against the Matadors, and will look to begin a new streak Tuesday at Fresno State. During his streak Boren went 29-for-77 (.377) with 13 runs, 14 RBIs and five doubles.

STILL A STAT LEADER
Despite having his hit streak snapped at 16 games, Brandon Boren still leads the Roadrunner offense in numerous categories. He has 18 multiple-hit games and continues to lead the team in batting average (.419), at bats (129), hits (54), doubles (11), runs (23), on base percentage (.493) and walks (16). He is also second in RBIs (24) and third in slugging percentage (.504).

YOUNGER NO MORE
Kevin Younger is the youngest member of the 2010 Roadrunners squad (born July 15, 1991), but the freshman outfielder has surged recently, becoming a force at the plate. Earning starts in the past six games, Younger has gone 11-for-25 (.440) with two doubles, five runs and four RBIs. For the season, he is now hitting .351, the third highest average on the team.

MEDINA'S MUSCLE
Martin Medina has 40 hits on the year, 19 of which have been for extra bases. He is batting .313 and leads the Roadrunners in home runs (9), RBIs (35) and slugging percentage (.602). He is also second in double (10). For reference, as a rookie in 2009, Median finished the season (50 games) with 55 hits, 13 doubles, four triples, eight home runs and 40 RBIs.

COMPLETE GAMES
Complete games are piling up for the Roadrunner pitching staff this season. Mickey Jannis and Mike McCarthy have each tossed two while Matt Reyes pitched his first complete-game this past week.

Jannis won both his nine-inning affairs, a 9-5 final at Washington State (Mar. 27) and a 6-3 victory this past weekend against Cal State Northridge.

McCarthy won his first complete game, a 3-0 decision at Washington State (Mar. 28). That win over the Cougars was also the first-ever shutout win in CSUB history. McCarthy's second complete game resulted in a 4-3 loss to USC.

Reyes, meanwhile, pitched CSUB's second-ever shutout win, a 5-0 final at Cal State Northridge (Apr. 10). He struck out four and scattered six hits in the game.

RECORD BREAKER
Junior RHP Mike McCarthy gave up four runs in the first two innings on Mar. 14 against Nevada, but got into a rhythm soon after, finishing the day with a school record 11 strikeouts. He accomplished the feat in just six innings of work and moved his season total to 25 in 21.1 innings. McCarthy's 11 Ks bested Mickey Jannis' mark of 10, set on May 19, 2009, in a 3-0 loss to Cal State Northridge.

ONE HIT, FIVE RBIs
Joey Mills had just one hit in the Mar. 19 win over San Jose State, but also tallied five RBIs in the game. The senior center fielder drove in two runs on a triple, then sent two runs home on a pair of sacrifice flies and one more on a bases-loaded walk.

BALL CONTROL
One major area of concern last season was the pitching staff's strikeout to walk ratio. During that inaugural season, the Roadrunners finished with a 1.2 strikeout to walk ratio (322 K, 261 BB). Through 22 games this season, the Roadrunners' ratio is nearly doubled, as they have tallied 2.2 strikeouts for every walk allowed (227 K, 105 BB). Those figures have helped the staff carry a 4.62 ERA so far this year, as opposed to last season's 7.63 ERA.

WALK-OFF
Brandon Boren recorded the second walk-off hit of his Roadrunner career on Feb. 28 against Central Michigan. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, the senior second baseman, sent a bloop hit just past first base to score Kevin Younger and give CSUB the 7-6 come-from-behind win.

Boren's first walk-off hit as a Roadrunner took place back on Apr. 8, 2009, when his single down the right-field line scored JJ Henry, giving CSUB a 3-2 win over then defending College World Series champion Fresno State.

EXTRA INNINGS
The Roadrunners have played just four extra innings games in their one-plus seasons of existence. After dropping their first-ever extra inning game, a 7-6 final in 11 innings to Buffalo (Mar. 9, 2009), they came back with a 9-7, 15-inning walk-off win over UC Riverside (Apr. 11, 2009).

Through 26 games this season, the Roadrunners have played two extra-inning game, falling 8-4 to St. Mary's (CA) on Feb. 26 and 13-9 to Fresno State on Apr. 2.

FIVE-HIT OUTING
As part of his 12-for-20 performance on opening weekend, Brandon Boren tied his own program record with five hits in one game. He went 5-for-6 with two RBIs and three runs scored in the second game of the doubleheader on Feb. 20 against Air Force. Those numbers are an exact match to his performance last year in CSUB's 17-12 win over Fresno State on Apr. 7. He is the only Roadrunner to achieve five hits in one game.

TOGETHER AGAIN
Bakersfield is the fourth school coaches Bill Kernen and Jody Robinson have worked at together. The two were assistants at Cal State Fullerton in the late 1970's through 1981. During that time, the Titans, who had just made the transition to Division I in 1975, earned five NCAA Tournament appearances, including two trips to the College World Series and a national championship title in 1979. They also teamed up briefly in 1988, both serving as assistants to former Titan Head Coach Augie Garrido, this time at the University of Illinois. In 1991, Kernen was in his second season as the head coach at Cal State Northridge, leading the Matadors through the transition from DII to DI play. Robinson joined the staff as an assistant coach, helping CSUN to a 44–18–1 record, the West Regional championship game and a top 10 ranking in the final NCAA Division I poll in its first season of DI play.

HARDT FIELD
Coming from the 99 Freeway (north or south) exit at Ming Ave. and proceed WEST to Haggin Oaks Blvd. (approximately four miles). Turn right on Haggin Oaks to Camino Media. Turn left on Camino Media. Turn right into campus on Roadrunner Drive and park in Lot E or I. Hardt Field is located west of Lot E.

COLLECT YOUR BASEBALL TRADING CARDS
Collect the Official 2010 CSUB Baseball Trading Card set when six different cards are being unveiled at each remaining Saturday home contests. The first 100 fans through the gate each day will receive one set of six cards. Fans looking to collect the entire set must be one of the first 100 fans at every Saturday home game.

The giveaway continues on Apr. 17 when CSUB hosts UC Davis. Gates open at 11:30 a.m. and first pitch is 1 p.m.

The final card giveaway dates is Saturday, May 15 versus University of the Pacific. All Saturday games begin at 1 p.m. with gates opening at 11:30 a.m.

LITTLE LEAGUE DISCOUNT
Any Bakersfield area little leaguer 13 and under will receive $1 admission to all remaining home Sunday Roadrunner baseball games when accompanied by a paying adult. Little league players, who must be in uniform to receive the discount, may also have the opportunity to join the Roadrunners on the field for the national anthem. Visit GoRunners.com for more information.

NEED MORE INFO?
For all of the most up-to-date information about CSUB Baseball and all other Roadrunner sports, visit GoRunners.com.

Print Friendly Version