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California State University at Bakersfield Athletics

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Ethan Skuija
Mark Duffel

Baseball

Revitalized `Runners Hit Field Friday

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – The CSU Bakersfield baseball team will have 19 newcomers among its 35 rostered players this weekend when they open the season at the GCU Tournament in Arizona.  The Roadrunners will take on Pepperdine and Cal on Friday and close the opening weekend with games against Ball State on Saturday and Sunday. 

"There's a lot of new happening in our program," said CSUB Head Coach Jeremy Beard.  "We have new faces and new coaches.  The players that we brought in add to what we are trying to build here, which is pitching, defense and left-handed bats.  We've also diversified our lineup with speed and with power.  The type of recruits we brought in this year are program changers.  For me, this is the most talented group we've had since I've been here."

In his third season and just the first with his new coaching staff, the Roadrunners focused on bringing in veteran, junior college ball players as 12 of CSUB's 19 new players come to Bakersfield with junior college experience.

"We needed immediate impact players," said Beard.  "I've seen the value first-hand of going to get impact players at the JC ranks.  We will turn over every rock between the high school ranks and the junior college ranks to find the very best players."

With so many changes on the diamond, the Roadrunners were picked to finish in the middle of the Western Athletic Conference race, but that didn't seem to bother the `Runner skipper.

"We don't get caught up in rankings," said Beard.  "We don't get caught up in predictions.  I don't think anyone really knows us.  I think our guys are excited that we will be seen as underdogs and that motivates our players."

Staff Additions
Assistant Coach Jonathan Johnson has been with Beard from the get-go in Bakersfield and Ryan Cisterna came aboard last season.  This year, Beard has added veterans Steve Farrington and Youngjin Yoon to form a four-man cabinet.  Farrington has over 500 career victories as a head college coach with stops at Washington State, Lower Columbia College and Columbia Basin College.  Yoon joins the staff from Linn-Benton Community College, but spent numerous seasons with the Lotte Giants of the Korean Baseball Organizations. 

"We have a really diverse coaching staff," said Beard.  "We have guys that add a lot of different things that create a cohesive unit that can really help our players."

Outfield
Last year's Roadrunner of the Year, Jassen Oliver returns to the squad as a redshirt senior after making 45 starts in 2018, playing primarily in right field.  He was third on the team with a .287 average and had five assists while not making an error in the field. 

He will be joined by some new faces in the field as junior college transfers Eric Charles, Damian Henderson and Nick Grossman are all expected to make an early impact. 

Charles should man center field and leadoff for the `Runners after hitting .333 with an OPS of .903 and seven triples at Palomar College last season.  Henderson should provide some pop in the heart of the order after slugging .658 at Salt Lake Community College last spring and blasting seven home runs from the left side of the plate.  Grossman, another lefty, hit five homers and had 17 doubles at Scottsdale Community College last year. 

Infield
The infield is one area where things may look familiar to last spring.  Second Team All-WAC selection Jake Ortega and Ryan Koch return behind the plate, while the double play combination of Daniel Carrisoza and Evan Berkey remains intact.  After playing outfield for most of their careers, Noah Barba is competing for the job at third base and Sergio Robles is also fighting for position at the other corner infield spot.  Robles and Koch will also see considerable time at the DH position. 

Barba is the team's top returning hitter and was named Preseason All-WAC by Perfect Game USA.  The Santa Monica native battled multiple injuries last season, but still managed to hit .300 and reached base at a .384 clip. Ortega was a Preseason All-WAC pick by College Baseball Daily after he hit .291 in conference action.  The senior backstop is tremendous defensively and threw out 13 potential base stealers last season.  Koch will slot in the middle of the order after leading the `Runners with 18 extra-base hits in 2018.  He also produced a team-high 33 RBI and a .432 slugging percentage. 

Carrizosa shifted from third base to shortstop in the middle of last season and quickly became one of the top defensive players in the conference.  The sophomore hit .273 in WAC play with 13 knocked in.  Berkey began the year as the everyday shortstop and shifted to second base midway through last year, but will be used all over the infield as will Tyler Jorgensen.  Berkey finished the season with a .272 average in 51 starts, while Jorgensen hit .364 at Chandler-Gilbert Community College last year.  Will Picketts also enters the fold from LA Pierce College.  A two-time All-Western State South Conference selection, Picketts had an OPS of .951 last year and his strikeout to walk ratio was an even 1:1. 

At first base, it will be either Robles or Jesse Rowley.  Rowley comes to Bakersfield from Utah State Eastern after hitting six homers and 14 doubles in his sophomore season.  For the year, he produced an OPS of 1.007 and had a .349 batting average.  Robles was an All-WAC Tournament selection as a sophomore and batted .283 last spring to go with a .404 slugging percentage. 

Pitching Staff
Davonte Butler is coming off an impressive freshman campaign, but you wouldn't be able to tell by his record.  Butler finished the season with just a 4-7 mark, but was second on the team with a 4.39 ERA.  He also held opposing hitters to a .258 average, a mark that ranks eighth all-time in CSUB history.  In his first postseason start, he tossed seven shutout innings against Northern Colorado to lead the Roadrunners to a 2-0 victory.  Butler is in line to start against Ball State on Saturday. 

Junior college transfers Ethan Skuija and Darius Vines are expected to get the ball on Friday against Pepperdine and Cal, respectively.  Skuija was the CCCAA Coast Conference Pitcher of the Year last year after finishing the season with 109 strikeouts in 90 innings and led the state 13 wins to just two losses.  Vines also produced a high strikeout rate last season at Yavapai College, sitting down 80 batters in just 72.1 innings pitched and finishing the year with a 7-4 record. 

Left-hander Edgar Barclay and Bakersfield native Roman Angelo also project to be fixtures of the starting rotation.  Barclay pitched at Central Arizona College and GateWay Community College before coming to Bakersfield, while Angelo is a Bakersfield Christian product who earned First Team All-South Sequoia League honors as a senior. 

The bullpen will include veterans Kyle King, Isaiah Moten, Kevin Altamirano, Isaac Meza and Andrew Ciandro.  King served as the team's closer for parts of last year after Naithen Dewsnap transitioned to the starting rotation.  The Bakersfield product had three saves in his first season in Bakersfield and had 44 strikeouts in just 35 innings pitched.  Added to the pen this year are Noah Cordova and Graham Kuck. Cordova is a big 6'5 right hander from Chandler-Gilbert Community College and had a 2.41 ERA in 2018.  Kuck adds another left-handed arm in the back end after transferring from Riverside City College. 

Veteran Aaron Charles made six starts and 15 appearances last spring, but will miss the beginning of the season with a knee injury. 

The Roadrunners will play two games to open the season.  CSUB takes on Pepperdine at 10:00 a.m. PST and will square off with Cal at 2:00 p.m. on Friday.  The `Runners home opener is Tuesday, February 19 against Cal Poly at 6:00 p.m.
 
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Players Mentioned

Aaron Charles

#25 Aaron Charles

P/INF
6' 4"
Sophomore
R/R
Naithen Dewsnap

#22 Naithen Dewsnap

P
6' 4"
Senior
R/R
Isaac Meza

#34 Isaac Meza

P
6' 4"
Sophomore
R/R
Isaiah Moten

#28 Isaiah Moten

P
6' 1"
Junior
R/R
Jassen Oliver

#13 Jassen Oliver

OF
6' 1"
Senior
R/R
Jake Ortega

#33 Jake Ortega

C/INF
5' 10"
Junior
L/R
Sergio Robles

#6 Sergio Robles

OF
6' 0"
Junior
R/R
Andrew Ciandro

#38 Andrew Ciandro

RHP
6' 1"
Freshman
L/R
Kevin Altamirano

#20 Kevin Altamirano

RHP/3B
5' 10"
Freshman
R/R
Ryan Koch

#24 Ryan Koch

C/1B
6' 1"
Junior
R/R

Players Mentioned

Aaron Charles

#25 Aaron Charles

6' 4"
Sophomore
R/R
P/INF
Naithen Dewsnap

#22 Naithen Dewsnap

6' 4"
Senior
R/R
P
Isaac Meza

#34 Isaac Meza

6' 4"
Sophomore
R/R
P
Isaiah Moten

#28 Isaiah Moten

6' 1"
Junior
R/R
P
Jassen Oliver

#13 Jassen Oliver

6' 1"
Senior
R/R
OF
Jake Ortega

#33 Jake Ortega

5' 10"
Junior
L/R
C/INF
Sergio Robles

#6 Sergio Robles

6' 0"
Junior
R/R
OF
Andrew Ciandro

#38 Andrew Ciandro

6' 1"
Freshman
L/R
RHP
Kevin Altamirano

#20 Kevin Altamirano

5' 10"
Freshman
R/R
RHP/3B
Ryan Koch

#24 Ryan Koch

6' 1"
Junior
R/R
C/1B
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