California at Oregon State
The Bears travel to Corvallis this weekend to take on the Beavers at Goss Stadium. California comes into the weekend 21-23 overall and 9-12 in the Pac-12. They are coming off a 13-2 victory against Pacific on Tuesday, and a series victory last weekend against Washington. Oregon State is 34-8 and 14-4 in the Pac-12. Ranked No. 5 in the latest NCWBA poll, the Beavers are coming off a series sweep last weekend against USC. Look for Oregon State to continue their winning ways, especially at home. The Beavers are 17-3 this season at Goss Stadium, while California is 10-13 on the road.
Series Prediction: Oregon State takes two out of three.
Friday, May 3 – 5:35 p.m. PT
California- Ryan Mason, RHP, (5-2, 3.38 ERA)
Oregon State- Matt Boyd LHP (8-2, 1.96 ERA)
Saturday, May 4- 2:00 p.m. PT
California- Trevor Hilldenberger RHP (5-2, 4.39 ERA)
Oregon State- Andrew Moore RHP (8-1, 1.54 ERA
Sunday, May 5- 12:00 p.m. PT
California-TBD
Oregon State- Ben Wetzler LHP (4-1, 1.47 ERA)
Oregon at Washington State
The Ducks travel to Pullman this weekend to take on Cougar team that is tough at home. Oregon comes into the weekend ranked No. 6 in the NCWBA poll. The Ducks split a midweek two-game series against Seattle, but were able to sweep Stanford last weekend. The Ducks sit at 34-11 overall and 16-5 in the Pac-12. Washington State is 20-20 on the year and 7-11 in the Pac-12. They lost two out of three last weekend against UCLA. At this point in the season, we generally know what to expect from each team. Look for Oregon to take the series, but they will have to battle as Washington State has the thump to put up some crooked numbers. The Ducks starting staff is too deep, and Oregon usually finds enough offense to pull it out. Oregon is 15-6 on the road, while Washington State is 14-9 at home.
Series Prediction: Oregon takes two out of three.
Friday, May 3 – 6:00 p.m. PT
Oregon- Tommy Thorpe LHP (5-4, 2.73 ERA)
Washington State- Joe Pistorese LHP (4-3, 2.40 ERA)
Saturday, May 4 – 2:00 p.m. PT
Oregon- Cole Irvin LHP (8-2, 2.96 ERA)
Washington State- Tanner Chleborad RHP (3-7, 6.02 ERA)
Sunday, May 5 – 12:00 p.m. PT
Oregon- Jake Reed RHP (5-3, 3.34 ERA)
Washington State- Scott Simon RHP (3-1, 3.66 ERA)
Utah at UCLA
The Utes travel to Jackie Robinson Stadium over the weekend to take on the No. 12 ranked Bruins. Utah arrives in Los Angeles with a 16-23 record. They are 5-16 in the conference. Utah has lost six in a row after being swept last weekend at home against Arizona State. UCLA comes into the weekend posting a 28-13 record. They are 11-7 in the Pac-12. The Bruins defeated UC Irvine 8-1 on Tuesday, and took two out of three last weekend against Washington State. UCLA sits tied with Arizona State for third in the conference. Utah, on the other hand, ranks last in the conference. This should be a series in which UCLA takes care of business and gains three conference victories. A series loss could potentially drop the Bruins out of hosting a regional.
Series Prediction: UCLA sweeps the series.
Friday, May 3 – 6:00 p.m. PT
Utah- Mitch Watrous RHP (3-2, 2.81 ERA)
UCLA- Adam Plutko RHP (5-2, 2.69 ERA)
Saturday, May 4 – 2:00 p.m. PT
Utah- Dalton Carroll RHP (3-4, 4.64 ERA)
UCLA- Nick Vander Tuig LHP (7-3, 1.77 ERA)
Sunday, May 5 – 1:00 p.m. PT
Utah- Tanner Banks RHP (1-4, 5.08 ERA)
UCLA- Grant Watson LHP (5-3, 3.13 ERA)
Washington at Arizona
The Huskies travel to Tucson over the weekend to take on a Wildcat team that is need of some conference victories. Washington comes into the weekend with a 14-28 overall record. They are 6-12 in the Pac-12. The Huskies lost two out of three last weekend against California. Arizona, ranked No. 22 in the NCWBA poll, enters play with a 28-15 record. They are 9-9 in the Pac-12. The Wildcats dropped a midweek game against Arizona State on Tuesday, but were able to sweep Alabama State last weekend. Once again, Arizona and Stanford are the two Pac-12 teams with a lot at stake. Arizona sits at 52 in the RPI, and could really benefit from a series sweep. I think Arizona will get it done, or at the very least, take two out of three.
Series Prediction: Arizona takes two out of three.
Friday, May 3- 6:00 p.m. PT
Washington- Jared Fisher RHP (1-2, 3.55 ERA)
Arizona- Konner Wade RHP (4-4, 3.48 ERA)
Saturday, May 4- 6:00 p.m. PT
Washington- Austin Voth RHP (4-4, 2.96 ERA)
Arizona- James Farris RHP (4-3, 4.21 ERA)
Sunday, May 5- 12:00 p.m. PT
Washington-TBD
Arizona- Tyler Crawford RHP (5-1, 3.79 ERA)
Stanford at Arizona State
The must-see series this weekend in the Pac-12 takes place in Tempe, as the Cardinal travel to the desert to take on the Sun Devils. For Stanford, this series is as close to a must-win as there has been all year. After being swept last weekend in Oregon, the Cardinal returned home to defeat Saint Mary’s 9-1 on Tuesday. Stanford, ranked No.27 in the NCWBA poll, sits 24-15 overall, but just 9-9 in the Pac-12. Arizona State, on the other hand, comes into the weekend ranked No.14 in the NCWBA poll. The Sun Devils are 29-12-1 overall and are 11-7 in the Pac-12. They have won five in a row, after defeating Arizona 7-5 on Tuesday, and sweeping Utah last weekend. Stanford ranks 98 in the latest RPI, and is desperately in need of a quality series victory to keep its regional dreams alive. It’s been a theme all season for the Cardinal, but the series will come down to which pitching staff performs the best on Saturday and Sunday. Appel and Trevor Williams face off on Friday, but the Sun Devils have the advantage on Saturday with Ryan Kellogg. It’s a tossup on Sunday. I’ll take Arizona State at home since they are playing the better ball and are 14-6 at Packard Stadium. Stanford is just 9-8 on the road this season.
Series Prediction: Arizona State takes two out of three.
Friday, May 3- 7:00 p.m. PT
Stanford- Mark Appel RHP (7-3, 1.49 ERA)
Arizona State- Trevor Williams RHP (5-3, 3.30 ERA)
Saturday, May 4- 6:30 p.m. PT
Stanford- Dean McArdle RHP (2-2, 6.49 ERA)
Arizona State- Ryan Kellogg LHP (10-0, 2.21 ERA)
Sunday, May 5- 12:30 p.m. PT
Stanford- John Hochstatter RHP (3-1, 2.88 ERA)
Arizona State- TBD
TCU at USC
The Horn Frogs and Trojans series is all ready underway this weekend. TCU took game one on Thursday by a final of 5-4. First baseman Derek Odell and shortstop Keaton Jones each had three hits in the TCU victory. Game two will be played on Friday at 8:00 p.m. The series finale on Sunday is slated for 2:00 p.m.
