Tuesday • May 18 • 3:00 PM • Portland, Ore. • Joe Etzel Field (1,000)
Live Audio/Stats: PortlandPilots.com • Series: ORE leads 72-24
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
ORE - Madison Boer (R, So., 3-1, 2.75)*
POR - Keeler Brynteson (L, So., 2-3, 5.21)
*(R/L, Yr., W-L, ERA)
This Week in Pilots Baseball...
The Portland Pilots (31-16) host the No. 22 Oregon Ducks (34-18) at Joe Etzel Field on Tuesday for the final home game of the 2010 season. First pitch is set for 3:00 p.m. between the Ducks and Pilots, who are looking to snap a seven-game losing streak.
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A Brief Look Back
The Pilots opened last week with a hard-fought 6-5 loss to Washington State on Tuesday at Joe Etzel Field. UP led 4-3 through four innings before the Cougars rallied for the win. Wazzu made the most of its seven hits, with three of them leaving the yard. Riley Henricks and C.J. Cullen homered for Portland.
The San Francisco Dons then handed the Pilots a rough three-game West Coast Conference sweep in San Francisco, Calif., during the weekend. The Dons topped the Pilots 10-3 on Friday, 7-6 on Saturday and 4-2 on Sunday. On Saturday, Stephen Yarrow won it with a three-run, walk-off home run, which capped a four-run ninth for the Dons.
Despite the four losses, Rocky Gale had quite a week at and behind the plate. Six of his seven hits were doubles as he hit .467 with an RBI and two runs scored. The senior catcher threw out the only attempted base stealer. Freshman OF Nick Armenta also had a solid week, going 6-for-14 (.429) with three RBI’s and two runs.
About Oregon
The Ducks, who are in their second season since reinstating their baseball program, stepped out of the Pac-10 Conference last weekend to sweep a three-game series against East Tennessee State at PK Park. Oregon, which is 10-11 in the Pac-10, won by scores of 5-0, 7-6 and 17-7. The Ducks are hitting .296 as a team and have a remarkable staff ERA of 3.08, which ranks fifth in the country. Senior C Eddie Rodriguez, who hit for the cycle on Sunday, leads the team with a .370 batting average, six home runs and 40 RBI’s. Head coach George Horton is in his second year at the helm of the Ducks, who returned 25 letterwinners and eight position starters from a team that was 14-42 last year.
Pilots/Ducks Series
UP has won four straight against the Ducks, including all three meetings last season. Oregon still claims a 72-24 advantage in the all-time series, which dates back to at least 1935. UP defeated UO 3-1 in Eugene on May 4 behind a solid pitching performance by freshman starter Chris Johnson.
A Look Ahead
Portland concludes the 2010 regular season on the road with games next week at Washington State and at Gonzaga. On Wednesday, May 26, the Pilots will be in Pullman, Wash., for a non-conference game against the Cougars at 5:30 p.m. at Bailey-Brayton Field. Portland then makes the short trek to Spokane for a regular season-ending WCC series against the Gonzaga Bulldogs. UP and GU are set to play on Friday, May 28, at 6:30 p.m. First pitch is set for 1:00 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday at Washington Trust Field.
Run at Your Own Risk
Portland senior catcher Rocky Gale, who has been absolutely lethal in throwing out base stealers during all four of his years on The Bluff, is out-doing himself this season by throwing out a staggering 17 of 20 (.850) attempted base stealers. He easily leads the country with the 85.0 percent success rate and he has not allowed a stolen base since April 23 at Pepperdine and he’s gunned down seven straight.
For his career, he’s thrown out 93 of 230 (.404) attempted base stealers and he’s led the WCC all four seasons in number of would-be base stealers thrown out.
The Catcher Can Hit Too
Rocky Gale, most known for his work behind the plate, has been on a tear at the plate this season and he currently leads the team with a .347 batting average. Gale, who was a career .239 hitter entering the season and batted just .194 last year, went 8-for-10 with three RBI’s and five runs scored during the three-game sweep of LMU (April 16-18) and he tallied six doubles during Portland’s four games last week. Against the Lions on Sunday, April 18, he had his first career five-game hit, which included three doubles. Gale is batting .415 during WCC games.
Meanwhile it’s been business as usual behind the plate for Gale, who has thrown out a staggering 17 of 20 attempted base stealers this season, for a ridiculous percentage of .850.
Making History
Portland is enjoying one of its finest seasons in program history. At 31-16, the Pilots have won the most games since Portland also won 31 during the 1991 season. It’s also the fifth 30-win season in program history and the Pilots have a chance at reaching the program record for wins in a season, which is 36 (1980). UP has also assured itself of its first winning season since going 26-23-1 in 1992.
Portland’s 11 league wins are the most WCC wins since tallying 16 in 2002, when the Pilots played a 30-game league schedule.
The Pilots recently won 11 straight games to match the program’s second longest winning streak, which also occurred in 1980. The 1958 team set the program record with 14 straight victories. UP also won eight straight earlier this season.
Portland’s three-game sweep at Santa Clara (April 1-3) was the first WCC road sweep ever recorded by the Pilots and it was the first sweep of a conference foe since taking three from Pepperdine at home in 2002. The Pilots also registered a three-game sweep against Pepperdine in Malibu, Calif., where UP was previously 1-31.
Portland’s 10-2 start to the season matched the best recorded start to a season in program history. The 1958 Pilots also went 10-2.
Taking Notice
Portland’s success has not gone un-noticed as the Pilots entered the rankings this season for the first time since 1980.The Pilots were in polls for two weeks, reaching No. 22 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. UP also received votes in both the USA Today/ESPN Coaches’ and the NCBWA Polls. The Pilots were last in the rankings when they were No. 30 in Collegiate Baseball’s final poll of the 1980 season.
Co-Pilots
C.J. Cullen and Chris Dennis were named the WCC Co-Player and Co-Pitcher of the Month, respectively, following a superb April. The Pilots were 13-3 overall during April, while Cullen hit .429 and Dennis went 2-0 with six saves. Cullen, who was named the WCC’s Player of the Week on April 26, was 27-for-63 with 17 RBI’s, 18 runs, a homer, a triple and two doubles. Cullen was clutch as he hit .529 with runners in scoring position, batted .444 with two outs and drove in eight runs with two outs. He also committed only one error in 155 chances for an impressive fielding percentage of .994. Dennis, who earned the league’s pitcher of the week (April 26) honor the same week as Cullen, struck out 14 in 13.0 innings, posted an ERA of 2.08 and became Portland’s all-time career saves leader, while setting a new mark for most saves in a season. Dennis, a native of Bothell, Wash., was also named the regional pitcher of the week after saving four straight Portland wins (April 20-25).
Both Cullen and Dennis earned the conference player and pitcher of the week honors after the Pilots ended an eight-game losing streak to Washington and swept a three-game series at Pepperdine, where Portland was previously 1-31 all-time.
Dennis the Menace
Junior transfer Chris Dennis, a right-handed reliever, is proving to be quite menacing for opposing hitters during his first season as a Pilot. Dennis, a native of Bothell, Wash., who transferred to UP from Edmonds CC last summer, has stepped into the closer role for the Pilots and has already registered a league-best and now program-best 13 saves, which is tied for the most in the nation. He’s also 4-1, has an impressive ERA of 2.13 and is holding opposing hitters to a .219 batting average. He has 44 K’s in 38.0 innings, for an average of 10.4 strikeouts per nine innings.
With a save against Pepperdine on April 25, Dennis topped John Nichols’ previous program record of 11 career saves. The 13 saves are also a new single-season record at UP.
He was named the WCC’s Pitcher of the Week (April 26) and College Baseball Insider’s Regional Pitcher of the Week after saving all four of Portland’s wins during the previous week.
Leaving on a High Note
Portland senior C.J. Cullen is making the most of his final season on The Bluff, hitting a solid .343 at the plate, which is second on the team and ranks 11th in the WCC. Cullen, who began his career as a shortstop and mostly saw action as a pinch runner during his junior campaign, became Portland’s starting first baseman this year and he’s taken his game to a new level. A career .195 hitter entering the season, Cullen has exploded at the plate with 32 RBI’s, 36 runs, five doubles, a triple and four home runs, one of which was a walk-off, three-run blast to give UP a 7-5 win over Seattle on Feb. 28. He’s also been clutch as 17 of his RBI’s have come with two outs.
Cullen, who has three four-hit games this spring, was the named WCC Player of the Week (April 26) after going 10-for-16 (.625) at the plate with a home run, a triple, six RBI’s and four runs scored as the Pilots won at Washington and swept Pepperdine in Malibu.
The Catcher Can Hit Too, Take Two
Portland sophomore C/DH Beau Fraser, who had a string of eight consecutive at-bats with a hit earlier this season, has been the team’s most consistent hitter this season and he currently leads the Pilots in a plethora of categories. Fraser, who was named the WCC’s Player of the Week on April 19, is third on the squad with a .335 batting average and he leads the team with 13 multi-RBI games, four four-RBI games, six home runs and 44 RBI’s. He’s sixth in the league in RBI’s.
K Kraus
Sophomore right-handed starter Kyle Kraus, Portland’s Friday starter as a freshman a year ago, has flourished and then some in his new role as the team’s Saturday starter. Kraus 9-2 and is on the verge of matching the program record for most wins in a season. Ted Devore currently holds the record with 10 W’s, which was set in 1989. Kraus, a native of West Linn, Ore., leads the league in wins and is tied for the fourth most victories in the country. His 3.29 ERA ranks sixth in the WCC, he has two complete games, is holding opposing hitters to a .266 batting average and recently went 20.2 innings without issuing a walk.
During a win at home against Southern Utah on March 26, Kraus became the second UP pitcher this season to record 14 strikeouts during a game. The 14 strikeouts are tied for the second most by a single pitcher during a game in program history. Two pitchers have previously registered 16 K’s, most recently in 1970.
K K K K K K K K K K K K K K K K K K K
Zach Varce and Chris Dennis recently combined in what will go down as one of the best pitching performances in program history. During a 2-1, 10-inning win over Seattle at Joe Etzel Field on Feb. 27, the starter and the reliever combined to strikeout a program record 19 batters.
Varce, who was named the WCC’s Co-Pitcher of the Week following the performance, struck out 14 during 8.0 innings of work. The right-handed Varce, who didn’t factor into the decision, retired the final 18 hitters he faced in order, including striking out the final six. Dennis, also a righty, spelled Varce to begin the ninth inning and promptly struck out five of the seven hitters he faced.
The previous program record of 16 K’s had been accomplished three times, most recently in 1990.
Zac-K Varce
Varce hasn’t slowed down since that 14-strikeout performance as he currently leads the WCC with 102 strikeouts. He’s averaging 10.8 K’s per game, while also posting a 5-2 record and a 3.48 ERA, good for eighth in the conference. The junior is tied for eighth in the league in wins.
Varce was named to the initial watch list for the sixth annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award, after saving nine games last season.
Kings of the Hill
Portland is once again getting solid production from its pitching staff as the Pilots currently rank first in the WCC and ninth in the country with a staff ERA of 3.52, while also ranking second the league in opponents batting average (.263). Sophomore Kyle Kraus leads the conference with a 9-2 record, junior Chris Dennis leads the league and is tied for first nationally with 13 saves and junior Zach Varce leads the WCC with 102 strikeouts. Dennis has been nearly unhittable and would league the lead in both ERA (2.13) and opponents batting average (.219) if he had enough innings to qualify. Sophomore Owen Jones is also enjoying a solid year after missing last season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. His 2.50 ERA is second in the WCC and his opponents batting average of .253 is fifth. Jones is also 4-2, while Dennis is 4-1.
Kraus, who has tossed two complete-game wins, notched 14 strikeouts against Southern Utah on March 28. Varce did the same against Seattle on Feb. 28, while combining with Dennis to fan a program-high 19 Redhawks total.
WCC Pre-Season Poll and All-WCC
Portland’s middle infield tandem of junior 2B Riley Henricks and sophomore SS Kris Kauppila was selected to the 2010 Preseason All-West Coast Conference Team and San Diego was picked as the favorite to win this year’s WCC regular season title in the preseason baseball poll, as voted on by the league’s head coaches. The Pilots were selected to finish eighth.
