SURPRISE, Ariz. – Luis Gonzalez pitched 4.1 innings of no-hit relief, and Carl Stajduhar had a two-run home run and an RBI double to pace the University of New Mexico baseball team to a 7-4 victory over Oregon State in the Surprise Spring Training College Baseball Classic Sunday evening.
Gonzalez came on in relief of starter Drew Bridges to start the fourth inning and allowed just two base runners, with both coming on full-count walks. He struck out three, recorded six more groundouts and allowed just one ball hit out of the infield. Forty-two of his 71 pitches went for strikes.
“I just came out doing what I always do,” he said. “I was just trying to pick the team up because we were down a couple runs. I was just trying to get us back in the dugout, and I know we have a great hitting squad, so I just did my thing.”
UNM head coach Ray Birmingham was thoroughly impressed with the young left-hander.
“He’s an outstanding player,” he said. “Our freshman class is outstanding, and he’s one of them. The amazing part of (his performance) is he was hurt for most of the fall. He did just a little bullpen work. That was purely on guts and determination.”
With UNM trailing 2-1 in the sixth, Stajduhar hit his first career homer over the left-field wall to give the Lobos a lead they would not relinquish. He added an RBI double in the seventh and finished 2-for-5 with three RBIs.
“Carl Stajduhar is going to be a DJ Peterson(-type player),” Birmingham said. “He’s going to be a top-round draft pick and one of the best hitters in the country. No doubt about it.”
Oregon State struck for runs in the first and third to take a 2-0 lead as UNM struggled to crack the Beavers’ freshman lefty starter, Luke Heimlich. The Lobos eventually chased him in the fifth, however.
Jared Holley and Andre Vigil started the inning with back-to-back singles. A sacrifice bunt by Scottie Graham advanced them both, and then Aaron Siple lined a single through the left side to score Holley and chase Heimlich. That was all the damage the Lobos could muster, though, despite loading the bases later in the inning.
Stajduhar’s big fly came in the next inning, and Sam Haggerty added a two-run double later that frame to give the Lobos a healthy cushion.
Chris DeVito finished 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored, while Siple also went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and one run.
After the game, though, all anyone wanted to talk about was Gonzalez’ work on the mound.
“That was huge,” Stajduhar said. “Luis coming in — freshman, first time on the mound — with them in a position to go on a run in this game and maybe put us away, he came in and shut them down. He put up a bunch of zeroes and kept us out of the bullpen for tomorrow.”
Oregon State inched closer with a two-run home run in the ninth, but Jake Cole came on and struck out the final two batters of the game to preserve the victory.
The two teams meet again Monday afternoon in the final game of the tournament with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m.
“We did so many things wrong and still won,” Birmingham said. “We start the season trying to improve ourselves and get everyone doing things right. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but if everybody gets it then you better watch the Lobos play, baby, because it’s going to be good.”
Notes: Haggerty made his 110th straight start … UNM has now won 33 straight games it has been leading after six innings, and 59 straight it has been leading after eight … Holley was hit by a pitch in the ninth, the 24th HBP of his career, which moved him into sole possession of ninth place on UNM’s all-time list.