Lobo Baseball – at Lobo Field for Lobo Invite Presented by Fuddruckers
When: Friday – 4 p.m. (MT) vs. San Francisco, Saturday – 5 p.m. (MT) vs. Utah Valley, Sunday – 10:30 a.m. (MT) vs. San Francisco, and 1 p.m. vs. Utah Valley
Who: San Francisco Dons and Utah Valley Wolverines
GoLobos.com: Live stats, live stream, box score, postgame recap and stats
Video: All three games will be streamed live on the Mountain West Network
Radio: ESPN Radio 101.7 The TEAM will broadcast the game on Friday and the early game on Sunday with Scott Galetti and Henry Tafoya on the call
TV: uPUBLUCtv is producing all four games and they will be televised live in HD on Comcast channel 26
Mountain West Standings
| Place | School | MW record | Overall record |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nevada | 3-0 | 7-1 |
| 2 | New Mexico | 2-1 | 5-2 |
| 3 | Air Force | 1-2 | 1-6 |
| 4 | San Diego State | 0-0 | 8-1 |
| 4 | UNLV | 0-0 | 6-2 |
| 4 | San José St. | 0-0 |
4-4 |
| 7 | Fresno State | 0-3 |
3-5 |
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The University of New Mexico baseball team continues its extended earl-season homestand with its true home opener this weekend as part of the Lobo Invite Presented by Fuddruckers.
Originally slated as a nine-game homestand, the Lobos played three games at Lobo Field last weekend as the designated road team after its series at Air Force was relocated due to weather concerns. Those added games mean that UNM will now play 12 games in 20 days in the friendly confines of Lobo Field, where the team has a .770 winning percentage in 50 games since moving back into their renovated home partway through the 2013 season.
The Lobos open play in the tournament against the winless University of San Francisco Dons (0-8) Friday at 4 p.m. It will be the second game of the day for the Dons who will play a neutral game against Utah Valley at noon Friday. UNM will play the Wolverines (1-6) Saturday evening at 5, and then play a doubleheader against both teams beginning with USF Sunday morning at 10:30.
Do not let the records fool you as neither the Dons nor the Wolverines have played as poorly as their records indicate. USF is hitting .270 as a team (a full 25 points higher than the Lobos), while Utah Valley pitchers sport a collective 3.88 ERA (0.33 lower than UNM’s staff).
This weekend will also feature something that is rare for Lobo Baseball: televised games. In addition to all four UNM games being streamed live on the Mountain West Network via GoLobos.com, uPUBLICtv will broadcast the games in HD for air on Comcast channel 26 in the Albuquerque metro region. UNM has not had a home game televised since CBS SportsNetwork aired a game at Isotopes Park against Arizona State on April 10, 2012.
• THE LOBO INVITE PRESENTED BY FUDDRUCKERS … Neither the Dons (0-8) nor the Wolverines (1-6) have gotten off to hot starts this season, but the causes have been different for each squad.
In San Francisco’s case, its pitching has let down an offense that is batting .270 as a team. The pitchers, though, have posted a team ERA of 8.02 and have walked more batters than they have struck out. Friday night’s starter, Anthony Shew, has actually pitched pretty well. He has held opponents to a .188 batting average in 13.2 innings. He hurled 8.0 shutout innings, but did not factor in the decision, in a 1-0 loss at Tulane last weekend that saw him allow just two hits and two walks. Sunday’s starter, Jeider Rincon, has struggled, though. He is 0-2 with a 9.32 ERA in 9.2 innings, and opponents are hitting .342 against him.
Offensively the Dons are led by UCLA transfer Dominic Miroglio, who is hitting a robust .414. Jack Hall (.381) and Derek Atkinson (.345) also help spur USF’s lineup.
Utah Valley’s pitching staff has performed very well in the early goings. Its staff has a 3.88 ERA and is holding opponents to a .264 batting average. Saturday’s starter, Patrick Wolfe, is 1-1 with a 2.45 ERA and is limiting the opposition to a .162 batting average. Sunday’s starter is Kaden Schmitt, who allowed two earned runs in 4.0 innings in his only appearance this season.
The Wolverines’ offense, on the other hand, has really struggled. They’re barely hitting above the Mendoza Line (.202) as a team, and just two players are batting better than .261: Seth Rhineer at .308 and Tate Harding at .292. UVU is slugging just .250 and has struck out 68 times versus just 19 walks drawn. They’re also not a threat on the basepaths, having stolen just two bases all year.
• ON BASE MACHINE … Sam Haggerty currently has the nation’s fourth longest streak of reaching base safely. Dating back to last season the Lobos’ junior second baseman has reached base via a hit, walk or HBP in 35 consecutive games. In fact, he has reached safely in 118 of his 123 career starts.
• BULLPEN DOMINANCE … The UNM bullpen has been outstanding at protecting leads during the last several seasons. The Lobos have won 36 straight games when leading after six innings, a streak that dates back to June 1, 2013. And if UNM is leading after eight innings? Forget it. The Lobos haven’t lost when leading after eight in 62 straight games. The last time the Lobos blew a lead was in their first game at the renovated Lobo Field when Luke Campbell lost a ball in the sun, which would have been the final out of the game, and allowed the go-ahead (and eventual winning) run to score.
• SANCHEZ ON PRESEASON WATCH LIST … Junior righty Victor Sanchez was one of 37 players named to the Preseason Stopper of the Year Watch List, which is given annually to the best reliever in the nation. Sanchez had a breakout 2014 with a 4-1 record, 2.33 ERA, 10 saves and 33 strikeouts in 38.2 innings. He held opponents to just a .175 batting average and walked just 15 men all season.
• BACK-TO-BACK-TO-BACK … UNM is one of just five programs in the nation to have won at least a share of its regular-season conference title in each of the last three seasons. The others are Louisville, which won two in the Big East and the American Athletic Conference this season, Bryant (Northeast), Sam Houston State (Southland), and Delaware State (MEAC). Florida State has also won the Atlantic Division in the ACC each of the last three years, but this season Miami won the Coastal Division and had a better conference mark.
It marks the fourth straight championship season for the Lobos, who won the Mountain West Tournament title as the No. 6 seed in 2011.
• THE NEXT LOBO IRONMAN … In 2013 Mitch Garver finished his career with a UNM record 181 consecutive starts, easily breaking the record of 144 set by Daniel Stovall between 2004 and 2007. With Garver’s departure, a new Lobo Ironman appeared in Chase Harris. He started all 117 games in his two years at UNM, good for the sixth best streak in program history.
Junior Sam Haggerty might pose the biggest threat to Garver’s record, though, as he sits right behind Harris in seventh at 114 straight starts with two years of eligibility left.