Lobo Baseball opens 2020 slate in Arizona

NEW MEXICO LOBOS 23-28-1*	#25 OREGON STATE BEAVERS 36-20-1*	BYU COUGARS 36-17*	GONZAGA BULLDOGS 31-24*
UNM NOTES * – Indicates final 2019 record	Friday, Feb. 14 | 1 p.m.  LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO  OSU NOTES	Saturday, Feb. 15 | 10 a.m.|  3 p.m. LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO BYU NOTES	Monday, Feb. 17 | 10 a.m.    LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO ZAG NOTES

Leading Off
A new season is upon the University of New Mexico baseball team and with it an overall renewed sense of excitement both within and around the program. Head Coach Ray Birmingham has been quoted several times since the start of the 2019-20 school year began that “Lobo Baseball is back!” That beaming optimism by Birmingham is reflected in the influx of talented new players that will don the Cherry and Silver this spring. With 25 new players added to the fold, the hope and expectations are that the Lobos return to NCAA Regional play this season.

While the Lobos will be a markedly different looking team this season, there are still several familiar faces that figure to play a huge role once again. Headlined among those is the return of Connor Mang. Tabbed as a preseason All-Mountain West player, Mang will move from the infield and patrol one of the corner outfield spots this spring. Last year, Mang was not only one of the top hitters for the Lobos, but also in the MW. As a redshirt sophomore, Mang batted .359 (71-for-198) with 16 doubles, three triples four home runs and 48 RBIs. His batting average, doubles and RBI total all ranked in the top-five in the MW.

On the mound, the Lobos will look to improve collectively and overall have more depth within the staff. Only five pitchers from a year ago return, but the Lobos get a boost from the return of Cody Dye, who missed last season with Tommy John surgery. In his sophomore campaign in 2018, Dye was a workhorse and logged 86.1 innings pitched. The Lobos are looking to lean on that experience and workload as he is slated to get the ball on opening day against Oregon State.

The Lobos will also throw a pair of junior transfers this weekend with Aaron Makil getting the start in game one against BYU and Justin Armbruester going against Gonzaga. Sophomore Tristin Lively is tabbed for the second game against BYU and will be looked upon to improve from his freshman campaign in an expanded role this season.
 
Scouting Oregon State
Scouting Oregon State
For the third-straight year, the first opponent of the season for the Lobos will be Oregon State. Last year the Lobos and Beavers met twice on Opening Weekend with Oregon State taking both games. The first of those games nearly went the way of the Lobos as they led 5-3 heading into the bottom of the ninth. OSU rallied for three runs in the bottom half, however, to walk-off the Lobos. The second game saw the Beavers shutout the Lobos 5-0. In the year after the Beavers captured their third national championship in program history, Oregon State went 36-20-1 overall, but were 21-8 in the Pac-12 and hosted a regional.

Ranked as high as No. 25 in the USA Today Coaches Preseason Poll, the Beavers return 20 lettermen overall and six starters. Of those returners, the Beavers are headlined by preseason All-America honoree Jake Mulholland. Last season, Mulholland appeared in 28 games, all in relief, and posted a 3-3 record with eight saves. In 46.2 innings pitched, Mulholland notched a 1.93 ERA and registered 41 strikeouts.

Offensively, the Beavers are headlined by the return of Alex McGarry. In his first season with the Beavers, McGarry was an All-Pac-12 First Team selection after hitting .293 (46-of-157) with five doubles, eight home runs and 29 RBIs.

In the dugout, Oregon State will be led by a new skipper as Mitch Canham will serve as the Pat Casey Head Coach of the Beavers after being hired in June of 2019. A former first-round draft pick as a player for Oregon State, Canham helped guide the Beavers to their first two national championships in 2006 and 2007.
 
Scouting BYU
The BYU Cougars went 36-17 a year ago and posted a 19-8 record in league play en route to a regular season West Coast Conference Championship. The Cougars were two-and-out in the WCC Tournament and did not advance to a NCAA Regional.

This season, the Cougars are picked to finish second in the WCC behind the Lobos opponent on Monday, Gonzaga. The Cougars also return 16 letterwinners overall Among those returning are preseason All-WCC selections Mitch McIntyre and Easton Walker. The duo received All-WCC recognition at the end of last year as they helped BYU capture their first out-right WCC title.

The scheduled starting pitcher against the Lobos in the second game of their Saturday doubleheader, Walker was 7-2 with a 2.20 ERA last year as a sophomore. Appearing in 19 games and making 10 starts, Walker also notched a save and totaled 48 strikeouts in 77.2 innings pitched. A junior outfielder, McIntyre hit .291 (55-for-189) last season with 14 doubles, three triples, seven home runs and 38 RBIs.

The Cougars also have the return services of Reid McLaughlin. In his first season at BYU, McLaughlin earned Freshman All-America honors after posting a 7-1 record with a 2.61 ERA. In 25 appearances, all in relief, McLaughlin also added four saves and struck out 46 batters in 51.2 innings pitched. Ahead of the season, McLaughlin has been named to the initial watch list for the NCBWA’s Stopper of the Year Award.
 
Scouting Gonzaga
Scouting Gonzaga
Picked to win the West Coast Conference regular season, Gonzaga is coming off a season in which they went 31-24 overall and 18-9 in the West Coast Conference, finishing second in the conference behind BYU. It was the fourth-straight season in which they won 30 or more games. This year, the Zags return a trio of players that garnered preseason All-WCC recognition in Alek Jacob, Brett Harris and Ernie Yake.

Jacob, a preseason All-America honoree, went 7-3 last season with a 2.17 ERA. In 25 total appearances, Jacob also notched 12 saves and recorded 87 strikeouts in 78.2 innings of work. Now a junior, Yake returns after a sophomore season in
which he hit .302 (68-for-225) with 12 doubles, two triples, three home runs and 30 RBIs. In his first season with the Zags, Harris hit .305 (46-for-151) with 12 doubles, three home runs and 26 RBIs.