Fresno State Athletics
Baseball Preview: vs. UC Davis [March 13-15]
3/12/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
By: Matt Burkholder
mburkholder@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
Games 19-21: UC Davis Aggies (11-6-1, 0-0 Big West) at Fresno State Bulldogs (9-9, 3-3 MW)
First Pitch: March 13-15 - Fri: 6:35pm; Sat: 6:35pm ; Sun: 1:05pm
Stadium: Beiden Field
Surface: Grass
Dimensions: 330 (LF), 400 (CF), 330 (RF)
All-Time Series: Fresno State leads 38-15
Last Meeting: FS defeated UCD, 11-4 (2012)
Radio: AM 940 ESPN
Play-by-play: Paul Loeffler
Analyst: TBA
Video: Mountain West Network (Sunday Only)
Live Stats: GoBulldogs.com
Twitter: @FresnoStateBSB
Bulldog Headlines
• Fresno State opens three-game series vs. UC Davis on Friday seeking its third-straight win.
• Fresno State boasts a 9-2 home record.
• The Bulldogs will play UC Davis for the first time since 2012.
• Taylor Ward named to Johnny Bench Award Watch List on Wednesday.
• Fresno State will stick with its weekend rotation of Lambert, Lee and Mundell for the fifth-straight weekend.
• Fresno State owns 10-4 advantage over the Aggies since 2000.
• Manny Argomaniz leads the Mountain West with nine doubles, and ranks tied for seventh in the nation.
Where Fresno State Ranks Offensively in the Mountain West [Through 18 Games]
• .261 Batting Average: No. 5 [Leader, SDSU - .321]
• .401 Slugging Pct: No. 3 [Leader, Nevada - .457]
• .343 On base Pct: No. 4 [Leader, SDSU - .403]
• 88 Runs: No. 4 [Leader, SDSU - 129]
• 154 Hits: No. 3 [Leader, SDSU - 192]
• 79 RBI: No. 4 [Leader, SDSU - 118]
• 31 Doubles: No. T-3 [Leader, NEV - 35]
• 5 Triples: No. T-2 [Leader, UNM - 6]
• 14 Home Runs: No. 2 [Leader, NEV - 18]
Where Fresno State Ranks Pitching in the Mountain West [Through 18 Games]
• 4.35 ERA: No. 5 [Leader, UNLV - 3.05]
• .240 Opposing bat avg: No. 1
• 132 strikeouts: No. 2 [Leader, SDSU - 153]
• 31 strikeouts looking: No. 3 [Leader, UNLV - 51]
• 143 Hits allowed: No. 4 [Leader, Air Force - 103]
• 35 doubles allowed: No. 5 [Leader, UNLV - 16]
• 3 triples allowed: No. T-2 [Leader, Air Force - 2]
• 18 home runs allowed: No. 7 [Leader, SJSU - 4]
• 78 walks allowed: No. 7 [Leader, UNLV - 42]
More Honors for Taylor Ward
On Wednesday, March 11, junior Taylor Ward was named to the 2015 Johnny Bench Award Watch List by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission. The annual Johnny Bench Award recognizes college baseball's top catcher at the end of each baseball season. Ward is one of the Bulldogs most decorated players in 2015 with preseason All-American honors from four different organizations - Baseball America, D1Baseball.com, National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association and Perfect Game. Through 18 games, Ward leads the Bulldogs with a .317 batting average, 16 RBIs, five home runs and two triples. He's started at catcher for the `Dogs in 17 of 18 games. Semifinalists will be named on May 14, three finalist will be named June 2. and the winner will be announced June 25.
Scouting UC Davis
• UC Davis is 11-6-1 in 2015.
•.The Aggies are winners of three in a row, most recently a 10-4 win over Mountain West opponent Nevada in Davis on March 10 - a team Fresno State was swept by in Reno to open conference play Feb. 20-22.
• Nick Lynch finished with a school-record eight RBIs in the Aggies 10-4 win again the Wolf Pack. He hit two home runs including a grand slam.
• UC Davis traveled to Reno on March 3, the Aggies lost 7-6 to Nevada.
• Prior to March 10, UC Davis was on the road for seven-straight games. The Aggies sport a 6-3-1 road record overall in 2015.
• UC Davis is hitting tops in the Big West at .290, and also own conference bests in on-base percentage (.392), slugging (.395), runs scored (112), hits (179), doubles (43), RBI (98) and stolen bases (56).
•.The Aggies 56 stolen bases on the season, leads the nation by 11. Last week, UC Davis went 9-for-16 on steals.
• Kevin Barker leads UC Davis with 16 steals on 20 attempts - also a nation-best. • Nick Lynch leads UC Davis in batting avg (.394), RBI (17), doubles (12), slugging (.697) and on base pct (.500).
• UC Davis has a 3.67 team earned run average.
• The Aggies open Big West play on March 27 vs. UC Riverside.
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