Fresno State Athletics
Baseball Preview: vs. New Mexico [May 14-16]
5/13/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
By: Matt Burkholder
mburkholder@csufresno.edu
GoBulldogs.com
Games 53-55: New Mexico Lobos (28-23, 16-11 MW) at Fresno State Bulldogs (27-25, 16-11 MW)
First Pitch: May 14-16 - Thu: 6:35pm; Fri: 6:35pm ; Sat: 1:05pm
Stadium: Beiden Field
Surface: Grass
Dimensions: 330 (LF), 400 (CF), 330 (RF)
All-Time Series: New Mexico 18-12
Last Meeting: NM defeated FS, 5-1 (March 29, 2015)
Radio:
Thu. - Start: ESPN 790/ Join in Progress: ESPN 940
Fri. - Start: ESPN 790/ Join in Progress: ESPN 940
Sat. - ESPN 790 or ESPN 940 - TBA
Play-by-play: Paul Loeffler
Analyst: TBA
Video: Mountain West Network
Live Stats: GoBulldogs.com
Twitter: @FresnoStateBSB
Bulldog Headlines
• The winner of the Fresno State/New Mexico series clinches the No. 3-seed for the Mountain West Tournament, held in Reno on May 20-24.
• Five seniors will be honored in part of senior weekend at Beiden Field.
• Fresno State enters Thursday's game with a five-game winning streak.
• The Bulldogs are 6-1 in the month of May.
• Fresno State clinched a winning MW record for the first time since entering the conference for the 2013 season, at UNLV last weekend.
• In MW games only, Taylor Tempel is hitting .416 and owns a 10-game hitting streak.
• Jake Shull leads the MW with a 1.80 ERA, the next best is 2.74, and is on pace to have an all-time Top 10 ERA (40-99 IP) in Fresno State history.
Fresno State vs. New Mexico - The Series
• In Mountain West play (since 2013), New Mexico owns a 13-2 advantage against Fresno State.
• Fresno State is 11-7 all-time vs. New Mexico at Beiden Field.
• Head Coach Mike Batesole is 3-15 all-time against New Mexico at Fresno State.
• Fresno State earned its first win at Lobo Field on March 28 this season with an 8-1 win.
• The last time Fresno State swept a series over the Lobos was in 1998.
• Fresno State and New Mexico share the NCAA record for most hits by two teams in a single game - 68 - set on April 1, 1999.
• Fresno State set its all-time hits record against New Mexico with 36 on April 1, 1999.
• The first matchup between the two schools was in 1960. Fresno State defeated New Mexico, 9-2.
Bulldogs Making Late Season Mike Batesole Push
With Fresno State completing its sweep at UNLV, Fresno State improved its month of May record to 6-1. Fresno State head coach Mike Batesole has had a history with late season pushes in his career; the coach who owns a National Championship and seven conference titles thanks to some late season heroics, now has a 127-61 career record in the month of May.
Senior Weekend
On Saturday, Fresno State will honor its five seniors and undergraduate assistant coach prior to first pitch at 1:05 p.m. Three of the five seniors are four-year Bulldogs - Garrett Mundell, William Munro and Taylor Tempel, while Manny Argomaniz and Casey Rodriguez joined the team in the fall of 2013 as junior transfers. Undergraduate coach Jeff Brown was a member of the Bulldog squad last season before taking over coaching duties this season.
The Battle for the 3-Seed
The Mountain West No. 3-seed will be decided at Beiden Field this weekend as both Fresno State and New Mexico enter the series with 16-11 conference records on the final weekend. A few guarantees is that the Bulldogs cannot fall below the No. 4-seed and have clinched a better finish than the preseason coaches' poll predicted for Fresno State - fifth-place. Also with a 16-11 MW record, it guarantees Fresno State will finish with a conference record above .500 for the first time since joining the MW for the 2013 season. Nevada clinched the No. 1 seed on May 3 and San Diego State clinched the No. 2 seed on May 10.
'Dogs Match Season-Best Win Streak
Thanks to the Bulldogs first three-game road series sweep since 2010 last weekend, Fresno State upped its winning streak to five games - matching a season-best run of five games won earlier this year from March 17-March 25. With a win on Thursday, Fresno State can earn its best win streak of 2015, and match season highs of six games set in both 2013 and 2014. The longest winning streak in the last five season's dates back to 2011 - nine games. The school record for a win streak is 32 games set in 1988.
Hello Offense
Fresno State's offensive found its groove at UNLV this past weekend, registering arguably its best offensive series all season. Fresno State posted a team .345 batting average, 38 hits, 20 runs and 12 doubles. All 11 Bulldogs that went to the batter's box in the three-game series at UNLV tallied at least one hit, eight different batters posted at least one double (Taylor Tempel, Brody Russell, Kenny Corey and Manny Argomaniz each had two doubles), and 10 of 11 Bulldogs scored at least one run. Tempel led the team at UNLV with a .571 batting average (8-for-14) and in hits, and had team highs in slugging percentage (.714) and on-base percentage (.571).
Playing the Elite
The Bulldogs trip on April 28 to play California, a team ranked No. 13 by Collegiate Baseball, marked the 25th game this season that Fresno State has faced an opponent that was either ranked or receiving votes by one of the four major polls on the day of the game - Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball, D1Baseball.com and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. The Bulldogs hold an 11-14 record in those games, and have a Top 10 victory that was earned at then-ranked No. 8 USC on March 17. All those games have resulted in an RPI of 62 (as of May 13) with a 27-25 overall record. Nevada is the only school in the MW that holds a better RPI (No. 34). According to stats.ncaa.org, Fresno State's schedule ranks as the No. 11 toughest schedule in the NCAA.
Taylor Tempel's Standout Second Half
Since Taylor Tempel was entered into the starting lineup (as an everyday starter) on April 10 vs. Nevada, the senior owns a team-best .386 batting average. In the last 19 games, Tempel also leads the team in hits (34), runs (19), doubles (6), total bases (46) and slugging percentage (.523). Additionally, Tempel has 11 multiple hit games in that span, including two games with three hits and two games with four hits. He entered the April 10 game with a career-high two hits in a single game. The team is 11-8 and 9-6 in Mountain West games since April 10.
Brody Russell Keeps On Hitting
Center fielder Brody Russell's bat has heated up since being taken out of the starting lineup for the San Jose State series, May 1-3. Despite not starting, he went 3-for-6 (.500) from the plate in a reserve role. After being placed back in the starting lineup for the last four games, Russell has kept the positive momentum at the plate. He's leading the team over the last seven games with a .417 batting average. He's posted a hit in every game he's had a plate appearance since San Jose, was the key cog to Fresno State's 16-inning victory versus CSUN (led 16th with a single and scored the game-winning run), and his weekend at UNLV was highlighted by two doubles on Sunday in a series he went 5-for-12 (.417). Russell is hitting .225 in 48 games played (41 starts).
Shull by the Numbers
• No. 1 ERA in Mountain West (1.80)
• No. 32 ERA in NCAA (1.80)
• No. 30 in NCAA in hits allowed per nine innings (6.30)
• No. 1 in MW with two complete games
• No. 3 in MW with six saves
• Two-time 2015 Mountain West Pitcher of the Week
Shull is on pace to earn a place in Fresno State all-time Top 10 for lowest ERA (40-99 innings pitched) with his 1.80 mark in 60 innings pitched - No. 10 is 1.89 by Ed Hite in 1962. He also leads the Bulldogs by inducing the most groundout double plays with 11. Batters are hitting .151 (18-for-119) with runners on base, and hitting .205 (15-for-73) with two outs against Shull. Opponents are hitting .196 overall against the junior.
Solidifying the Designated Hitter
Fresno State has started 15 different players at the designated hitter spot in the lineup this season, albeit eight of those were pitchers who never got to swing the bat. For the first time this season, the Bulldogs started one player as its primary DH and it was redshirt freshman Kenny Corey. The first-year Bulldog went 5-for-12 (.417) in his three starts at DH against UNLV. He posted back-to-back games with two hits and back-to-back games with two doubles. Corey also tied for the team lead with three RBIs during the UNLV series. For the season, Corey now has a .337 batting average.
Scouting New Mexico
• New Mexico enters the series having won four-straight, after dropping seven-straight - the longest such losing streak suffered by the Lobos since 2011.
• UNM defeated No. 16 Arizona State (W, 12-6) on Tuesday night at home last time out.
• New Mexico is 5-12 on the road.
• Alike Fresno State, UNM can earn the No. 3 seed in the MW tournament with a series win at Fresno State and cannot drop less than the No. 4-seed after the series.
• Freshman Carl Stajduhar was named Mountain West Player of the Week on May 11, he was 10-for-16 (.625), slugged 1.188, scored seven runs, drove in 12 runs, recorded a double, triple and two home runs, and he had an on-base percentage of .636. after three wins vs. San Jose State, and one loss at New Mexico State.
• Toller Boardman leads the Lobos in innings pitched (88.0) and has the lowest ERA among the staff at 3.17. He owns eight wins in 13 starts, which is tied for the MW-lead.
• Sam Haggerty has posted two four-hit games in his last three games.
• New Mexico was voted the preseason favorite to win the Mountain West for the third-consecutive season in February.
Where Fresno State Ranks Offensively in the Mountain West [Through 52 Games]
• .271 Batting Average: No. 6 [Leader, NEV - .314]
• .383 Slugging Pct: No. 5 [Leader, NEV - .490]
• .351 On base Pct: No. 4 [Leader, NEV - .415]
• 255 Runs: No. 5 [Leader, NEV - 425]
• 473 Hits: No. 4 [Leader, NEV - 576]
• 225 RBI: No. 5 [Leader, NEV - 397]
• 78 Doubles: No. 6 [Leader, NEV - 135]
• 14 Triples: No. 4 [Leader, UNM - 20]
• 30 Home Runs: No. 2 [Leader, NEV - 52]
- information current for games played through May 13
Where Fresno State Ranks Pitching in the Mountain West [Through 52 Games]
• 4.17 ERA: No. 3 [Leader, NEV - 3.82]
• .252 Opposing bat avg: No. 1
• 343 strikeouts: No. 5 [Leader, SDSU - 432]
• 91 strikeouts looking: No. 4 [Leader, UNLV - 132]
• 440 Hits allowed: No. 2 [Leader, AFA - 397]
• 97 doubles allowed: No. 5 [Leader, AFA - 82]
• 14 triples allowed: No. 6 [Leader, NEV/AFA - 10]
• 34 home runs allowed: No. 5 [Leader, AFA - 10]
• 204 walks allowed: No. 5 [Leader, UNLV - 163]
- information current for games played through May 13
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