Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
New Mexico
Diamond 'Dogs host New Mexico for Senior Weekend [May 12-14]
5/11/2017 2:00:00 PM | Baseball
The Bulldog baseball program will honor its eight seniors prior to Sunday's series finale against the Lobos.
Games 49-51: New Mexico (28-20-1, 18-4-1 MW) at Fresno State (26-22, 13-11 MW)
First Pitch: May 12-14 - Fri: 6:05 p.m., Sat: 6:05 p.m., Sun: 1:05 p.m.
Stadium: Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium
Surface: Grass
Dimensions: 330 (LF), 400 (CF), 330 (RF)
All-Time Series: New Mexico leads 25-15
Last Meeting: New Mexico defeated Fresno State 6-2 (April 2, 2017 in Albuquerque, N.M.)
Radio: 940 AM ESPN
Play-by-play: Paul Loeffler
Video: Mountain West Network
Live Stats: GoBulldogs.com
Twitter: @FresnoStateBSB
Promotions: Senior Weekend
Friday: Social Media Madness! Show proof that you follow Fresno State Athletics and get into the game for FREE!
Saturday: Youth Jersey Saturday! Wear your youth jersey and get into the game for FREE!
- First pitch by Bulldog Baseball Hall of Famer Larry Gonsalves as he nears the 50th anniversary of his perfect game! (May 19, 1967)
Sunday: Senior Day! Come help us honor our Bulldog seniors! It is also Salute to Sunday as all military and veterans get into the game for free!
Bulldog Headlines
• Fresno State welcomes New Mexico to Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium for the first time since 2015 this weekend for its final Mountain West home series of the season.
• Prior to Sunday's series finale, the 'Dogs will honor this year's eight seniors for their many contributions to the Bulldog baseball program.
• This year's senior class has won 121 games over their four years at Fresno State, were a key part of a Mountain West championship in 2016 and so far have combined to play in 1,031 games in their Bulldog careers.
• This will be the Bulldogs second series of the season against the Lobos as the 'Dogs visited Albuquerque in early April and winning the middle game of a three-game series 2-1 in 11 innings.
• The 'Dogs rank 6th in the nation in hits (549), are 9th in doubles (109), 15th in double plays (49), 17th in batting average (.310) and 30th in runs (337).
• Junior 1B Aaron Arruda ranks 9th in the nation in total bases (130), 10th in hits (76), 19th in RBIs (56), 24th in batting average (.390) & 26th in slugging percentage (.667).
• Fresno State leads the Mountain West in strikeouts per nine innings (8.0).
Fresno State vs. New Mexico - The Series
• Fresno State and New Mexico have played 40 games all-time against one another.
• New Mexico leads the series 25-15, including a 16-2 mark at home, but are only 9-13 on the road.
• This will be first series between the 'Dogs and Lobos in Fresno since the final weekend of the regular season in 2015 as the Bulldogs were able to win two of three games on Senior Weekend.
• The teams met earlier this season in Albuquerque as UNM was able to win the series two games to one winning game one before the 'Dogs won game two 2-1 in 11 innings and then fell 6-2 in the rubber match.
• The 'Dogs are 5-20 against UNM since joining the MW in 2013 with a 3-6 mark at home.
SERIES HISTORY
All-Time: New Mexico 25-15
Last Meeting: April 2, 2016 (Albuquerque, N.M.) - L, 2-6
Current Streak: L1
Last Fresno State Win: April 1, 2017 (2-1/11 inn.) - Albuquerque, N.M.
Last New Mexico Win: April 2, 2017 (6-2) - Albuquerque, N.M.
Where Fresno State Ranks Offensively in the Mountain West in 2017 (as of 5/11/17)
• .310 Batting Average: No. 4 [Leader, AFA - .346] [17th nationally]
• .468 Slugging Pct: No. 4 [Leader, AFA .549] [26th nationally]
• .380 On base Pct: No. 4 [Leader, UNM - .423]
• 36 sacrifice bunts: No. 3 [Leader, NEV - 45]
• 337 Runs: No. 3 [Leader, UNM - 439]
• 549 Hits: No. 3 [Leader, AFA - 589] [6th nationally]
• 312 RBI: No. 3 [Leader, UNM - 396]
• 109 Doubles: No. 3 [Leader, AFA - 137] [9th nationally]
• 18 Triples: No. T-3 [Leader, UNM & AFA - 19] [16th nationally]
• 45 Home Runs: No. 4 [Leader, AFA - 57]
Where Fresno State Ranks Pitching in the Mountain West in 2017 (as of 5/11/17)
• 5.79 ERA: No. 3 [Leader, SDSU - 3.57]
• .275 Opposing bat average: No. 2 [Leader, SDSU - .256]
• 11 saves: No. 2 [Leader, SDSU - 15]
• 390 strikeouts: No. 1
• 278 Earned runs allowed: No. 4 [Leader, SDSU - 175]
• 465 Hits allowed: No. 2 [Leader, SDSU - 424]
• 246 walks allowed: No. 7 [Leader, SDSU - 147]
• 86 doubles allowed: No. 2 [Leader, SDSU - 75]
• 11 triples allowed: No. T-1
• 34 home runs allowed: No. T-2 [Leader, SDSU- 32]
Where Fresno State Ranks Fielding in the Mountain West in 2017 (as of 5/11/17)
• .971 Fielding Percentage: No. 4 [Leader, SDSU - .979]
• 537 Assists: No. 6 [Leader, SJSU - 551]
• 53 double plays: No. 3 [Leader, SDSU 57] [15th nationally]
Taking a look at the New Mexico Lobos
New Mexico enters this weekend with an overall mark of 28-20-1 and the Lobos currently sit in first place in the Mountain West with a 18-4-1 mark.
The Lobos are 10-14-1 on the road this season and are 8-2-1 in Mountain West road contests sweeping both Air Force and UNLV, took two of three at San Diego State and saw an unusual series at San Jose State losing one game and saw another end in a tie due to travel plans.
New Mexico is one of the top hitting teams in the country ranking second in the Mountain West and seventh in the nation in batting average at .320. The Lobos are a scoring machine averaging nearly nine runs per game to also rank second in the nation.
The Lobos rank among the top five in the nation in runs (1st- 439), doubles (3rd- 122), on-base percentage (3rd- .423), hits (4th- 568) and slugging percentage (5th- .501).
As to be expected with as potent offense as the Lobos possess, New Mexico has many highly ranked offensive players as sophomore outfielder Jared Mang leads the team and ranks fourth in the MW with a .383 average from the plate. He also leads the team in hits (77) and ranks second in runs (56), RBIs (56) and at-bats (201).
Other top hitters include 2016 MW Player of the Year, junior infielder Carl Stajduhar who leads the MW with 15 home runs and 59 RBIs to go along with a .333 average from the plate, 57 runs scored, 13 doubles and a .627 slugging percentage. Senior Jack Zoellner and standout two-way player Luis Gonzalez are hitting .368 and .362, respectively as each have 71 hits and 19 hits and have combined to hit 18 home runs.
On the mound, New Mexico has been able to hold their own sporting a 5.79 ERA to rank third in the MW and are allowing an average of 6.4 runs per game. The Lobos rank second in the Mountain West in strikeout-to-walk ratio at 1.69 with 302 strikeouts to 179 walks.
Opponents are hitting .304 against the staff and average 10.8 hits per game. The Lobos have one of the top arms in the Mountain West in their Friday night starter, junior right-hander Tyler Stevens, who has a 6-4 overall record with a 4.42 ERA in 12 starts. He is tied with the 'Dogs Ricky Tyler Thomas for the most strikeouts in the Mountain West with 79 and ranks second in innings pitched (77.1).
The Lobos other two starters, Johnathon Tripp and Gonzalez, have combined for nine wins and 76 strikeouts. Justin Slaten and Christian Tripp have each made 20 relief appearances as Tripp ranks second in the MW with six saves.
'Dogs against the Lobos in Fresno
The Bulldogs are 3-6 against the Lobos at home since moving into the Mountain West in 2013 winning one game that year and won the series in 2015. The two teams did not play last year in Fresno.
May 10-12, 2013 - L, 0-9; L, 2-7; W, 9-8
April 11-13, 2014 - L, 4-5; L, 6-11; L, 1-4
May 15-16, 2015 - W, 4-3; L, 0-4; W, 11-2
Bulldogs offense sees surge up national rankings during recent stretch
Over the last 10 games, the Bulldog offense has continued to stay red-hot from the plate hitting .370 from the plate during this stretch and have totaled 54 extra-base hits.
The 'Dogs have hit 31 doubles, four triples and 19 home runs over this stretch and are averaging 10.4 runs per game.
Six Bulldog regulars are hitting above .300 on the season as Aaron Arruda, Jesse Medrano, Jake Stone, Austin Guibor, Scott Silva and Jared Akins have each played in all 48 games and have helped drive an offense that is among the nation's best ranking in the top 30 in the nation in doubles, hits, batting average, runs and slugging percentage.
Silva on a 17-game hitting streak
Senior second baseman Scott Silva currently has a 17-game hitting streak hitting .364 from the plate over that stretch with 28 hits, including eight doubles and three home runs and has scored 18 runs and drove in 18 RBIs over that stretch.
Aaron Arruda moves into the top 15 in program history in home runs
With a pair of home runs on May 3 in a 7-5 win at UC Riverside, Arruda hit a pair of home runs to give him 13 for the season and 25 for his career.
His 13 home runs on the season are currently tied for 24th all-time and are the most in a season since Dusty Robinson had 16 in 2011. His 25 career long balls are tied with Christian Vitters and Simon Tafoya for 15th and can move into the top 10 all-time with five more home runs.
A look at the 'Dogs eight seniors
Prior to Sunday's series finale against the Lobos, the Bulldogs will honor this year's eight-man senior class as they play their final games at Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium. This year's group is the largest since 2012 and features six four-year players.
Here is a quick look at the career numbers of each 'Dog heading into this weekend.
Austin Guibor - 203 GP/169 GS, .303 BA, 204 hits, 31 doubles, 14 triples (second all-time in program history), 16 home runs, 101 RBIs, 140 runs. 2015 Second-Team All-MW selection.
Jake Stone - 187 GP/143 GS, .290 BA, 164 hits, 36 doubles, 6 triples, 9 home runs, 80 RBIs, 101 runs. 2016 Second-Team All-MW selection.
Jesse Medrano - 178 GP/134 GS, .292 BA, 149 hits, 31 doubles, 4 triples, 5 home runs, 73 RBIs, 91 runs
Ryan Dobson - 173 GP/116 GS, .271 BA, 117 hits, 11 doubles, 5 triples, 1 home run, 22 RBIs, 76 runs
Joe Prior - 111 GP/37 GS, .242 BA, 50 hits, 7 doubles, 1 triple, 4 home runs, 36 RBIs, 18 runs
Mark Reece - 52 appearances, 3-4, 5.70 ERA, 45 strikeouts, 63.2 innings pitched, 2 saves
Dominic Topoozian - 40 appearances, 4-4, 5.57 ERA, 51 strikeouts, 66.2 innings pitched, 2 saves
Scott Silva- 87 GP/79 GS, .332 BA, 114 hits, 28 doubles, 1 triple, 11 home runs, 66 RBIs, 76 runs. 2016 Second-Team All-MW selection.
Thomas' final start at Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium
In what will likely be his last start at home of his Bulldog career, junior southpaw Ricky Tyler Thomas looks to finish out with a victory.
2015 - 1-1, 3.65 ERA, 12.1 IP, 13 K, .214 opposing batting average
2016 - 6-2, 1.76 ERA, 56.1 IP, 59 K, .179 opposing batting average
2017 - 3-0, 1.52 ERA, 41.1 IP, 55 K, .151 opposing batting average
Career - 10-3, 1.88 ERA, 110.0 IP, 127 K
Up next: The Bulldogs will wrap up Mountain West play on the road next week with a three-game series at San Diego State starting Thursday at 6 p.m.
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