Diamond 'Dogs return home to host five-game series vs. Air Force [April 12-14]

Friday, April 12

3:05 PM (7 inn.)

Fresno State

Air Force

Photo by: Samuel Marshall

Diamond 'Dogs return home to host five-game series vs. Air Force [April 12-14]

4/11/2019 12:00:00 PM | Baseball

Fresno State Notes (PDF)Air Force Notes (PDF)Head Coach Mike Batesole previews Air Force Senior outfielder Zach Ashford previews Air Force Junior pitcher Ryan Jensen preview Air Force

The Diamond 'Dogs return to Fresno to host Air Force in a five-game Mountain West series starting Friday at 3:05 p.m. for Salute to Services Weekend.

By: Travis Blanshan / Assistant Director of Communications

FRESNO, Calif. - The Diamond 'Dogs return to Fresno to host Air Force in a five-game Mountain West series starting Friday at 3:05 p.m. for Salute to Services Weekend.

Games 28-32: Air Force (15-15, 5-5 MW) at Fresno State (16-11, 4-5 MW)

First Pitch: April 12-14 - Fri: 3:05 p.m. (DH 7/9 inn.), Sat: 3:05 p.m. (DH 7/9 inn.), Sun: 12:05 p.m.
Stadium: Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium
Surface: Grass
Dimensions: 330 (LF), 400 (CF), 330 (RF)
All-Time Series: Fresno State leads 28-10
Last Meeting: Fresno State defeated Air Force, 10-0 (April 29, 2018 in Fresno, Calif.)

Radio: AM 940 ESPN
Play-by-play: Paul Loeffler
Video: Mountain West Network
Live Stats: Sidearm
Twitter: @FresnoStateBSB

Pitching Probables: Fresno State vs. Air Force
Friday Game One: Jr. RHP Ryan Jensen (4-1, 3.57 ERA) vs. Sr. RHP Jake Gilbert (3-1, 1.63)
Friday Game Two: Jr. RHP Davis Moore (5-0, 4.17) vs. Fr. RHP Zach Argo (1-1, 3.81)
Saturday Game One: So. LHP Nikoh Mitchell (1-4, 6.12) vs. Sr. RHP Matt Hargreaves (2-1, 3.03)
Saturday Game Two: TBA vs. TBA
Sunday: RSr. RHP McCarthy Tatum (0-0, 2.53) vs. Sr. LHP Ethan Nichols (2-3, 7.71)

Promotions
Friday: Salute to Services Weekend

All active military and veterans get in to the games for FREE!
First Pitch: Jerry Jury, 94-Year-Old Navy Veteran, and former Bulldog Football player
National Anthem: Rebecca Potts
- Presentation of Colors: Parlier Naval Jr. ROTC Color Guard

Saturday: Salute to Services Weekend

All active military and veterans get in to the games for FREE!
First Pitch: Ray Blum, Marine Veteran, dedicated Bulldog scorekeeper for many, many years.
National Anthem: RJ Sudduth (trombonist)
- Presentation of Colors: Reedley Naval Jr. ROTC Color Guard

Sunday: Salute to Services Weekend & High School Day

All active military and veterans get in to the game for FREE!
High School Day: All High School Students get in free with valid ID!
First Pitch: Curt Ward, Navy Veteran
National Anthem: Madeleine Valandi
- Presentation of Colors: Fresno County Sheriff Honor Guard

Bulldog Headlines
• Fresno State returns home after a 10-game road trip for a five-game Mountain West series against Air Force. The 'Dogs and Falcons will play a pair of doubleheaders on Friday & Saturday with the first game each day being 7 innings and the second game going 9 innings. The Bulldogs will play as the road team for Friday's two games as the teams make up two of its three games that were canceled in Colorado Springs in March.
• The Bulldogs completed its 10-game road swing on Tuesday with a 16-6 victory at Cal Poly going 6-4 on the trip. The 'Dogs are now 8-6 in true road games and 11-6 overall away from Fresno on the season.
• Fresno State leads the all-time series over Air Force, 28-10 with the Bulldogs winning two of three games last season in Fresno.
• Redshirt senior third baseman/pitcher McCarthy Tatum leads the 'Dogs hitting .364 from the dish, third-best in the MW, and leads the team in hits (40), doubles (10), RBI (35), total bases (66), slugging percentage (.600) and multi-hit games (14).
• Junior pitcher Davis Moore leads the MW with five wins and is tied with fellow junior hurler Ryan Jensen with a team-leading 39 strikeouts.

Fresno State vs. Air Force - The Series
• Fresno State and Air Force have met 38 times with the 'Dogs leading the all-time series 28-10.
• The first meeting between the two teams came in 1997 & the teams last met last season for one series in Fresno with the 'Dogs winning two of three games.
• The Bulldogs are 16-2 at home against Air Force in Fresno since moving to the Mountain West in 2013.
• Coach Batesole is 24-8 all-time against the Falcons while at Fresno State.

SERIES HISTORY
All-Time: Fresno State, 28-10
Last Meeting: April 29, 2018 (Fresno, Calif.) - W, 10-0
Current Streak: W1
Last Fresno State Win: April 29, 2018 (10-0) - Fresno, Calif.
Last Air Force Win: April 28, 2018 (14-4) - Fresno, Calif.

Where Fresno State Rank Offensively in the Mountain West/nation in 2019 (as of 4/11/19)
• .279 Batting Average: No. 3
• .399 Slugging Pct: No. 4
• .369 On base Pct: No. 4
• 19 sacrifice bunts: No. 4
• 171 Runs: No. 4
• 264 Hits: No. 7
• 146 RBI: No. 5
• 52 Doubles: No. 5
• 5 Triples: No. T-6
• 17 Home Runs: No. 4

Where Fresno State Rank Pitching in the Mountain West/nation in 2019 (as of 4/11/19)
• 3.92 ERA: No. 1
• .248 Opposing bat average: No. 1
• 10 saves: No. T-1
• 237 strikeouts: No. 3
• 104 Earned runs allowed: No. 1
• 227 Hits allowed: No. 1
• 121 walks allowed: No. 2
• 32 doubles allowed: No. 1
• 2 triples allowed: No. 1
• 16 home runs allowed: No. T-2

Where Fresno State Rank Fielding in the Mountain West/nation in 2019 (as of 4/11/19)
• .967 Fielding Percentage: No. 6
• 264 Assists: No. 7
• 16 double plays: No. 7

Where Fresno State Players Rank in the Mountain West/NCAA in 2019 (as of 4/11/19)
Batting average: McCarthy Tatum - 3rd (.364); Zach Ashford - 4th (.358)
Slugging percentage: Tatum - 2nd (.600)
On-base percentage: Zach Ashford - 3rd (.477)
Runs: Ashford - 4th (32); Carter Bins - 5th (30)
RBI: Tatum - 3rd (35)/RBI per game: 1.30 - 1st - 21st in nation
Home runs: Tatum & Zach Presno - T-7th (4)
Walks: Ashford - T-2nd (22)
Sacrifice bunts: Nolan Dempsey - 2nd (6) - 42nd nationally

Opposing batting average: Ryan Jensen - T-9th (.253)
Innings pitched: Davis Moore - 10th (41.0)
Strikeouts: Jensen & Moore - T-5th (39)
Wins: Moore - 1st (5) - 34th nationally
Saves: Jaime Arias - T-3rd (6) - 41st nationally
Fielding percentage: Ashford - T-1st (1.000)

A look at the Air Force Falcons
Air Force comes into this weekend's series with the Bulldogs coming off two midweek home victories over Utah Valley defeating the Wolverines, 16-15 and 12-9 on Monday and Tuesday.

The Falcons are 15-15 overall on the season with a 5-5 mark in Mountain West play and are 5-8 on the road. Air Force is 3-3 in MW road games this season winning one of three games at San Jose State and took two of three games at Nevada at the end of March.

Offensively, Air Force is hitting .275 as a club, good for fifth in the MW, while also ranking fifth in the league in scoring averaging 5.6 runs per game. The Falcons have racked up 33.6 percent of its 283 hits for extra bases collecting 62 doubles (2nd in MW), 12 triples (2nd in MW) and 21 home runs (3rd in MW).

Junior outfielder Ashton Easley leads the team with a .333 average from the plate and tops the team in runs (28), hits (40), home runs (6) and his 22 stolen bases check in No. 13 nationally.

Senior infielder Nic Ready, a 2018 All-American, is hitting .320 and leads the team in RBI (23), total bases (72), slugging percentage (.576) and ranks second in the league in doubles (14).

On the mound, Air Force has a staff ERA of 5.36, sixth in the MW, while its 1.58 strikeout-to-walk ratio (205 K/130 BB) also ranks sixth in the league. Opponents are hitting a collective .285 as a team against the Falcons averaging 6.3 runs and 9.7 hits per game.

Senior right-hander Jake Gilbert ranks second in the league with a 1.63 ERA to go along with three wins in 38.2 innings of work. Fellow senior righty Matt Hargreaves is 2-1 with a 3.03 ERA and has 26 strikeouts in 32.2 innings of work.

Freshman reliever Nathan Price has posted a team-high four wins and has a 3.03 ERA in 31.0 innings only allowing seven earned runs and eight walks.

Fresno State vs. Air Force Series Schedule - Friday through Sunday
Friday, April 12 - 3:05 p.m. - 7 innings
Friday, April 12 - 30 minutes after completion of first game - 9 innings
Note: Air Force will be the home team for both of Friday's games. (Makeup games at Air Force on March 15 &16)

Saturday, April 13 - 3:05 p.m. - 7 innings
Saturday, April 13 - 30 minutes after completion of first game - 9 innings
Note: Fresno State will be the home team for both of Saturday's games.

Sunday, April 14 - 12:05 p.m. - 9 innings
Note: Fresno State will be the home team for Sunday's game.

Fresno State at home vs. Air Force since 2013
2013 - 6-0 [W, 9-4; W, 8-5; W, 7-0; W, 8-6; W, 5-3; W, 6-4]
2014 - 3-0 [W, 8-1; W, 6-1; W, 11-1]
2015 - Did not play in Fresno
2016 - 3-0 [W, 14-1; W, 6-3; W, 5-1]
2017 - 2-1 [W, 7-5; L, 10-5; W, 8-7 (10)]
2018 - 2-1 [W, 7-2; L, 14-4; W, 10-0]
Overall: 16-2

Road Warriors
The Bulldogs have been on the road for nearly three weeks since their last home game posting a 6-4 mark on a 10-game road swing that saw the 'Dogs post wins at CSU Bakersfield, two wins over San Diego State, two more wins at Oregon and wrap it up on Tuesday with a 16-6 victory at Cal Poly.

The Bulldogs, who are 11-6 away from Fresno and 5-5 at home, will play 15 of its final 24 games of the regular season in Fresno.

Bulldogs moving up the RPI rankings
The Diamond 'Dogs are moving up the RPI rankings after their two wins at Oregon on April 4 & 5 and its 10-run victory at Cal Poly on Tuesday moving up to No. 55 as of Thursday.

The 'Dogs remaining opponents' RPI rankings for the remainder of the regular season are Air Force (119), CSU Bakersfield (223), San Jose State (123), Pacific (118), New Mexico (141), Cal Poly (158), Nevada (162), San Diego State (82) and UNLV (109).

Bulldog pitching staff on fire
The Diamond 'Dogs pitchers enter the weekend leading the conference as a staff in ERA (3.92), opposing batting average (.248), earned runs allowed (104), hits allowed (227), doubles allowed (32) and triples allowed (2).

In addition, the 'Dogs have given up three runs or less in 13 of its 27 games and are 11-2 in those contests.

Moore remains perfect on the season
Junior right-hander Davis Moore is one of three Mountain West pitchers with a league-leading five wins on the season is on one of 40 pitchers nationally with a 5-0 or better record without a loss.

The Rancho Cucamonga native leads the team with 41.0 innings pitched and 39 strikeouts and has thrown at least five innings in six of his seven starts this season.

Bins named to Buster Posey Award Watch List
Junior catcher Carter Bins was named to the Buster Posey Award Watch List on April 2 which is given to the nation's top division one collegiate catcher by the Greater Wichita Area Sports Commission.

Ashford named a Senior CLASS Award Candidate
Senior outfielder Zach Ashford has been named a candidate for the 2019 Senior CLASS Award, the organization announced on March 22. Thirty NCAA baseball student-athletes who excel both on and off the field were selected as candidates for the 2019 Senior CLASS Award in collegiate baseball.

To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. The 10 finalists for the award were named on April 10, but Ashford unfortunately did not make the cut.

Batesole reaches 800 career win milestone
Head coach Mike Batesole reached career win number 800 on Feb. 16 in the Bulldogs' 6-3 season-opening win over Utah Valley at Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium. Now in his 17th season at the helm of the Bulldogs this season, Batesole has won 559 games at Fresno State and 256 at CSUN from 1996-2002 for a total of 815 career wins.

In his career, Batesole has won at least 30 games in 19 of his 23 years as a Division I head coach and in 13 of his 16 seasons at Fresno State.

Up Next
Fresno State stays at home to open next week hosting CSU Bakersfield (15-19) on Tuesday at 6:05 p.m. It will be Canned Food Drive Night if you bring two cans of canned food to donate to the Fresno State Student Cupboard and get in FREE!

"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.

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