Lobo Baseball: California Trip Recap and UNLV Preview

by Zach

This past week featured a good road trip to California for the Lobos (17-8, 7-2), as they went 4-1 on the five-game swing, including 2-1 against SDSU and 2-0 against Sacramento State. The Lobos had great pitching in 3 of the five games, and were just a single bad inning away from going 5-0 on the week. While the Lobos didn’t get the sweep against SDSU, they did get a series win on the road, which always helps to win the conference. The Lobos will return to Albuquerque for a home series against UNLV (9-13, 3-6) in what I expect to be a great weekend for the Lobos.

Scattered Thoughts:

  • Last week, with the weekend series being shifted to Thursday, Friday, Saturday instead of the customary Friday, Saturday, Sunday, the Lobos made a shift in their rotation for the series by having Luis Gonzalez pitch the first game on Thursday, Carson Schneider pitching his normal Friday game, and Tyler Stevens pitching his normal Saturday game. Because of the shift in the games, Colton Thomson didn’t start over the weekend but instead pitched on Monday. The question is will the rotation go back to Schneider, Stevens and Thomson this weekend or will they keep the change?
  • Injuries have hurt the Lobos recently, with Danny Collier hurting his shoulder in the game Monday against Sacramento State and Michael Eaton dealing with an injury of his own. This has made Coach Birmingham mix and match who is in the starting lineup over the past several games. Because of that, Erik Migueles, Austin Bell and Andre Vigil have seen time in the outfield, while Vigil and Jared Mang have seen some time in in the infield. Eaton should be back before Collier, but one good thing for the Lobos is they have a few good options that should be able to fill the void.
  • Chris DeVito has been great for the Lobos at the plate, but I think what has been the most impressive part of his season is how well he is catching for the Lobos. It was a huge question mark if he would be able to catch when the season started, and I think he has passed the test with flying colors. While he will likely never be a great defensive catcher, he has shown that he can handle the position well at the collegiate level.

Pitching Performances:

Luis Gonzalez (2-0): In his second start of the season, Gonzalez was very good in the first game of the SDSU series. Gonzalez went 7 2/3 innings, allowing 8 hits, one walk, 3 runs (2 earned) while striking out 6. I would assume we continue to see Gonzalez playing centerfield during the weekend and start the second midweek game for most of the rest of season, but with the way the rotation was shifted this past weekend, I wouldn’t be surprised if we saw him start either Friday or Sunday.

Carson Schneider (4-1): Schneider continued his great pitching this season with a complete game on Friday against SDSU. While Schneider didn’t start the first game against SDSU, it wasn’t because he lost his number one spot. It was just to keep him on his normal routine. Schneider’s line for Friday was 9 innings allowing 8 hits, 2 runs, while striking out 5.

Tyler Stevens (3-2): Stevens was one weird inning away from having a great start, so I expect him to bounce back quickly. One great thing to see is Stevens not walking a batter, which is a trend that everyone hopes continues. Stevens line for Saturday’s game: 6 innings allowing 7 hits, 6 runs (4 earned) while striking out 2.

Colton Thomson (3-1): Thomson has been great for the Lobos, and Monday’s start against Sacramento State was no different. Thomson went 8 shutout innings, allowing only 4 hits and a walk, while striking out 8. It will be interesting to see if Thomson will pitch on Sunday this weekend, as the fifth-year senior should be able to make the start. However, at the same time don’t be surprised if he doesn’t make a start until next Sunday to prevent him from pitching on “short” rest.

James Harrington (4-1): Harrington has done a good job for the Lobos as the main midweek starter, and Tuesday’s start against Sacramento was a good example of that. Harrington went 5 innings allowing 7 hits, 3 runs and two walks, while striking out 2 strikeouts.

Top Hitters:

Chris DeVito: In game 1 against SDSU, DeVito saw his long hit streak come to an end, but that didn’t stop him from having a great week. DeVito ended the week 8 for 19 with 2 runs, 7 RBIs, 2 walks, a double and two homeruns.

Jack Zoellner: What a great week for the Lobos junior first baseman. Zoellner, like DeVito, ended up going 8 for 19 with 3 runs, 3 RBIs, 2 walks, 3 doubles, and a homerun.

Luis Gonzalez: Not only did Gonzalez have a great start on the mound, he also had another good week at the top of the Lobo lineup. Gonzalez finished the week 7 for 22 with 3 runs, 4 RBIs, 2 walks, a double and 2 stolen bases.

Jared Holley: Holley had a lot of big hits on the weekend, including a huge RBI double in each of the first two games against SDSU. Holley finished the weekend 6 for 18 with 3 runs, 5 RBIs, a hit by pitch, and 4 doubles.

UNLV Rebels:

The Rebels (9-13, 3-6) are in transition mode with first year Head Coach Stan Stolte, who was the head assistant at UNLV. The Rebel will always have talent, but the question will be if they will be able to put it together as a team (that might sound familiar to basketball fans). There will be a time in the next few years where UNLV will be competing for conference championships, but I don’t expect that to be this season. The Lobos don’t want to be the team that sees UNLV turn the corner, so it will be important for the Lobos to jump on the Rebels early on Friday to take control of the series.

On the field, the Rebels are led by Payton Squier (.366) and Kyle Isbel (.326). However, no other Rebels regular is hitting over .300. Squier and Isbel are both set-the-table type hitters, so it will be important for the Lobo pitching staff to keep these two Rebels off the base paths. If the Lobos are able to do this, the Lobos should in a good position to get the series sweep.

The Rebels pitching staff is led by their weekend rotation, even though there has been a change in the Saturday role in the last two weeks. The Rebels’ Friday starter is DJ Myers (2-0 with a 3.28 ERA), Saturday’s starter is Cody Roper (0-0 in 2 starts with 2.45 ERA), and Sunday’s starter is Kenny Oakley (2-3 with 3.63 ERA). Runs could be at a premium, so it will be important for the Lobos key hitters to have great weekends, and for the rest of the Lobo hitters to put together great at bats.

Conference Standings:

  1. AFA 4-1
  2. UNM 7-2
  3. FSU 6-3
  4. Nevada 4-4
  5. UNLV 3-6
  6. SDSU 2-5
  7. SJSU 3-8

Series Prediction:

The Lobos have started the Mountain West Season by winning each of their first three series, including a 3-0 mark in conference home games this season. I give the Lobos a 90% chance of winning the series and a 50% chance of sweeping the series. The Lobos have the better team and it should show in all aspects of the game this weekend. I will take the Lobos with a sweep to improve to 10-2 in conference play.

Game Info:

Who: UNM Lobos (17-8, 7-2) vs. UNLV Rebels (9-13, 3-6)

When: Friday, April 1st, 6 PM MT; Saturday, April 2nd, 2 PM MT; Sunday, April 3rd, 1 PM MT

Where: Santa Ana Star Field, Albuquerque, New Mexico

Stream: MW Network

Radio: 101.7 FM The Team