Feb. 7, 2003
Complete Release in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader
THIS WEEK
San Diego State opens its 2003 home season with a two-game series against 20th-ranked South Alabama beginning on Tuesday, Feb. 11, at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
That home opener has a 3:00 p.m. start time. All fans in attendance will receive a special laminated game ticket commemorating Tony Gwynn's first home contest as SDSU's head coach.
The second contest against South Alabama will be played on Wednesday beginning at 6:00 p.m.
The Aztecs' first weekend series of the season will take place Feb. 14-16 when they host the Santa Clara Broncos. On Friday (Feb. 14) game time is 6:00 p.m. with a 1:00 p.m. first pitch both Saturday (Feb. 15) and Sunday (Feb. 16).
THROUGH THE YEARS
This year marks the 65th season of Aztec baseball since the sport was elevated to major status in 1936. The school did not field varsity teams from 1943 to 1945.
SDSU's all-time record entering the week (since 1936) stands at 1969-1177-37 (.624).
Since 1936, the program has had only four head coaches: Charlie Smith (1936-64), Lyle Olson (1965-71), Jim Dietz (1972-2002) and Tony Gwynn (present).
SERIES RECORDS
This will be the first ever meeting between South Alabama and San Diego State on the baseball field.
Santa Clara leads the series with SDSU by a 5-1 margin, with all six games being played between 1967 and 1974. The Broncos won the first five encounters between the teams, with SDSU winning the sixth time the teams squared off (March 23, 1974 in San Diego).
SCOUTING THE JAGUARS
South Alabama opens its 2003 season with Tuesday's game against the Aztecs. The Jaguars, ranked from 20th to 23rd in the three major collegiate polls, went 42-19 last season, winning the Sun Belt Conference title and advancing to the NCAA Regionals.
South Alabama returns 18 letterwinners including seven position starters and five pitchers. The top offensive returnees are first baseman Jansen Rayborn (.362, 41 RBI), third-team All-American outfielder Ryan Mulhern (.351, 17 HR, 64 RBI), and second baseman Josh Touchstone (.338, 11 HR, 40 RBI). The probable starting pitchers against SDSU are Clark Girardeau (8-6, 5.71) and Tony Neal (9-3, 3.89 in 2001 - redshirted last season).
SCOUTING THE BRONCOS
After opening the season with a pair of losses to #3-ranked Stanford, Santa Clara swept a four-game series at Hawaii-Hilo and enter the week with a 4-2 record The Broncos will host UC Irvine for a three-game series this weekend (Feb. 7-9) before visiting San Diego.
Santa Clara's top hitters in the early going have been infielder Eric Newton (.375) and second baseman A.J. LaBarbera (.360, 4 RBI). Left fielder Joe Diefenderfer (.385) and designated hitter Scott Shapiro (.333, 4 RBI) are also pitchers who have made two appearances apiece in SC's first six games. The Broncos are hitting .274 as a team.
In addition to Diefenderfer (0-1, 9.82 in two starts), Matt Travis has started a pair of games on the mound and is 1-1 with a 2.08 earned run average. The team's earned run average stands at 3.88.
LAST WEEK
San Diego State took two of three games at UC Santa Barbara to improve its record to 2-4 on the year.
Game one saw the Aztecs waste a fine pitching performance by Mike Moat as they fell, 2-1, to the Gauchos. An unearned run for UCSB in the second inning proved to be the difference. Peter Stonard led SDSU with a pair of hits including a double.
On Saturday, the Aztecs picked up their first victory of the year as a 13-hit attack produced a 10-2 win. Sophomore Jake McLintock broke out of his mini-slump with a pair of hits, two RBI and three runs scored. David Hall, in his first start of the season, collected three hits with an RBI and run scored. Senior Joe Carque went eight strong innings, allowing just four hits to move his record to 1-0 on the year.
The third game of the series, a 6-3 Aztec win, saw SDSU score three times in the third on a triple by freshman James Guerrero and a sacrifice fly by Stonard. Guerrero ended the day with two hits and three RBI while Anthony Gwynn and Rielly Embrey contributed a pair of hits each. Freshman Ronnie Lindsey picked up his first collegiate win and evened his record at 1-1, going five innings and giving up a run on four hits. Will Miller recorded his first save as an Aztec, tossing a scoreless ninth inning.
HEAD COACH TONY GWYNN
Tony Gwynn was hired to be San Diego State's head baseball coach on September 20, 2001. Last year he served as a volunteer coach for the Aztecs under Jim Dietz, who retired at the end of the 2002 season.
A former Aztec who played baseball at San Diego state from 1979 to 1981, Gwynn concluded a 20-year major league career with the San Diego Padres in 2001. With a career batting average of .338, he won eight National League batting titles, five Gold Gloves, and made 15 appearances in the annual All-Star Game.
ON THE DEFENSIVE
Much of SDSU's success last weekend can be credited to a defense that appears to have settled down after the opening series of the season.
After committing 10 errors in the three losses at Arizona State, the Aztecs had only four in three games at UCSB, with two of those coming in game one of the series (which they lost 2-1).
Over the final two contests against the Gauchos, San Diego state committed only one error, that coming in the first inning of game two. They did not have a miscue in the 17 innings that followed.
FRESHMEN EXCEL
San Diego State has a pair of freshman who have played in each of its first six games.
Shortstop James Guerrero has started all six games while left fielder Curt Mendoza started the first five and came on midway though the sixth contest.
Guerrero leads the team with six runs batted in and is batting .304 with a double, triple, three runs scored and five walks. Mendoza is hitting .333 with two RBI and a run scored.
STARTING PITCHING
The Aztecs' starting rotation the first two weekends of the 2003 campaign has performed very well despite the team's record.
The threesome of junior Mike Moat, senior Joe Carque and freshman Ronnie Lindsey have combined for an earned run average of 2.25 (eight earned runs in 32 innings).
STONARD STREAK STOPPED
Junior second baseman Peter Stonard saw his five-game hitting streak ended in the final game at UC Santa Barbara when he was held hitless in five trips to the plate. He did end that game with a pair of walks, a sacrifice fly and one run batted in.
His five-game streak is the longest on the squad this season. Four players currently have two-game hitting streaks.
Stonard's hitless day last Sunday also ended his 17-game streak that carried over from last season when he finished the year (at the University of Alabama) by hitting safely in the final 12 games.
GWYNN GETTING IT DONE
Although outfielder Anthony Gwynn was held hitless in the first two games at Santa Barbara, he broke out with two hits (a single and double), a run scored and an RBI in the series finale.
He had a stolen base in game two and remains perfect (3-for-3) in the early going.
Defensively, he made a spectacular diving catch of a ball hit into left center to rob the Gauchos of a certain extra-base hit in last Sunday's game.
ALLEN OFF TO FAST START
Starting Catcher Josh Allen is tied for the team batting lead (with designated hitter Rielly Embrey) with a .385 average (5-for-13), having stared four contests and come on as a substitute in one other. He has recorded three doubles to lead the team and has also walked on three occasions.
Among the regulars, his .615 slugging percentage and .529 on-base percentage both lead the team. He has not committed an error in 21 chances behind the plate.
HALL-MARK OF EXCELLENCE
Sophomore David Hall got his first start of the year (third of his brief Aztec career) in left field in Saturday's win at UC Santa Barbara.
He responded with three hits in his first three at bats, scoring one run and driving in another. He finished the day 3-for-4.
With a hit in his lone plate appearance at Arizona State, Hall is hitting a robust .800 with three runs scored and a pair of runs batted in.
TOUGH LUCK STARTER
Despite giving up only one earned run in his first two starts and compiling an earned run average of 0.86 (one earned run in 11 innings), junior right-hander Mike Moat finds himself with an 0-1 record.
In the season opener against Arizona State, he allowed no runs on four hits in five innings of work and was not involved in the decision.
In his second start (at UC Santa Barbara last weekend), he allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits while striking out seven over six innings. However, the SDSU offense could only produce one run on the day and Moat took the loss as the Gauchos won the game, 2-1.
POWER SHORTAGE
Through the first six games of the season, San Diego State has recorded only one home run, the one hit by first baseman Jon Stephens in game three at Arizona State.
SDSU's slugging percentage stand at .335 entering the week.
The Aztecs' opponents have hit nine homers this season.
PITCHING CHANGE
By getting excellent pitching last weekend from both starters and relievers, SDSU has dropped its team earned run average to 3.93. That compares to the mark of 6.29 it accumulated after the opening weekend of the season at Arizona State.
Last weekend, Aztec pitchers struck out 19 and walked only five. The previous weekend at ASU, they struck out only 11 while walking 24.
PRESEASON CONFERENCE POLL
For the fourth straight year, San Diego State has been picked to win the Mountain West Conference by a vote of the league's coaches. The Aztecs received five first-place votes while New Mexico received one.
The predicted order of finish:
Team PointsSan Diego State......25Brigham Young........19UNLV.................17Utah.................12New Mexico...........11Air Force............11
AZTEC NOTES
SDSU stole 6-of-7 bases at Santa Barbara last weekend and has been successful on 10 of its 13 attempts thus far in 2003. In addition to three by Anthony Gwynn, Peter Stoanbrd has two while five others have one each.
San Diego State began its season with four losses for only the second time in the history of the program. The only other time the Aztecs started similarly was in 1953 when they lost their first five contests of the year.
Aztec utility player Brian Kinsman, a freshman from Klamath Falls, Ore., made his first collegiate at bat a memorable one as he lined an RBI single in the ninth inning of the 10-2 win at UCSB last Saturday.
Anthony Gwynn and Peter Stonard have each enjoyed three multiple-hit games though the Aztecs' first six contests.
The Aztecs have not given up a triple through the first six games.
Junior Chad Corona recorded his first stolen base as an Aztec in the series finales at UCSB last Sunday.
The Aztecs have not attempted a sacrifice bunt in their opening six contests of the season.
TIME CHANGES
There have been time changes made for two of San Diego State's away games this season.
The contest at Miami on Sunday, Feb. 23, has been moved to noon (EST) to accommodate the Aztecs' travel plans later that afternoon.
SDSU's game at UC Irvine on Saturday, March 8, has been changed to 4:00 p.m. from its original start time of 6:00 p.m.
ON DECK
Following the Santa Clara series, San Diego State will head east to take on the 14th-ranked Miami Hurricanes.
That three-game set will begin on Friday, Feb. 21, at 7:00 p.m. (EST) at Miami's Mark Light Stadium. Game two will start at the same time Saturday evening while the series finale on Sunday (Feb. 23) will begin at noon.