April 24, 2008
Complete Release and Season Statistics in PDF Format
AZTECS HOST LEAGUE CO-LEADER TCU FOR THREE-GAME MWC SERIES
*** After a non-league contest at USC on Tuesday, San Diego State now returns to Mountain West Conference play as it hosts league co-leader TCU for a three-game series this weekend beginning with a game on Friday, April 25, at 6:00 p.m. (PDT) at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
*** The Aztecs and Horned Frogs will also meet in contests on Saturday (April 26) and Sunday (April 27) at 1:00 p.m. and 11:00 a.m. respectively.
*** Saturday's contest will be televised live on The Mtn.
*** The Sunday game has been moved to 11:00 a.m. from its original start time of 1:00 p.m. in order to accommodate TCU's travel itinerary which changed when the airline canceled their original return flight later in the day.
SENIOR DAY
*** With Sunday's contest against TCU being the final weekend home game of the season for SDSU, the Aztecs will take the opportunity to honor nine seniors.
*** That list includes OF Brandon Glover, 2B Garett Green, SS Troy Hanzawa, OF Cameron Johnson, RHP Shane Kaufman, RHP J.R. Murphy, LHP Brandon Pullen, LHP Brandon Villalobos and INF Mike Willeford.
SERIES RECORD
*** SDSU's record against TCU stands at 5-9, with the first seven of those contests coming during the 1998 and 1999 seasons when both were members of the Western Athletic Conference. The Aztecs are 4-1 against the Horned Frogs in San Diego and 1-8 in Fort Forth.
*** Last year, the Horned Frogs swept a three-game series from SDSU in Fort Worth. The previous season, the Aztecs won three of the four times the team met (all at Tony Gwynn Stadium) including a game during the MWC Preseason Tournament.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
*** TCU has a mark 27-14 overall (11-4 MWC) and has won 13 of its last 15 contests. The Horned Frogs are tied for first place in the conference with New Mexico. TCU split a pair of games earlier in the week, defeating Dallas Baptist (4-4) on Monday and losing at Oklahoma (11-6) on Tuesday.
*** Leading the offense are outfielders Clint Arnold (.366, 11 2B, 15 runs) and Chris Ellington (.333, 13 2B, 31 RBI). Arnold and second baseman Ben Carruthers have stolen 10 and 13 bases respectively.
*** Closer Andrew Cashner is 7-2 with five saves and a 2.36 earned run average in 20 relief appearances. He has struck out 50 in 34.1 innings of work.
*** The Horned Frogs are hitting .292 as a team with a 3.91 earned run average.
AZTECS TOP USC ON TUESDAY
*** San Diego State defeated USC, 6-3, Tuesday evening at Dedeaux Field in Los Angeles.
*** Pat Colwell's two-out bases-loaded double in the ninth drove home three runs and broke a 2-2 tie. He then scored on a double by Brandon Decker.
*** Sophomore Nate Solow went eight-plus innings, scattering six hits and striking out six to pick up his third win of the year.
*** James McLaughlin closed out the contest to pick up his second save.
*** With the 2-1 win over the Trojans in late February, it marks the first time SDSU has taken a season series from USC since 1993.
STRASBURG WINS MWC AWARD
*** For the fourth time this season and second consecutive week, San Diego State pitcher Stephen Strasburg has been named the MWC Pitcher of the Week. He earned the award for his performance in SDSU's victory over UNLV in the opening contest of last weekend's series in Las Vegas.
*** Strasburg earned his fifth win of the season in that 17-1 win at UNLV. In 7.0 innings on the mound, he tallied 13 strikeouts while scattering four hits and giving up no runs or walks. With one out and a runner on third in the third inning, Strasburg struck out two hitters to get out of the jam.
*** Only one other Rebel runner reached as far as second base against him for the rest of the contest as he held UNLV, which came into the game batting .315 as a team, to a .160 average for the game.
*** With the seven shutout innings last Friday, Strasburg lowered his overall earned run average to 1.73 and 0.90 in Mountain West Conference games. Both marks lead the MWC entering the week. He has recorded 86 strikeouts and only eight walks in 57.1 innings this season.
GLOVER STREAKING
*** Senior outfielder Brandon Glover has the team's current longest hitting streak at 11 games. It is the longest streak by an Aztec this season.
*** During that streak, he is hitting .395 (17-for-43) with six doubles, a triple, four home runs and seven bases on balls for a .490 on-base percentage.
*** He has at least one double, one run scored and one RBI in four of SDSU's last five outings and a walk in three of last four.
*** He has raised his season batting average 49 points (from .224 to .273) over the last 11 games. He is hitting .345 in league play.
*** Glover's home run in the win over Utah on April 12 was the first of his collegiate career (including two seasons at Texas A&M). He added a second two games later vs. UC Riverside last Tuesday and two more in the series against UNLV to record four in the past seven contests.
*** Prior to the home run against Utah, he had recorded 482 at bats as a collegiate player without a home run.
HANZAWA LEADS THE OFFENSE
*** Over SDSU's last six contests, shortstop Troy Hanzawa has gone 17-for-33 (.515) with five doubles, two triples, two home runs, 13 runs scored and 17 RBI.
*** Included in those games is a pair of games in which he drove in five runs. Only he and Nick Romero have had five-RBI efforts this season.
*** He has scored at least two runs in a game on 13 occasions in 2008.
*** He has scored at least once in each of the past six games.
*** His .379 batting average leads the club as does his 67 hits, 46 runs scored, six triples and 11 stolen bases.
*** Hanzawa's five RBI in each of SDSU's contests vs. UNLV on April 18 and 20 mark a career high.
*** His 20 multiple-hit games are the most on the team and his nine multiple-RBI efforts are second-most on the club.
*** Hanzawa is hitting .368 in conference play and has committed only one error in 15 MWC contests (70 chances).
COLWELL REMAINS HOT
*** Sophomore outfielder Pat Colwell is hitting .455 (15-for-33) over the Aztecs' last seven games with four doubles, two triples, two home runs and 17 runs scored. He has reached safely in each of those contests.
*** His .459 batting average in league play ranks second in the MWC this week.
*** Over the past 13 games, he has raised his batting average from .253 to .346.
*** In his 20 games as SDSU's leadoff hitter, Colwell has an on-base percentage of .510 and his batting average is .410.
*** His five runs scored in the game at UNLV last Friday was a career high.
*** Colwell has hit his first two home runs as a collegiate player this season, one being an inside-the-park shot vs. Utah on April 12 and the other coming at UNLV last Friday.
*** He became the first SDSU player to ever hit for the cycle when he accomplished the feat against Utah on April 12.
ROMERO GOES DEEP
*** Junior third baseman Nick Romero belted four home runs last week to bring his season total to a team-leading nine, matching his season total as freshman in 2006.
*** His 24 career homers is four shy of the SDSU career mark held jointly by Curt Mendoza (2003-06) and Paul Lockhart (1997-2000).
*** Romero hit a grand slam in the game against Arizona on April 8. It was his first career slam as an Aztec and moved him into the team lead for homers.
*** His five RBI in that game marked the second time this season he has driven in five runs.
*** In the last five games, he has gone 10-for-22 (.455) with seven runs scored and 12 RBI.
*** He has hit safely in each of the last five games and nine of the last 10.
*** He is second on the team with 16 multiple-hit games and leads the squad with 11 multiple-RBI efforts. He has driven in four or more runs in a game five times in 2008.
*** Romero has drawn a walk in eight of the last nine games. His 28 walks this season lead the team. He needs one more to enter to Aztec career top 20 in that category.
DECKER HEATING UP
*** Brandon Decker is in the midst of a career personal-best nine game hitting streak.
*** In those five contests, he has gone 19-for-40 (.475) with four doubles, 10 runs scored and eight runs batted in.
*** He tied a career high with four hits last Sunday at UNLV.
*** Decker has scored at least once in six of the last seven games.
*** He has gotten at least one hit in 15 of his last 17 contests.
*** Decker has raised his overall average to .341, its highest point of the season and third-best on the squad entering the week.
*** In Mountain West Conference play, he is hitting .392.
*** He has not committed an error in 25 games in the outfield (33 chances).
MURPHY WIN STREAK
*** J.R. Murphy's has now recorded wins in five of his last seven starts (the other two being no-decisions) to improve to 5-1 on the year.
*** In his most recent outing in which he recorded a victory (vs. Utah, April 12), he tossed 7.2 innings of shutout ball, scattering six hits and striking out eight.
*** The eight K's in that contest matched his career high, set earlier this season against Utah in Salt Lake City (7.1 innings).
*** In his last five starts, Murphy has struck out 36 and walked only eight. He had a string of 16.2 innings without allowing a base on balls earlier this season.
TANOS BREAKS OUT
*** Brett Tanos broke out of a 0-for-15 slump with three hits against UC Riverside last Tuesday (April 15). He also scored a pair of runs in that contest.
*** He went on to hit safely in all three games at UNLV, going 6-for-11 in those contests with four runs scored and three RBI.
*** He also drew four walks at UNLV to bring his season total to 25, second-highest on the team.
*** He hit his first collegiate home run in the game against BYU on March 13, a solo shot in the fifth inning.
*** Tanos has started 33 of SDSU's 41 contests: 18 at first base, nine as the DH, five at catcher and one in left field.
FLYING SOLOW
*** Sophomore Nate Solow has struck out 68 and walked only 23 in his 58.0 innings of work. His strikeout total is the second best in the Mountain West Conference behind teammate Stephen Strasburg.
*** His 13 strikeouts against BYU on March 14 were a career high.
*** Solow has picked up his back-to-back wins (vs. UC Riverside and at USC) in his last two starts.
RUDDY IN RESERVE
*** Reserve catcher Bubba Ruddy has made the most of his last three starts, going 6-for-13 in those games with three runs scored and a pair of runs batted in.
*** His three hits and two RBI in the series finale at UNLV were both season highs for the junior transfer from Cypress JC.
*** Ruddy hit his first home run as an Aztec in the contest against New Mexico on April 5, a solo shot in the seventh inning that tied the game.
MCLAUGHLIN OUT OF THE PEN
*** After not allowing a run in his previous seven appearances, junior right-hander James McLaughlin gave up two in the final inning of SDSU's 9-2 win over Utah on April 12.
*** Prior to that game, he had not allowed a run in his last seven relief appearances covering 18.1 innings.
*** On Tuesday (April 22) vs. at USC, he pitched the ninth inning, allowing no hits and striking out one with two hit batters as he recorded his second save of the year.
*** In his last 11 outings, his earned run average is 2.16 (six earned runs in 25.0 innings).
*** He has not given up a walk in his last five appearances covering eight innings.
*** McLaughlin had his longest outing of the year on Monday, March 17, against Southern Utah, going six innings in relief. Over that period he scattered three hits while striking out seven and walking none.
*** The seven strikeouts in that contest were his career high as an Aztec.
*** He recorded his lone save of the season with four innings of relief work vs. Oklahoma State on March 9.
*** All three of his wins have come in relief with his lone start of 2008 coming at UC Riverside on March 4.
GREEN GETTING IT DONE
*** Second baseman Garett Green has gone 10-for-22 (.455) over the last four contests, hitting safely in each.
*** He recorded three hits at USC on Tuesday.
*** He hit his fifth home run of the season in last Saturday's game at UNLV.
*** Green enters the week third on the team with 34 runs scored and third with 33 RBI.
*** His nine doubles and five home runs tie him for second.
*** His seven sacrifice flies are the most for an Aztec this season and ties for the national lead in Division I. That number also ties for the fifth-most ever in a season by an Aztec.
CLIMBING THE CHARTS
*** Troy Hanzawa's six triples in 2008 ties for the 11th most in a season by an Aztec.
*** Hanzawa's 11 career triples moves him into a tie for 11th place on the all-time Aztec list.
*** Nick Romero's 142 career RBI move him into the sixth spot on the San Diego State all-time list.
*** His nine homers this year give him a career total of 24, moving him into fifth on the San Diego State career list.
*** Romero's nine career triples also tie him for 18th.
*** Garett Green's 12 sacrifice flies over the past two seasons ties him for fifth all-time at SDSU.
*** Green's seven sacrifice flies this year ties for the fifth-most ever in a season by an SDSU player.
AMONG THE NATIONAL LEADERS
*** Entering play this week, SDSU ranked among the national Division I leaders in two offensive areas: 18th with 17 triples and 23rd in triples per game (0.43).
*** On the pitching side, the Aztecs are 13th in most strikeouts per game (8.7) and 29th in fewest walks per game with (3.13).
*** There is a total of 286 teams in Division I baseball.
*** Individually, Stephen Strasburg is second in the country in strikeouts (86), second in strikeouts per nine innings (13.51) and 12th in earned run average (1.73).
*** Nate Solow's 62 strikeouts rank 37th in the nation and he is 14th with an average of 11.16 K's per nine innings.
*** Troy Hanzawa's five triples rank 14th in the nation while his hit total of 64 ranks 30th.
*** In addition, Garett Green is tied for first in Division I with seven sacrifice flies.
GETTING OFFENSIVE
*** In SDSU's last five games, the team has scored 67 runs on 89 hits and compiled a batting average of .413.
*** In the process, the team batting average has risen 20 points, from .273 to .294.
*** In those five games, SDSU had 21 doubles, three triples and 13 home runs.
*** The home runs represented almost a third of the team's season total.
*** The Aztecs recorded season highs in runs (18) and hits (25) in the contest at UNLV last Saturday.
*** Over the past 10 games, San Diego State is batting .349 as a team with 25 doubles, five triples and 16 home runs.
AZTEC NOTES
*** Outfielder Josh Chasse made only his second appearance in April when he came to bat in Friday's (April 18) game at UNLV, pinch hitting in the eighth inning and recording a two-out two-RBI double.
*** Erik Castro had a five-game hitting streak halted at USC on Tuesday. However, he did draw a pair of walks in that contest and scored twice.
*** SDSU's 4-0 win over Harvard on March 26 was played in a time of 2:09. It was the quickest nine-inning game for the Aztecs since a 6-3 loss to UNLV on May 28, 2004, that was completed in 1:58.
*** The infield duo of second baseman Garett Green and third baseman Nick Romero are the only Aztecs to have started all 41 game in 2008.
*** Over the past two seasons, sophomore right-hander Stephen Strasburg has not allowed a home run over 94.1 innings.
*** Strasburg has been named to the Dick Howser Trophy watch list. He is one of 50 players nation wide in contention for the award which honors the year's top player in collegiate baseball.
*** The Aztecs are 8-2 in one-run games. In 2007, SDSU finished with a mark of 4-10 in one-run contests.
*** San Diego State recorded a season-high eight stolen bases in the series finale against Houston on March 30.
ON DECK
*** San Diego State will begin a string of eight straight road games with a trip to Tucson to face 20th-ranked Arizona for games on Tuesday (April 29) and Wednesday (April 30) at 7:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. respectively.
*** Upon returning to San Diego, the Aztecs will depart for Air Force the next day for three games against the Falcons in Colorado Springs.
*** That series begins with a contest on Friday, May 2, at 2:00 p.m. (MDT) at Falcon Field.
*** The teams will also meet on Saturday (May 3) and Sunday (May 4) at 1:00 p.m. and noon respectively.