May 6, 2010
Complete Release and Season Statistics in PDF Format
THIS WEEKEND IN AZTEC BASEBALL
San Diego State continues Mountain West Conference play at home this weekend with a series against league foe Air Force. The first contest between the Aztecs and Falcons is scheduled for Friday, May 7, at 6:00 p.m. (PT) at Tony Gwynn Stadium. Game two is set for a 1:00 p.m. start on Saturday (May 8) with the series finale to be played at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday (May 9).
SERIES RECORD
San Diego State's all-time record against Air Force stands at 78-15 since the teams first met in 1961. The Aztecs have won the last 31 meeting between the teams and have dropped only one game during Tony Gwynn's reign as head coach (a 3-0 loss in Colorado Springs in 2003). SDSU won three games against the Falcons in Colorado Springs in early April. Two of those contests went 10 innings. The Aztecs are 43-7 vs. the Falcons in San Diego and 30-8 at Air Force's home field. The Aztecs have won all five meetings at neutral sites.
SCOUTING THE FALCONS
Air Force's record stands at 11-34 (1-12 MWC) after a loss to Northern Colorado on Tuesday. The Falcon's win in league play came against 11th-ranked TCU in Colorado Springs. The Academy's top hitters include designated hitter Matt Alexander (.346, 12 2B, 6 HR, 38 RBI), second baseman Blair Roberts (.341), and first baseman Addison Gentry (.336, 11 2B, 9 Hr, 49 RBI). The Falcons' overall team batting average is .304 while the pitching staff has an 11.23 earned run average.
REED REPEATS AS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Addison Reed was named Mountain West Conference Pitcher of the Week this past Monday for the second week in a row. It marks his fourth career weekly honor and his third of the 2010 season. Reed tossed eight shutout innings in San Diego State's 11-0 win over New Mexico last Friday (April 30). It was the first time the Lobos had been held scoreless since April 17, 2009. The junior right-hander surrendered just four hits (.182) and one walk to a UNM squad that entered the contest with a .352 team batting average. He struck out nine batters and did not allow a UNM runner past second base, while extending his current streak of scoreless innings to 20. He was also named to the College Baseball Foundation's weekly National All-Star Lineup. Reed's award marked the sixth time in 13 weeks that an SDSU pitcher has captured the weekly conference accolade. Freshman Bryan Crabb has won it twice and first-year Aztec Ethan Miller once this season.
MEREDITH'S HOT BAT
Over the past six games Brandon Meredith has gone 13-for-22 (.591) with 11 runs scored and eight RBI. He has also drawn seven walks and been hit by pitch for a .700 on-base percentage. He finished off the New Mexico series by going 4-for-4 with a home run, three runs scored and four RBI in the finale against the Lobos. He went 7-for-17 in the previous weekend's four-game series vs. Wagner the previous weekend with six runs scored and four RBI. He followed that up with a 2-for-5 performance vs. Long Beach State on April 27. He leads the Aztec regulars in hitting at .374 and his .520 average in league play ranks first in the MWC. Meredith has been hit by pitch on 11 occasions to tie for seventh on the SDSU single-season list. He is leads the Aztecs in multiple-hit games with 17 and in multiple-RBI games with 11.
REED AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS
Addison Reed ranks among the national leaders in four categories to begin the week. He is seventh in hits allowed per nine innings at 5.5 and ranks 16th in the country with a 1.88 earned run average. Reed is 31st in strikeouts per nine innings (10.68) and 30th in walks allowed per nine innings (1.41). He leads the Mountain West Conference both overall and in league games only in ERA (1.88/1.20) and opponent batting average (.176/.170). Over his last four starts (30.2 innings), Reed has allowed just two walks while striking out 38.
BLACKBURN STREAK ENDS
Mitch Blackburn's long hitting streak ended at 23 games after he went hitless last Sunday (May 2) against New Mexico. The streak was the fourth-longest in Aztec history and best since Quintin Berry hit safely in 27 straight games during the 2005 campaign. During his streak, Blackburn went 41-for-101 (.406) with six doubles, a triple, three home runs, 27 runs scored and 18 RBI. He leads the team with 46 runs scored and is second on the squad with a .328 batting average and 30 walks. He also has a .419 on-base percentage. Blackburn has walked almost twice as many times as he has struck out this season (30 BB, 16 K),
TORRES ON A ROLL
Sophomore Jomel Torres had a personal-best 11-game hitting streak end last Saturday (May 1) against New Mexico. Over those 11 contests he went 16-for-37 (.432) with eight runs scored and 13 runs batted in. He also drew 11 walks and was hit by pitch once for an on-base percentage of .571 during the streak. When batting in the leadoff spot in the Aztec order, Torres is hitting .378 (14-for-37) with eight runs scored, 11 walks and a .549 on-base percentage.
WILSON POWERS UP
Chris Wilson had a six-game hitting streak end last week during which he hit .440 (11-for-25). He saw an eight-game hitting streak come to an end in the contest vs. Utah on Saturday, April 17, then had a pair of hits vs. UCI in the next game. Wilson hit his sixth home run of the year, a two-run shot, against New Mexico on Friday, April 30. With that round-tripper he maintained the team lead in that category.
VAUGHN STREAKING
Cory Vaughn enters the weekend on a 10-game hitting streak, the third-longest of the year by an Aztec. He has reached safely in 16 of SDSU's last 17 contests. Against New Mexico last weekend he went 5-for-11 with a double, home run, three runs scored and four RBI. He also walked three times. His homer against New Mexico last Sunday (May 2) was the 21st of his career and moved him into a tie for ninth on the SDSU career list. He is second on the team with nine multiple-RBI games and has also had 13 multiple-hit performances.
PARKER STUDENT-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Junior catcher Matt Parker was named the SDSU Male Student-Athlete of the Year at the annual student-athlete awards banquet last Thursday. Parker is a public administration major. In addition, the baseball team was announced as the winner of the Montezuma Cup for the second straight year. Teams earn points toward the Montezuma Cup throughout the year in such areas as community service, academics, athletic performance, Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) participation and athletes supporting athletes.
WALK IT OUT
Aztec batters have drawn 251 walks through the first 45 games of the season, an average of 5.58 per contest. SDSU leads the MWC in that category and has recorded over 70 more walks than the next nearest team in the league (New Mexico with 181). SDSU has drawn double figures in walks in six games this season. San Diego State's walk total entering the week ranks fifth in the nation in Division I. Four Aztecs rank among the top eight individuals in walks in the overall conference stats: Mitch Blackburn, Jordan Van Hoosier, Jomel Torres and Matt Parker. As a team, San Diego State's 224 walks as of this past Monday was the seventh-most in the nation entering the week.
CLIMBING THE CAREER LISTS
Four Aztecs appear among the top 20 on the SDSU career lists and will move up the ladder this season. In the hit by pitch category, Cory Vaughn ranks third with 23 while Brandon Meredith is fourth with 22. Both Vaughn and Meredith are chasing current senior Pat Colwell who holds the SDSU hit by pitch career record with 31. Colwell is redshirting during the 2010 season. Senior Brandon Decker is tied for sixth in career sacrifice bunts with 20. Jomel Torres ranks 10th in sacrifice bunts with a two-year total of 12. Pitcher Addison Reed is second all-time with 24 saves, two behind leader Royce Ring. In addition, Vaughn is tied for ninth with 21 homers. His eight career triples rank just outside the all-time SDSU top 20 (nine 3B ranks 20th).
ON DECK
San Diego State will continue conference play next weekend as it travels to Utah to face Brigham Young in a three-game series. The first contest between the Aztecs and Cougars is set for Thursday, May 13, at 6:30 pm. 9 (MT) at Larry H. Miller Field in Provo. SDSU and BYU will also meet for single contests on Thursday (May 14) at 6:30 (PT) and Saturday (May 15) at 1:00 (PT).