***Update Tuesday, March 10***
San Diego State's game against TCU, originally scheduled for March 10 at 6 p.m. PT, has been canceled due to inclement weather and wet field conditions. The game will not be made up.
SAN DIEGO – The San Diego State baseball team jumps back into action on Tuesday, March 10 when it plays host to TCU for a single game at Tony Gwynn Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. PT, weather permitting, with a link to streaming video via the Mountain West Network available on GoAztecs.com.
Left-hander Brian Leonhardt is scheduled to make his third start of the season for SDSU, while the Horned Frogs are expected to go with right-hander Riley Cornelio.
Leonhardt (0-0, 2.08 ERA) tossed four scoreless innings in his last start at home against then-No. 17/17 Long Beach State on March 3, allowing two hits and two walks while matching his season-high with three strikeouts.
On the flip side, Cornelio (1-0, 0.87 ERA) has made three starts in four appearances this season, yielding one run on one hit and three walks in his last outing vs. UT Arlington on March 3, when he pitched 2 2/3 innings.
For the season, SDSU has four players hitting above .300, including Jaden Fein, who ranks sixth in the Mountain West entering the week with a .348 clip, followed by Casey Schmitt (.323), Matt Rudick (.313) and Jacob Cruce (.300).
Rudick, who is tied for the MW lead with three triples, ranks fourth in the conference with 21 hits and is tied for fifth with 13 runs scored. Schmitt also finds himself in a tie for fifth with 20 hits, while Leonhardt shares the eighth spot with 12 RBIs. Additionally, Mike Jarvis ranks among the league leaders in runs scored (T-8th, 12) and hits (10th, 12).
The Aztecs are coming off a 2-2 week, defeating Long Beach State at home 7-2 on March 3 before taking the opener of a three-game set at then-No. 11/15 Oklahoma on March 6. However, SDSU fell short in its next two encounters with the Sooners, suffering an 8-4 setback on Saturday, followed by a hard-fought 9-8 loss in 10 innings in the series finale.
Despite the latter two defeats, San Diego State swept the Mountain West weekly awards for the second time this year, with Schmitt earning Player of the Week honors, while Michael Paredes was tabbed conference Pitcher of the Week.
In four games last week, Schmitt was stellar at the plate, leading the Scarlet and Black in numerous categories, including batting average (.500), on-base percentage (.500), slugging percentage (.833), hits (9), RBIs (6) doubles (2) and triples (2).
The consensus preseason All-American also hit .800 (4-5) with runners in scoring position and raised his season batting average from .250 to .323 while extending his hitting streak to six games. Not to be outdone, Schmitt recorded his MW-leading sixth save in the opener vs. OU, which is tied with five other players for the top spot nationally.
Paredes, meanwhile, collected his first win of the season in that contest vs. the Sooners, striking out four batters in five innings. The sophomore right-hander yielded just two runs on six hits and a pair of walks, helping the Scarlet and Black defeat its second straight nationally ranked team.
Collectively, the Aztecs lead the Mountain West with a 3.73 ERA and rank second with an average of 8.85 hits allowed per nine innings. SDSU also occupies the top spot in the league with eight sacrifice flies and ranks second with a .282 batting average as a team.
After sweeping California in a three-game series at home from Feb. 28-March 1, TCU (11-4) has dropped three of its last four, including a 4-3 loss to then-No. 3/2 Vanderbilt Sunday in the Southern California Baseball Classic on the campus of USC. The Horned Frogs opened their Golden State excursion with a 2-1 setback against the host Trojans before defeating then-No. 5/6 UCLA on the Bruins' home field.
TCU is paced by second baseman Gray Rodgers, who ranks eighth in the Big 12 with a .373 batting average, while first baseman Gene Wood (.353) leads the squad in slugging percentage (.706) and on-base percentage (.514), highlighted by a team-best five homers. Wood and third baseman Conner Shepherd also share the top spot with 14 RBIs each, while outfielder Hunter Wolfe (.341) and shortstop Tommy Sacco (.304, 13 RBIs) are hitting over .300 as well.
As a team, the Horned Frogs rank third in the Big 12 in home runs (15), doubles (33) and stolen bases per game (1.73), with Wood and Wolfe swiping six bags each.
TCU leads the all-time series 24-13, including a 10-4 mark against the Aztecs in Tony Gwynn Stadium. The two sides last played in 2012, the final year of the Horned Frogs' membership in the Mountain West, as the Scarlet and Black claimed a wild 12-11 victory in an elimination game at the conference tournament in Las Vegas, Nev.
SDSU is 3-0 in Tuesday night games this season after defeating Cal State Fullerton 8-4 at home (Feb. 18), UC Irvine 2-1 on the road (Feb. 25) and the aforementioned Long Beach State squad 7-2 (March 3) in consecutive weeks. The Aztecs are 6-3 in home games this year and are 156-100 (.609) on The Mesa since 2012.
Following Tuesday's contest, San Diego State will entertain New Mexico State in a three-game home series this weekend, March 13-15, at Tony Gwynn Stadium.