Game Week Preview
UNLV at San Diego State
March 11-13, 2022
Tony Gwynn Stadium
Pitching Probables
Friday, March 11 | 6 p.m. PT
UNLV: TBA
SDSU: Troy Melton, RHP (0-0, 0.00 ERA
Saturday, March 12 | 6 p.m. PT
UNLV: TBA
SDSU: Kelena Sauer, RHP (1-2, 4.41 ERA, 16.1 IP)
Sunday, March 13 | 1 p.m. PT
UNLV: TBA
SDSU: Jacob Flores, LHP (1-1, 4.70 ERA, 15.1 IP)
WHAT'S ON TAP FOR AZTEC BASEBALL
> San Diego State opens its 22nd season of Mountain West baseball competition this weekend when it plays host to UNLV in a three-game series, March 11-13, at Tony Gwynn Stadium.
> The first two contests are slated to begin at 6 p.m. PT, while Sunday's finale is scheduled for a 1 p.m. start.
> In addition to live stats, all three games will be streamed live via the Mountain West Network, with Nick Rice handling the play-by-play responsibilities. Links to both live stats and the MW Network will be available on GoAztecs.com.
> The first 250 fans in attendance on Saturday night will receive a free Aztec Baseball T-shirt.
> SDSU will open its MW slate against UNLV for just the second time since the league's inaugural baseball season in 2000. The Aztecs defeated the Rebels 4-3 in their conference lid-lifter on March 14, 2009. In that contest, Stephen Strasburg posted 14 strikeouts, fanning every player in the UNLV lineup at least once in six innings of work en route to the victory.
SETTING THE SCENE
> SDSU put the brakes on a four-game losing streak last Sunday with a 4-3 victory over Arizona State at Tony Gwynn Stadium. With the win, the Aztecs move to 4-8 on the season.
> SDSU outfielder Tyler Glowacki received Mountain West Freshman of the Week recognition on Monday after leading the team with a .378 batting average and six hits in four games, highlighted by the go-ahead single vs. Arizona State on Sunday.
> As a staff, Aztec hurlers lead the Mountain West with 123 strikeouts entering the weekend and rank second with a 4.50 ERA. In addition, SDSU occupies the third position in the conference with a .258 opposing team batting average.
> Three SDSU pitchers find themselves among the MW top 10 in strikeouts this week, including Jacob Flores, who is tied for third with 18 Ks, followed by Kelena Sauer (T-5th, 17 Ks) and Jonny Guzman (T-7th, 16 Ks).
> Not to be outdone, TJ Fondtain occupies the sixth spot in the league with a .216 opposing batting average and ranks seventh with a 1.88 ERA.
> Offensively, shortstop Caden Miller finds himself among the conference leaders in several categories, including stolen bases (T-1st, 3), on-base percentage (7th, .464), hits (9th, 15) and batting average (T-10th, .333).
> Aztec right-hander Troy Melton, who has missed the first three weeks of the 2022 campaign is expected to make his first start of the 2022 season on Friday against UNLV. Melton was named to the preseason all-Mountain West team in February.
> Following this weekend's set vs. the Rebels, SDSU wraps up its season-long homestand with a single game against Iowa on Tuesday, March 15 at Tony Gwynn Stadium. SDSU then hits the road for just the second time this year when it travels to the Bay Area for a three-game Mountain West series at San José State, March 18-20.
FOR OPENERS (MW EDITION)
> Since the first year of Mountain West baseball action in 2000, San Diego State has compiled a 14-7 record in conference openers, including an 11-2 mark at home.
> During that span, San Diego State has captured 15 opening series against league opponents—16 if one includes a four-team round-robin event in 2006 when the Aztecs went 3-1.
> As MW rivals, SDSU has faced UNLV in a conference opener on just one previous occasion, winning by a 4-3 count on March 14, 2009 at Tony Gwynn Stadium. Aztec Hall of Famer and 2019 World Series MVP Stephen Strasburg posted 14 strikeouts en route to the victory, fanning every Rebel player at least once in six innings of work. Not to be outdone, SDSU went on to sweep the series after capturing the second game (6-1) and the finale (15-2). In the latter contest, outfielder Cory Vaughn totaled four hits and seven RBIs, falling a double short of hitting for the cycle.
AZTEC WEEKEND ROTATION
> San Diego State has scheduled Troy Melton's 2022 debut for the UNLV series opener on Friday night, while Saturday and Sunday will feature this season's usual suspects Kelena Sauer and Jacob Flores, respectively.
> Melton (0-0) has not pitched for the Aztecs since the penultimate game of the 2021 campaign at New Mexico when he struck out eight batters in five innings. In that contest, however, the SDSU right-hander did not factor in the decision after allowing four runs on 10 hits, as the Scarlet and Black plated two runs in the top of the ninth to pull out the win. In 2021, Melton compiled a 4-5 overall record with a 6.14 ERA and a team-high 83 strikeouts. The Anaheim, California, native finished among the Mountain West leaders in several categories last season, including strikeouts (2nd – 83), innings pitched (4th – 73.1), opposing batting average (8th – .291), wins (T-10th – 4), ERA (11th – 6.14) and fewest walks allowed (T-15th – 30). He also issued one walk or less in eight starts. Against Fresno State on March 7, 2021, Melton recorded his first career shutout, matching his collegiate best with nine strikeouts while allowing just four hits and one walk in the complete-game victory, as the Aztecs romped to a 17-0 triumph. For that performance vs. the Bulldogs, he was named MW Pitcher of the Week.
> On Saturday, sophomore Kelena Sauer (1-2, 4.41 ERA) will make his fifth career start after absorbing the loss in SDSU's 6-4 setback to Arizona State on March 5. Against the Sun Devils, the Aztec right-hander gave up five runs (four earned) on 10 hits and two walks against four strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings. Despite a career-high seven strikeouts against Utah in the Tony Gwynn Legacy on Feb. 26, Sauer was also saddled with a tough defeat after ceding all four of the Utes' runs on six hits and no walks before giving way to Robert Brodell to start the sixth. Last month, the Mililani Hawai'i, product emerged as the winning pitcher in SDSU's 4-3 victory over Houston at the MLB4 Tournament on Feb. 19. Against the Cougars, Sauer fanned six batters over five innings, surrendering just one run on three hits and two walks. As a true freshman in 2021, Sauer posted a 1-0 record with a 4.20 ERA, one save and 19 strikeouts in 15.0 innings over 14 games. In addition, he held opponents scoreless in his first four appearances and eight for the year.
> Meanwhile, Jacob Flores (0-1, 4.82 ERA) is once again slated to get the call in the series finale. The SDSU left-hander will be making his fourth straight start and eighth of his career after taking the hill vs. Arizona State on March 6. Against the Sun Devils, the Aztec senior survived some anxious moments in his six-inning stint to collect his first win since March 1, 2020, after allowing three runs on seven hits and four walks to go with five strikeouts. In his previous start against Utah on Feb. 27, Flores posted a career-best seven strikeouts but did not factor in the decision after yielding all three of Utes' runs on two hits and two walks in five innings, as the Scarlet and Black rallied for a thrilling 4-3 walk-off victory. Flores also pitched against California at the MLB4 Tournament in Scottsdale, Arizona, but was tagged with the loss after surrendering three runs (two earned) on five hits and three walks. He has made three career appearances vs. UNLV, earning a four-inning save in the Aztecs' 11-4 road victory on April 26, 2019, despite giving up three runs (one earned) on seven hits and one walk.
SERIES RECORD VS. UNLV
> San Diego State holds a sizable 96-68 lead in the all-time series, which dates back to 1978.
> The Aztecs are 48-21 against the Rebels in San Diego, 45-41 in Las Vegas and 3-6 at neutral sites.
> During Mark Martinez's eight-year tenure as head coach on The Mesa, SDSU sports a 21-13 record vs. UNLV, including a 12-5 mark at home, an 8-7 ledger on the road and a 1-1 record on neutral fields.
> The Aztecs went 2-4 against the Rebels last season, winning two of three at Tony Gwynn Stadium almost a year ago to the date (March 13-14, 2021) but were swept in a pivotal series late in the year (May 15-16) in Las Vegas.
> In the home series vs. UNLV, SDSU opened with a doubleheader split, posting a 3-1 triumph in game one before dropping a 5-1 decision in the nightcap.
> The following day, the Scarlet and Black closed out the series with an 8-6 victory in the finale, notching six runs in the bottom of the seventh to overcome a 5-2 deficit. SDSU sent 10 batters to the plate in that decisive inning, scoring five of its six markers with two outs.
TOUGH AT HOME
> Since the start of the 2012 season, San Diego State is 178-111 (.616) when playing at home.
> In 2018, the Aztecs set a program record with 25 home victories at Tony Gwynn Stadium (since 1997), besting the previous standard of 24 set in 1997, 2002 and 2014.
STRIKEOUTS GALORE
> San Diego State has recorded double-digit strikeouts in seven of 12 games this year, including a season-high 21 vs. Hawai'i in 15 innings on Feb. 28.
> Redshirt sophomore Jonny Guzman fanned a career-best nine hitters in his first collegiate start at UC Irvine on Feb. 22, which marks a single-game high for an SDSU pitcher this year.
> In addition, three other Aztec starters have compiled collegiate-high strikeout totals already this season: TJ Fondtain (7 vs. Hawai'i, Feb. 25)), Kelena Sauer (7 vs. Utah, Feb. 26) and Jacob Flores (7 vs. Utah, Feb. 27).
> Entering the weekend, SDSU leads the Mountain West with 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings, which ranks 80th in the nation.
STREAKING AZTECS
> Caden Miller has reached base safely in all 12 games this year, followed by Poncho Ruiz (11) and Tyler Glowacki (10).
> Ruiz had his nine-game hitting streak snapped in the second game of the Arizona State series on March 6. Ruiz's streak marks the team's longest this season, followed by Miller (7, Feb. 18-27) and Cole Carrigg (5, Feb. 19-26).
> Miller leads the Scarlet and Black with two hits in five games and has multiple RBIs in a pair of outings, along with Brian Leonhardt.
> Miller and Ruiz are the only two Aztecs to start all 12 games this year. Miller has made 12 starts at shortstop, while Ruiz has earned 10 starts at catcher and two at designated hitter. In addition, Alex Rodriguez has cracked the starting lineup at second base, while Carrigg has made eight starts in center field and two behind the plate.
GOING, GOING, GONE
> San Diego State has emerged victorious in 43 of its last 60 games dating back to 2019 when launching one out of the park.
> The Aztecs homered in 29 of 46 games last season, posting a 21-8 record in those contests.
> SDSU went 17-5 during the 2019 campaign when going yard and 5-2 in 2020.
> Ironically, the Aztecs have not homered in any of their four victories thus far in 2022.
OTHER TRENDS
> The Aztecs are 96-20 in their last 116 games when scoring five or more runs, including a stellar 29-6 record last year after posting a 6-2 mark in 2020.
> San Diego State is 62-27 in its last 89 games following a loss, including an 11-5 mark in 2021. The Scarlet and Black is off to a 4-4 start this season in games following a loss.
> Since allowing three runs in the top of the ninth to then-No. 17 TCU in the season opener, SDSU has won three straight games when leading after eight innings.
> The Aztecs are 3-1 so far this year in one-run games, recording all three victories in that category by 4-3 scores.
> San Diego State has won two straight Sunday games and has posted a 12-5 record on Sundays since the start of the 2021 campaign.
HEAD COACH MARK MARTINEZ
> Mark Martinez is in his eighth season as head coach of the Aztecs and 17th overall as a member of the San Diego State staff after succeeding the late Tony Gwynn on August 20, 2014. He is just the fifth head coach in SDSU history since baseball was elevated to major sport status in 1936.
> During his tenure as the Aztecs' head coach, Martinez has compiled a 219-158 record (.581), highlighted by three Mountain West tournament championships in 2015, 2017 and 2018. He has also posted a 106-78 ledger (.576) in conference regular-season games.
> Since 2015, SDSU has garnered 30 all-Mountain West accolades under Martinez's tutelage, including back-to-back MW Pitchers of the Year Brett Seeburger (2017) and Garrett Hill (2018), as well as 2017 MW Player of the Year Danny Sheehan.
> Additionally, Martinez has mentored three freshman All-Americans in Chase Calabuig (2015), Casey Schmitt (2018) and Jaden Fein (2019), with the latter also receiving Mountain West Co-Freshman of the Year distinction last year.
> In 2017, Martinez recorded his 100th victory for the Scarlet and Black, becoming the fastest head coach in program history to reach the century mark in wins.
> Not to be outdone, Martinez also became the fastest head coach in Mountain West history to win three conference championships when the Aztecs captured the title in 2018.
> Martinez was hired as an assistant coach for the Aztecs in July of 2005 and served for nine years under head coach Tony Gwynn. During that time, he was promoted to the position of associate head coach.
> Since his arrival on The Mesa as an assistant coach, Martinez has witnessed 49 SDSU players get drafted into the professional ranks, with 10 of those selections making the major leagues (Stephen Strasburg, Addison Reed, Justin Masterson, Bruce Billings, Quintin Berry, Lance Zawadzki, Greg Allen, Ty France, Seby Zavala and Alan Trejo).
> Prior to his arrival at San Diego State, Martinez was an assistant coach at New Mexico for 17 seasons from 1989-2005. During his time as a hitting and infield coach, he helped develop the Lobos into one of the most prominent offensive teams in the country, with UNM ranking among the top 11 nationally in hitting over his final four seasons.
> Martinez served as an assistant at his alma mater, Mesa State College (now Colorado Mesa University) in Grand Junction, Colorado, from 1984-88. He played shortstop at the school from 1982-84, earning all-conference and all-district honors as a senior.
> Martinez graduated from Mesa State College (now Colorado Mesa) with a bachelor's degree in physical education in 1984 and completed his master's in sports administration at New Mexico in 1990.
> During the offseason, Martinez signed a three-year contract extension that will keep him at San Diego State through the 2026 season.