Feb. 5, 2007
DAVIS, Calif. - In the final season of a four-year reclassification to NCAA Division I, the UC Davis baseball team will enter the 2007 season with a squad full of seasoned veterans and a deep and versatile corps of pitchers that will undoubtedly look to build themselves into a team to be reckoned with when they are eligible for both postseason and Big West Conference play in 2008.
Last season the Aggies enjoyed historical victories over perennial powers such as Cal State Fullerton, Stanford and eventual national champion Oregon State despite an 18-34 record. This year's team will definitely miss the leadership of their top hitter (Tyler LaTorre) and pitcher (Michael Potter), both of whom earned Division I All-Independent first-team honors, but they do bring back five of their starting position players. In addition, the Aggies have added much-needed depth to their pitching rotation.
"I think we'll have a solid corps of position players and I think the middle of our lineup will be solid," said fifth-year head coach Rex Peters. "Last year was a little bit of a disappointment for us because two years ago we met our goals and announced ourselves as an up-and-coming program. Hopefully, this will be a bounce-back year and we can get to 30 wins and get ourselves where we need to be when we go into Division I next year."
The Aggies begin the 2007 season on Feb. 6 as they travel down to Santa Clara for a 6 p.m. game with the Broncos.
Infielders
Daniel Descalso is the team's starting third basemen and is going to be the heart and soul of the team as well as the heart and soul of the infield. Considered to be solid from any position on the field, Descalso is a natural fit at the hot corner and will look to rebound this season after working through injuries last year when he batted .284 with 17 RBI's and 10 doubles in 43 games.
Senior Brandon Oliver is one of the best returning hitters for the Aggies this season and will make the transition from shortstop to second base, which is his natural position. Last season, Oliver batted .256 with 12 RBI's, eight doubles and 29 runs in 41 games. As the team's starting shortstop last year, Oliver had 114 assists and 66 putouts.
With the move of Oliver to second, a solid shortstop will come in the combination of junior Matt Dempsey and freshman Justin Schafer. Last year Dempsey batted a solid .276 with 11 RBI's and nine runs in 34 starts. On the field, Dempsey has shown flashes of greatness with a .949 fielding percentage in 157 chances. Schaffer has pushed Dempsey during the fall and is expected to split time at short during his first collegiate season.
First base will feature a tandem of junior Evan Hudson and sophomore Grant Hirneise, both of whom will use their athleticism to their advantage at the versatile position. Hudson batted .267 last year in only 101 at-bats while Hirniece sat out the season with redshirt year.
Taking over the starting catcher duties from the departed LaTorre is sophomore Jacob Jefferies, who returns after gaining some experience during his freshman campaign. Jefferies had three doubles and a .237 batting average in 59 at-bats last season.
Backing up Jefferies behind the plate is junior transfer Matt Van Orden, who will provide the team with much-needed relief at one of the most grinding positions on the field. Van Orden comes to UC Davis from San Mateo College where he earned all-conference honors last season with a .267 batting average and 21 RBI's. With Jefferies batting from the left side and Van Orden from the right, the players give the team a solid platoon from both sides of the plate.
Outfielders
Junior Ryan Royster returns in 2007 with a more prominent position as one of the team's centerfielders, which is a difficult task when playing in the spacious Dobbins Stadium. Royster saw limited action last season, starting 16 games.
Moving from second base to centerfield is senior Michael Jacobellis, who will split time with Royster to provide the team with great depth. Jacobellis is a speedy player and has solid instincts from any spot on the field. He is fresh off a season in which he drove in five runs and belted five doubles in 90 at-bats and only 27 starts.
Taking on the starting right field position is senior Aaron Hanke, who took the position over last year and became very comfortable. Hanke possesses a strong throwing arm and a great presence at the plate after batting .283 with 13 doubles, four homeruns and 28 RBI's last year.
Also expecting to split time in leftfield is Michael Hernandez and Kevin James. Both players will provide the team with a solid corps of outfielders. Hernandez is the Aggies' top returning hitter from last season as he batted .296 with 12 doubles, five homeruns and 20 RBI's in 38 games. Hernandez also had enjoyed an career-best 18-game hitting streak toward the end of the season. James also played well last year with his .260 batting average and seven doubles, one homer and 10 RBI's.
Pitchers
"Last year we lacked pitching depth and suffered through some injuries," said Peters. "Coming into this year we wanted to give ourselves that added pitching depth and we did that."
Heading up the Aggies' pitching rotation is sophomore right-hander Bryan Evans, who enters the season after gaining valuable experience as a true freshman last year. Evans posted three wins for UC Davis last season but will take on a more prominent role in 2007. This season Evans returns with a newly added changeup and the knowledge of what it takes to win at the Division I level. Evans also racked up 50 strikeouts in 70-1/3 innings of work last season.
Junior transfer Trevor Fox is also expected to be a major impact to the new look pitching rotation this season as the left-handed strike-thrower is a fierce competitor who will give the team quality starts. Fox was named Big 7 All-Conference at Santa Rosa Junior College and finished with an 8-3 record and a 3.12 ERA in more than 106 innings of work.
Fellow junior transfer Jeff Reekers is a quality right-handed strike-thrower that will keep the pace of games going relatively quickly and should get a lot of ground balls. While not a power pitcher, Reakers will command the strike zone with his finesse. He pitched more than 113 innings at Ohlone College last season and recorded a team-high nine wins and a 2.93 ERA to earn all-conference accolades.
Sophomore Brad McAtee returns with the most potential of any Aggie pitcher, said Peters. possessing a wide range of pitches that might will provide him plenty of options on the mound. McAtee will look to rebound this season after struggling through injuries last year in which he still managed to strike out 39 batters in only 48.2 innings pitched.
Although the team will miss the quality starts of Potter, the Aggies now have more all-around depth this season.
"Starts that Potter gave us on Friday nights will be hard to replace and someone will have to step up and earn that roll as a Friday starter," said Peters. "Somebody is going to step up. I don't who it will be, but somebody is going to do that and we'll adjust the pitching staff as necessary."
Senior Nik Aurora is the closer heading into the season as he returns from a 2006 campaign in which he won three games while earning six saves and striking out 22 batters in 35.2 innings. The Aurora brings with him the knowledge of having pitched out of the bullpen as a solid reliever his entire collegiate career.
Junior Eddie Gamboa is coming off an arm injury that cost him all of last year. Peters said Gamboa is still getting back to full strength and should give the Aggies another solid arm and may move into a starting role later in the season.
Sophomore Justin Fitzgerald is another player coming off injury and will begin the year coming out of the bullpen as well. He too will be used sparingly in short relief appearances early in the season and may also getting a starting nod as the season progresses.
Rounding out the junior college transfers expected to make an impact is Marco Grifantini, who will also provide depth out of the bullpen. Grifantini was selected to the All-Golden Valley Conference second-team last season while at Feather River College, finishing with a 4-0 record and a 2.52 ERA. The prior year he set a school-record with a 1.33 ERA.
The senior leadership of Brent Nichols and Paul Gonzales will also help out a deep bullpen. Both will be counted on for short relief stints.
Although they may not see a lot of time, the Aggies also expect some solid innings from a two freshmen. Alek Diachenko has a very good arm and will help in short relief and will be solid contributor in years to come. Scott Chew is a left-handed strike-thrower who should continue to improve this season as a true freshman.
The Journey
The Aggies will play several high-caliber teams in 2007, which includes a full Big West schedule against perennial powers such as preseason No. 14 Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State. Defending national champion Oregon State will also make a visit to Dobbins Stadium on Feb. 23 during the annual River City Classic. The Aggies will also make the trek down to Malibu in early February for a three-game series with No. 19 Pepperdine.
In addition, the Aggies will also play cross-town rival Sacramento State four times this season with the all-important Causeway Cup points on the line. The first of those games comes on Feb. 22 during the first day of the River City Classic with the other three coming in a three-game series March 9-11.
Other big games include a home game with Cal on March 13 and a road contest with Stanford on May 22.
Overall, the Aggies have the 13th toughest Division I schedule in the nation, according to the NCAA ISR rankings.
"Consistency is a big concern. We would like to win more series this year and that requires us to be consistent," said Peters. "The goal every year is to get to 30 wins and finish with a winning record. We'll have to stay healthy to do that and get hot at the right times, but I like the character of this team and I think we look really good on paper. We have a difficult schedule with a lot of top teams on it, so if we get 30 wins we're going to earn every one of them."
