San Diego, Calif. — On the road yet again, the UC Davis Baseball Team (10-14, 3-6) will kick off their weekend this Thursday with a series against UC San Diego. The Aggies enter the weekend winners of four of their last five games.
Picking up the first series win of Big West play on the road at CSU Bakersfield, the Aggies have also rattled off two midweek wins, one against LMU and their most recent game being a 6-4 win over Saint Mary's.
GAME SLATE
UC DAVIS BASEBALL AT UC SAN DIEGO | GAMES 25-27
APRIL 6-8 | TRITON BALL PARK | SAN DIEGO, CALIF.
THURSDAY, 6:00 P.M. | ESPN+
FRIDAY, 5:00 P.M. | ESPN+
SATURDAY, 1:00 P.M. | ESPN+
LIVE STATS
UC DAVIS BASEBALL VS. SACRAMENTO STATE | GAME 28
APRIL 11 | DOBBINS STADIUM | DAVIS, CALIF.
TUESDAY, 2:30 P.M. | ESPN+
LIVE STATS
AGGIE NOTES
The Aggies are fresh off a 6-4 win against Saint Mary's and have seemed to take a corner for the better. After losing their opening Big West series to CSUN and getting swept by Collegiate Baseball's No. 21 ranked team Cal State Fullerton, the Aggies have been piecing together better baseball.
Starting offensively with Alex Gouveia, the Aggies have been running behind him and his consistent ability to spray the field with doubles. Still leading the Big West in doubles with 14 total on the year, Gouveia now leads all Big West batters in total hits with 37 to his name.
While Gouveia has been the focal point, UC Davis has relied on what seems like a different Aggie every night to come through with a big game. With the lineup flexibility and depth with guys being able to play multiple positions, UC Davis has seen multiple games where all starters will reach base safely and this is even with the constant lineup changes to adapt to based on matchups.
One of the guys who has really exceeded expectations is Ryan Lee who is playing great on both sides of the ball. Catching can be one of the most demanding positions on the field and the true freshman has been a stoic stud.
Pitching for the Aggies has come down to the bullpen and their toughness to keep things in check when jams and tough situations are presented. The move to the bullpen for Nate Freeman has given UC Davis one of the most quality mid-relievers in the conference while the closing duo of Danny Carrion and Kaden Hogan have exhibited the benefits you can reap when position players become pitchers because both guys are as competitive as they come.
Even with the stater pitchers for the Aggies, UC Davis has seen improvements and will look to keep chipping away and solidify their three-headed rotation. An electric start to the year, Bryan Green was unhittable during his first few outings. While regression can be expected as the year goes on with hitters and lineups getting into the flow of the season, Green still is tied for first among the Big West in wins and ranks near the top of all conference pitching stats with his third ranked .206 opponent batting average standing out the most of all the numbers.
LEADING OFF
The Aggies have had a recent streak of success from a handful of players:
Ryan Lee - A five game hitting streak, Lee in his few games apart of the lineup ranks first among Aggies in on base percentage.
Carter Delaney - Had not allowed an earned run in four straight appearances but surrendered six to CSU Bakersfield.
Alex Gouveia - Leads the Aggies in multi-hit games with 12. The team's best hitter currently, Gouveia has solidified his spot among the heart of the Aggie lineup. He leads the Big West in doubles.
Mark Wolbert - Struggling by his standards, the All-American is leading the Aggies in games he's reached base in a row, as he's gotten on base the last 14 games.
Damian Stone - The speedy leadoff hitter tapped into his power against Bakersfield and previously held a 10-game hitting streak that was unfortunately snapped on Tuesday.
Nick Iverson - Battled through an early season injury that saw him miss time and not play at 100% strength, the do-it-all leader of the team has got a hit in four of the last five games.
Zach Romero - Has appeared in five games and has only surrendered one earned run. Has the lowest ERA on the team and continues to trend upward as a reliable guy out of the bullpen and starter for the midweek.
Kaden Hogan - Has a team high three saves on the year and is flashing the pitch-ability and stuff to be one of the best relievers in the conference.
YOUNG BUCKS
Entering the season with development on the mind of the staff, the Aggies have had to accelerate that process and utilize some freshman early in the season to play big innings. While Joey Wright was slated to be the everyday shortstop from the jump, the play of Braydon Wooldridge, Ethan Kang, and Leighton Helfrick has found the Aggies shuffling the lineup more than intended to mix and match depending on pitching matchups.
Kang like Wright, is as elite as they come defensively and has the makings of being one of the best outfielders UC Davis has seen in recent years. Slowly working towards playing time, Kang has taken that to the next level and already has been entrusted to man center field on occasion due to his impact and ability to track down balls. Coach Andrew Ayers notes that "Kang is an elite defender," so much so that he believes, "at some point I think he's going to get a Gold Glove in the Big West."
Wooldridge has shown in his time to be one of the toughest outs in the Aggie lineup. Receiving high remarks, the staff is excited for Braydon's future. Coach Nicholson has said, "He's someone that man, I can't wait to see what he looks like a year from now… He takes really good at bats." A complete competitor on the field, Wooldridge has even pitched a couple innings this year and looks to be a building block of the Aggies moving forward.
Helfrick has been a welcoming surprise to the Aggie lineup. Hitting his second home run of the year against Saint Mary's, Coach Ayers noted that all of the freshman and Helfrick especially, came into the season with a mindset of doing whatever it takes to win and attributed his recent success to his willingness to "make a lot of adjustments," to be more comfortable and help in recognizing pitches in the box.
NEW FACES
The talk of the freshmen doesn't diminish or overshadow the impact of some other new faces. At the head of those new faces is Alex Gouveia and Damian Stone who figure to be staples of the Aggie lineup during conference. Stone the speedy leadoff hitter who made his way to Davis after time at UC Santa Barbara and Ohlone, has shown when healthy, he is the engine of the offense. Third among Aggies in average at .303, Stone also has an on base percentage of .404.
Along with Stone, Gouveia has been as good as advertised. An All-Big 8 infielder a season ago at Modesto College, Gouveia is hitting .363 on the season and leads UC Davis with 37 hits, 13 more than the next closest guy. His offensive production paired with his defense up the middle with Wright has been "awesome" by coach Nicholson's standards.
KEEP CALM AND CARRION
An electric reliever and team leader, Danny Carrion is building in his first season as a full-time pitcher. Coach Tommy Nicholson ushered that "what we want to be able to do is get the ball in Daniel Carrion's hands with the lead." Running the radar gun up to the mid-90's and sitting consistently in the low-90's, Carrion has proven he can be the stopper UC Davis envisioned him to be when presented the opportunity. UC Davis will rely on him in high leverage situations and look to utilize him more with the Big West schedule.
DEFENSE WINS CHAMPIONSHIPS
Under the leadership of Tommy Nicholson the Aggies have already transformed their defense from a season ago. Currently leading the Big West in fielding percentage, (.977) UC Davis has seen practically a whole new lineup come together and improve a defense that finished in the bottom half of the league a season ago.
