Davis, Calif. — A final road trip looms for the UC Davis Baseball Team as the Aggies will conclude the 2023 season at the hostile confines of legendary Blair Field to take on the Long Beach State Dirtbags for a three game set starting Thursday.
After celebrating the careers of the senior trio which includes James Williams III, Nate Freeman and Nathan Peng this past weekend, the Aggies officially have to say goodbye to their veteran leaders as Saturday will mark their final games in an Aggie uniform.
Entering the weekend off the heels of perhaps their worst stretch of games in the entire season, the Aggies will look to finish the year strong and secure one more Big West series win.
Leading the Aggies until this point has been Alex Gouveia, Bryan Green and Danny Carrion. With Gouveia leading the team in hits for the majority of the season, his 20 doubles on the year is tied for the lead in the Big West. He has a chance at becoming an All-Big West selection with his consistent presence at the plate this year. Another Aggie who has a chance the be recognized this season is Danny Carrion with his 1.98 ERA over 18 appearances. A likely pick in this year's MLB Draft, Carrion has been one of the best relievers over the course of his 27.1 innings pitched, recording 30 strikeouts. The final Aggie leader has been Bryan Green, giving his squad a chance every Friday to win. Over 73.0 innings pitched, Green has limited opposing hitters to a .230 batting average en route to a 5-3 record. Sitting 10th in the Big West standings, UC Davis has a chance to climb up the rankings with a series win and some help from opposing Big West schools.
The Aggie offense enters the weekend with a .252/.336/.368 slash line, including 30 home runs and 235 runs scored in 51 games played. Aggies also have 436 hits with 133 of them going for extra-bases.
Long Beach State holds the all-time series advantage between the two programs at 37-16. UC Davis last victory against the Dirtbags was in 2019 when the Aggies swept Long Beach State.
UC Davis (17-34, 7-20 Big West) at Long Beach State (30-22, 14-13 Big West)
DATES AND TIMES
- Thursday, May 25 @ 6:00 P.M. PT
- Friday, May 26 @ 6:00 P.M. PT
- Saturday, May 27 @ 6:00 P.M. PT
STADIUM
- Bohl Diamond at Blair Field
TV/ONLINE
- ESPN+ available all weekend
- Live Stats provided by Long Beach State Athletics
PROBABLE STARTERS
Game 1
UC Davis - LHP Bryan Green (5-3, 3.82 ERA, 73.0 IP, 31 BB, 49 SO)
Game 2
UC Davis - RHP Kaden Hogan (2-3, 6.00 ERA, 36.0 IP, 9 BB, 33 SO)
Game 3
UC Davis - RHP Nate Freeman (2-7, 6.14 ERA, 48.1 IP, 20 BB, 38 SO)
ABOUT LONG BEACH STATE
Led by Pepperdine alum Eric Valenzuela, the Dirtbags have established themselves as one of the premier pitching schools in the entire country. With recent draft pick Devereaux Harrison highlighting the elite talent to come out of Long Beach State recently, the Dirtbags are again loaded with talent. Nico Zeglin anchors the pitching staff with his 2.16 ERA and this year he has been named the Big West Pitcher of the Week twice this season, while also earning one National Pitcher of the Week by D1Baseball. With the arms being such a strong area for Long Beach State, the backstop behind it all, Connor Burns has been the foundation for the Dirtbags this year. A semifinalist for the Buster Posey Award as the best catcher in the nation, Burns has developed his bat this season and is putting up career numbers while being the best defensive catcher in the Big West. At the plate, he is hitting .303 with a .957 OPS heading into the final weekend. He currently leads the team with a .585 slugging percentage while ranking second with 13 doubles, 12 home runs, and 43 RBI. The Dirtbags enter this weekend ranked seventh among the Big West competition.
SECOND SEASON
As the season comes to a close, the Aggies under the leadership of a new coaching staff with Tommy Nicholson at the head in just his second season, have a chance to eclipse 20 wins with a sweep against Long Beach State. With many close games that could have gone either way, the Aggies are hoping to finish the season strong and build momentum into 2024. With two possible All-Big West selections and other great things to build upon this season, the Aggies will use the final series to start progress toward a winning season in 2024, with the last one coming during the shortened 2020 season, and the last full schedule winning season happening back in 2015.
