Cal Poly Projected to Finish Fourth in 2021 Big West Baseball Race
2/10/2021 1:29:00 PM | Baseball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. -- In 2017, Cal Poly was picked by the head coaches to finish fourth in the Big West Conference baseball standings. The Mustangs claimed second place.
In 2018, Coach Larry Lee's Mustangs were predicted to be the third-place squad. Again, Cal Poly finished second.
The following year, fourth place was the predicted finish for the Mustangs. For the third straight year, Cal Poly placed second.
Three consecutive second-place finishes by Lee's Mustangs have yet to impress the Big West coaches as Cal Poly once again is below the No. 2 spot in the projected order of finish.
The 2021 Big West Conference Preseason Coaches Poll was released Wednesday and Cal Poly will finish fourth, the league's 11 head coaches say.
UC Santa Barbara, with 28 returning lettermen under 10th-year head coach Andrew Checketts, was the choice of 10 of the conference's head coaches to win the 2021 Big West title. The Gauchos have earned lofty preseason rankings of No. 8 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and No. 10 by Perfect Game.
The other first-place vote went to CSUN, which is sixth in the preseason poll.
The Big West is expanding to 11 teams this spring with the addition of UC San Diego and CSU Bakersfield.
Long Beach State checks in at No. 2 with 96 points, 23 behind UC Santa Barbara, and UC Irvine is one point back of the Dirtbags with 95 points in third place.
Cal Poly is fourth with 94 points and Cal State Fullerton rounds out the top five with 78 points.
Behind No. 6 CSUN are No. 7 Hawai'i, No. 8 UC Davis, No. 9 UC San Diego, No. 10 UC Riverside and No. 11 CSU Bakersfield.
Cal Poly returns 20 lettermen, including eight position starters and 10 pitchers, off last year's squad which posted wins over No. 1 and defending national champion Vanderbilt and No. 5 Michigan on its way to a 5-11 mark before the 2020 season was halted.
Senior catcher Myles Emmerson was the team's top hitter a year ago with a .317 average. Also returning are junior outfielder Cole Cabrera (.274) and junior third baseman Tate Samuelson (.254), making the switch from first base this spring.
Topping the pitching staff are freshman right-hander Drew Thorpe, who led the team with 31 strikeouts in four starts, and junior southpaw Andrew Alvarez.
The roster also has been bolstered by three Boise State transfers -- first baseman Joe Yorke, outfielder Reagan Doss and southpaw Travis Weston, who also will be in the weekend rotation -- and one from Washington State in infielder Matt Lopez.
Cal Poly opens its 2021 season with a four-game series against Nevada on Feb. 19-22 inside Baggett Stadium. Due to guidelines established by Cal Poly, the San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department, the California State University system and the state of California as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, no fans will be permitted at the present time.
2021 Big West Conference
Baseball Coaches Poll
1. UC Santa Barbara – 119 (11)
2. Long Beach State – 96
3. UC Irvine – 95
4. Cal Poly – 94
5. Cal State Fullerton – 78
6. CSUN – 64 (1)
7. Hawai'I – 61
8. UC Davis – 39
9. UC San Diego – 33
10. UC Riverside – 29
11. CSU Bakersfield – 18
() First place votes
In 2018, Coach Larry Lee's Mustangs were predicted to be the third-place squad. Again, Cal Poly finished second.
The following year, fourth place was the predicted finish for the Mustangs. For the third straight year, Cal Poly placed second.
Three consecutive second-place finishes by Lee's Mustangs have yet to impress the Big West coaches as Cal Poly once again is below the No. 2 spot in the projected order of finish.
The 2021 Big West Conference Preseason Coaches Poll was released Wednesday and Cal Poly will finish fourth, the league's 11 head coaches say.
UC Santa Barbara, with 28 returning lettermen under 10th-year head coach Andrew Checketts, was the choice of 10 of the conference's head coaches to win the 2021 Big West title. The Gauchos have earned lofty preseason rankings of No. 8 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and No. 10 by Perfect Game.
The other first-place vote went to CSUN, which is sixth in the preseason poll.
The Big West is expanding to 11 teams this spring with the addition of UC San Diego and CSU Bakersfield.
Long Beach State checks in at No. 2 with 96 points, 23 behind UC Santa Barbara, and UC Irvine is one point back of the Dirtbags with 95 points in third place.
Cal Poly is fourth with 94 points and Cal State Fullerton rounds out the top five with 78 points.
Behind No. 6 CSUN are No. 7 Hawai'i, No. 8 UC Davis, No. 9 UC San Diego, No. 10 UC Riverside and No. 11 CSU Bakersfield.
Cal Poly returns 20 lettermen, including eight position starters and 10 pitchers, off last year's squad which posted wins over No. 1 and defending national champion Vanderbilt and No. 5 Michigan on its way to a 5-11 mark before the 2020 season was halted.
Senior catcher Myles Emmerson was the team's top hitter a year ago with a .317 average. Also returning are junior outfielder Cole Cabrera (.274) and junior third baseman Tate Samuelson (.254), making the switch from first base this spring.
Topping the pitching staff are freshman right-hander Drew Thorpe, who led the team with 31 strikeouts in four starts, and junior southpaw Andrew Alvarez.
The roster also has been bolstered by three Boise State transfers -- first baseman Joe Yorke, outfielder Reagan Doss and southpaw Travis Weston, who also will be in the weekend rotation -- and one from Washington State in infielder Matt Lopez.
Cal Poly opens its 2021 season with a four-game series against Nevada on Feb. 19-22 inside Baggett Stadium. Due to guidelines established by Cal Poly, the San Luis Obispo County Public Health Department, the California State University system and the state of California as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, no fans will be permitted at the present time.
2021 Big West Conference
Baseball Coaches Poll
1. UC Santa Barbara – 119 (11)
2. Long Beach State – 96
3. UC Irvine – 95
4. Cal Poly – 94
5. Cal State Fullerton – 78
6. CSUN – 64 (1)
7. Hawai'I – 61
8. UC Davis – 39
9. UC San Diego – 33
10. UC Riverside – 29
11. CSU Bakersfield – 18
() First place votes
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