Thursday, May 23
San Luis Obispo, Calif.
6 P.M.
vs
Long Beach State
Photo by: Owen Main | Cal Poly Athletics
Cal Poly Wraps Up 2024 With Final Home Series Against Long Beach State
5/21/2024 2:15:00 PM | Baseball
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – After being mathematically eliminated from title contention last weekend, Cal Poly (33-21, 18-9 BW) now sets its sights on having a strong finish to the season. The Mustangs, jockeying for position among places 2-5 of the Big West standings, take on Long Beach State (24-27-1, 9-18 BW) in a final home series to tie a bow on 2024.
Last Week Against…UC San Diego
Cal Poly encountered a red-hot UC San Diego squad with nothing but pride to play for, losing the series 2-1 to the Tritons despite great offensive production in two of those games. However, dropping even one game in the series and taking the win still would have meant UC Santa Barbara eliminating the Mustangs as their central coast rival swept their respective opponent.
UCSD, taking home field advantage in La Jolla, out-pitched the Mustangs in game one with a 4-1 win that saw the visitors tally just four hits. Cal Poly turned on the jets in game two with a seven-run outing but an early rush from the Tritons made for an insurmountable deficit. A pair of home runs from Jake Steels during game three netted Cal Poly's sole win in the road series.
Mustangs Riding High
Heading into the season finale, Ryan Stafford still paces both the squad and conference with 83 hits, and barring a miraculous weekend from any other player Stafford will likely take the crown while further adding onto his draft resumé. Following behind the star catcher is Jake Steels (76 hits) who leads all Mustangs with his .376 batting average and stellar 1.022 OPS.
With one prospective start remaining in his draft-eligible year, Jakob Wright has collected 95 strikeouts and is five away from the coveted single-season century mark. MLB.com's 140th-ranked draft prospect, Wright leads the pitching staff with a 2.96 ERA, 82 IP, and an 8-3 record alongside being nearly 30 strikeouts ahead of the next closest Mustang.
Five Mustangs are playing their final games at Baggett Stadium this weekend and will be honored before the series finale on Saturday: Ryan Baum, Aaron Casillas, Jake Steels, Evan Tomlinson, and Joe Yorke.
Casillas, Steels, and Yorke have been major, catalytic contributors over the last few years at Cal Poly. Those three, alone, currently account for over a third of the collective team's hits this season (33.5%) and will justifiably be given some deserved pomp and circumstance. Meanwhile, Baum and Tomlinson have played regular relief roles throughout their respective careers and will be missed as well.
Scouting…The Dirtbags
Long Beach State (24-27-1, 9-18 BW), affectionately dubbed the 'Dirtbags' by the institution's administration and fans alike, is playing purely for pride at this point in the season. In an uncharacteristically rocky year for the 4-time College World Series contenders and 7-time Regionals Champions, Long Beach State is currently battling to stay off the floor of the Big West standings.
The Dirtbags have taken just one Big West series this season, which was a sweep over Cal State Fullerton back in late March. Since then, LBSU has tallied just six more wins in-conference and is coming off a 4-7 record thus far in May.
Despite tying with Cal State Fullerton for last in the conference at a .245 team batting average, Long Beach State's pitching staff has held a 4.52 ERA, which is good for fourth in the conference behind Cal Poly. The Dirtbags are led by Connor Carpiot on the offensive end of things, batting at a .321 clip alongside 53 hits and 11 doubles.
Among the rotation and bullpen, 11-of-17 LBSU pitchers carry an ERA under 5.00, with 7 of those even under 4.00 led by Nathan Morris who tops the staff with a 2.73 ERA through 29 2/3 innings pitched in relief. Starters Myles Patton and Kellan Montgomery are two of the better arms in the Big West with special consideration to Patton who has tallied 85 strikeouts and held opposing bats to a .216 average.
Looking Ahead
Following the conclusion of this series, Cal Poly's regular season will be officially wrapped up and finished. Barring a completely unexpected and groundbreaking deliberation, the Mustangs will likely not have the sufficient RPI to become an at-large team.
Last Week Against…UC San Diego
Cal Poly encountered a red-hot UC San Diego squad with nothing but pride to play for, losing the series 2-1 to the Tritons despite great offensive production in two of those games. However, dropping even one game in the series and taking the win still would have meant UC Santa Barbara eliminating the Mustangs as their central coast rival swept their respective opponent.
UCSD, taking home field advantage in La Jolla, out-pitched the Mustangs in game one with a 4-1 win that saw the visitors tally just four hits. Cal Poly turned on the jets in game two with a seven-run outing but an early rush from the Tritons made for an insurmountable deficit. A pair of home runs from Jake Steels during game three netted Cal Poly's sole win in the road series.
Mustangs Riding High
Heading into the season finale, Ryan Stafford still paces both the squad and conference with 83 hits, and barring a miraculous weekend from any other player Stafford will likely take the crown while further adding onto his draft resumé. Following behind the star catcher is Jake Steels (76 hits) who leads all Mustangs with his .376 batting average and stellar 1.022 OPS.
With one prospective start remaining in his draft-eligible year, Jakob Wright has collected 95 strikeouts and is five away from the coveted single-season century mark. MLB.com's 140th-ranked draft prospect, Wright leads the pitching staff with a 2.96 ERA, 82 IP, and an 8-3 record alongside being nearly 30 strikeouts ahead of the next closest Mustang.
Five Mustangs are playing their final games at Baggett Stadium this weekend and will be honored before the series finale on Saturday: Ryan Baum, Aaron Casillas, Jake Steels, Evan Tomlinson, and Joe Yorke.
Casillas, Steels, and Yorke have been major, catalytic contributors over the last few years at Cal Poly. Those three, alone, currently account for over a third of the collective team's hits this season (33.5%) and will justifiably be given some deserved pomp and circumstance. Meanwhile, Baum and Tomlinson have played regular relief roles throughout their respective careers and will be missed as well.
Scouting…The Dirtbags
Long Beach State (24-27-1, 9-18 BW), affectionately dubbed the 'Dirtbags' by the institution's administration and fans alike, is playing purely for pride at this point in the season. In an uncharacteristically rocky year for the 4-time College World Series contenders and 7-time Regionals Champions, Long Beach State is currently battling to stay off the floor of the Big West standings.
The Dirtbags have taken just one Big West series this season, which was a sweep over Cal State Fullerton back in late March. Since then, LBSU has tallied just six more wins in-conference and is coming off a 4-7 record thus far in May.
Despite tying with Cal State Fullerton for last in the conference at a .245 team batting average, Long Beach State's pitching staff has held a 4.52 ERA, which is good for fourth in the conference behind Cal Poly. The Dirtbags are led by Connor Carpiot on the offensive end of things, batting at a .321 clip alongside 53 hits and 11 doubles.
Among the rotation and bullpen, 11-of-17 LBSU pitchers carry an ERA under 5.00, with 7 of those even under 4.00 led by Nathan Morris who tops the staff with a 2.73 ERA through 29 2/3 innings pitched in relief. Starters Myles Patton and Kellan Montgomery are two of the better arms in the Big West with special consideration to Patton who has tallied 85 strikeouts and held opposing bats to a .216 average.
Looking Ahead
Following the conclusion of this series, Cal Poly's regular season will be officially wrapped up and finished. Barring a completely unexpected and groundbreaking deliberation, the Mustangs will likely not have the sufficient RPI to become an at-large team.
Players Mentioned
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