Baseball Weekly Notebook
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THIS WEEK IN PACIFIC BASEBALL
PACIFIC AT WILLAMETTE
Game No. 26/Away Game No. 10
Tues., Apr. 10, 4 p.m., John Lewis Field, Salem, Ore.
Live Stats:
livestats.willamette.edu/live/bsb/stats/
PACIFIC AT CORBAN
Game No. 27/Away Game No. 11
Wed., Apr. 11, 4 p.m., Volcanoes Stadium, Salem, Ore.
PACIFIC AT WHITWORTH
Games No. 28 & 29/Away Games No. 12 & 13
Sat., Apr. 14, Noon, Merkel Field, Spokane, Wash.
PACIFIC AT WHITWORTH
Game No. 30/Away Game No. 14
Sat., Apr. 14, Noon, Merkel Field, Spokane, Wash.
KEY ROAD TEST AWAITS BOXERS WITH NWC TITLE ON THE LINE
After maintaining their lead in the Northwest Conference standings with five wins last week, the Pacific baseball program looks ahead to a key week with five road games, their most since February. The Boxers travel to Salem twice for non-conference games with Willamette on Tuesday and Corban on Wednesday. Pacific then heads north to Spokane for a three-game weekend series with Whitworth as the top teams in the NWC standings square off.
BOXER BYTES
•
Rob Dittrick earned his sixth straight win and his third complete game with another gem in the Boxers' 5-0 opening game shutout of Whitman on Friday. Dittrick allowed just three hits with five strikeouts, allowing just one Whitman runner past five base. He did not allow a hit after the third inning.
• Coming off of just four days rest,
Mike McGuire earned his third win of the season in the Boxers' 9-2 win over Whitman in Friday's nightcap. McGuire allowed two runs on three hits and struck out three.
• Pacific took advantage of six errors by Whitman on Saturday, scoring five unearned runs enroute to a 6-5 victory to sweep the season series. The Boxers pulled ahead for good with a two-run sixth inning.
•
Donnie Bradley came through big offensively for the Boxers, leading the team with a .438 batting average over the five games last week. Bradley had two hits in Friday's nightcap against Whitman, which included a bunt single.
• Pacific enters the week with a 13-2 NWC record and comes in with a two-game lead over second place Whitworth, who finished a road sweep of Lewis & Clark over the weekend. Pacific has a three-game lead over third place Linfield and a five-game lead over Pacific Lutheran.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
WILLAMETTE
The Bearcats enters the week in sixth place in the NWC at 8-18 and are 5-10 overall. Willamette has not played since losing all three games of their NWC series to Pacific on Apr. 1 and 2. A scheduled Apr. 4 home game against Corban was canceled due to rain. Pacific won the series opener on Apr. 1, 13-5, thanks in part to a pair of third inning home runs by
Mike Nagamine (Sr., Aiea, Hawaii) and
Kevin Schwartz (Sr., Milwaukie, Ore.). The final two games of the series were moved to Forest Grove, with Pacific collecting 9-6 and 8-3 wins. Mitchell Rowan leads the Willamette offense with a .370 batting average, collecting 30 hits, 24 runs and 27 runs batted in. Starter T.J. Whidby leads the starting staff with a 5.20 earned run average and a 1-2 record. He has allowed 22 runs and struck out 29 in 36.1 innings. As a team, Willamette is hitting .277 (6th on the NWC) and owns a team 7.11 earned run average (8th in NWC). Aaron Swick is in his fourth year as Willamette head coach. Tuesday's game was originally scheduled to be played in Forest Grove, but was moved to Salem in deference of the two games played in Forest Grove last week. This will be a non-conference game for both teams.
AGAINST BRADLEY: Willamette leads 26-21-1
LAST MEETING: Pacific won 8-3 in Forest Grove on Apr. 2, 2012
CORBAN
The NAIA Warriors enter the week with a 19-14 record. Corban is coming off a NAIA Region I series over the weekend that saw them drop three of four games to Menlo. The Oaks downed the Warriors in both ends of a Friday twinbill 8-4 and 7-3. Menlo scored five runs in the seventh inning of game one to break a 3-3 tie for the win. Cody Atkinson went 4 for 5 for the Warriors. Menlo scored in five of the first six innings of the nightcap to take the win. Peter Martin went 3 for 5 to lead Corban. Corban took a close 4-3 win in Saturday's opener, exploding for three runs in the fifth on a grand slam by Colby Sokol. Tyler Doornink earned the complete game win. Corban fell in the nightcap 6-5, giving up a 5-1 lead thanks to a five-run fifth by the Oaks. Marc Gallegos leads the Corban offense with a .361 average, 48 hits, 32 runs and 16 RBI in 31 games. Jacob Kopra leads the pitching staff with a 3-1 record and a 2.08 earned run average. As a team, Corban is hitting 2.80 and has amassed a 4.37 earned run average. Jeff McKay is in his second season as Corban head coach. Wednesday's game is a make-up of a postponed game from Mar. 13.
AGAINST BRADLEY: Pacific leads 13-6
LAST MEETING: Pacific won 10-5 in Stayton, Ore., on Apr. 5, 2011
WHITWORTH
The Pirates leaped from fifth to second in the NWC over the weekend and enters the week with an 11-4 NWC mark and 17-10-1 overall record. Whitworth bounced back from losing two of three to George Fox with a three-game road sweep of Lewis & Clark over the weekend. The Pirates took a 9-1 win in Friday's single game thanks to a 3 for 6 effort from Tyler Pfeffer. Starter Carson Blumenthal allowed three hitd and struck out five in seven innings of work. Whitworth took the Saturday opener 6-2, paced by Dan Scheibe's seven innings where he allowed just one run on five hits. In the nightcap, the Pirates erased a four-run ninth inning rally by L&C in the 10th inning when JR Jarrell crushed a grand slam to give the Pirates an 8-4 win. Pfeffer leads the Whitworth offense with an impressive .379 batting average. He has 44 hits, 33 runs, 12 doubles, two triples, nine home runs and 40 runs batted in. He leads the NWC in home runs, runs batted in and total bases (87), ranks second in slugging percentage (.750) and fifth in batting average. Starter C.J. Perry leads the regular rotation with a 3.86 earned run average and a 3-1 record. Part-time starter Scheibe leads the pitching staff with a 3.59 earned run average in 11 appearances (four starts). As a team, Whitworth owns a .289 batting average (fourth in NWC) and a 5.18 earned run average (fifth in NWC) and a .281 opponent's batting average (fifth in NWC). Dan Ramsay is in his fourth season as Whitworth head coach, taking over from Keith Ward the season after he finished his playing career for the Pirates.
AGAINST BRADLEY: Whitworth leads 29-22
LAST MEETING: Pacific won 6-5 (11 innings) in Forest Grove on Apr. 17, 2011
DITTRICK PUTS ANOTHER GEM IN THE BOOKS: Pacific ace
Rob Dittrick (Jr., Mililani, Hawaii) keeps rolling through the season with the same dominant pitching that made him the 2011 NWC Pitcher of the Year. Dittrick eanred his sixth win in a row and finished his third complete game performance in Friday's first game against Whitman with a 5-0 shutout. Dittrick allowed just three hits , hit three batters and struck out five. He allowed just one batter past first base and did not allow a hit after the third inning. Dittrick continues to be one of the most dominant pitchers in the NWC. He enters the week leading the conference with six wins. He entered last week ranked 22nd among NCAA Division III pitchers with his five wins. He leads the Boxers and ranks sixth in the NWC with his 2.17 earned run average. Dittrick also enters the week ranked second in complete games, tied for fourth in strikeouts (42), tied for sixth in innings pitched (54.0) and tied for eighth in starts (8).
SHORT REST? SO WHAT?: Mike McGuire (Sr., Olympia, Wash.) was certainly challenged by coming back to make a start on four days rest after helping throw the Boxers to a win over Willamette on Monday. McGuire performed well as he earned his third win of the season in the Boxers' 9-2 second game victory over the Missionaries. In five innings of work, McGuire allowed just three hits and struck out three batters. He allowed just one runner past second base. After working around injuries to amass a 6.75 earned run average in eight appearances in his junior season, McGuire has emerged as a solid member of the Pacific pitching staff. He enters the week ranked eighth in the NWC with a 2.45 earned run average and ranks tied for ninth with his three wins.
PLAYING SHORT BALL: Donnie Bradley (Fr., Beaverton, Ore.) led Pacific offensively in their five games last week, getting it done with small ball. Bradley finished with a .438 batting average in the games with seven hits, five runs, two runs batted in and three stolen bases. Bradley had two hits in Monday's first game against Willamette. He repeated his two-hit performance in Friday's second game against Whitman, scoring one with two RBI. His Friday total included a nicely played bunt single that rolled along the left field line near third base. Bradley made starts in all five games last week. In the Willamette series, Bradley spelled
Chad Fahey (Sr., Keizer, Ore.), who was going to be pitching on short rest. In the Whitman series, Bradley replaced the injured
Nick Tasaka (Jr., Hawaii Kai, Hawaii). Bradley enters the week with a .296 batting average in 21 games.
DOUBLE STANDARD: Much like he has most of his Pacific career,
Nate Rasmussen got much of his offensive work done last week with the two-base hit, finishing with three doubles. Overall, Rasmussen finished the five games with a .350 average, going 7 for 20 with four runs and a run batted in. Rasmussen opened the week with three straight two-hit games, knocking a pair of hits in both games of the Willamette doubleheader on Monday and then finished with two hits, including a double, in Friday's opener against Whitman. Rasmussen enters the week leading the Boxers and ranking in a tie for third in the NWC with his 10 doubles. He also enters the week with a .316 batting average and has played in all but two of the Boxers' 25 games. In addition, Rasmussen is tied for seventh with one save and has made three appearances for the Boxers as a closer. He earned the win in a relief appearance in Pacific's 2-1 win over Oregon Tech on Feb. 24.
ADD SAVES: Nate Rasmussen is just one of two position players who Pacific turns to when they need someone to close out a game.
Jared Van Hoon (Sr., Lake Oswego, Ore.) earned his second save of the season on Saturday, pitching 1.1 innings of no-hit baseball with two strikeouts to secure the 6-5 win over Whitman. Van Hoon made a first-time winner of
Kyle Treadway (Fr., Phoenix, Ore.), who allowed one run on three hits in 2.1 innings of work. The outing was Van Hoon's longest of the season. He owns a 2.08 earned run average in just 4.1 innings of work as a closer. When not pitching, Van Hoon is a key member of Pacific's defensive and offensive success. He enters the week with a .302 batting average and is tied for sixth in the NWC with his nine doubles. Two of his four hits in last week's five games were of the two-base variety. Van Hoon is one of two Pacific players to have started all 25 games, having made 17 starts at third base and eight at shortstop.
MAINSTAY IN THE MIDDLE: Michael Arakaki (Jr., Mililani, Hawaii) continues to do a solid job for the Boxers as the regular starting shortstop. Arakaki has proven a solid fielder in 17 games at the position, committing just five errors (a very good number for shortstops). At the plate, Arakaki has also been getting the job done. The junior batted .357 in the five games last week, going 5 for 14 with two runs, a double and three runs batted in. His best game in the Whitman series came in Friday's second game, finishing 2 for 4 with a run. Arakaki enters the week with a .291 batting average.
THE LONG HOME STREAK FINALLY ENDS: Barring a dramatic change in the weather over the next day, Pacific will see a very beneficial string of home games come to an end. Last weekend's games with Whitman ended a string where the Boxers played 14 of their first 15 NWC games at Chuck Bafaro Stadium. The run included the move of all three gmaes of the Mar. 10-11 series against George Fox and the final two games of the Willamette series moved to Forest Grove due to unplayable field conditions. As a result of the moves and the postponement of two non-conference games, Pacific did not play a road game in the month of March. The upcoming road stretch will present a major test for the Boxers. They enter the week with a 4-7 record away from Chuck Bafaro Stadium, but have won three of their last four road contests.
IN THE NCAA STATISTICS: Pacific was ranked in the top-100 in five statistical categories in the latest NCAA Division III baseball statistical report for games through Apr. 1. Pacific was ranked 18th with a .970 field percentage. The Boxers are 42nd with 2.79 walks allowed per nine innings, 55th with a 3.48 team earned run average, 56th with 8.63 hits allowed per nine innings and 80th with 28 batters his by pitch. The NCAA statistics are released weekly on Tuesdays and can be viewed at http://bit.ly/hl0JH7.
BOXERS MAKE BRIEF APPEARANCE IN D3BASEBALL.COM POLL: It was a short appearance, but Pacific was among 27 teams that were listed as “Others Receiving Votes” in the Mar. 27 D3Baseball.com Top-25 Poll. The Boxers received five votes, but dropped off this week's poll thanks in part to the Boxers' lack of games over the previous two weeks. In this week's poll, defending NWC champion Linfield is ranked 19th while Pacific Lutheran received three votes. The complete D3Baseball.com Top-25 can be viewed online at http://www.d3baseball.com/top25.
SERIES-LY PERFORMING IN THE NWC: The sweep of Whitman marked the fifth straight series victory for Pacific baseball in the 2012 season. To date, the Boxers have now won eight of their last nine NWC series dating back to the 2011 campaign. Pacific last dropped a series was on Apr. 22 & 23, 2011, when they were swept at Puget Sound. In addition, the Boxers have swept their last three NWC series over Lewis & Clark, Willamette and Whitman. It is believed to be the first time in the history of the Pacific baseball program that the Boxers have swept three straight NWC series.
STREAKING: The Boxers are riding high on a 10-game win streak that dates back to a 3-0 win over George Fox on Mar. 11. The winning streak matches a 10-game win streak during the 2008 season that ran from Mar. 16 to Mar. 30. Pacific beat Whitworth twice before scoring four-game sweeps over Whitman and Puget Sound. Both streaks are among the longest in Pacific program history. Pacific has also won 12 of their last 13 games and went 7-2 during the month of March.
SEASON HONORS: The Boxers have been blessed with three selections as NWC Baseball Pitcher Student-Athlete of the Week along with three selections to the D3Baseball.com Team of the Week this season.
Rob Dittrick was named to the D3Baseball.com Team of the Week on Mar. 22 for his one-hit, seven-hit performance in the Boxers' 16-1 rout of Lewis & Clark on Mar. 17. Dittrick was also named NWC Pitcher Student-Athlete of the Week on Mar. 6 for his five-hit complete game effort that gave Pacific a 7-1 victory over then-No. 2 Linfield.
Nate Rasmussen was selected to the D3Baseball.com Team of the Week on Mar. 13 after batting .500 in the three-game set against George Fox, going 6 for 12 with two doubles, three runs, a home run and two runs batted in.
Jared Van Hoon was selected to the first D3Baseball.com Team of the Week on Mar. 6 after he batted .462 with six hits, three doubles, two runs and two RBI in the Linfield series.
Chad Fahey has twice been named as the NWC Baseball Pitcher Student-Athlete of the Week. Fahey was honored on Mar. 13 after throwing a complete-game six-hit shutout against George Fox on Mar. 11. He earned the honor again the next week after completing a 2-0 compelte game shutout of Lewis & Clark on Mar. 18.
OUTSTANDING IN THE FIELD: Pacific continues to rank as one of the most solid fielding teams in both the conference and at the NCAA Division III level. The Boxers improved their fielding percentage to .971 over the week. Pacific committed just two errors in the Whitman series while the Missionaries finished with 11 miscues. In the Apr. 1 edition of the NCAA Division III stats, Pacific ranked 18th in fielding percentage.
IMPROVING AT THE PLATE: Pacific finished the 2011 season as one of the worst hitting teams in NCAA Division III baseball. This year, the Boxers are seeing the bats backing up their pitching quite well. Pacific enters the week batting .276 after hitting just .249 last season. The Boxers have made the most improvement in their offensive production since the conference season began. Pacific is hitting .295 in their 15 NWC games as compared to .244 in their 10 non-conference tilts.
LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON: The three-game series against George Fox on Mar. 10 & 11 featured a rarity in college athletics as both teams featured a father-son combination.
Donnie Bradley (Fr., Beaverton, Ore.) is in his first season at Pacific playing for his father, Head Coach
Greg Bradley.
Donnie Bradley made two starts for the Boxers in the Bruins' series in left field. He was an Honorable Mention Oregon 6A All-State selection last year for Beaverton's Westview High School. In the other dugout, George Fox Head Coach Marty Hunter was in his third season coaching his son, Taylor. An All-Northwest Conference performer in 2009 before transferring to Oregon State for a year, Taylor is the Bruins' regular starter at shortstop.
SEASON PREVIEW: The complete 2012 Pacific baseball season preview can be found at
http://www.goboxers.com/sports/2012/2/14/BB_0214120514.aspx?tab=baseball&path=baseball.
PACIFIC PICKED FOURTH IN PRESEASON POLL: After their breakout season in 2011, Northwest Conference coaches have picked the Boxers to finish four in 2012 according to the preseason poll released in January. Pacific picked up 42 of a possible 80 points in the poll. The Boxers finished tied for third last year with Pacific Lutheran, who is picked to finish third once again. Linfield, which advanced to the NCAA Division III World Series, is picked to repeat as NWC champion in 2012, collecting 72 points and eight of nine first place votes. Perennial NWC power George Fox is picked second with 52 points.
