LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State Aggies baseball team gets set to host Western Athletic Conference foe Grand Canyon University for a three-game weekend series, April 28-30.
First pitch for Friday's opening contest is slated for 6 p.m. MT. Saturday's game will begin at 2 p.m. and the series will close out on Sunday at noon.
PROBABLE STARTERS
The Aggies rotation for the home WAC series features usual weekend starters on the bump. In the series opener on Friday the team will start
Marcel Renteria, who currently holds a 6-2 record with a team-high 69 strikeouts and a 3.05 ERA over 59 innings of work. The right-handed hurler is going to face off against Grand Canyon's Jake Wong (5-2, 2.51). Saturday's contest features
Kyle Bradish (6-0, 2.18) on the mound versus Jake Repavich (4-3, 3.90).
Jonathan Groff (6-4, 3.06) closes out the series against Jack Schneider (3-0, 5.40).
GET CONNECTED
Get up to the minute information and news about the NM State baseball team all season on Twitter, and Instagram by following @NMStateBaseball and on Facebook.com/NMSUAthletics.
WHERE TO WATCH
NM State's contest versus Grand Canyon on Friday, April 28 is going to be broadcast on Fox
Sports Arizona PLUS, Fox College Sports Pacific and Altitude Sports 2. The game can also be streamed on ESPN3. The match-up on Sunday, April 30, is going to be streamed live on the WAC Digital Network.
FOX Sports Arizona PLUS
DISH : SD: 447, HD: 9517 | DISH Hopper: 412-35
| DTV: 686-1
FOX College Sports Pacific
DTV: 608
Altitude Sports 2
DISH: SD: 412/3, HD: 5413 | DTV: 681
LISTEN UP!
Aggie fans that can't make it to the game on Sunday can listen to Adam Young (@youngpbp) and former Aggie pitcher Matt Stein on 91.5 FM KRUX. Fans can also listen to the game live with their mobile or tablet device on the TuneIn app for free by searching 91.5 FM KRUX.
GET YOUR SEASON TICKETS NOW!
With the start of the 2017 season tickets, Aggie fans can be a part of the action for all 23 home games (including three double-headers) for just $100 per seat. Season tickets will guarantee fans a seat in the reserved section of 104 behind home plate. Fans can purchase 2017 Aggie baseball season tickets by going to the Pan American Center ticket office or by calling 575-646-1420.
TRADITIONS OF OLD
Baseball trading cards have been synonymous with the game of baseball and Aggie fans will get their chance at history this weekend as NM State rolls out additions to its trading card series. Only 250 of each edition will be available so be sure to get to the stadium early.
Ruger Rodriguez cards are going to be distributed on Friday while
Marcel Renteria and
Dalton Shalberg will be rolled out on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
GRAND CANYON SERIES PROMOTIONS
On top of the trading card giveaway, Friday's showdown features Superhero Night where fans are encouraged to sport their favorite hero's suit. The best costume of the night wins a prize.
Game two falls on the Super Aggie Saturday equipment sale where fans have a special opportunity to purchase new and used equipment from the NM State athletic teams. The sale runs in the baseball/softball parking lot from noon to 4 p.m.
Saturday's game also has one-dollar ice cream sandwiches at the concession stand. The one-dollar deal carries over to Sunday's contest where hot dogs will be sold at that price throughout the game.
LOOKING AT THE LOPES
Grand Canyon enters the midweek match-up with a 19-21 overall and 13-2 WAC record. The opponent has posted a 5-5 record over their last 10 contests and comes into the weekend series on a two-game losing streak.
Offensively, the Lopes are led by infielder Austin Bull who boasts a team-high .338 batting average, .435 on-base percentage and 31 runs scored. Grand Canyon also looks to Tom Lerouge who holds a .337 BA with 17 runs batted in and a team-leading four stolen bases. Two more Lopes are batting above .300 with Tyler Wyatt (.315) and Ian Evans (.300).
On the mound the opposition's opening night starter, Jake Wong, posts a team best 2.51 earned run average and .200 opposing BA wile only allowing 10 extra-base hits through 61 innings. The team's starter on Saturday, Jake Repavich, leads the team with 45 strikeouts and pitched the team's only complete game this season. The bullpen looks to Mick Vorhoff as their usual closer as the hurler has a team-leading four saves with 21 strikeouts and a 4.37 ERA in 18 appearances.
As a team, the Wildcat pitching staff holds a 5.07 ERA over 350.0 innings of work with 265 strikeouts and a .272 opponent batting average.
BATTLE OF THE HEAVYWEIGHTS
The weekend series between the Aggies and Lopes pits the top-two teams in the WAC against one another. NM State's 11-1 conference record gives them a 1.5 game lead over Grand Canyon at 13-2. Each team lost their first WAC game to Sacramento State.
LEAGUE LEADERS
With his two-run blast on Friday, April 21, Aggie first baseman
Tristen Carranza continues to pace the WAC in home runs with a league-best 12 jacks. The El Centro, Calif., product has tallied multi-homer games three separate times so far this season, including a two-homer night in Seattle to open WAC play.
Right-fielder
Dan Hetzel also had a round-tripper in the team's game on Friday, April 22, which moved the Aggie just behind Carranza in second place in the conference with nine home runs.
The home run derby for the two Aggies also puts them at one and two in the WAC in slugging percentage with Carranza at .656 and Hetzel at .624.
NM State's high-scoring offense also features four of the top five players leading the conference in runs batted in. Hetzel leads the way with 47 RBI, followed by
Austin Botello with 39, Carranza posting 36 and
Mason Fishback rounds out the top-five with 35.
LAST TIME OUT
NM State returns home after a tough loss to No. 13 Arizona 11-2 on Tuesday, April 25. The team had a tough night in the field committing six errors which turned into six unearned runs. Offensively the team could not battle back from the fielding miscues and only mustered up five hits on the night.
UP NEXT
After the weekend showdown, New Mexico State baseball heads to Albuquerque, N.M. for the second installment of the Battle of I-25 with rival New Mexico on Tuesday, April 2, at 6 p.m. MT.
