LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State baseball team remains at home for a weekend tilt, April 7-9, against UT Rio Grande Valley for the Aggies' first home Western Athletic Conference series.
 
First pitch for the opening contest is set for Friday, April 7, at 6 p.m. (MT) at Presley Askew Field. Game two will take place at 2 p.m. on Saturday at 2 p.m., followed by game three to close out the series on Sunday at noon.
 
PROBABLE STARTERS
The Aggies rotation for their first home WAC series features the same starters that took the mound last weekend against Seattle U. On the bump to open the series this Friday is Kyle Bradish, who currently holds a 4-0 record with 39 strikeouts and a 2.31 ERA over 39 innings of work. He'll face off against UTRGV's Carter Johnson (4-3, 2.66 ERA). Saturday's contest features Marcel Renteria (4-2, 4.50 ERA) on the mound versus Connor Grant (4-3, 5.84 ERA). Jonathan Groff (3-4, 3.71 ERA) closes out the weekend series against Andrew Garcia (3-1, 2.94 ERA).
 
TRADITIONS OF OLD
Baseball trading cards has been synonymous with the game of baseball and Aggie fans will get their chance at history beginning this weekend as NM State rolls out its trading card series. Only 250 of each edition will be available so be sure to get to the stadium early. Jaron Balman will make the trading cards debut on Friday while Greg Popylisen and Brent Sakurai will be rolled out on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
 
UTRGV SERIES PROMOTIONS
With world-renown country artist Garth Brooks opening in the City of Crosses on Friday, the series opener against UTRGV will be deemed "Garth Brooks Music Appreciation Night." Saturday's 2 p.m. first pitch features an array of promotions that include: free pizza for the first 100 students, free stadium cups to the first 250 fans, and $1 ice cream sandwiches. Sunday's series finale will be Junior Aggie Club Day and the fan favorite $1 hot dogs.
 
Fans interested in signing their children up for the Junior Aggie Club, please contact Nicole Gomez at nicolemg@nmsu.edu or via phone at 575-646-8050.
 
SAY HELLO TO JOEY BATS
This past Tuesday, April 4, New Mexico State third baseman Joey Ortiz teed off on No. 6 Texas Tech's pitching staff. The freshman went 4-for-5 with two singles, one double and a triple. One home run shy of the cycle, Ortiz put up his 14th multi-hit game of the season – which also leads the team and extended his hit streak to six games. The infielder now owns a team-high .371 batting average with four triples, which is good for 11th in the country.
 
LOOKING AT THE VAQUEROS
UT Rio Grande Valley comes into the weekend series sitting at 18-15 overall and 2-4 in WAC play.  The Vaqueros were currently riding a two-game win streak after taking a weekend series, 2-1, from CSU Bakersfield before dropping their recent midweek game to Texas State 11-9. However, UTRGV's two wins broke a nine-game losing stretch heading into April 1.
 
The opposition is led at the plate by senior outfielder Jose Garcia with a team-high .339 batting average with 21 RBI, four home runs and seven stolen bases. The only other Vaquero batting above .300 is Conrad McMahon, who owns a .306 average.
 
On the mound, UTRGV holds a 4.56 team ERA with 8.5 strikeouts per nine innings. The Vaqueros staff has allowed 75 extra-base hits with 46 doubles, 12 triples and 17 home runs. From the bullpen, UTRGV looks to closer Luis Acosta - who has six saves this season with a 3.12 ERA in 14 appearances.
 
NM State last squared off against UTRGV in a weekend's series back on April 1-3, 2016. The Aggies took the series, 2-1, in Edinburg, Texas, after posting a 12-3 and 7-3 win at UTRGV Baseball Stadium.
 
LAST TIME OUT
New Mexico State recently dropped its midweek game to sixth-ranked Texas Tech at Presley Askew Field this past Tuesday. The Aggies managed four runs on 12 hits while surrendering 15 runs and 21 hits to the Red Raiders. On top of Joey Ortiz being a home run shy of hitting for the cycle, Austin Botello, Tristen Carranza and LJ Hatch each had a multi-hit game. Cooper Williams went 0-for-1 in the game, but drew a game-high three walks.
 
UP NEXT
NM State won't have a midweek game the following week before it heads to the Golden State for a three-game series at Sacramento State (April 13-15). The opening game of the three-game set is scheduled to begin on Thursday, April 13, instead of the of the usual Friday start. The first two games are scheduled for a 6 p.m. (MT) first pitch while Saturday's series finale is scheduled for 1 p.m. at John Smith Field.