By: Ian Sutliff

Eugene, OR– It’s been tough going for the Ducks lately, with Oregon losing seven of their last eight. With Utah on slate in Salt Lake City, Oregon will need to change their fortune quickly as the Utes rank last in the PAC-12 with a 8-18-1 record in conference play. With Jace Stoffal still potentially sidelined as the series starts, Logan Mercado will get the ball for Thursday’s series opener. 

Oregon:

The problem for the Ducks over the last two weeks hasn’t been the offense. Over the last eight games, Oregon is averaging 5.4 runs per game. It’s a modest number, but it is by no means a mark of a struggling offense. Over the weekend, Oregon pitching allowed 43 runs over three games which was the most since 2019. The bullpen struggled and starting pitching had a combined ERA of 25.58 in just 6 ⅓ innings. Jackson Pace was a big contributor of that number as the freshman failed to record an out on Saturday while giving up eight runs on six hits. Oregon should we receive a boost to the pitching staff though this weekend as Isaac Ayon is expected to make an opener type start. 

On the offensive side of things, Drew Cowley is proving to be one of the best hitters in the nation as the senior has his average up to .337 with 14 home runs and 55 RBIs with the latter of thos stats ranking sixth and fifth in the conference respectively. The infielder has also hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games with eight home runs and a .383/.472/.817 slash line in that span. Another infielder who has come up big for the Ducks is freshman Drew Smith out of Clovis, California. In Sabin Ceballos’ absence at the hot corner, Smith has filled in nicely in the starting lineup and has earned his spot, which has pushed Bryce Boettcher to a permanent bench role, as well as taking DH opportunities away from players like Josiah Cromwick. The 19-year old has been more than deserving of the chances he’s received though as he has a ten game hit streak and has recorded a hit in all 11 of his starts this season. He’s batting .419 with four doubles and a home run in 43 at-bats. Colby Shade, Rikuu Nishida, and Sabin Ceballos have all continued to hit well over .300 this season and the three juniors have combined for 35.2% of this team’s hits. The offense might be relied upon heavily once again this weekend as the pitching staff has continued to struggle. 

Utah:

For all the attention of the lack of talent in Oregon’s pitching staff, Utah has struggled to a much more excruciating extent than the Ducks. Its team ERA is 7.02 this season and closer Micah Ashman is the only arm on this staff that owns an ERA south of four at 3.74. Bryson Van Sickle is the Utes’ Friday guy but his 5.55 ERA doesn’t spark a lot of excitement as the redshirt junior has allowed 88 hits in 61 ⅔ innings and a .345 batting average against. Merit Jones and Cam Day will be likely to finish out the weekend but the two have been even worse as they own a combined 8.61 ERA in 22 starts this season.

It’s a three-man show at the top of the Utes’ lineup with PAC-12 batting average leader Jayden Kiernan leading the charge. As a redshirt senior, Kiernan is batting .407 with four home runs and 29 RBIs. He’s struck out just 16 times in 172 at-bats and owns a 13-game hitting streak with eight multi-hit games over that time. TJ Clarkson is the only other hitter on this team with a batting average over .300 and has 12 home runs and 43 RBIs on the year. He also has an incredible .466 OBP as he’s drawn 45 walks in 52 games while striking out just 42 times. He leads the team in doubles with 18 which is also tied for fourth in the conference. Davis Cop is the only other position player on this team worth mentioning as he is hitting .292 with ten home runs and a team-leading 48 RBIs in 49 starts. Those three combine for 58% of the team’s hits and 36% of its hits. 

Prediction:

Oregon’s season looked promising just a couple weeks ago and it seemed as if the Ducks had a solid shot at finishing conference play as one of the top two seeds. Now the Ducks are middle of the pack as they rank sixth in the PAC-12 and this series would’ve likely been a sweep if Stoffal was healthy. Even with Utah’s troubled pitching staff and lack of power in its offense, the Ducks will win just two of three in a high-scoring loss on Saturday.