Written by Jonah Bruneau
Oregon Baseball (21-11) comes into this series against the Washington Huskies (16-15) back on the right foot after taking three of four from the Ball State Cardinals. Their conference play, however, will look to get back on track after suffering a three game sweep at the hands of the now 12th ranked team in the country UCLA Bruins (22-9). Currently, Oregon's conference play record stands at 7-5, a mark that they will look to improve upon against a struggling Huskies squad that has lost five of their last seven games coming into this weekend.
The bats have cooled off a bit for the Ducks as of late, but that is speaking based on their overall season performance through the month of March. As it stands, the team batting average for Oregon is still an impressive .314, with Colby Shade still leading the lineup with a .351 average at the plate. The .314 number is good for 14th in the nation, with UNLV leading the country with a .332. For Washington, their starting rotation on the mound has had its struggles so far this season as Sophomore Calvin Kirchoff has become the ace for the Huskies, putting up a 2-1 record with a 4.02 ERA and 30 strikeouts (solid numbers for a pitcher who started the season in the bullpen). Behind him, both usual starters for the Huskies have the same ERA's of 5.73 along with losing records. Combine these pitching numbers for Washington and the Oregon offensive statistics, it is a recipe for success for the Ducks.
For Oregon, their pitching staff has really seen only one true starter all season long, and that would be Sophomore Isaac Ayon. In eight starts, Ayon has struggled with a 5.31 ERA, but has gotten the support from the Oregon offense to keep his record at 2-1 throughout his starts. Pitchers such as Sophomore RJ Gordon have moved from the bullpen to become starters in this Ducks rotation that lacks true long-distance starters that can go deep into a game.
Potential Starting Pitchers - Oregon
Game One: RJ Gordon
Expect to see RJ Gordon on the mound for Game One on Thursday in Seattle. In Oregon's last three series that consisted of three games or more, RJ Gordon has been given the start in each of the series openers. During those three starts, Gordon has at least gone into or passed the 5th inning and has a record of 1-1 in that span.
Game Two: Isaac Ayon
Similar to Gordon, Isaac Ayon has become the usual man on the mound backing up Gordon in Game Two of the past three series of three games or more. In that span, Ayon has put up 17 innings of work, with his last start only allowing one run in six and a third against Ball State.
Game Three: Bullpen Game
Typically, we have seen the "opener" strategy been used by Coach Wasikowski and his staff. Over the last month, the Ducks have started arms such as Matt Dallas, Scott Ellis, Jace Stoffal and Caleb Sloan. In each of these starts, none of these openers pitched more than two innings. Expect to see one of these players getting the start in Game Three, or even a new arm like Sophomore Logan Mercado.
Potential Starting Pitchers - Washington
Game One: Jared Engman
Sophomore Jared Engman has been a starter since the beginning of the season for the Huskies, and has become accustomed to the role of being the series-opening starter for Washington's pitching staff. Engman will look for a bounce back start after allowing eight hits, four runs, and four walks in his last outing against California.
Game Two: Calvin Kirchoff
As mentioned before, Kirchoff began the season in the bullpen for Head Coach Lindsay Meggs, but has since become a solid addition to help support the starting cast for Washington. Expect to see Kirchoff getting the start in Game Two, which has become the game plan for the Huskies over the last month.
Game Three: Case Matter
Matter has had a similar season to Jared Engman, just with one less start and an 0-2 record in seven starts. Both he and Engman hold a high 5.73 ERA at the moment, bringing the presence of Kirchoff in the rotation to a much higher importance.
Oregon's Keys to Success
- Score runs early, come out firing
- Be aggressive on the base paths
- Receive strong starts from Gordon and Ayon
- Keep foot on the gas through all nine innings
Projected Starting Lineup - Oregon Ducks
- LF #31 Tanner Smith
- CF #26 Colby Shade
- DH #3 Brennan Milone
- 1B #25 Jacob Walsh
- SS #4 Josh Kasevich
- RF #35 Anthony Hall
- C #27 Josiah Cromwick
- 3B #9 Sam Novitske
- 2B #5 Gavin Grant
Projected Starting Lineup - Washington Huskies
- CF #15 McKay Barney
- C #2 Johnny Tincher
- 1B #10 Will Simpson
- RF #26 Coby Morales
- LF #16 AJ Guerrero
- 3B #6 Michael Snyder
- SS #12 Cam Clayton
- 2B #1 Josh Urps
- DH #19 Luke Rohleder
Final Thoughts
The Ducks have struggled on the road this season, with a record of 4-7 away from their home turf. If Oregon wants to grab the attention of the rest of the PAC-12, they have to be in control all three games against a struggling Huskies team that is a just a game over .500 at home. With Oregon coming off a successful series against a talented Ball State team, look for the Ducks to continue to stay on the upswing barring any travel lag on the mentalities of everyone in the dugout.
Series Prediction
Oregon sweeps the three game set over Washington.