CHICO, Calif. – Perhaps Chico’s least-known and underrated annual sporting event is scheduled to start Thursday afternoon at 3:12. The 16th Annual Cardinal and Black Fall Classic, the Chico State baseball program’s best-of-five intrasquad series, runs Thursday through Saturday and the public is invited to come out to Nettleton Stadium to get its first glimpse at the 2009 Wildcats.
Following Thursday’s afternoon affair, the teams will play a doubleheader Friday at 5:37 that will feature two four-inning games. The Fall Classic wraps up Saturday with a single game at 11:02 a.m. If necessary, Game 5 will feature a sudden-death tiebreaker in which each team starts an inning with a runner on first and nobody out.
The Wildcats, who finished last season 42-17 and ranked No. 6 in the nation, return three starters to the infield and one to the outfield, along with their entire starting rotation.
Assistant coach Chris Pfatenhauer will manage the Black team and hopes to bounce back from a controversial, heartbreaking loss in 2007. His squad features returners Josh Meagher, Kyle Eveland, Jimmy Dodos, Joel Garcia, 2008 national wins leader Pete Mickartz, and Kevin Seaver.
Wildcat fans will also want to keep an eye on some of the newcomers on Pfatenhauer’s squad. True freshman second baseman Bryan Willson of Camarillo High School combined for 10 home runs, 15 doubles, and 53 RBI over 51 games as a junior and senior. Mike Gleason, a Willows High School product and transfer from Butte College, went 7-5 with 102 strikeouts in 84-plus innings for the Roadrunners as a sophomore last season. Outfielder Ryan Smith, a transfer from Cuesta Community College, batted .343 with 18 extra-base hits, stole 15 bases, and scored 52 runs in 43 games last season as a sophomore.
Matt Fonteno, the newest member of the Chico State coaching staff, will manage the Cardinal team. His team features returning starters Cody Dee and Bret Ringer, along with starting pitchers Mike Robbins and Andrew Pluta. Ringer will be looked to as the team’s leader on the field. First baseman Eric Stephens, a left-handed hitting first baseman who transferred from Cal State Fullerton, will be an exciting new addition for Chico State fans to watch. A Northwoods League All-Star over the summer, Stephens belted seven home runs, 19 doubles, and drove in a league-high 50 runs in 66 games.
Outfielder Jordan Larson, who could hit leadoff for Chico State this season, batted .348 with 86 runs, 34 stolen bases, and 20 sacrifice bunts over his two-year career at East L.A. Community College. Redshirt freshman pitcher Jordan Lindebaum, a 2008 First Team All-State selection at Rio Mesa High School in Southern California, has impressed the coaching staff this fall. He was 10-4 with a 1.71 ERA, 11 complete games and one save as a prep senior. He struck out 11 batters in 98 innings while allowing just 71 hits.
