This weekend's four-game series against Academy of Art at Nettleton Stadium presents the final non-conference opportunity for Chico State's baseball players to win jobs and solidify their roles. The Wildcats' final 36 games will be against California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) foes.
Chico State is 6-3 and ranked No. 21 in the nation. Academy of Art is 4-4. The series begins with a single game Friday at 2 p.m., continues with a doubleheader Saturday at 11 a.m. and concludes with a single game Sunday at 11 a.m.
All four games will be broadcast on www.chicowildcats.com. Saturday's first game and Sunday's game will also be on AM-1290 KPAY.
Newcomers like Jeffrey Ortega and Marcos Lara have been impressive early on. Returners Ruben Padilla and Ryne Clark are off to hot starts as well. And though returners Cody Slader and Nick Baker have been a bit up and down, their resumes speak for themselves.
Still, with a ton of turnover from last season's roster and with only nine games to go by thus far, Head Coach Dave Taylor has a number of decisions to make regarding each facet of his team.
This weekend marks the last best chance for his players to plead their cases between the lines.
Chico State is 9-0 all time against the Urban Knights and 82-12 under Taylor's watch in regular-season non-conference games, including 61-4 at home.
MILESTONE WATCH
Eric Angerer's next hit will be the 100th of his career. He broke Robby Poole's Chico State career hit-by-pitch record last weekend when he was beaned for the 46th time.
Starting pitcher Nick Baker is three strikeouts shy of moving past Ivan Hernandez into fourth on the school's career strikeouts list. He's sat down 152 hitters in his career thus far. Baker's next start will be his 40th, tying him with Nick Bryant for the second most starts in school history. His next win will be his 24th, tying him with Josh Osborn for third in school history. And his next out will give him 240.1 innings pitched, tying him with Tom Moss for the third most in school history.
Luke Barker is seven strikeouts shy of 100 in his career.
