Friday, April 27
Salt Lake City, UT
5:00 PM
University of Arizona
at
Utah
Photo by: Arizona Athletics
Cats Set for Monday Matchup at Utah Valley
04/25/2018 | Baseball
TUCSON, Ariz. -- The Arizona Wildcats began a four-game road trip this weekend in Utah with a three-game series with the Utes. The Cats stayed in Utah and traveled to Orem for a Monday evening game with Utah Valley. The Cats will play eight of their next 12 games on the road.
The road trip got off to a tough start for the Cats. Utah erased a 4-0 deficit and came back to top Arizona 5-4 in the opener Friday night at Smith's Ballpark. The Cats dropped another one-run game game Saturday, 3-2. The Cats then responded with 18 runs Sunday and topped the Utes in the series finale.
The Cats then bussed to Orem to take on Utah Valley in a Monday night matchup.
Below is a full preview of the series with the Utes and Wolverines:
Date Time (MST) Location (Ballpark) Probable Starters/Results
Fri. April 27 5 p.m. Salt Lake City, Utah (Smith's Ballpark) Utah 5, Arizona 4
Sat. April 28 12 p.m. Salt Lake City, Utah (Smith's Ballpark) Utah 3, Arizona 2
Sun. April 29 12 p.m. Salt Lake City, Utah (Smith's Ballpark) Arizona 18, Utah 12
Mon. April 30 6 p.m. Orem, Utah (UCCU Ballpark) TBA vs. RHP Drew Hill
Live Stream: Available through wacsports.com
Live Stats: Available through Statbroadcast.com
All-Time Series: Arizona leads the Utah Valley series 18-3
Last Meeting: The Cats won a midweek matchup with Utah Valley 14-0 in 2016.
Leading Off...
• The Arizona Wildcats head to Utah for four games, opening a stretch of eight of their next 12 on the road. The Cats will play Utah for three and then head to Utah Valley for a single midweek game on Monday.
• Despite dropping the series to Stanford last weekend, Arizona has won 11 of its last 16 games and has captured four series victories in their last five tries.
• Arizona enters the weekend with a staff ERA of 3.22, which is the 18th-best mark in the country. Showing how difficult it can be in the Pac-12, Arizona's 2.92 mark is third-best in the league behind UCLA and Stanford.
• The Wildcats have seen their RPI improve to No. 40 after sitting at No. 113 on March 25.
• Arizona's team batting average has risen from .251 to .282 since March 18. Arizona is 13-6 in that span.
• Alfonso Rivas has a 10-game hitting streak and has reached base safely in 20 straight contests. He leads the team with a .353 average and hit his third home run of the season last weekend versus Stanford.
• Freshmen Tate Soderstrom and Jacob Blas combined to go 8 for 16 against Stanford last weekend with two doubles and a home run.
• Cody Deason enters the weekend with a 2.20 ERA, which is the fourth-best mark in the Pac-12. He's seventh in strikeouts with 56 and fourth in opposing batting average at .195.
Some Series Themes: Despite winning 87 games in Coach Jay Johnson's first two years, the Arizona Wildcats have found themselves with an 0-6 record against the Utah Utes heading into this weekend's series in Salt Lake City…The Cats will be looking to get off the schneid against the Utes…In 2016, Arizona led for most of the series, but suffered three late-game comebacks from the Utes…Arizona dropped the first game 6-3, after taking a 3-0 lead into the seventh inning…Utah won the second game 7-6, scoring five runs in the ninth inning…Then on Sunday, Utah won 4-2, scoring four runs in the eighth…Last season, Utah won 12-5, 7-3 and 4-2 as Arizona dropped to 9-9 in Pac-12 play…The Cats still maintain the lead in the series, 56-15, despite Utah's recent surge in the series…The Cats haven't won a series against the Utes since taking two of three in Salt Lake City in 2014…This year's Utah team comes in with a 10-28 record, but is 6-6 at home this season…Outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr., leads the team with a .366 batting average and has 16 doubles, which is tied for the Pac-12 lead…Rykker Tom is also batting over .300 with a .302 average. He has eight doubles and 19 RBI, which is tied for second on the team behind Oliver Dunn, who has driven in 24…Right-hander Tanner Thomas will start Friday's series opener…Past that, the Utes are undecided on starting pitchers…Thomas is 2-2 with a 5.33 ERA in 10 starts, spanning 52 1/3 innings… He's struck out 47 and allowed just two home runs… Trenton Stoltz has four saves on the year to lead the team, while Jacob Rebar has added two…Brett Brocoff hasn't been announced as a starter, but has 10 starts on the year like Thomas…Arizona will stick with its normal rotation, starting Cody Deason on Friday and Michael Flynn on Saturday, before leaving Sunday's finale to a game time decision…Alfonso Rivas is heating up for the Wildcats, riding a 10-game hitting streak and having reached base safely in 20 straight games…He has nine doubles, three home runs and 36 RBI with a .441 on-base percentage and a .500 slugging percentage…Arizona will stick around in Utah after its three-game series with Utah to play Utah Valley in Orem on Monday.
What a Start: Arizona pitching has set the tone for the season thus far. Arizona has a staff ERA of just 3.22 this season, which is tied for the 18th-best mark in the country and third-best among Pac-12 Conference teams. Arizona has allowed just 301 hits in 341 total innings. The pitching staff is averaging 7.94 hits per nine innings. Wildcat pitchers have combined to strike out 292, while allowing 136 walks. Opposing batters are hitting just .239 against Arizona pitching with 73 extra-base hits in 38 games. It's been a collective effort for the Wildcats thus far with several different arms contributing to the early season success. Cody Deason, who has had the Friday night honors so far this season, has just a 2.20 ERA in 57 1/3 innings. Michael Flynn and Avery Weems have also logged 40 or more innings. Flynn is 5-2 with a 4.30 ERA. Juan Aguilera and Tylor Megill have both logged more than 20 innings this year, with Megill boasting a 2.78 ERA in 22 2/3 innings and Aguilera posting a 1.34 ERA in 33 2/3 innings.
Pac-12 Leaders in ERA
Digging Deeper: Coach Dave Lawn's pitching staff has done several things very well early in the season. First, left-handed hitters are batting just .236 against Arizona pitching, combining to go 140 for 592 so far. Right-handed starters Cody Deason and Michael Flynn have been especially tough on lefties, allowing them to go just 41 for 201 for a .204 average. Another area where Arizona pitchers have excelled is with two outs. Opposing batters are just 78 for 387 (.202) with two outs against Arizona pitching. In fact, North Dakota State had just one hit with two outs in three games against the Wildcats in March. Earlier this month, Grand Canyon was 0 for 10 with two outs. With runners in scoring position, it's not much better with the opposition hitting 86 for 343 (.251) in that situation. Comparatively, Arizona's offense is hitting .328 with runners in scoring position. The Arizona pitching staff is allowing just 3.70 runs per game, 3.22 earned runs per game. The pitching staff and catchers Cesar Salazar and Ryan Haug have also allowed just nine stolen bases in 24 attempts this season.
Arizona Pitching By the Numbers
Tip Top Tate: Freshman designated hitter Tate Soderstrom seems to be settling into Pac-12 play, and his recent surge is proof. Soderstrom went 4 for 6 over the weekend against Stanford with two doubles and an RBI. Soderstrom went 2 for 4 with a double and a run scored against BYU in the game leading up to the Stanford series as well. All total, over his last four games, Soderstrom is 6 for 10 with three doubles and two runs scored. He has three multi-hit games in his last four contests. In his 23 prior games, he had just one multi-hit game, a 2 for 5 game at New Mexico. He has raised his average from .217 to .286. Soderstrom has received the second-most at-bats on the team for a freshman with 56. He's 16 for 56 with 11 runs scored, nine extra-base hits (seven doubles and two triples) and seven RBI. He's second to Jacob Blas, who has received 75 at-bats this season. Showing he's adapting to Pac-12 pitching, Soderstrom was just 2 for 15 against Pac-12 competition before the Stanford series.
Blas Blossoming: Jacob Blas has wasted no time in his Arizona career making an impact on the diamond for the Wildcats. Blas took over the starting shortstop role in Mid-March when the Wildcats were in Washington, and has been an offensive threat ever since, while playing stellar defense at short. On the season, Blas is hitting .280 in 75 at-bats. He has 21 hits, 20 RBI, 16 runs scored, four doubles and two home runs. Blas has been one of Arizona's best hitters with runners in scoring position, going 10 for 29 to post a .345 average. He's hitting .349 (15 for 43) with runners on base. The shortstop from Carlsbad, California has been a run-producing machine, and has primarily hit out of the nine spot. He has 17 RBI in his last 13 games, including six multi-RBI games. He has a modest four-game hitting streak. Against Stanford, Blas showed how clutch he is with a three-run inside-the-park home run in the eighth inning with the game tied at three apiece. He went 4 for 10 total against the Cardinal. Since taking over as a regular on March 18, Blas has seen his season batting average rise from .176 to .280.
Power Surge: Arizona entered the late-March Nicholls State series with just four home runs on the season through 23 games. In the 15 games since, Arizona has hit 15 home runs and had an eight-game home run streak, hitting multiple home runs four times in that span. Against Oregon State, the Wildcats added four more home runs, getting two apiece from Nick Quintana and Cameron Cannon. Against Grand Canyon, Quintana added two more homers. Cannon hit another home run in the series opener against USC to extend the streak to eight games. Arizona then got two home runs over the weekend against Stanford with Alfonso Rivas connecting on his third of the season and Jacob Blas hitting an inside-the-park home run for his second homer of the season. The Cats now have 19 home runs on the season. Arizona hit five home runs in the three-game sweep of Nicholls, getting two home runs from Quintana and one apiece from Cannon, Blas and Donta Williams. Cannon then hit his second of the year against the Lobos, before hitting two more against Oregon State. Quintana, who hit six last year as a freshman, has seven home runs in his last 13 games after not having any in his first 22 games of the season. The home runs for Cannon, Blas and Williams were all the first of their respective careers. The Wildcats have seen their team batting average rise from .272 to .282 since beginning the three-game series against Nicholls State. Arizona enters the weekend series with Utah with a .282 average. Included in the recent stretch: an 18-hit output at New Mexico and a season-high 16 runs, and then scoring 23 runs against Oregon State over three games. The Cats were back at it Tuesday against Grand Canyon, scoring 16 runs on 15 hits. The Wildcats scored 14 runs in the series opener against USC, drawing 15 walks in the process.
The Cambino: Sophomore second baseman Cameron Cannon has had a strong start to his season. Cannon is hitting .331 through 38 games, having started every game at second this season. He leads the team in RBI with 37, is second on the team in doubles with 10 and is second on the squad in slugging percentage at .531. He also leads the team in walks with 25. Cannon, who had just 84 at-bats last season, has already surpassed his freshman season total in every offensive category this year. In the Pac-12 Conference, Cannon is third in runs scored (39), ninth in hits (48), ninth in RBI and 10th in total bases (77). The sophomore from Glendale has 12 multi-hit games on the season and nine multi-RBI contests. The nine multi-RBI games are second on the team to Alfonso Rivas and the 12 multi-hit games are third to Rivas and Nick Quintana.. Defensively, Cannon has two errors since March 6 versus San Diego State, successfully handling his last 115 of his last 117 chances.
All Hail, Cesar: Junior catcher Cesar Salazar is enjoying his best season as a Wildcat this year. Salazar is second on the team with a .333 batting average and is also tops in on-base percentage at .439. He's 10th in the conference in on-base percentage, and second among catchers to Oregon State's Adley Rutschman. Salazar, who is on the Johnny Bench Award Watch List, had a 25-game on-base streak, before it was snapped in the series opener against Oregon State. He's fourth on the team in multiple-hit games with 11 and has seven multiple-RBI games. Known for his defense, Salazar has backed up that reputation as well. He's thrown out 11 of 23 potential base stealers this season. He also threw out a runner trying to advance on a wild pitch at third base in the series opener against Washington State for the final out of the game to secure a 5-4 win. He's committed just one error this season for a .996 fielding percentage and has also been the primary backstop for a pitching staff that has the 18th-best ERA in the country at 3.22.
Dominant Deason: Through nine starts, junior right-hander Cody Deason has looked a lot like a Friday night starter in the Pac-12 should look. Deason is 4-3 with a 2.20 ERA in 57 1/3 innings. He's seventh in the Pac-12 in strikeouts with 56, fifth in ERA, and ninth in innings pitched. He's given up just 14 earned runs on the season and has opposing batters hitting just .195 against him, which is the fourth-best park in the conference. Deason got the Opening Day start against Bryant and threw seven shutout innings. He walked five, but gave up just three hits and paced the Cats in a 4-0 win. The next week, against San Diego State, Deason went just 5 1/3 innings, but battled, giving up two runs and striking out six, which matched a career high. Against Minnesota, Deason again went seven innings, allowing three hits and one unearned run, while again striking out six. In his fourth start of the season, Deason went seven innings, allowing one earned run and striking out a career-high nine. After giving up a double in the first inning, Deason faced the minimum from innings two to seven. Against Washington State, Deason punched out 10, establishing a new career high. Against USC, Deason picked up his second Pac-12 win of the season, going six innings, allowing just one run on six hits, while striking out eight. The junior has lefties hitting 21 for 111 against him, and batters are just 9 for 60 (1.50) against him with two outs, showing he knows how to shut down an inning. He's allowed just 13 extra-base hits in 57 1/3 innings.
He's Been Juanderful: Spanning back to last season, senior right-handed pitcher Juan Aguilera has given up just five earned runs over his last 39 innings pitched. This season, Aguilera is 5-0 with a 1.34 ERA in 33 2/3 innings. He made his first career start last month against New Mexico State and tossed six shutout innings, needing just 64 pitches to churn through one of the top offenses in the country. He then came back against Washington State and threw five scoreless innings in relief of starter Avery Weems. The senior started again against Grand Canyon, and went five innings, allowing just one run and picking up his fourth win of the season. Last week, Aguilera again drew the starting assignment against BYU, and tossed seven shutout innings on 86 pitches. He drew the starting assignment again Sunday against Stanford, and went three innings, allowing just one run, while striking out five. Aguilera has struck out 29 this season in 33 2/3 innings and opposing batters are hitting just .228 against him. Over his final four appearances last year, Aguilera didn't give up a run over 5 2/3 innings, giving up just one hit, three walks and four strikeouts. He earned the win in Arizona's win over Delaware in the NCAA Tournament. He's been especially tough against right-handed hitters this year, forcing them to go just 15 for 78 for a .192 average. Batters are also just 8 for 55 against him with runners on base and 3 for 35 with two outs. A product of nearby Sierra Vista, Aguilera has had a long journey to this point, spending the first two years of his college career at Cochise College.
First Up: Junior Alfonso Rivas manned left field as a freshman, before mainly handling the designated hitter role last year as a sophomore. This year, Rivas has moved to first base to take over for JJ Matijevic. Rivas was named first-team preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and a second-team pick by D1Baseball and a third-team selection by Baseball America. He's already backing it up this season. Rivas is batting .353 this season to lead the team with three home runs and 36 RBI. Rivas is currently riding a 10-game hitting streak and has reached base safely in 20 straight games. He is in the top three on the team in runs scored, hits, doubles, triples, home runs and RBI. Rivas has eight multiple-hit games in his last 15 contests and is 28 for 65 total in that span. Speaking to his consistency, Rivas has yet to have back-to-back hitless games this season and has a hit in 15 of his last 16 games. Rivas is 21 for 49 on the year with runners in scoring positon and he's 27 for 63 against left-handed pitching for a .429 average.
Most RBI by an Arizona Underclassman Since 2000
Flynn The Day: Junior right-hander Michael Flynn bounced back in a big way against Stanford after a tough-luck outing against USC a week prior. Against the Cardinal on Saturday, Flynn went 5 2/3 innings, giving up four hits and one run, while striking out eight and walking two. His eight strikeouts tied a career high set earlier this season. Flynn, who is 11-2 in his career, is 5-2 on the year in 44 innings. He has a 4.30 ERA and has struck out 41 batters to 19 walks. He's allowing batters to hit just .240 against him. The eight strikeouts tied the mark he set earlier this season against Washington State. In his last start against Stanford, Flynn reached 100 strikeouts for his career. He entered with 96 and is now up to 104 for his career in 111 2/3 innings. Flynn, who will start Saturday this weekend, behind Cody Deason, has made 14 career starts and 32 relief appearances. Flynn got his career ERA under four with his strong start against the Cardinal, and it now stands at 3.95.
The road trip got off to a tough start for the Cats. Utah erased a 4-0 deficit and came back to top Arizona 5-4 in the opener Friday night at Smith's Ballpark. The Cats dropped another one-run game game Saturday, 3-2. The Cats then responded with 18 runs Sunday and topped the Utes in the series finale.
The Cats then bussed to Orem to take on Utah Valley in a Monday night matchup.
Below is a full preview of the series with the Utes and Wolverines:
Date Time (MST) Location (Ballpark) Probable Starters/Results
Fri. April 27 5 p.m. Salt Lake City, Utah (Smith's Ballpark) Utah 5, Arizona 4
Sat. April 28 12 p.m. Salt Lake City, Utah (Smith's Ballpark) Utah 3, Arizona 2
Sun. April 29 12 p.m. Salt Lake City, Utah (Smith's Ballpark) Arizona 18, Utah 12
Mon. April 30 6 p.m. Orem, Utah (UCCU Ballpark) TBA vs. RHP Drew Hill
Live Stream: Available through wacsports.com
Live Stats: Available through Statbroadcast.com
All-Time Series: Arizona leads the Utah Valley series 18-3
Last Meeting: The Cats won a midweek matchup with Utah Valley 14-0 in 2016.
Leading Off...
• The Arizona Wildcats head to Utah for four games, opening a stretch of eight of their next 12 on the road. The Cats will play Utah for three and then head to Utah Valley for a single midweek game on Monday.
• Despite dropping the series to Stanford last weekend, Arizona has won 11 of its last 16 games and has captured four series victories in their last five tries.
• Arizona enters the weekend with a staff ERA of 3.22, which is the 18th-best mark in the country. Showing how difficult it can be in the Pac-12, Arizona's 2.92 mark is third-best in the league behind UCLA and Stanford.
• The Wildcats have seen their RPI improve to No. 40 after sitting at No. 113 on March 25.
• Arizona's team batting average has risen from .251 to .282 since March 18. Arizona is 13-6 in that span.
• Alfonso Rivas has a 10-game hitting streak and has reached base safely in 20 straight contests. He leads the team with a .353 average and hit his third home run of the season last weekend versus Stanford.
• Freshmen Tate Soderstrom and Jacob Blas combined to go 8 for 16 against Stanford last weekend with two doubles and a home run.
• Cody Deason enters the weekend with a 2.20 ERA, which is the fourth-best mark in the Pac-12. He's seventh in strikeouts with 56 and fourth in opposing batting average at .195.
Some Series Themes: Despite winning 87 games in Coach Jay Johnson's first two years, the Arizona Wildcats have found themselves with an 0-6 record against the Utah Utes heading into this weekend's series in Salt Lake City…The Cats will be looking to get off the schneid against the Utes…In 2016, Arizona led for most of the series, but suffered three late-game comebacks from the Utes…Arizona dropped the first game 6-3, after taking a 3-0 lead into the seventh inning…Utah won the second game 7-6, scoring five runs in the ninth inning…Then on Sunday, Utah won 4-2, scoring four runs in the eighth…Last season, Utah won 12-5, 7-3 and 4-2 as Arizona dropped to 9-9 in Pac-12 play…The Cats still maintain the lead in the series, 56-15, despite Utah's recent surge in the series…The Cats haven't won a series against the Utes since taking two of three in Salt Lake City in 2014…This year's Utah team comes in with a 10-28 record, but is 6-6 at home this season…Outfielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr., leads the team with a .366 batting average and has 16 doubles, which is tied for the Pac-12 lead…Rykker Tom is also batting over .300 with a .302 average. He has eight doubles and 19 RBI, which is tied for second on the team behind Oliver Dunn, who has driven in 24…Right-hander Tanner Thomas will start Friday's series opener…Past that, the Utes are undecided on starting pitchers…Thomas is 2-2 with a 5.33 ERA in 10 starts, spanning 52 1/3 innings… He's struck out 47 and allowed just two home runs… Trenton Stoltz has four saves on the year to lead the team, while Jacob Rebar has added two…Brett Brocoff hasn't been announced as a starter, but has 10 starts on the year like Thomas…Arizona will stick with its normal rotation, starting Cody Deason on Friday and Michael Flynn on Saturday, before leaving Sunday's finale to a game time decision…Alfonso Rivas is heating up for the Wildcats, riding a 10-game hitting streak and having reached base safely in 20 straight games…He has nine doubles, three home runs and 36 RBI with a .441 on-base percentage and a .500 slugging percentage…Arizona will stick around in Utah after its three-game series with Utah to play Utah Valley in Orem on Monday.
What a Start: Arizona pitching has set the tone for the season thus far. Arizona has a staff ERA of just 3.22 this season, which is tied for the 18th-best mark in the country and third-best among Pac-12 Conference teams. Arizona has allowed just 301 hits in 341 total innings. The pitching staff is averaging 7.94 hits per nine innings. Wildcat pitchers have combined to strike out 292, while allowing 136 walks. Opposing batters are hitting just .239 against Arizona pitching with 73 extra-base hits in 38 games. It's been a collective effort for the Wildcats thus far with several different arms contributing to the early season success. Cody Deason, who has had the Friday night honors so far this season, has just a 2.20 ERA in 57 1/3 innings. Michael Flynn and Avery Weems have also logged 40 or more innings. Flynn is 5-2 with a 4.30 ERA. Juan Aguilera and Tylor Megill have both logged more than 20 innings this year, with Megill boasting a 2.78 ERA in 22 2/3 innings and Aguilera posting a 1.34 ERA in 33 2/3 innings.
Pac-12 Leaders in ERA
| School | Staff ERA |
| Stanford | 2.61 |
| UCLA | 2.78 |
| Arizona | 3.22 |
| Oregon State | 3.56 |
| Washington | 3.62 |
Digging Deeper: Coach Dave Lawn's pitching staff has done several things very well early in the season. First, left-handed hitters are batting just .236 against Arizona pitching, combining to go 140 for 592 so far. Right-handed starters Cody Deason and Michael Flynn have been especially tough on lefties, allowing them to go just 41 for 201 for a .204 average. Another area where Arizona pitchers have excelled is with two outs. Opposing batters are just 78 for 387 (.202) with two outs against Arizona pitching. In fact, North Dakota State had just one hit with two outs in three games against the Wildcats in March. Earlier this month, Grand Canyon was 0 for 10 with two outs. With runners in scoring position, it's not much better with the opposition hitting 86 for 343 (.251) in that situation. Comparatively, Arizona's offense is hitting .328 with runners in scoring position. The Arizona pitching staff is allowing just 3.70 runs per game, 3.22 earned runs per game. The pitching staff and catchers Cesar Salazar and Ryan Haug have also allowed just nine stolen bases in 24 attempts this season.
Arizona Pitching By the Numbers
- 3.22 – Staff ERA, 18th best in country
- .239 -- Batting Average Against, fourth-best in Pac-12
- 13 – Home Runs Allowed, fewest in Pac-12
- 140 – Runs Allowed, Lowest total through 38 games since Cats joined Pac-10/12
- .202 – Batting Average Against with 2 outs
- .236 – Batting Average Against by left-handed hitting
- .251 – Batting Average Against with runners in scoring position
- 7.94 hits allowed per nine innings
Tip Top Tate: Freshman designated hitter Tate Soderstrom seems to be settling into Pac-12 play, and his recent surge is proof. Soderstrom went 4 for 6 over the weekend against Stanford with two doubles and an RBI. Soderstrom went 2 for 4 with a double and a run scored against BYU in the game leading up to the Stanford series as well. All total, over his last four games, Soderstrom is 6 for 10 with three doubles and two runs scored. He has three multi-hit games in his last four contests. In his 23 prior games, he had just one multi-hit game, a 2 for 5 game at New Mexico. He has raised his average from .217 to .286. Soderstrom has received the second-most at-bats on the team for a freshman with 56. He's 16 for 56 with 11 runs scored, nine extra-base hits (seven doubles and two triples) and seven RBI. He's second to Jacob Blas, who has received 75 at-bats this season. Showing he's adapting to Pac-12 pitching, Soderstrom was just 2 for 15 against Pac-12 competition before the Stanford series.
Blas Blossoming: Jacob Blas has wasted no time in his Arizona career making an impact on the diamond for the Wildcats. Blas took over the starting shortstop role in Mid-March when the Wildcats were in Washington, and has been an offensive threat ever since, while playing stellar defense at short. On the season, Blas is hitting .280 in 75 at-bats. He has 21 hits, 20 RBI, 16 runs scored, four doubles and two home runs. Blas has been one of Arizona's best hitters with runners in scoring position, going 10 for 29 to post a .345 average. He's hitting .349 (15 for 43) with runners on base. The shortstop from Carlsbad, California has been a run-producing machine, and has primarily hit out of the nine spot. He has 17 RBI in his last 13 games, including six multi-RBI games. He has a modest four-game hitting streak. Against Stanford, Blas showed how clutch he is with a three-run inside-the-park home run in the eighth inning with the game tied at three apiece. He went 4 for 10 total against the Cardinal. Since taking over as a regular on March 18, Blas has seen his season batting average rise from .176 to .280.
Power Surge: Arizona entered the late-March Nicholls State series with just four home runs on the season through 23 games. In the 15 games since, Arizona has hit 15 home runs and had an eight-game home run streak, hitting multiple home runs four times in that span. Against Oregon State, the Wildcats added four more home runs, getting two apiece from Nick Quintana and Cameron Cannon. Against Grand Canyon, Quintana added two more homers. Cannon hit another home run in the series opener against USC to extend the streak to eight games. Arizona then got two home runs over the weekend against Stanford with Alfonso Rivas connecting on his third of the season and Jacob Blas hitting an inside-the-park home run for his second homer of the season. The Cats now have 19 home runs on the season. Arizona hit five home runs in the three-game sweep of Nicholls, getting two home runs from Quintana and one apiece from Cannon, Blas and Donta Williams. Cannon then hit his second of the year against the Lobos, before hitting two more against Oregon State. Quintana, who hit six last year as a freshman, has seven home runs in his last 13 games after not having any in his first 22 games of the season. The home runs for Cannon, Blas and Williams were all the first of their respective careers. The Wildcats have seen their team batting average rise from .272 to .282 since beginning the three-game series against Nicholls State. Arizona enters the weekend series with Utah with a .282 average. Included in the recent stretch: an 18-hit output at New Mexico and a season-high 16 runs, and then scoring 23 runs against Oregon State over three games. The Cats were back at it Tuesday against Grand Canyon, scoring 16 runs on 15 hits. The Wildcats scored 14 runs in the series opener against USC, drawing 15 walks in the process.
The Cambino: Sophomore second baseman Cameron Cannon has had a strong start to his season. Cannon is hitting .331 through 38 games, having started every game at second this season. He leads the team in RBI with 37, is second on the team in doubles with 10 and is second on the squad in slugging percentage at .531. He also leads the team in walks with 25. Cannon, who had just 84 at-bats last season, has already surpassed his freshman season total in every offensive category this year. In the Pac-12 Conference, Cannon is third in runs scored (39), ninth in hits (48), ninth in RBI and 10th in total bases (77). The sophomore from Glendale has 12 multi-hit games on the season and nine multi-RBI contests. The nine multi-RBI games are second on the team to Alfonso Rivas and the 12 multi-hit games are third to Rivas and Nick Quintana.. Defensively, Cannon has two errors since March 6 versus San Diego State, successfully handling his last 115 of his last 117 chances.
All Hail, Cesar: Junior catcher Cesar Salazar is enjoying his best season as a Wildcat this year. Salazar is second on the team with a .333 batting average and is also tops in on-base percentage at .439. He's 10th in the conference in on-base percentage, and second among catchers to Oregon State's Adley Rutschman. Salazar, who is on the Johnny Bench Award Watch List, had a 25-game on-base streak, before it was snapped in the series opener against Oregon State. He's fourth on the team in multiple-hit games with 11 and has seven multiple-RBI games. Known for his defense, Salazar has backed up that reputation as well. He's thrown out 11 of 23 potential base stealers this season. He also threw out a runner trying to advance on a wild pitch at third base in the series opener against Washington State for the final out of the game to secure a 5-4 win. He's committed just one error this season for a .996 fielding percentage and has also been the primary backstop for a pitching staff that has the 18th-best ERA in the country at 3.22.
Dominant Deason: Through nine starts, junior right-hander Cody Deason has looked a lot like a Friday night starter in the Pac-12 should look. Deason is 4-3 with a 2.20 ERA in 57 1/3 innings. He's seventh in the Pac-12 in strikeouts with 56, fifth in ERA, and ninth in innings pitched. He's given up just 14 earned runs on the season and has opposing batters hitting just .195 against him, which is the fourth-best park in the conference. Deason got the Opening Day start against Bryant and threw seven shutout innings. He walked five, but gave up just three hits and paced the Cats in a 4-0 win. The next week, against San Diego State, Deason went just 5 1/3 innings, but battled, giving up two runs and striking out six, which matched a career high. Against Minnesota, Deason again went seven innings, allowing three hits and one unearned run, while again striking out six. In his fourth start of the season, Deason went seven innings, allowing one earned run and striking out a career-high nine. After giving up a double in the first inning, Deason faced the minimum from innings two to seven. Against Washington State, Deason punched out 10, establishing a new career high. Against USC, Deason picked up his second Pac-12 win of the season, going six innings, allowing just one run on six hits, while striking out eight. The junior has lefties hitting 21 for 111 against him, and batters are just 9 for 60 (1.50) against him with two outs, showing he knows how to shut down an inning. He's allowed just 13 extra-base hits in 57 1/3 innings.
He's Been Juanderful: Spanning back to last season, senior right-handed pitcher Juan Aguilera has given up just five earned runs over his last 39 innings pitched. This season, Aguilera is 5-0 with a 1.34 ERA in 33 2/3 innings. He made his first career start last month against New Mexico State and tossed six shutout innings, needing just 64 pitches to churn through one of the top offenses in the country. He then came back against Washington State and threw five scoreless innings in relief of starter Avery Weems. The senior started again against Grand Canyon, and went five innings, allowing just one run and picking up his fourth win of the season. Last week, Aguilera again drew the starting assignment against BYU, and tossed seven shutout innings on 86 pitches. He drew the starting assignment again Sunday against Stanford, and went three innings, allowing just one run, while striking out five. Aguilera has struck out 29 this season in 33 2/3 innings and opposing batters are hitting just .228 against him. Over his final four appearances last year, Aguilera didn't give up a run over 5 2/3 innings, giving up just one hit, three walks and four strikeouts. He earned the win in Arizona's win over Delaware in the NCAA Tournament. He's been especially tough against right-handed hitters this year, forcing them to go just 15 for 78 for a .192 average. Batters are also just 8 for 55 against him with runners on base and 3 for 35 with two outs. A product of nearby Sierra Vista, Aguilera has had a long journey to this point, spending the first two years of his college career at Cochise College.
First Up: Junior Alfonso Rivas manned left field as a freshman, before mainly handling the designated hitter role last year as a sophomore. This year, Rivas has moved to first base to take over for JJ Matijevic. Rivas was named first-team preseason All-American by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and a second-team pick by D1Baseball and a third-team selection by Baseball America. He's already backing it up this season. Rivas is batting .353 this season to lead the team with three home runs and 36 RBI. Rivas is currently riding a 10-game hitting streak and has reached base safely in 20 straight games. He is in the top three on the team in runs scored, hits, doubles, triples, home runs and RBI. Rivas has eight multiple-hit games in his last 15 contests and is 28 for 65 total in that span. Speaking to his consistency, Rivas has yet to have back-to-back hitless games this season and has a hit in 15 of his last 16 games. Rivas is 21 for 49 on the year with runners in scoring positon and he's 27 for 63 against left-handed pitching for a .429 average.
Most RBI by an Arizona Underclassman Since 2000
| Player (Class) | Year | RBI |
| Jeff Van Houten (Sophomore) | 2003 | 72 |
| Alfonso Rivas (Sophomore) | 2017 | 63 |
| Brad Glenn (Sophomore) | 2007 | 62 |
| Jordan Brown (Sophomore) | 2004 | 57 |
| Robert Refsnyder (Sophomore) | 2011 | 55 |
| Bobby Dalbec (Sophomore) | 2015 | 53 |
| Steve Selsky (Sophomore) | 2010 | 52 |
Flynn The Day: Junior right-hander Michael Flynn bounced back in a big way against Stanford after a tough-luck outing against USC a week prior. Against the Cardinal on Saturday, Flynn went 5 2/3 innings, giving up four hits and one run, while striking out eight and walking two. His eight strikeouts tied a career high set earlier this season. Flynn, who is 11-2 in his career, is 5-2 on the year in 44 innings. He has a 4.30 ERA and has struck out 41 batters to 19 walks. He's allowing batters to hit just .240 against him. The eight strikeouts tied the mark he set earlier this season against Washington State. In his last start against Stanford, Flynn reached 100 strikeouts for his career. He entered with 96 and is now up to 104 for his career in 111 2/3 innings. Flynn, who will start Saturday this weekend, behind Cody Deason, has made 14 career starts and 32 relief appearances. Flynn got his career ERA under four with his strong start against the Cardinal, and it now stands at 3.95.
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