Center fielder Ivory Thomas leads off first base. Thomas has a total of 16 stolen bases. Photo by Camille Tarazon/Daily Titan.
The Titans are holding the first seed with three games ahead of UC Irvine. Three games amount to a series and the Titans need to make each game count this weekend against the Highlanders.
Coming out of the series against the Tigers, the Titans have learned to minimize unforced errors in the last game and managed to play exceptional defense on the field.
They came away Sunday with a 6-4 win after sophomore Carlos Lopez sent the ball out of Goodwin Field to earn two RBIs.
The Sunday game was a hard-fought game that kept the Titans on their heels. The Titans were able to capitalize on Hummel’s poor pitching that walked two players.
Nick Ramirez was able to secure the win after stepping in at the top of the eighth. Ramirez has been consistent in silencing teams, so if the Titans can take the lead in the seventh or eighth inning, Ramirez can close out the game.
Other relief pitchers that have helped the Titans include senior right-hander Raymond Hernandez, who struck out two Tigers, allowing only one run and three hits in 2.2 innings Friday.
Junior right-hander Colin O’Connell, named Big West Player of the Week, has been struggling during the last series, allowing six hits and five runs in only 2.1 innings.
Having an off game is bound to happen, but he can’t let that poor performance cripple him from performing well in the future.
Junior right-hander Tyler Pill was also in trouble when he pitched Saturday, giving up seven hits and seven runs in 6.0 innings.
But seeing the Titans as a team that perseveres, these pitchers will find their niche again, but they need to do it fast.
Winning the series is worth celebrating, but if the Titans are barely winning games against the No. 8 team in the standings, with only Cal State Northridge behind them with a 1-11 record, they have to unleash their ferocious talent in the upcoming series.
After losing the first game against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, the Titans have had a shattered win streak.
Nevertheless, the Highlanders will give a tougher fight than the Tigers.
Tyler Hairgrove, Big West Player of the Week and College Baseball Insider’s West Region Baseball Player of the Week for the games played April 18 through 24, will be a major threat.
During the week, Hairgrove batted an average of .538 with a .571 base percentage. His perfect shortstop performance in handling all 14 chances in three games drew attention as well.
The Titans will need to prepare playing against his hot streak offensively and defensively.
The pitching staff needs to frustrate his high batting percentage, and the Titans should place shots away from the short stop.
If the Titans can do those two things, they can silence the Highlander’s star player.