Arizona baseball continues its season-opening 23-game homestand tonight and Wednesday afternoon when it hosts Utah Valley at Hi Corbett Field.
Mathew Troupe is projected to start Tuesday evening’s game. Wednesday’s starter has not been named as of Monday, but Wednesday will most likely be an opportunity for either an underclassman to try to earn a spot in the weekend rotation, or a redemption start for junior Tyler Crawford.
Offensively through three games, Arizona (2-1) has been led by third baseman Cody Ramer. Over the weekend the sophomore, who hits near the bottom of the lineup, had six hits. He scored four times and had three RBIs.
The Wildcats outscored Kent State 25-16 in the weekend series. Their upcoming midweek opponent, Utah Valley (1-2), scored eight runs in its first three games against Loyola Marymount.
The Wolverines took advantage of LMU’s smaller field as they homered three times in the series. How much of an offensive punch Utah Valley really has will be tested today and tomorrow as Hi Corbett is far from a hitter-friendly park.
Arizona did not hit any homeruns against Kent State, but did use the deep Hi Corbett fences by amassing two triples.
This is the fifth consecutive season that Arizona and Utah Valley face off and the Wildcats hold a 16-2 game advantage over the Wolverines in the all-time series.
Last season Arizona split a two-game midweek series with Utah Valley.
Who to watch out for:
Mark Krueger — sophomore first baseman — #21 — 6-foot-5; 225 pounds
Ended last year with a team-high .323 average to accompany 17 doubles and two home runs as a true freshman.
Krueger followed a stellar freshman campaign, which saw him start 50 games and accumulate 18 multi-hit performances. He set a school record by hitting three doubles in a game against Utah last season and raised his batting average by nearly .100 points over the last month of the 2013 season.
This year, in Utah Valley’s opening series against the Lions, Krueger was 5-for-11 (.455) with a pair of doubles.
Riley White — senior outfielder — #17 — 5-foot-10; 185 pounds
Last season White was named to 2nd team All-Great West Conference team along with Krueger.
White came up empty in each of his first 10 at-bats this year.
Last year as a junior, White enjoyed a strong season after suffering a season-ending injury five games into his sophomore campaign. In 2013, White was one of three Wolverines to start all 54 games. He had the most runs scored on the team and second-most hits and RBIs on the team, 64 and 34 respectively.
White had a .305 batting average — fourth-highest on the team and a .749 OPS. He also collected 11 doubles, two triples and a home run.
Projection: Arizona sweeps Utah Valley to start the season 4-1
Follow Evan Rosenfeld @EvanRosenfeld17