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Opening day: Revamped Lobo baseball team faces No. 5 Oregon State
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The lights officially come on Friday for the University of New Mexico baseball team’s 2024 season.
Granted, the Lobos won’t need stadium lighting for a noon game in the Arizona desert against No. 5 Oregon State. They will, however, be squarely in college baseball’s opening-day spotlight.
It’s nothing entirely new for UNM, which has competed in Surprise, Arizona’s annual College Baseball Classic numerous times in recent years. This time around the Lobos will face Oregon State (Friday), Cal State Bakersfield (Saturday and Monday) and Minnesota (Sunday) to open coach Tod Brown’s third season at New Mexico.
The Lobos took a step forward last season, improving from 21-33 in 2022 to 26-25. But UNM finished fifth in the Mountain West race and failed to qualify for the four-team conference tournament, leaving a bitter taste in the mouths of returning players.
The roster has since seen considerable turnover, especially on the pitching staff. Can the Lobos take another step forward in 2024? Senior catcher Jake Holland believes so.
“The biggest difference this year is we have more pitching depth,” Holland said. “Last year we had three good weekend starters but we rode them hard. By the end of the season, the starters got tired and so did the hitters because we’d been banging all year. This year I think we have enough depth to hold things together through the season.”
Holland, who hit .333 last season with 12 homers and 39 RBIs, is one of several key position players returning for the Lobos. Other familiar faces include shortstop Chase Weissenborn, second baseman Devon Dixon, oufielder Sean Stephens, catcher/DH Kyle Smith and first baseman Reed Spenrath — a Preseason All-MWC selection who hit .321 with 19 homers and 65 RBIs in 2023. All six are seniors.
UNM hit .329 as a team last season and led the nation in batting average for much of the year. Brown believes this year’s squad can be equally potent but is looking for more production with runners on base.
“I think we have the hitting,” he said. “We have a nice blend of returning and new guys and we’ve been working to be less dependent on home runs. Whether it’s bunting, stealing bases or just putting the ball in play with guys on base, we need to do a better job turning base hits into runs.”
As usual, the biggest key to UNM’s success figures to be pitching. All three of last year’s weekend starters (Riley Egloff, Tristin Lively and Isaac Gallegos) exhausted their eligibility in 2023.
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UNM brought in some experienced arms to help fill the gap, including right-handers Dayne Pengelly, David Lopez and Andrew Neill, all of whom pitched at the junior college level last season. Neill, who recently underwent hand surgery, could miss a few weeks before making his Lobos debut.
But Brown is confident that some returning pitchers will be ready for more extensive roles. That group includes right-handers Brett Russell, Will Bannister, lefty Justin Still and New Mexicans Jaren Jackson (RHP), Arthur Steinkamp (LHP) and Brian McBroom (RHP).
McBroom, who went 4-2 with three saves as a sophomore last season, believes the Lobos will be better prepared to mix and match as a pitching staff in 2024.
“If one guy struggles, we have other guys who can step in and finish the job,” McBroom said. “We have multiple guys who can start or pitch at the back end and that’s exciting. I know I’m ready to take on any role they need from me.”
UNM does have some newcomers who figure to fill key roles, including third baseman Josh McAlister, who transferred from Ohio State, and junior college transfers Tye Wood (OF) and Ethan Ott (1B/OF).
Brown said he feels good about the Lobos’ roster, but at this point it’s a cautious optimism.
“We made a jump last season and we need to make another jump in year three,” he said. “I like what I’ve seen so far but you have to do it when the lights come on. Time for guys to step up.”
SCOUTING REPORT: Oregon State was picked to win the Pac-12 this season after finishing 41-20 last year. The Beavers’ roster includes former Sandia High School pitchers Aiden May and Jacob Kmatz, both junior right-handers. May, who transferred to OSU from Arizona during the offseason, is expected to start Friday against UNM.
CSU Bakersfield finished 18-34 last season and was picked to finish 10th in the Big West.
Minnesota is also coming off an 18-34 season. The Gophers were not picked among the top six teams in the Big Ten Preseason poll, which only names the top six expected finishers.
