Cal Poly center fielder Alex McKenna was named Big West Field Player of the Year on Wednesday, according to the Big West’s twitter account. 

#BWCHonors Field Player of the Year – Alex McKenna (@CalPolyStangs):

-1st Mustang since 2014 (Mark Mathias) & 5th overall so named.
-Led BWC in hits (81) & runs (41).
-2nd in BWC TB (121), 3rd in OBP (.424), 5th in BA/SLG (.339/.506).#RideHigh #BWCBaseball #PlayBig ⚾️ pic.twitter.com/fdrZEcQfdB

— Big West Baseball (@BigWestBaseball) May 30, 2018

McKenna is the fifth Mustang to win the award. Mark Mathias won the award in 2014 and Mitch Haniger — currently a member of the Seattle Mariners — also won the award in 2012 while manning centerfield at Baggett. 

In 2018, McKenna led the conference with 81 hits and 51 runs while committing just one error all season. On the year, McKenna hit .339 with 15 doubles, 5 triples, and 5 home runs. In three seasons in San Luis Obispo, McKenna hit .323 with 16 home runs, 32 doubles, 9 triples, and 89 RBIs in 158 games. His career OPS was .874 for the Mustangs. A junior this past season, McKenna figures to be selected in the first 3-5 rounds of the draft next week. 

Another junior, catcher Nick Meyer, earned the Defensive Player of the Year award for the conference.

#BWCHonors Defensive POY – Nick Meyer (@CalPolyStangs):

– 3rd Mustang in 5 years to earn honor (Peter Van Gansen, 2015; Chris Hoo, 2014)
– .984 fielding (395 putouts, 44 assists, 7 errors in 446 chances).
– Earned 2016 BWC Freshman Field POY.#RideHigh #BWCBaseball #PlayBig pic.twitter.com/PYt50PuoVS

— Big West Baseball (@BigWestBaseball) May 30, 2018

Following in the catching footsteps of Chris Hoo, Meyer is Cal Poly’s third ever defensive player of the year. Meyer started behind the plate from day one at Cal Poly, earning the conference’s freshman of the year award two seasons ago. Meyer played his usual stellar defense while taking a step forward at the plate this season. In 2018, Mayer hit .344 with 14 doubles and two triples. His OPS was .836 and, at times during his career, Meyer’s mustache was one of the best in the game. Meyer figures to be the second Mustang selected in the upcoming amateur draft.

Junior Kyle Marinconz — who has played shortstop for most of his time at Cal Poly — and senior Trent Shelton — who emerged as Cal Poly’s Friday night ace in 2018 — were named to the All-Conference second team. 

Freshman infielder Tate Samuelson and freshman pitcher Taylor Dollard earned honorable mention honors along with senior pitcher Austin Dondanville.

#BWCHonors All-Conference from @CalPolyStangs:

Alex McKenna, Nick Meyer (1st Team)
Kyle Marinconz, Trent Shelton (2nd)
Taylor Dollard, Austin Dondanville, Tate Samuelson (HM)#RideHigh #BWCBaseball #PlayBig ⚾️

— Big West Baseball (@BigWestBaseball) May 30, 2018

Big West Release

Cal Poly Release

Behind good pitching, solid fielding, and some clutch hitting by a junior draft prospect, Cal Poly baseball swept UCSB in its final home series of the season last weekend. 

Meyer gets hot

For his part, catcher Nick Meyer was red-hot all week. Meyer went 5-6 in Cal Poly’s Tuesday mid-week game and followed it up with a great series against UCSB. On the week, he went 9-17 with three doubles, five runs, and three RBI’s, including a game-winning RBI double on Saturday afternoon on a pitch around his eyeballs. 

Meyer was named the Big West Field Player of the Week on Monday. 

Meyer, who was named to Team USA during the summer of 2017, was already rated as an above-average defensive catcher. He’s been red-hot at the plate over the past month or two as well, probably solidifying a relatively high-round pick in the upcoming Major League Baseball Draft. 

Senior Day

Trent Shelton has been flat-out terrific all season for Cal Poly. Photo by Owen Main

Sunday was senior day and six players were honored. Austin Dondanville, Kyle Smith, Elijah Skipps, Josh George, Colby Barrick, and Trent Shelton all saw their final games at Baggett over the weekend. 

Shelton pitched a great game on Friday night, a healthy Skipps was a key cog in Cal Poly’s offensive output all weekend, and Dondanville and Smith both saw action on the mound as well. George was the senior day darling, going 3-4 with 2 RBIs in Sunday’s victory. 

So long to some juniors?

As happens every year, Cal Poly will have some juniors drafted this year. The question will be which ones leave. 

The two likely candidates are, in likely draft order, are Alex McKenna and Nick Meyer, though Kyle Marinconz is also a candidate to be drafted and turn pro. If you’d asked me before the season, Michael Clark would have also been high on this list. Last season’s closer, Clark’s role changed this season and his workload was less. After pitching 48 innings in 30 games with a 2.58 ERA last season, Clark’s workload has increased to over 65 innings (nine games started) with a 5.79 ERA. Clark’s k/bb percentage also went from 2.12 in 2017 to 1.84 this year. 

That said, Clark pitched a gem on Sunday afternoon, lasting 7 1/3 innings while giving up just a pair of earned runs en route to the win. It was Clark’s longest and probably most productive outing of the season. 

We’ll wait to see where and how these guys get drafted and what decisions they make as far as coming back to school. If it was their last weekend series at Baggett, it was pretty special. 

A great finish

The level of play this weekend could be seen as bittersweet. This team has talent that has been playing much closer to their true talent level over the course of Big West play. 

As they’ve been prone to do over the past few years, Cal Poly is playing its best baseball at the end of the season. As has also happened in recent years, that great baseball doesn’t have any postseason implications. For the third time in four years since the program hosted a regional in 2014, Cal Poly put up a losing non-conference record this season, including losses to Gonzaga, Grand Canyon, New Mexico, a series split to Pacific, a mid-week split with San Jose State, losing two of three at home to San Diego State, losing three of four at Nebraska, and being swept at home by UCLA.  

With the exception of UCLA, Nebraska, and Maybe San Diego State, a regional team doesn’t have that many losses against middling or low level Division I teams on the west coast. The Big West wasn’t really great this season either. Preseason favorites like Long Beach State and UCSB flamed out, but losses in series at CSUN and a sweep in Fullerton took Cal Poly out of the race. The conference will only have a single program — Cal State Fullerton — in this year’s NCAA Tournament. 

Under construction

While the bleachers were ready for the home season in 2018, the second phase of construction – demolition of the current clubhouse — looks like it’s starting soon. On Friday, fans noticed some portable buildings far down the first base line at Baggett. The project had originally been scheduled for groundbreaking right after last season, but I believe that the new clubhouse will still be under construction during the 2019 season and be ready for 2020. 

Photos below from Friday night’s game by Owen Main. Find more photos at photos.fansmanship.com, or you can show love by contributing to the cause via Venmo @Owen-Main or paypal owen@fansmanship.com. 

Coming into this past weekend’s Big West Conference baseball series, there was still an outside shot for both Cal Poly and UC Irvine. After the Anteaters won the series two games to one, both teams fell in the standings and, barring a complete collapse, the split series secured Cal State Fullerton’s spot as the frontrunner in this season’s Big West title chase.

The Mustangs dropped the opener on Friday night, scoring just a single run and failing to back-up a solid pitching performance from lefty Trent Shelton. On Saturday evening, Cal Poly got on the board early with the help of a fly ball that was lost in the lights in the first inning and went on to win 4-3. On Sunday, the Mustangs lost the rubber game, scoring just a single run again in a 4-1 loss. 

The series loss to UC Irvine evened Cal Poly’s Big West record at 9-9 with six conference games (two weeks) to play. It also dropped them from a second place tie to a fourth place tie in conference play. UC Irvine moved to 10-8, four games behind Cal State Fullerton in the loss column (3 games overall).

Giving up 10 runs in three games is often enough in college baseball, but UC Irvine pitchers shut the Mustangs down to the tune of just six runs of their own in the three games.

Anteaters pound the zone

UC Irvine pitchers did a nice job throwing strikes when they had to. Anteater pitchers walked just six Mustangs all weekend and there were many fairly short at-bats in the innings I saw in-person. Kyle Marinconz didn’t seem to mind, going 7-11 in the series. 

No fun league

One thing Cal Poly players credited their mid-season turnaround to was having more fun. Players (mostly relief pitchers) have been dancing in the dugout and bullpen for nearly two months during rallies. Their coordination has been top-notch and added a really fun element to the game. 

On Friday night, Big West home plate umpire Scott Letendre put an end to all that. Letendre’s attention was on everything from shutting down the dancing multiple times to talking to Mustang starter Trent Shelton about where he needed to put the rosin bag on the mound. Did it make a difference as to who won the game? Almost definitely not. But nobody — opposing players or any of the umpires — has had a problem with it for weeks and it comes off looking like baseball is not a place to have fun. Not a great look for that ump. 

Seven more games

Cal Poly (23-27 overall) has seven games remaining this season, including four at home this week. On Tuesday, they’ll play their final mid-week game at home against Pepperdine. This weekend, they’ll finish their home schedule against rival UCSB, including the senior day game on Sunday afternoon. Seniors on this year’s roster include Josh George, Colby Barrick, Trent Shelton, Elijah Skipps, and Kyle Smith. Other Mustangs who you might have your last chance to see in a Cal Poly uniform include juniors Alex McKenna, Nick Meyer, Kyle Marinconz, and Michael Clark. Juniors are eligible for the Major League Baseball draft, which will take place June 4-6.

The Mustangs will finish their season next weekend (May 24-26) at UC Riverside. 

Photos by Owen Main

For more photos click here. If you just want to contribute to the cause, Venmo @Owen-Main or paypal owen@fansmanship.com. 

Cal Poly baseball (16-19, 3-6) will host defending Big West champs Long Beach State this weekend at Baggett Stadium. After a renovation to the seating/bleacher area, the game will be the first television game in the new stadium. The 7pm game will be televised nationally on ESPNU. 

While the new bleachers are beautiful and bigger and steeper than many imagined, Baggett Stadium hasn’t been full yet with the new seating. The team, which hasn’t made a regional appearance since they hosted in 2014, hasn’t played consistently well and some weather has probably been a factor too. 

Trent Shelton (2-2) will start in front of the TV cameras on Friday for the Mustangs. Despite missing time due to appendicitis, Shelton has been Cal Poly’s most consistent starter. The lefty has a 3.98 ERA and 45 strikeouts in 40.2 innings. 

At 3-6 in Big West play, Cal Poly is tied for last place with UC Davis. The good news is that they are still only three games out of first place. The Dirtbags are 16-21 overall and 3-3 early in conference play. 

For their part, Cal Poly has put together a smart marketing campaign to ramp up to the game. 

Yo what’s Musty doing up there? Getting a good seat for the green out game on Friday! #RideHigh pic.twitter.com/XEaTi4SYLf

— Cal Poly Mustangs (@CPMustangs) April 16, 2018

Coach Lee was nice enough to bring me some reading material today to pass the time…

Is it Friday yet?! #GreenOut #PackTheBagg #RideHigh pic.twitter.com/wztBYHJoF4

— Musty the Mustang (@MustytheMustang) April 17, 2018

Musty is trying to get camera ready for the big game on Friday, good thing he has @Alexjmckenna to help!

: https://t.co/VQPSEkn3iW | #RideHigh #PackTheBagg pic.twitter.com/ZPDRBTNrt5

— Cal Poly Mustangs (@CPMustangs) April 18, 2018

Just my buddy @Alexjmckenna showing me how to improve my selfie game before the Green Out Game on Friday! #PackTheBagg #RideHigh pic.twitter.com/YUQrcYkpvd

— Musty the Mustang (@MustytheMustang) April 18, 2018

I wouldn’t expect a sellout or anything close. Capacity is over 3,000 at Baggett and Friday night’s forecast says that it will likely be under 50 degrees at first pitch. But the marketing department at Cal Poly Athletics is certainly doing everything they can to hustle more people for the TV game.

While bleachers were renovated prior to the season, the clubhouse facility is scheduled to be demolished and rebuilt as well. Construction is likely to last through next season. 

Shortstop Kyle Marinconz leads Cal Poly with four home runs this season. By Owen Main

Big West baseball is one week in, and it’s still wide-open. After losing a road series in Northridge last weekend, Cal Poly can do a lot to improve their conference outlook with a conference win at Cal State Fullerton this weekend. It won’t be easy. 

The Titans are the highest profile team in the conference. Over the past 10 years, Rick Vanderhook’s team has six Big West titles, two second-place finishes, a third, and a fourth. In other words, despite a series loss for the Titans last week, the Big West baseball title goes through Fullerton. 

For Cal Poly, consistency will be key. Pitching has been OK at times — Cal Poly has given up the third most runs and earned runs in the Big West. Hitting has exploded in some games — the Mustangs are second in the Big West in runs. Defense has been a rough spot for Larry Lee’s team. Cal Poly has given up 29 unearned runs, second only in the conference to Long Beach State’s 30. Long Beach State has played 29 games while Cal Poly has played 27.

Fullerton has also given-up nearly one unearned run per game on average. It’s one of the reasons that those three perennial Big West contenders find themselves looking up in the standings to Hawai’i, UC Riverside, and CSUN early in the season. 

Only one week into the conference, Cal Poly has everything in front of them. The Big West has no clear frontrunner. A series win against the Titans would feel pretty good going into a stretch of the schedule where four of six conference series are at home. Make no mistake though, losing back-to-back series to CSUN and Fullerton to start the season would not bode well for whatever Big West or Postseason dreams Cal Poly has.  

After starting the season 11-12, the Cal Poly baseball team’s regional goals aren’t totally lost. But they’ll have to probably do even better than their 16-8 Big West conference season a year ago to make the postseason. 

Larry Lee’s team will start Big West play Thursday afternoon in Northridge (3:00pm). CSUN doesn’t have lights, so all baseball games there are day games.

Jarred Zill has come back this season to be the team’s ace. He’ll take the hill Thursday night in Northridge. Photo by Owen Main

The Mustangs have scuffled this season, playing well in some individual games, but lacking the consistency to grind-out wins on a daily basis as of yet. They beat Arkansas and Michigan in individual games, but split a four-game series with Paicfic (RPI of 187 of 297 Division I teams), and lost games to Grand Canyon (237) and San Jose State (209). At Nebraska, a top-100 team right now, the Mustangs won the first game of a four game series before losing the final two games during a Sunday doubleheader by a combined score of 35-5. 

Their only series win of the year so far came last weekend at home against Dartmouth (whose current RPI is 279). 

RPI is a measure that traditionally doesn’t favor west coast teams, but the Big West conference, a league that usually sends multiple teams to the NCAA Tournament, hasn’t helped itself this season. Only three teams (Hawaii (88), Cal State Fullerton (91) UC Irvine (95)) sit in the top-100 in the RPI and conference favorite Long Beach State is at 108. None are sniffing the top-25 at the moment. The other five teams sit between 150 and 218, with the Mustangs at 192, second from the bottom in front of cellar dwellers UCSB. Hawai’i and UCI are the only two schools in the conference with a winning record at the moment. The conference could get multiple teams into the tournament this year, but there is a real possibility that only one team could find their way into the postseason. 

The RPI can be useful, but it’s not everything. No Big West team has played a conference game yet, and Cal Poly can be optimistic. Last season, they won all but one of their conference series en route to a 2nd place finish in the Big West and a 16-8 conference record. The Mustangs will likely have to do better than that this year, win most of their mid-week games, and win an important home series against UCLA at the end of April. The best way for the team to keep a regional in its sights would be to win the conference outright. 

 Who to watch for

Alex McKenna and Nick Meyer are the names people heard a lot about in preseason. They are, predictably, the team’s two leading hitters. Tate Samuelson, a freshman from San Diego, has found comfort in the middle of the lineup. Samuelson, who played for the SLO Blues this summer, is second on the team with six doubles and a pair of home runs. Dylan Doherty has shown some offensive consistency and bat to ball skills. Bradlee Beasley and Kyle Marinconz are reliable batsmen who can be very dangerous. Cal Poly’s offense has averaged 5.3 runs per game. 

For up-to-date Cal Poly stats, click here. 

On the mound

Cal Poly’s rotation has been a little fluid. Jarred Zill returned to the mound and will be the presumed ace going into Big West play. Trent Shelton has looked good, but had appendicitis and his early-conference availability is in question. Michael Clark started as the Friday starter, but hasn’t started for a few weeks and looks like he may be in the new in-vogue multi-inning relief role. Thomas Triantos looked really sharp against Dartmouth and freshman Darren Nelson, who has been a two-way player, has looked good as a Sunday starter. Cal Poly’s relief squad is young — maybe a good reason to keep Clark in the bullpen — and their collective ability to get out of tough high-leverage situations could be a big key to the Mustangs making some noise in conference play.

For Cal Poly baseball photos, click here

Make them EARN it

There are lots of reasons a team can win or lose a baseball game, but the week-to-week stat that I’ve been looking at is errors and unearned runs. The Mustangs have played 23 games so far and have made 37 errors (11 more than their opponents) and have given up 27 unearned runs. If they keep giving up more than a single unearned run per game, they will stay a talented team with middling results. If Cal Poly can manage their defensive play and continue to improve on defense, they can once again compete for a Big West title. 

Mike Miller, a former Cal Poly shortstop and current professional in the Boston Red Sox system, joined the podcast this week. 

Miller told lots of stories and gave lots of background I didn’t know. Did you know he went unrecruited out of high school and attended Cal Poly on his own for a year without playing baseball?

Miller discussed life in the minors, PB&J, and an organization called More than a Game. 

As always, feedback is welcomed. 

Today we focus on the two hitters with the highest batting average for the 2017 Mustangs — a sophomore and senior.

Alex McKenna (Sophomore, Outfielder)

Alex McKenna was unquestionably the team’s offensive leader in 2017 and figures to be in that role once again as a junior in 2018. By Owen Main

McKenna was Cal Poly’s offensive leader in every way. The sophomore showcased his talent early in his freshman year, but injuries derailed him down the stretch. In his sophomore campaign, McKenna led the team by a wide margin in average, hits, runs, home runs, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and stolen bases — all while not making a single error in center field, while starting all 56 games.

The Cape Crusader

McKenna spent his 2017 summer in Massachusetts, in the Cape Cod league. With the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox, he hit .298 with 37 hits in 31 games. He was also named to the league’s All-Star Team.  

When you’re on The Cape, you get to have spray charts like this easily accessible for people like you and me. It also means that lots of scouts get to see you play on a daily basis. If his past success in San Luis Obispo is any indication about his future, McKenna is likely to be drafted highly after his junior year, which would likely mean 2018 would be his last in a Cal Poly uniform. 

One thing I really liked about McKenna’s play in 2017 was his consistent approach. While he did lead the Mustangs in strikeouts, he definitely improved from his freshman year in terms of recognizing breaking balls and not swinging at bad pitches — especially with two strikes. He could still improve some there, but he took a huge step forward in his 2017 collegiate season. 

Michael Sanderson (Senior, Infielder)

Michael Sanderson had his finest season at Cal Poly as a senior. By Owen Main

Going out with a bang

Sometimes, guys go out on their shield. Sanderson, who was a junior college transfer at Cal Poly, finished his two year career at Baggett Stadium by going out on his shield. In the first inning of his final game, the first baseman made a diving catch in foul territory, breaking a bone and finishing his season. For a team that was unlikely to make the postseason at that point, it was kind of a legendary way to go out. 

Sanderson’s right arm had already betrayed him earlier in the season, forcing the move from third base to first. But he continued to mash. Sanderson finished second in batting average, third in hits, and had the second highest slugging percentage on the roster. 

His three home runs on the season, the only three of his Mustang career, were all hit in the final month of the 2017 season.

A Chico native, whose grandfather was the Cal Poly football coach in the early 1980’s, Sanderson finished his two-year Cal Poly career with a .309 average in 108 games — mostly at third base. 

Kyle Marinconz (Shortstop/Second Base)

Kyle Marinconz held down shortstop for Cal Poly in 2017. By Owen Main

Holding down the fort

Kyle Marinconz is a natural second baseman. Over the past two Jekyll and Hyde seasons, the Mustangs have gone through at least a half-dozen other shortstops, trying to find a way to keep Marinconz on the right side of the infield. Unfortunately, Larry Lee has had to put Marinconz back at shortstop each of the past two years. It’s not that the sophomore (soon to be junior) has been bad at the position, but he has limited range there playing him at second base would have allowed the Mustangs to feel much more solid across the board in the infield. 

Instead, Cal Poly’s defense really struggled early in 2017, especially before Marinconz moved to shortstop. It probably affected everyone’s sense of regularity as the team really scuffled in their first few months before turning it on in conference play. 

While Marinconz doesn’t wow with any single skill (except for maybe his hit tool), he is pretty good at most things on the baseball field.

By the numbers

Marinconz put up a roughly similar season to his freshman year in 2017. He hit for more power (the first three home runs of his career came last season), but also struck out a little more and walked a little less. After a slow start, big performances during conference play really made his full season numbers respectable. He hit in 9 of his final 10 games, collecting 15 hits and two of his three homers over that span. His conference performance was enough to land Marinconz on the All-Big West first team. 

Marinconz was a draft-eligible sophomore in 2017, but was not selected in the 2017 major league baseball draft. As a junior in 2018, he’ll be one of the team’s leaders as he tries to improve his draft stock and help the team get to 30-plus wins again. Something that will be fairly easy to follow in the spring with the entire team will be to see where Marinconz ends up defensively. If he’s at second base and Cal Poly is playing consistent defense, it will likely be a good sign for the Mustangs early-on. 

Michael Clark (Relief Pitcher)

Michael Clark was Cal Poly’s closer in 2017. By Owen Main

Breakout season

In his sophomore season, Clark emerged as one of the most dominant closers in the Big West. Clark appeared in 30 games, amassing a 5-0 record, 11 saves, and a 2.59 ERA. Clark’s frame isn’t huge, but he peers into the plate through clear glasses and throws gas. In his sophomore season, he found his control and earned Larry Lee’s trust as the high leverage right-hander out of the bullpen and closer. Opponents hit under .200 against him and he struck out over twice as many hitters (36) as he walked (17). His dominance throughout the season landed Clark on the All-Big West second team.

Though he started just one game, Clark was third on the team in innings pitched, throwing nearly 50 frames.

Can he start?

A reliable closer is an important asset for any team, but Cal Poly lost their two best starting pitchers. It will be interesting to see whether Larry Lee looks at stretching Clark into a starting pitcher in the fall and spring. Lee will need to have as many solid innings as he can from his best pitchers. Clark figures to be one of those, if not the best pitcher on the staff in 2018.

Slater Lee (Senior, Pitcher)

Season Synopsis

In his fourth and final year at Cal Poly, Lee dropped his delivery to more of a three-quarters arm slot and provided a reliable relief option for Larry Lee (no relation). Lee’s added funk and savvy pitching helped him to sport a career-low 2.86 ERA and strike out over 11 hitters per nine innings. Lee struck out 54 batters while walking just 15 and finished the season with a 4-2 record. His high-leverage innings down the stretch helped Cal Poly overcome a slow start to finish the season with a .500 record in 2017.

Evolution

Slater Lee’s evolution into a relief pitcher was somewhat unexpected. As a freshman, Lee’s complete game, two-hit shutout of defending national champion UCLA and Cal Poly’s subsequent series win was a big statement in the Mustangs’ 2014 season. That season Cal Poly probably had its best season ever in Division I with Lee starting 11 games. While Lee’s strong start as a freshman didn’t carry over into subsequent seasons, Slater showed some strong makeup, retooling over the course of the next two seasons into something of a super utility pitcher. As a senior, his 20 appearances were third most on the team.

Nick Meyer (Sophomore, Catcher)

Nick Meyer, post-mustache in 2017. A leader on the Cal Poly team, Meyer is poised for his junior season in 2018. By Owen Main

Living up to high standards

Last season, Lucas Clark (the Tribune writer who used to be on the Cal Poly beat) asked me whether Nick Meyer was the best defensive catcher in recent Cal Poly memory. “Well,” I explained, “There’s this guy named Chris Hoo. He won the national gold glove. He’s probably the standard that other Cal Poly catchers will be measured against for a long time.” 

So, the biggest credit I can give Meyer is this — he seems some very Hoo-like in his stability and approach. Larry Lee gave Meyer the reigns as a true freshman and he hasn’t looked back. 

Though he hit just .255 in 2017, Meyer started and played in 55 of Cal Poly’s 56 games (a few in right field) and hit two home runs while driving-in 31. He struck out and walked just 17 times each and his bat to ball skills are really solid. Balancing that hit tool with an effort to drive the ball harder and farther will be something to look for from Meyer in 2018.

National Team and beyond

This summer, Larry Lee is an assistant coach on the US Collegiate National Team, and he brought his catcher. Meyer was used mostly as a backup on the USA team, but he did throw out three of seven would-be base stealers. The experience could provide some confidence and insight for Meyer, who should be an up-the-middle cornerstone in 2018.

If Cal Poly is going to move forward from a few disappointing seasons in a row, they’ll need Meyer to take another step too. Meyer has always had very good bat control, but he’ll need to be more steady at the plate. Defensively, he was probably the second-best catcher in the conference last year and could compete for that crown in 2018. He takes a lot of chances, but he cut his throwing mistakes down in 2017 and figures to take another step in 2018. Having talented juniors in baseball is like having talented seniors in other sports. Meyer will be one of a hand-full in 2018 for Larry Lee.