Kevin George, while super effective, wasn’t throwing that hard on Tuesday. It got me wondering what will factor into batters having to stay in the box after being pegged. By Owen Main

Cal Poly baseball continued its slow start to the season yesterday, losing to Santa Clara 3-0 at home. The Mustangs had just one hit through eight innings and didn’t commit an error, though passed balls contributed to at least a few of the Broncos’ runs.

The Mustangs’ record fell to 2-7 on the young season. Santa Clara’s left-handed starting pitcher, Kevin George, kept the Mustangs off-balance all night. Cal Poly still hasn’t had a mistake-free defensive game (technically Tuesday night marked their first errorless game, but two passed balls tell a different story). They lost because, right now, that’s what they’re doing.

You can tell in their body language. You can tell in what you hear (or don’t hear) out of their dugout. Contrast it with the three other teams that have come into Baggett this year, and the Mustangs are aching for some swagger.

When things are going bad, sometimes they go bad in lots of ways.

On Tuesday night, two batters were hit by pitches and both times, they were told to get back in the batters box.

New rules say, according to stevetheump.com, that

“Starting in 2015, a batter must make an attempt to avoid being hit by the ball. If the umpire rules the batter did not make an attempt to get out of the way, or that he leaned into the path of the ball of the ball or intentionally tried to be hit by the ball, a pitch inside the strike zone that touches the batter will be called a strike. If the pitch is outside the strike zone, it will be called a ball. In either case, the batter will not be awarded first base.”

The first instance was less-obvious. A Cal Poly batter felt he was nicked by an offering from George, flipped his bat, and started trotting to first. The home plate umpire thought otherwise and, after conferring with the two other umpires, brought the hitter back to the box, where he was promptly retired.

The next inning, a Cal Poly hitter was again at the plate. This time, there was no doubt about the ball hitting the player flush in (I think) the side of the thigh. Once again, the Cal Poly batter started toward first base, and once again, the umpire called him back.

Pitch selection?

George was not a particularly hard-thrower from the left side. Perhaps the pitch selection and the speed of the pitches plays some role in the umpire’s decision to award first base? I honestly have no idea, but maybe an umpire is more apt to not grant first-base to a player pegged by a curve ball? In that case, I guess a pitcher might just need to put some spin on the ball, make it close, and feel that they have a chance to hit a batter and have it be simply called a ball.

As this year goes on, I know I’ll be paying attention to off-speed pitches inside, whether there are more than usual, and whether they hit more guys than I saw last year.

As usual, I’ll probably also be too busy (lazy) to look up or try to mine any data about it, but I think someone who was much more intrepid than me might be able to make a good point if they did.

Because that’s how it’s going right now

This is probably my favorite theory about why Cal Poly didn’t get first base on either of those plays — because that’s just how things are going right now for this team. Frustrated players might choose to get/stay frustrated over a play or two here and there. If you think a team in any sport doesn’t affect how the sport is called with their aggression and the way they play, you’re wrong.

A team that’s winning games and putting up good at-bats probably shakes situations like that off and overcomes them. Guys on a struggling baseball team may try to do too much, get really frustrated, and continue some kind of cycle of poor play. If you’re going by the “body language” test, these guys need to get some baggage off their collective backs.

Maybe playing a worse team in Pacific (0-11) will be a good thing for Cal Poly. Fans at Baggett sure hope so, because on Tuesday night, the loudest Krukow’s Klubhouse could get was heckling the opposition’s third-baseman. He didn’t have a hit, but he did get on-base with a walk in the game.

Getting on-base was something only four Mustangs did all night on Tuesday.

David Nwaba’s ability to drive and get to the basket continues to put a ton of pressure on opposing defenses. By Owen Main

After shooting under 30 percent in a first half where they scored only 17 points, Cal Poly mounted a sustained charge, erased a 14-point deficit, and beat Northeastern 60-58 on Wednesday night at Santa Clara’s Cable Car Classic.

Brian Bennett led all scorers with 19 points and also grabbed 9 rebounds. David Nwaba scored 17 points and Kyle Toth scored 11 points, including three 3-pointers. Joel Awich also grabbed nine rebounds for Cal Poly. Reese Morgan, the team’s second leading scorer coming into the game, was held to just 11 minutes and scored just three points — all on free throws in the final minute.

Trailing by 14 points at halftime, Cal Poly came out of the gate quickly in the second half, mounting a 15-4 run over the first 4:26 of the half to cut the lead to 35-32. Northeastern fought-off multiple charges in the middle of the second half, building their lead back up to as many as eight points. But they just couldn’t put Cal Poly away. The Mustangs finished the game on an 18-9 run over the last 7:42 to claim their second straight victory away from Mott Athletics Center.

Bennett becoming a go-to guy

Brian Bennett is becoming Cal Poly’s late-game go-to guy in the low post. He shot an efficient 9-15 from the field and continues to be more active on the glass. Late in the game, he made a big low-post basket and grabbed a key offensive rebound. He is now the team’s second leading scorer at 12.2 points per game and is averaging a team-high 6.8 rebounds as well. Cal Poly is not deep in the front court, and Bennett’s ability to stay healthy and out of foul trouble will probably be a decent indicator for this team’s sustained success.

Ball control

Not turning the ball over is always a huge key for Cal Poly. On Wednesday, it probably helped make-up for a 29 percent shooting effort in the first half and being out-rebounded 38-29. Northeastern only turned it over 10 times, but the Mustangs’ number stayed at 5. Not turning the ball over will keep Cal Poly in games, even when their shooting is letting them down early.

Nwaba stays nasty

Bennett isn’t the only player who is taking a step forward as 2014 comes to an end. David Nwaba continues to impress with both decision-making and confidence in his mid-range game. His drives seem much more controlled, but he’s still getting his points — leading the team with 14.8 per game. Keeping his high-energy style up while playing high minutes was an issue for Nwaba last year, but it seems like less of an issue this season.

After wrist surgery and a concussion, the junior doesn’t seem any worse for the wear, probably a testament to his toughness.

Of course, it’s nice when you can take it to the hoop like this…

David Nwaba Dunk from Jeremy Jauregui on Vimeo.

Cal Poly is learning what kind of a contributor Kyle Toth can be from behind the arc. By Owen Main

Falling-in

Kyle Toth, a junior guard who transferred into the program this season, has Division I experience, having played at Army as a freshman. Toth, who wears Dylan Royer’s number 13, also has begun to show he may also be a deadly shooter. As Cal Poly made their final push on Wednesday, Toth ran the point while Ridge Shipley and Maliik Love looked-on from the bench. Love finished the game, but Toth, who has earned a starting spot in recent games, made a number of big jumpers to counter the really good offense Northeastern was running.

Look at it this way — after Wednesday’s game, Cal Poly is now shooting about 25% from 3-point range on the season. Perhaps more attempts from Toth will help this number improve, because right now that part of Cal Poly’s offense isn’t the most efficient thing.

If the Mustangs can have one or two perimeter players making jumpers on any given night, driving lanes start opening-up for Nwaba, and the paint gets a lot less cluttered for Bennett. Toth’s ability to knock-down jumpers consistently and also handle the ball a little was a wrinkle I haven’t seen yet this year. For a change of pace, I liked what I saw on Wednesday.

The longest possession…

Mid-way through the second half, Cal Poly fans had to be pulling their collective hair out. In the midst of trying to cut a deficit down, Cal Poly played defense for 71 seconds straight. That’s one minute and 11 seconds. With the help of three fouls on Cal Poly and an offensive rebound, Northeastern finally scored, completing the possession with a bucket. Cal Poly trailed by eight with 12:31 left, and it just didn’t feel like it was going to be the Mustangs’ night.

These types of possessions can be game-defining. One of the fouls, a loose ball foul on a rebound, was called on Morgan, despite his clear inside position. Cal Poly could have gotten frustrated, hung their heads, and allowed the lead to balloon much higher than 8 at that point. Instead, David Nwaba stole the ball and dunked two possessions later and Cal Poly continued to battle.

Mental toughness has been a calling card of recent Joe Callero teams, and it looks as though this team might finally be rounding into form in that department.

Battle in Seattle

Cal Poly plays Gonzaga at Key Arena in Seattle on Saturday night at 7:00.