Oregon Baseball Improves to 6-2 This Season After Weekend Series

Via Oregon Communications

EUGENE, Ore. — An extended weather delay couldn’t dampen the power of Oregon’s bats Sunday.

Wrapping up a four-game series against Rhode Island at PK Park, the No. 11 UO baseball team had two grand slams on the way to a 15-2 victory in seven innings. The two teams mutually agreed to implement a 10-run rule for Saturday’s second game of a doubleheader and Sunday’s series finale, and Oregon’s Anson Aroz brought it into play with a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the seventh Sunday.

Following a weather delay with one out in the top of the third inning, the Ducks got shutout pitching from two relievers and scored 11 runs over the next five innings, with grand slams from freshman Burke-Lee Mabeus and Aroz.

“I thought we played a complete game,” UO coach Mark Wasikowski said.

The Ducks improved to 6-2 on the season with their second straight 3-1 series win to open the spring campaign. They remain at home this next week, hosting Columbia in a four-game series beginning Friday.

How It Happened: Oregon pitcher Will Sanford got off to a shaky start but was able to battle through it in the first inning. A leadoff walk, a double and two more walks gave Rhode Island a 1-0 lead with the bases still loaded. After the bases-loaded walk, Sanford was able to find the strike zone and fanned the next three hitters to get out of the inning. 

“It was tough conditions when he was out there — he fought through it,” Wasikowski said. “For him to give up only a one in the first and then a zero in the second, I thought was critical.”

Oregon answered the first-inning run in the bottom of the frame, taking the lead with three runs in the bottom of the first. Mason Neville continued to swing a hot bat, doubling to lead off the inning after homering twice in game two of Saturday’s doubleheader. A Dominic Hellman hit-by-pitch and a Jacob Walsh walk loaded the bases, setting the table for the middle of the Ducks’ lineup.

After a strikeout, Mabeus gave the Ducks the lead with a two-run single that scored Neville and Hellman. Fellow freshman Jax Gimenez pushed the lead to two with an RBI groundout.

Oregon tacked on another run in the bottom of the second when Hellman drove in Carter Garate with a base hit through the right side of the infield. 

URI cut the lead to 4-2 with a run in the top of the third, which was interrupted by the weather delay. Mabeus stepped to the plate in the fourth inning with the bases loaded and launched his first career home run over the right-field wall for an 8-2 lead.

“I thought that was a tremendous at-bat with the 1-2 count, to be able to shorten up and just really put his best swing on a ball in that spot,” Wasikowski said. “I thought was a really old, veteran swing.”

The Ducks added to the lead in the fifth inning with three more runs. Jack Brooks walked before coming around to score on a balk. Then, after back-to-back walks to Neville and Hellman, Walsh doubled to score two, giving UO an 11-2 lead. 

Michael Meckna (1-0), who relieved Sanford after the weather delay, pitched around a one-out walk in the top of the sixth to wrap up his outing.

“Michael Mechna was just tremendous,” Wasikowski said. “He did really well. Jaxon Jordan did really well (throwing a scoreless seventh). The pitchers came in and they did a good job. It was a complete game.”

With the Ducks up 11-2 entering the bottom of the seventh, a single run would have ended the game. Garate led off with an infield single, Neville doubled to put two in scoring position and Hellman walked before Aroz lofted a one-out homer to left-center, for a walk-off grand slam.

“It’s a run-rule scenario there with just a sac fly,” Wasikowski said. “That’s the same kind of feel of a 3-3 game type situation, where you get a chance to be able to walk somebody off. That’s exactly what that was, and he did a nice job.”

Box Score Notes: Rain delayed the game in the top of the third inning for two hours and 54 minutes … Walsh’s two-RBI double in the fifth gave him 38 career multi-RBI games breaking Spencer Steer’s program record of 37 … Mabeus’ six RBIs were the most in a game by UO true freshman since Mitchell Tolman drove in seven on April 30, 2013.

On Deck: Oregon resumes its 13-game homestand on Friday when the Ducks open a four-game series against Columbia. First pitch is scheduled for 3:05 p.m.