Oregon Ducks Look to Dominate Oregon State Beavers in Civil War Series
Eugene, OR- This weekend Oregon Ducks Baseball will be hosting the Oregon State Beavers in a 3-game Civil War matchup at PK Park. This looks to be a crucial series for both teams. This series begins Friday, April 10th, and first pitch is scheduled for 7:35pm. They meet again, both on Saturday at 7:35 and Sunday at 2:05pm. After weeks of struggling with defense, acquiring 7 errors in a three game series against University of California, Berkley, the Ducks will look to continue having dominance at the pitcher’s plate. The Ducks have attained 47 strikeouts during their five games played last week.
To open the series, Sophomore LHP Cole Irvin will face RHP Oregon State’s Andrew Moore. Through this series the Ducks may struggle with pitching. They have yet to decide the starting pitchers for Saturday and Sunday, with both Junior RHP Conor Harber and Senior RHP Jack Karraker out of the rotation. Harber, who was named the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week February 16-22, threw six no-hit innings of relief to help secure a win against the New Mexico State Aggies, February 19th. However, Harber left during of the third inning, April 4, against the Michigan State Spartans with a shoulder injury. Karraker, the most recent Ducks player to be injured suffered a season-ending elbow injury this past Sunday against the California Bears. With Harber and Karraker out, the Ducks will most likely look to Freshman LHP David Peterson to pick up the start for either the Saturday or Sunday game. Karraker is the latest to suffer a season-ending injury, joining Senior OF Steven Packard (shoulder), Sophomore 1B/OF A.J. Balta (torn ACL), and Sophomore LHP Matt Krook (torn ACL).
Even though the Ducks’ lineup is beginning to run thin, there is still great optimism of a win against the Beavers. Everyone’s eyes will be on Senior C Shaun Chase, Junior LHP Garrett Cleavinger, Junior 2B Mitchell Tolman, and Sophomore LHP Cole Irvin, whom if continue to dominate in their respected positions on the field, will help to make a significant push towards being a playoff contender. The Civil War game series will be televised on both ESPNU and the Pac-12 network this weekend. For a recap of the series, check back at our website at the conclusion of the weekend.
