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California
Cal Outlasts Utah in Regular Season Finale, 9-8
5/21/2022 5:48 PM | Baseball
Baeza and Cop homered for the Utes as the club closed out the 2022 campaign
BERKELEY, Calif. – Utah first baseman Alex Baeza and catcher Davis Cop each contributed a two-run home run, but California rallied late and took a 9-8 walk-off result on Saturday at Stu Gordon Stadium, in the regular season finale for the Utes.
Six Utes combined for 10 hits down the lineup, with right fielder Kai Roberts, second baseman Landon Frei, Baeza and Cop each tallying 2-for-4 performances. Roberts, designated hitter Jayden Kiernan and Baeza all scored twice apiece, and Baeza drove in three runs.
The Utah bats gave the Utes a spark right out of the gate. Roberts led off the ballgame with a double off the wall in right-center field, took third on a flyout by Landon Frei and scored on a groundout by third baseman Chase Anderson.
Utah stretched the lead to 3-0 in the next inning, on a two-run homer by Baeza. After a leadoff single by Kiernan, Baeza took the 2-1 pitch over the left field wall for his fourth homer of the season.
Cal would put up five in the Golden Bears' half of the second inning, but the Utes got one back in the next frame. Roberts began the inning with a first-pitch fly ball that took a long carom off the left field wall, hustling around the bases for his third triple of 2022. He came 90 feet home on Frei's double three pitches later.
In the bottom of the third, the Bears tacked on two more runs to bring the score to 7-4.
That line remained until the sixth, when Roberts drew a bases-loaded walk that brought Kiernan to the plate and cut the deficit to two.
The lead returned to the Utes in the seventh inning with a three-run frame for the visitors. Baeza added his second extra-base hit of the day with an RBI double, then Cop clubbed the first pitch past the left-field light tower for a two-run homer and an 8-7 Utah advantage. It stood at Cop's fourth big fly of the year.
Cal went on to tie the score at eight on an RBI triple by Rodney Green Jr. in the bottom of the seventh. Then in the ninth, Nathan Manning beat out a would-be double play ball to extend the inning with a runner on third and two outs. Dom Souto then put a single into right field to score Keshawn Ogans and bring the ballgame to a 9-8 final score.
Starting pitcher Cam Day went two innings in a no decision for Day. Bryson Van Sickle relieved him in the third inning and logged a pair of strikeouts in 2.2 innings. Fellow lefty Micah Ashman also worked out of the bullpen, and Blake Whiting (2-2) worked the final 2.2 innings of play with two strikeouts of his own.
Utah finishes the season with a 26-27-1 record and a 10-20 mark in Pac-12 Conference play. The Utes tallied 41 home runs, the most by the team in the Pac-12 era and most since the 2010 season. The team hit .284 on the year, the highest clip at the plate since 2017. Run production was also up to 335—an increase of 79 from last season and the most since 2010.
On the mound, Utah pitchers combined for 383 strikeouts, a feat not seen since 2016. Opposing hitters also had the lowest batting average against the Utes since 2017.
Follow Utah baseball on social media (@utahbaseball).
Six Utes combined for 10 hits down the lineup, with right fielder Kai Roberts, second baseman Landon Frei, Baeza and Cop each tallying 2-for-4 performances. Roberts, designated hitter Jayden Kiernan and Baeza all scored twice apiece, and Baeza drove in three runs.
The Utah bats gave the Utes a spark right out of the gate. Roberts led off the ballgame with a double off the wall in right-center field, took third on a flyout by Landon Frei and scored on a groundout by third baseman Chase Anderson.
Utah stretched the lead to 3-0 in the next inning, on a two-run homer by Baeza. After a leadoff single by Kiernan, Baeza took the 2-1 pitch over the left field wall for his fourth homer of the season.
Cal would put up five in the Golden Bears' half of the second inning, but the Utes got one back in the next frame. Roberts began the inning with a first-pitch fly ball that took a long carom off the left field wall, hustling around the bases for his third triple of 2022. He came 90 feet home on Frei's double three pitches later.
In the bottom of the third, the Bears tacked on two more runs to bring the score to 7-4.
That line remained until the sixth, when Roberts drew a bases-loaded walk that brought Kiernan to the plate and cut the deficit to two.
The lead returned to the Utes in the seventh inning with a three-run frame for the visitors. Baeza added his second extra-base hit of the day with an RBI double, then Cop clubbed the first pitch past the left-field light tower for a two-run homer and an 8-7 Utah advantage. It stood at Cop's fourth big fly of the year.
Cal went on to tie the score at eight on an RBI triple by Rodney Green Jr. in the bottom of the seventh. Then in the ninth, Nathan Manning beat out a would-be double play ball to extend the inning with a runner on third and two outs. Dom Souto then put a single into right field to score Keshawn Ogans and bring the ballgame to a 9-8 final score.
Starting pitcher Cam Day went two innings in a no decision for Day. Bryson Van Sickle relieved him in the third inning and logged a pair of strikeouts in 2.2 innings. Fellow lefty Micah Ashman also worked out of the bullpen, and Blake Whiting (2-2) worked the final 2.2 innings of play with two strikeouts of his own.
Utah finishes the season with a 26-27-1 record and a 10-20 mark in Pac-12 Conference play. The Utes tallied 41 home runs, the most by the team in the Pac-12 era and most since the 2010 season. The team hit .284 on the year, the highest clip at the plate since 2017. Run production was also up to 335—an increase of 79 from last season and the most since 2010.
On the mound, Utah pitchers combined for 383 strikeouts, a feat not seen since 2016. Opposing hitters also had the lowest batting average against the Utes since 2017.
Follow Utah baseball on social media (@utahbaseball).
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