Oregon Baseball: Scouting the Seattle Redhawks

Oregon begins it’s non-conference slate before hitting the final Pac-12 series against rival Oregon State. Winning 11 of their last 12 and being as high as the top ranked team in the nation on some polls, the Ducks will try to stay focused against a team that’s trying to finish out the season with a winning record.

In a three-game series beginning Friday, the Ducks will host the Seattle Redhawks. They have a 22-24 record on the season, 7-14 on the road. Following a midwest swing against Central Michigan and Ohio State, they went 1-4 during that trip and travel to Eugene after five days.

The Redhawks are an independent team this season, entering the Western Athletic Conference beginning with the 2013 season. There aren’t too many wins of note, but they have played both Washington and Washington State, played BYU six times, and won two of three against Nevada just before that recent midwest trip.

Starting Pitching:

• Seafth Howe (4-4, 3.10) – The right hander took a tough 4-1 loss against Ohio State in his last outing, He pitched all eight innings, getting charged with all four runs off of nine hits, walked two, and struck out three. He is the projected Friday starter.
• Brandon Kizer (4-4, 3.84) – He’s picked up two wins lately against Nevada and Ohio State, giving up only four hits in his last outing. Holding the teams’ best walk-to-strikeout ratio (22-36), he’s the hottest starter coming into the series, most likely on Saturday.

Top Hitting:

• Ryan Somers (.298) – No player on the team is hitting above .300, but the utility player is almost there getting two hits in five of the last six games he’s played. He did not play in the last two games in their previous series against Ohio State. He has played in right field, left field, and at center during that stretch.
• Bryan Olson (.289) – The catcher has had nine multiple hits on the season, including at least a five-hit game.
• Jace Sloan (.293) – His average may be slightly inflated by only playing in about half of the regular starters’ at-bats, but Sloan comes in with an eight-game hitting streak.

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