No. 7 Oregon State took a series opening win over UCLA in dominant 11-0 fashion, with a record crowd turning out for the game Friday, May 10.
“We’ve got beautiful weather and Goss was packed out tonight,” head coach Mitch Canham said following the game. “Just seeing people showing up and smiling and loving being at the yard, it’s a great thing, man. You love to see it.”
The temperature sat in the mid-80s without a cloud in the sky from the first pitch until the sun set, with droves of people — not rain — pouring into Goss Stadium. The fourth largest attendance in the stadium’s history was set, with 4,034 people making the trip. The records didn’t stop there, either, with the total being the most ever for a series opener and the third largest for a regular season game.
The crowd was treated to another Friday gem from starting pitcher Aiden May, who earned the win after throwing six innings of shutout ball. May was removed from the game despite cruising through the order with just 87 pitches under his belt. May said following the game that his arm felt fine to continue, but he had begun to cramp up due to the weather.
“I was cramping bad there,” May said, laughing. “I”m just getting used to the heat. I tried to hydrate a bunch but I guess it didn’t pay off … I think (it started) in the third or the fourth (inning) … I’ve got to eat some bananas or something I guess.”
Cramps or not, May carved the UCLA lineup to the tune of nine strikeouts with just one walk and four hits allowed. He earned the win for the performance, improving to 5-0 on the season and the only pitcher in Oregon State’s rotation to still hold a squeaky clean record.
One of the major things assisting May with his emergence as one of college baseball’s premier aces in his past few dominant starts has been the further development of his changeup. While always having a put-away fastball and a lethal slider, He said he has really began to tap into the off-speed pitch over his past few outings, including using it heavily against the Bruins and rival Oregon in his last outing.
May was relieved by fellow right-hander Ian Lawson, who carried the shutout through the final three innings and earned himself a save in the process. Lawson himself punched out four batters, walking just one and letting up a pair of hits to the UCLA lineup.
For a team that has been looking for arms who can bridge the gap between starting pitching and an elite closer in Bridger Holmes, Lawson’s outing is a step in the right direction for the bullpen.
“Lawson coming out like he did (keeps us) fresh for tomorrow,” Canham said. “I love that Lawson has found that identity recently and hopefully he just continues to pour into it. I asked him every inning, ‘You going back out? Or do you want me to get someone else up?’ And he said, ‘I got this.'”
Regardless of what was working for either pitcher, the offense they were able to pitch behind made things a smooth ride. Of Oregon State’s nine starters, only third baseman Jabin Trosky was held without a hit.
“I loved the intent of our hitters, ready to roll each pitch,” Canham said. “Each pitch they were engaged, even if we fell behind in counts … Even if guys didn’t get results from them, there were a ton of quality at-bats being produced.”
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