The home stretch of Oregon’s season before going on to the Pac-12 Baseball Tournament is here.
The Ducks responded to the worst week of their season by putting up double-digit run totals in three out of four games. They won their first ever series on the road against Arizona State, taking two out of three over the current No. 6 seed in the Pac-12.
They returned home on Tuesday and won in dramatic fashion. Jacob Walsh hit a walk-off two-run double to beat No. 10 Gonzaga 5-4, a huge RPI booster for the Ducks. It was Oregon’s second win over the Bulldogs this season and its 23rd win in 25 historical matchups.
Oregon, which slots in as the No. 5 seed in the conference, will look for a miracle this weekend to possibly jump into the No. 4 or even No. 3 position.
“Literally, we’re going one game at a time, and we’re trying to win one game in a row as many times as we can win one game in a row,” head coach Mark Wasikowski said. “I don’t know if we can win three in a row, but I know that we can win one game in a row three times.”
After last Tuesday’s brutal 3-0 loss to UC San Diego where the Ducks nearly got no-hit, the players and coaches held a team meeting. The biggest takeaway they took from that meeting was the importance of being grateful for their opportunities to play together.
After that shutout, which was the third in a span of eight days, Oregon put up double digits in three of its next four, including two 15-run performances. During that stretch, the Ducks surpassed their all-time single-season runs record.
“I think it’s night and day,” Oregon shortstop Josh Kasevich said of the difference since the meeting. “The vibes around the clubhouse are better. Playing together, playing for each other. I think that was huge for us.”
This week saw Walsh heat up after being moved down to the eight-hole as the DH. Pac-12 pitchers have figured out how to pitch Walsh, who opened his collegiate career on fire but has struggled recently. He homered for the first time in over a month against Arizona State, then ripped a double to walk off Gonzaga in the Ducks’ most recent contest.
“You see a lot of freshmen around the country kind of taper off the second half of the year,” Wasikowski said. “It takes somebody with some serious strength and mental strength to be able to sustain or go at the end of the year. And I think that’s what you’re seeing with Jacob. He’s not quitting. He’s not going about it the wrong way. He’s a tough out, and he’s one heck of a prospect.”
It’s not just the hitting that’s been better. Oregon pitchers, who have struggled with walks for the majority of the season, issued just four walks in the three-game series against Arizona State. They went with a slightly different plan this week, going to Christian Ciuffetelli with each of the Tuesday starts and giving him the ball on Friday for a change.
Wasikowski said he thinks Ciuffetelli’s energy and passion rubbed off on the whole pitching staff.
“Ciuffetelli is a guy that’s starting these games because he just wants it so bad,” Wasikowski said. “He brings the right mentality to the field every single day. He’s a lunch pail guy. I think people just feed off of Christian and have fed off of Christian… I think he’s one of the reasons why you see a mentality on the mound that’s a little bit different.”
Ciuffetelli pitched 2 2/3 innings against Arizona State in his first Friday start, giving up just one unearned run. Oregon’s previous Friday starter, RJ Gordon, came in after him and mowed through a powerful Sun Devils lineup after struggling out of the rotation. He threw 6 1/3 innings, coming one out short of completing the game.
“I just want to do anything I can to help the team win, whether that’s starting or relieving,” Ciuffetelli said. “It seems like it’s been working recently, especially last Friday. RJ comes out of the ‘pen and just absolutely dominates those guys, which was awesome to see.”
Wasikowski hasn’t announced whether he’ll go with a similar Ciuffetelli-Gordon combination when the Ducks open their series against Arizona Thursday. But for a team that has struggled to find consistent starting pitching, they might as well go with what works.
“It’s definitely awesome. Being able to start on Fridays is obviously everyone’s dream,” Ciuffetelli said. “Whether I’m going three innings, just opening for someone to come in and throw after me, or going five, it’s all the same.”
With postseason implications on the line, this weekend will be huge for Oregon. The Ducks are one game behind Arizona in the Pac-12 standings, as well as just two games behind UCLA. They could be seeing the Wildcats next week as well; if the standings hold and Oregon remains the No. 4 or 5 seed, they’ll face off against Arizona next Wednesday in the first round of the inaugural Pac-12 Baseball Tournament.
“We try to go about every game the same,” Walsh said. “No game means more than any other game, so the guys have been feeling good lately, and we’re gonna try to keep it up these last three games.”
The final regular season series begins Thursday between Oregon (32-21, 15-12 Pac-12) and No. 25 Arizona (35-18, 16-11 Pac-12) at 6 p.m. in PK Park.
“It’s an honor, honestly, being able to pitch for this team, play with these guys, play for these coaches,” Ciuffetelli said. “Every game the past couple weeks, it’s been a must-win. They all matter. We keep doing what we’re doing, we’re gonna make a good push and get hot at the right time.”
