Freshmen Playing Big Roles On The Diamond

On Thursday morning, the Oregon baseball team boarded a bus for its road trip to Pullman, Wash., for a three-game series against the Cougars beginning Friday.

Lately, the guy driving Oregon's bus metaphorically has been left-handed starter David Peterson, he of the 20-strikeout performance last week against Arizona State. But as the Ducks enter the stretch run of their drive to a potential postseason berth, a big group of true freshmen will help determine their direction.

In the final two games of last week's series with ASU, the UO batting order included five true freshmen. Second baseman Morgan McCullough and third baseman Spencer Steer have been mainstays since opening day. Gabe Matthews made it three true freshmen on the infield when he took over at first base a month ago, Matthew Dyer has increasingly held down right field, and in four of the last 10 games Ryne Nelson has joined his four classmates in the lineup as designated hitter.

"The numbers don't lie," junior catcher Tim Susnara said. "They've been (carrying) their weight. They've been playing really well, and they've been helping us out a lot."

Entering this weekend's series between the Ducks (25-15, 8-10 Pac-12) and Cougars (20-21, 6-12), Steer leads Oregon with 14 extra-base hits and is tied for the team lead with 25 RBIs. Matthews is hitting .292 with a pair of four-hit games; he's also walked 20 times, tied for the team lead with McCullough – whose four triples are a team-high.

Dyer doesn't have enough at-bats quite yet to qualify, but if he did, the lanky converted catcher would lead the Ducks in all three "triple-slash" categories. He took to Pullman a .327 batting average, a .416 on-base average and a .449 slugging average. And Nelson, in his two starts against the Sun Devils, went 3-for-7 last week.

"We did know we'd have a very talented class, and thought those guys would put pressure on the upperclassmen and bring out the best in them," UO coach George Horton said. "Unfortunately that didn't work out, and so now it's their turn – and they've taken advantage."

McCullough and Steer impressed Oregon's veterans in the fall, a welcome sign after last year's starters at those spots had opted to transfer. Roles for the other freshmen entering this season were less certain, particularly in the case of Dyer, who wasn't 100 percent healthy for fall practices.

But, McCullough said, "When everyone started getting healthy, we all saw the talent we had, and it started to feel pretty evident we could have an impact."

Matthews began the season sharing time at designated hitter. He moved to first base when Kyle Kasser shifted from first to shortstop, solidifying production there. The Ducks experimented with catchers Slade Heggen and Braden Stutzman in right field to open the season, but Dyer has taken over on a regular basis over the last month. And lately Nelson, who began in the bullpen before dealing with a shoulder problem, has been contributing at the plate.

"They've been doing really good for us," Susnara said. "I can't stress that enough. They've matured from fall ball to season, they've helped us out a bunch and it's really picked up some of the slack."

Susnara said he was particularly impressed with how the freshmen handled their business in Tuesday's game at Oregon State. The Ducks lost, 4-1, but their two hits both were courtesy of freshmen – Matthews and McCullough. Furthermore, Susnara said, they kept their focus despite standard hostility from the OSU crowd toward the visiting dugout.

"Especially in that atmosphere, they don't let you off the hook with anything," Susnara said. "I thought they were composed and took care of themselves really well."

By now, with the Ducks have played 40 games, the freshmen are entering uncharted territory in terms of a season's length. But the experience of playing summer ball after their spring high school seasons helped with endurance, McCullough said.

And if they find themselves needing some energy, one look at the standings should suffice.

"Especially coming down the stretch, we've played ourselves into a bit of a hole," McCullough said. "But I think that has everybody locked in and looking to make a push."