PROVO, Utah — BYU baseball remains on the road this week with four games in California beginning Wednesday, Feb. 21, at Cal followed by a weekend series at UC Davis, Feb. 22-24.
UPDATE (Feb. 22): The Thursday and Saturday games will no longer be live streamed. Follow live stats for Thursday's game here and Saturday's game here. Fans can also listen to live play-by-play on BYU Radio 107.9 and the BYU Radio App.
The Cal game will be played at Stu Gordon Stadium in Berkeley, California, with the first pitch scheduled for 5:05 p.m. PST. The game will be broadcast on Pac-12.com, and will also be available on the BYU Radio app with Dave McCann on the call.
The Thursday (2 p.m. PST) and Saturday (11 a.m.) games at UC Davis will be streamed live on Stadium while the Friday (2 p.m.) game will air on ESPN+. All three games can also be heard on BYU Radio 107.9 and the BYU Radio App.
The Cougars opened the 2024 baseball season going 1-2 in a trio of games at the MLB Desert Invitational in Mesa, Arizona. BYU defeated USC 8-1 in game one on Feb. 16 followed by a 7-2 setback to Ohio State on Feb. 17 and a 6-2 loss to Grand Canyon on President’s Day.
True freshman designated hitter Kuhio Aloy began his BYU career with a bang. In the three games, Aloy hit .500 with two home runs and four RBI. The Maui, Hawaii native is currently in the top 10 in the Big 12 in home runs, RBI, total bases and slugging percentage. Sophomore outfielder Luke Anderson hit .385 with five hits, three runs and an RBI, while sophomore third baseman Easton Jones hit .300 with a double, a home run and three RBI.
Ben Hansen earned the win for the Cougars over USC with an ERA of 1.80 and four strikeouts in five innings. BYU outfielders Cooper Vest and Bryker Hurdsman recorded six and five putouts, respectively, with Vest also notching a double play from right field.
Know the Foes
CAL (2-1): BYU faces Cal for the 23rd time on Wednesday with the Golden Bears leading the all-time series 14-8 and 11-5 in Berkeley. The Cougars came up short 3-2 in their last matchup with the Bears in 2019. Head coach Mike Neu is in his seventh season at the helm for Cal. Neu is 4-5 all-time versus BYU in matchups both during his time at Cal and in his previous head coaching position at Pacific. The Bears finished ninth in the Pac-12 in 2023 at 24-28 (12-18) and are picked to finish eighth in 2024 with the services of five preseason all-conference selections.
Cal won two of three games to start the season at the MLB Desert Invitational. The Bears beat No. 24 Kansas State and Georgetown before falling to Boston College. PJ Moutzouridis leads Cal offensively, hitting .667 with seven RBI through three games.
UC DAVIS (2-1): The Cougars and Aggies of UC Davis meet for just the fifth time on Thursday and first since a 2-1 BYU series win in 2010. BYU leads the all-time series 3-1 with each game played at Davis’s Dobbins Stadium. The 2023 season saw the Aggies go 17-37 (7-23) to finish 10th in the Big West. Third-year head coach Tommy Nicholson returns 79 percent of last season’s innings pitched along with 2023 all-conference second-baseman Alex Gouveia. The Aggies are picked to finish ninth in the Big West in 2024.
UC Davis opened the season with two wins and a loss in a home series versus Seattle U. Outfielder Tyler Howard finished the series with six hits and three RBI while batting .545. The Aggies will enter the weekend series with BYU well-rested after its Tuesday game with Nevada was canceled due to inclement weather.