Bears Best San Jose State In Series Opener
BERKELEY – The California baseball team won its series opener with San Jose State Friday night 7-4 at Stu Gordon Stadium.
The Golden Bears (29-17) scored five runs in the first three innings and got tremendous help from junior righty Christian Becerra who tallied eight strikeouts in a four-inning save. Graduate student Luke Short (4-2) picked up the win scattering three hits and three walks over four innings of work. Not a single earned run crossed home plate for the Spartans (19-29).
Cal struck first with a pair of nearly identical RBI doubles down the third base line in the bottom of the first. With two outs and a runner on second, junior Peyton Schulze plated the first run of the game ripping a double into the left field corner and one at-bat later junior Seth Gwynn made it a 2-0 game roping a double to the same spot. Gwynn was one of three Bears with a multi-hit performance going 2-for-4.
SJSU evened the score in the top of the second, but the Bears promptly regained the lead with another pair of doubles in the bottom half. This time it was freshman Jarren Advincula driving in senior Jag Burden with a ball that just skipped past the diving Spartan second baseman. Advincula finished 3-for-5 with a run and a stolen base.
Two more came across in the bottom of the third for Cal with senior Max Handron belting his sixth home run of the year. The two-run blast carried the opposite-field wall to extend the Bears' lead 5-2. Cal's third baseman ended 1-for-2 with two walks.
B3| BYE BALL! ??@maxhandron goes oppo for his sixth homer of the year!
Cal 5, SJSU 2 #GoBears ?? pic.twitter.com/TeFQUPBbBT
— Cal Baseball (@CalBaseball) May 11, 2024
San Jose State cut the lead to just one in the top of the fourth with another pair of unearned runs, but that would end its scoring efforts for the night.
The Bears added insurance in the bottom of the sixth on a two-run homer from graduate student Alec Ritch, his first of the season.
Becerra entered in the sixth inning and put on an absolute clinic allowing just two hits and no walks. Of the eight strikeouts he collected, five were looking.
Ball Game! ??@C_Becerra18 punches out 8 in a 4-inning save! #GoBears ?? pic.twitter.com/XfHKYIFeJz
— Cal Baseball (@CalBaseball) May 11, 2024
UP NEXT
The Bears are back at Stu Gordon Stadium tomorrow for game two of the series at 2:05 pm on Pac-12 Networks.