The Nevada baseball team completed its 2025 non-conference schedule after defeating Sacramento State 8-5 on Monday, March 10. Before the Wolf Pack begins Mountain West play on Friday, March 14, against Fresno State, let’s look at what went right and wrong in their preseason action.
The Numbers:
Record: 10-6 (6-2 at home, 4-4 away)
Opponents/Series Record: Cal (1-3), CSU Bakersfield (3-1), Northern Colorado (3-1), San Francisco (2-1), Sac State (1-0)
Offense: .285/.386/.450 (slash line equals batting average/on base percentage/slugging), 158 hits, 18 home runs, 97 RBIs, 65 walks, five stolen bases
Pitching: 5.80 ERA, 1.43 WHIP, 138 innings pitched, 137 hits, 89 earned runs, 121 strikeouts
Top Offensive Performer: INF Michael Ball: .300/.372/.600, six home runs, 16 RBIs, four walks
Top Pitcher: Dominic Desch: 2.03 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, 13.1 innings pitched, 14 strikeouts
What Went Right:
Nevada’s offense had no issues stringing runs together. The Wolf Pack had four games where they scored 10-plus runs and had a team OPS of .836. Four players, Ball, first baseman Billy Ham, utility man Junhyuk Kwon and infielder Jackson Waller hit over .300 through these first 16 games.
Of those four hitters, Ball hit the lowest at an even .300, but took home the Mountain West’s Baseball Player of the Week honors for his performance over the 2-1 series win against San Francisco. He batted .500 with seven hits, seven RBIs and five runs. Ball also leads the team in slugging at an even .600.
The overall pitching numbers don’t look pretty, but plenty of individuals stood out. Relief pitcher Eric Valdez was one of them, who, alongside Ball, took home the Mountain West’s Baseball Pitcher of the Week honors. He secured Nevada’s series-clinching win against San Francisco, throwing 5.2 scoreless innings in relief with seven strikeouts while allowing just two hits.
Six Nevada pitchers carry an ERA under four so far, including reliever Logan Saloman, who hasn’t given up a run in seven innings of work.
What Went Wrong:
While Nevada’s offense had some fun scoring runs, its opponents also did. The Pack’s pitching staff gave up 101 total runs on 137 hits. Most of that was inflated from the series against Cal, where Nevada gave up 34 runs and suffered three blowout losses in that series (14-1, 11-3, 8-0).
The pitching staff also allowed opponents to hit .261/.365/.419, so it was relatively close to what Nevada’s offense put up. 10 of Nevada’s 17 pitchers carry an ERA over four after non-conference play, and as a team, the Pack put up a 5.80 ERA and 1.43 WHIP.
Outside of the pitching performances, Nevada did pretty well statistically among the rest of the Mountain West. Stolen bases are the only statistic Nevada ranks last in, as the only team in the conference with under double-digit steals.
What’s Next:
Nevada will begin conference play on the road against Fresno State, who is currently 5-10. The Wolf Pack’s first home series of conference play will be from March 21-23, as they host the New Mexico Lobos at Peccole Park.
Dominic Gutierrez can be reached via email dominicgutierrez@unr.edu or via X @d_m_g_16
