Diamond 'Dogs release 2017 schedule

FRESNO, Calif. - The Fresno State baseball program and head coach Mike Batesole released the 2017 schedule on Thursday.

The Bulldogs will get their 55-game schedule underway on Friday, Feb. 17 when they host Pac-12 opponent Oregon at Pete Beiden Field at Bob Bennett Stadium for a four-game series. In total, the 'Dogs will host 31 games against 14 different teams and will play 24 games on the road against 12 different opponents.

In addition to its five three-game series against Mountain West opponents in Fresno, the 'Dogs will also host opponents from the Pac-12, Big West, West Coast, MAC and WAC.

"We really like our 2017 schedule," said Batesole, the 2016 Mountain West Coach of the Year. "With a young team we would prefer to get out on the road early and bond in difficult environments, but that is not the case this year. We are a very experienced group and we have many returners who have experience in difficult environments. Being able to start at home with our fan support gives us an opportunity to get off to a fast start."

After opening against the Ducks, the 'Dogs take on Big West member UC Riverside for a three-game series (Feb. 24-26) as it will be only the third time the 'Dogs and Highlanders have met on the baseball diamond.

The month of February closes with Pacific coming to town for a midweek matchup on Feb. 28 before the Bulldogs open Mountain West play at home hosting Nevada (Mar. 3-5). The 'Dogs swept the Wolf Pack at home in the two teams only regular season series in 2016.

Playing its only road contest in its first 15 games, Fresno State travels to Pepperdine on March 7 before returning home to welcome Eastern Michigan (March 10-12) out of the MAC. The 'Dogs only other non-conference weekend series after seeing the Eagles will come at Michigan State (April 7-9) as Fresno State will play only its third road series against a Big 10 opponent in program history.

"We like how our non-league schedule rounds out with quality Pac-12, Big West and Big 10 opponents which means hard-nosed, tough baseball," said Batesole.

After a midweek contest at San Francisco (March 15), the 'Dogs will play their first MW road series traveling to Air Force (March 17-19). The Bulldogs went 6-1 against the Falcons in 2016 sweeping a pair of three-game series at home and in Grand Junction, Colo., before losing a heartbreaker 9-7 in the Mountain West Tournament.

Returning home to host Pepperdine (March 22) and San Diego State (March 24-26), the Bulldogs will then go on a season-long seven-game road swing venturing to New Mexico (March 31- April 2), Sacramento State at Raley Field (April 5) before finishing with a three-game series in East Lansing.

The week of Spring Break will keep the 'Dogs home hosting San Francisco (April 11) and Air Force (April 13-15) before going back on the road for Pacific (April 19), Nevada (April 21-23) and Cal Poly (April 25).

The month of April wraps up with the 'Dogs only meeting of the regular season with San Jose State hosting the Spartans (April 28-30) before the month of May begins with four games on the road at UC Riverside (May 2) and UNLV (May 5-7).

The Bulldogs welcome Sacramento State (May 9) to Fresno before hosting 2016 MW Tournament champion New Mexico (May 12-14) for the first time since 2015. The regular season wraps with a three-game series at San Diego State (May 18-20) and finishes with one final home game against 2016 NCAA Tournament foe Gonzaga (May 22).

"The Mountain West will again be tough as San Diego State is sure to bounce back off a tough year in 2016 and the remainder of the conference looks to be improved as well," added Batesole. "2017 will be a tough year to repeat as Mountain West champions, but we like that we have an experienced team that knows how to win."

The 2017 Mountain West Championship will be hosted by the regular season champion May 24-28.

Schedule Notes

Mountain West Home Series: Nevada, San Diego State, Air Force, San Jose State & New Mexico
Mountain West Away Series: Air Force, New Mexico, Nevada, UNLV & San Diego State
2016 NCAA Qualifiers: New Mexico & Gonzaga
Combined Non-Conference Opponents 2016 Record: 285-273 (.511)
Combined Mountain West Opponents 2016 Record: 168-182 (.480)
Combined Opponents 2016 Record: 453-455 (.499)
The Bulldogs have faced all 16 opponents at least one time in program history and are .500 or better all-time against 14 of them.
The 'Dogs will face opponents from seven different conferences – Mountain West (6), Pac-12 (1), Big 10 (1), West Coast (4), Big West (2), MAC (1) & WAC (1).
The Bulldogs opponents are from seven different states – Oregon, California, Michigan, Washington, Nevada, Colorado & New Mexico. The Bulldogs faced schools from nine states in 2016, six states in 2015, nine in 2014 and five in 2013.
It will be the 10^th time the 'Dogs have opened the season at home under Batesole and the fourth time against a Pac-12 opponent. The 'Dogs hosted Stanford in 2004, went to Stanford in 2005 and hosted Washington in 2009.
Fresno State will see Pepperdine and Michigan State in non-conference action for the first time since 2012 as the 'Dogs faced both the Waves and Spartans in the 2012 NCAA Tournament defeating MSU 8-2 before falling to Pepperdine 8-5.
The 'Dogs trip to East Lansing marks only the third time Fresno State will travel to a current member of the Big 10 as the Bulldogs took trips to Nebraska in 2000 and 2011. Overall, Fresno State has played 11 of the 13 baseball-playing Big 10 programs and has a 29-14 mark overall, including 18-5 under Batesole.
Fresno State is 15-2 against MAC foes, including 8-0 under Batesole. The 'Dogs last opponent from the MAC was Kent State in 2012 when the Bulldogs topped the Flashes 14-2 and 5-2 in a two-game sweep at home.
The Bulldogs open with their first 11 games at home for its longest start to a season at home since 2001 when the 'Dogs played their first 16 games at home.
The 'Dogs finished 2016 ranked 94^th in the RPI and will play six schools who finished in the top 100 in Gonzaga (33), New Mexico (47), Michigan State (78), Oregon (80), Nevada (87) and Pepperdine (91).
Finally, the 'Dogs will play Sacramento State at Raley Field on April 5, home of the Triple-A Sacramento Rivercats, for the fourth straight season. Fresno State is 1-2 against the Hornets at Raley Field in the last three seasons falling 5-4 in 11 innings last year, won 8-0 in 2015 and dropped a 2-1 decision in 10 innings in 2014.

Non-Conference Opponents
OREGON
2016 Record: 29-26
Pac-12 Record/Finish: 14-16/T-8^th
All-Time Series Record: 5-9
Last Meeting: Mar. 7, 2010 - L, 8-3 at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Ducks: 1-6

UC RIVERSIDE
2016 Record: 26-29
Big West Record/Finish: 12-12/T-4^th
All-Time Series Record: 1-1
Last Meeting: Mar. 24, 2012 – W, 2-1 at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Highlanders: 1-1

PACIFIC
2016 Record: 22-30
West Coast Record/Finish: 12-15/8^th
All-Time Series Record: 96-46
Last Meeting: Apr. 12, 2016 - L, 3-7 at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Tigers: 1-5

PEPPERDINE
2016 Record: 29-24
West Coast Conference Record/Finish: 16-11/4^th
Postseason Finish: Went 1-2 in the WCC Tournament falling 5-4 in 10 innings to Gonzaga in an elimination game
All-Time Series Record: 40-27
Last Meeting: June 3, 2012 - L, 8-5 in NCAA Regional at Stanford
Coach Batesole Record vs. Waves: 6-10

EASTERN MICHIGAN
2016 Record: 23-36
Mid-American Conference Record/Finish: 10-14/6^th in West Division
Postseason Finish: Went 3-2 in the MAC Tournament ending the season with a 4-2 loss to top-seeded Kent State in the semifinals
All-Time Series Record: 3-0
Last Meeting: Mar. 7, 2001 - W, 8-2 at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Eagles: First meeting

SAN FRANCISCO
2016 Record: 22-34
West Coast Conference Record/Finish: 14-13/5^th
All-Time Series Record: 76-19
Last Meeting: May 21, 2016 - L, 6-3 at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Dons: 12-12

CAL POLY
2016 Record: 32-25
Big West Record/Finish: 12-12/T-4^th
All-Time Series Record: 93-56
Last Meeting: May 10, 2016 - W, 9-5 at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Mustangs: 10-22

SACRAMENTO STATE
2016 Record: 30-28
WAC Record/Finish: 16-11/4^th
Postseason Finish: Went 1-2 in the WAC Tournament falling 5-4 to New Mexico State in an elimination game
All-Time Series Record: 116-32
Last Meeting: Apr. 27, 2016 - L, 5-4 in 11 innings at Raley Field in Sacramento
Coach Batesole Record vs. Hornets: 31-10

MICHIGAN STATE
2016 Record: 36-20
Big 10 Record/Finish: 13-11/T-6^th
Postseason Finish: Went 2-2 in the Big 10 Tournament falling 7-3 to Ohio State in the semifinals
All-Time Series Record: 1-0
Last Meeting: June 2, 2012 – W, 8-2 in NCAA Regional at Stanford
Coach Batesole Record vs. Spartans: 1-0

GONZAGA
2016 Record: 36-21
West Coast Conference Record/Finish: 18-9/T-1^st
Postseason Finish: Lost 13-4 to Saint Mary's in WCC Tournament Final; Went 1-2 in the NCAA Tournament playing in the TCU Regional defeating Arizona State (5-1) before falling to TCU (4-3) and Arizona State (6-3).
All-Time Series Record: 27-1
Last Meeting: Feb. 19, 2011 - W, 10-4 at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Bulldogs: 5-0

Mountain West Opponents
NEVADA
2016 Record: 37-24
Mountain West Record/Finish: 20-10/T-2^nd
Postseason Finish: Went 4-2 at the MW Tournament falling 14-4 in the finals against New Mexico
All-Time Series Record: 100-60
Last Meeting: May 27, 2016 - L, 25-6 in MW Tournament at New Mexico
Coach Batesole Record vs. Wolf Pack: 45-31

AIR FORCE
2016 Record: 30-26
Mountain West Record/Finish: 12-18/5^th
Postseason Finish: Went 2-2 at the MW Tournament ending the season with a 12-1 loss to Nevada
All-Time Series Record: 22-7
Last Meeting: May 26, 2016 - L, 9-7 in MW Tournament at New Mexico
Coach Batesole Record vs. Falcons: 18-5

SAN DIEGO STATE
2016 Record: 21-38
Mountain West Record/Finish: 11-19/6^th
Postseason Finish: Went 2-2 at the MW Tournament ending the season with a 5-3 loss to Nevada
All-Time Series Record: 94-93
Last Meeting: May 8, 2016 - W, 4-3 at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Aztecs: 12-15

NEW MEXICO
2016 Record: 39-23
Mountain West Record/Finish: 20-10/T-2^nd
Postseason Finish: Won the MW Tournament with a 14-4 victory over Nevada; Went 1-2 in the NCAA Tournament playing in the Lubbock Regional defeating Dallas Baptist (12-6) before losing to Texas Tech (4-3) and DBU (5-3).
All-Time Series Record: 14-23
Last Meeting: Apr. 10, 2016 - L, 7-4 at New Mexico
Coach Batesole Record vs. Lobos: 5-20

SAN JOSE STATE
2016 Record: 17-39
Mountain West Record/Finish: 7-23/7^th
Postseason Finish: Lost 7-3 to San Diego State in the opening round of the MW Tournament
All-Time Series Record: 160-84
Last Meeting: April 24, 2016 - L, 7-5 in 12 innings at Fresno State
Coach Batesole Record vs. Spartans: 44-24

UNLV
2016 Record: 24-32
Mountain West Record/Finish: 14-16/4^th
Postseason Finish: Went 0-2 at the MW Tournament ending the season with a 18-8 to San Diego State
All-Time Series Record: 50-33
Last Meeting: May 15, 2016 – L, 8-5 at UNLV
Coach Batesole Record vs. Rebels: 14-9

"Just the Ticket to Build Our Community" – The Bulldog Scholarship Fund gives Bulldog alumni, fans and friends the opportunity to support Fresno State Athletics and the student-athletes who inspire them. For information about how you can support the Bulldog Scholarship Fund, please visit www.bulldogscholarshipfund.com or call 559-278-7160.

Follow us on:
Twitter: @Fresno StateBSB
Instagram: FresnoStateAthletics
Facebook: FresnoStateAthletics
Snap Chat: FSAthletics

Fresno State Athletics

Diamond 'Dogs release 2017 schedule

Related News

Related Videos