University of Washington
Gonzaga
Huskies Host Gonzaga For First Home Series Of The Season
March 13, 2025 | Baseball
All the games will be broadcast on Big Ten Plus with live stats available at Huskystats.com.
DAWG BITES
- Washington recorded its seventh game with two or more home runs in an 11-6 win over Portland. The Dawgs are 5-2 when hitting at least two home runs and 2-0 when hitting three
- Two Huskies hit their first home runs on Tuesday β Jackson Hotchkiss and Julian Sanders
- Washington earned its first Big Ten sires win over Nebraska, taking two of three in Lincoln
- 10 Huskies have produced 40 multiple hit games (Kole β 7, DeCarlo β 6, Guerrero β 6, Taggart β 5, Bower β 5, Terry β 3, Whitton β 3, Knight β 2, Wilson β 2, Sanders β 1)
- 10 Huskies have generated 23 multi-RBI games, with Casen Taggart leading the way with five (Taggart β 5, Guerrero β 4, Kole β 4, Knight β 3, Bower β 2, Terry β 2, Whitton β 2, DeCarlo β 1,Β Sanders β 1, Wilson β 1). Trevor Kole earned the second 4 RBI game of the season for Washington in the first game of the doubleheader against Nebraska. He tallied four hits in five at bats, including two doubles
- AJ Guerrero is on a 13-game hitting streak. The senior slugger has recorded at least one hit in every game he's been active and has homered three times this season
- Guerrero's home run against Texas Tech moved him into a tie for fourth in the Husky home run record book with 36 career home runs (T-1. 42, Kyle Conley, 2006-09; T-1. 42, Ed Erickson, 1997-00; 3. 41, Zach Clem, 2003-06; 4. 36, Will Simpson, 2020-23)
- The Huskies have turned 16 double plays this season. Washington turned three across the doubleheader against Nebraska
- 44 of Washington's 97 RBIs have come from new transfer players (Casen Taggart - 14, Trevor Kole β 13, Malakhi Knight β 11, Julian Sanders β 6)
- The top four spots of the batting order are responsible for 61 of 108 runs and 75 of 154 hits
- Four Huskies are batting .300 or better (Guerrero - .296, Taggart - .354, Kole - .319, Terry - .302)
- 19 Huskies have made their program debuts (Banks, Brandenburg, Bronzini, Bujacich, Crawford, Curran, Denomme, Gilbert, Henning, Hotchkiss, Knight, Kole, Nichols, O'Neal, Sanders, Taggart, Thomas, Tims, W. Woodward)
FIRST SEASON UNDER SMITH
On July 9, 2024, Eddie Smith was named the 25th head coach of University of Washington baseball, announced by UW Director of Athletics Pat Chun. Smith, a native of Olympia, Washington, comes to Montlake after three seasons at Utah Valley, quickly turning the Wolverines around from a Western Athletic Conference bottom dweller to one of the nation's most feared mid-major outfits.
UP NEXT
Washington hosts Gonzaga for the first home series of the season from March 14 to March 16. First pitch on Friday and Saturday is set for 5:02 p.m. while Sunday's game will be at 1:02 p.m. All the games will be broadcast on Big Ten Plus and live stats will be available at Huskystats.com.
PORTLAND PLUNDERED
The Huskies took down Portland 11-6 on Tuesday, collecting their fifth win in the last six games. Washington homered three times in the game, including two Husky firsts for Jackson Hotchkiss and Julian Sanders. Colton Bower added his team-leading fourth home run of the season, while Justin Tims pitched 3.0 shutout innings and struck out a career-high five batters. Isaac Yeager picked up his second victory of the season in the game as well.
B1G SERIES WIN
Washington started its Big Ten slate with a series win against Nebraska in Lincoln. The Huskies took two of three for the series victory, winning both games of a doubleheader on Saturday. The Dawgs scored 17 runs, including three home runs in the wins.
SHUTOUT START AT HOME
Last week, Washington took down Portland 3-0 in the home opener, recording the first shutout of the season. Justin Tims made his first Husky start, pitching three shutout innings with three strikeouts. Jase Evangelista earned the win, tossing 3.2 innings with no hits allowed and one strikeout. And Bradley Gilbert finished the game off, collecting his first career save over the final two innings, allowing one hit and striking out three. It was Washington's least hits allowed in a game this season (3) and Sam DeCarlo hit his second home run of the season and AJ Guerrero got his fourth multi-hit game of the year.
GUERRERO POWER
Senior slugger AJ Guerrero moved into a tie for fourth all-time in career home runs after hitting a home run in each game in Las Vegas, including a grand slam against No. 15 Texas. Guerrero has 36 career home runs, tied with Will Simpson (2020-23).
Guerrero has been on a tear to start the season and is currently riding a 13-game hitting streak, every game that he's been active in this season. He also owns the team's longest reached base streak with the same number.
He ranks in the top ten in the Big Ten in doubles per game (0.54 - 2nd), toughest to strike out (13.3 - 3rd),Β doubles (7 - 4th), hits per game (1.62 - 4th), and batting average (.396 - 9th).
SANDERS SLUGGING
Graduate transfer Julian Sanders has gotten hot as of late while filling in for Casen Taggart at first base. The former Claremont McKenna College (DIII) standout's average has risen to .292 with three runs, seven hits, one double, and one home run which came against Portland on Tuesday. He's tallied six RBIs as well, along with two HBP and only two strikeouts in his 24 at bats.
Sanders, a native of Mercer Island, Wash., walked on to the baseball team in the fall. He reached out to the Washington coaching staff when he began his graduate program at the University of Washington, looking for a chance to try out for the team. Since then, he's made the active roster and featured in nine games, making five starts.
SLAMMIN' SAMMY
Sam DeCarlo's bat has been hot since moving from the leadoff spot to the middle of the lineup. In 43 leadoff at bats, DeCarlo had an average of .186 with eight hits, one double, one home run, and three RBIs. In 30 at bats from the fifth and sixth spots, DeCarlo is batting .400 with five runs scored, 12 hits, with one double and one home run.
RISPY BUSINESS
Four Huskies are batting .400 or better with runners in scoring position (Sanders - .500, DeCarlo - .471, Guerrero - .467, Bower - .438) while four Dawgs are batting .300 or better overall (Guerrero - .396, Taggart - .354, Kole -.319, Terry -.302).
DAWG DEFENSE
Through the first stretch of the season, Washington has been one of the best defensive teams in the nation. The Huskies have turned 16 double plays, the top mark in the Big Ten and the 16th-best in the NCAA. The Huskies have also earned a 0.974 fielding percentage, the eighth-best total in the conference and 75th nationwide.Β
TRANSFER POWER
The Huskies have hit 22 home runs this season, eight of which have come from transfer players. Casen Taggart is second on the team with three long balls. Malakhi Knight also knocked his third homer of the season against Nebraska, a three run shot to put Washington in front in the second game of the doubleheader. And Trevor Kole hit his second homer against Stanford. Washington's other home runs have come from Colton Bower (4), AJ Guerrero (3), Sam DeCarlo (2), Jackson Hotchkiss (1), Julian Sanders (1), Cooper Whitton (1), and Blake Wilson (1).
THOMAS ON TOP
Jackson Thomas had a dominant first start for Washington, tossing 6.0 scoreless innings while allowing three hits, two walks, and fanning seven batters against San Francisco. He backed up his first showing with another stellar performance against Nebraska in the second game of the doubleheader on Saturday. He tossed a career-high 7.0 innings while collecting his team-leading second victory of the season.Β
BOWER BOOMING
Colton Bower has been a force behind the plate and as a hitter this season. Defensively, he's caught 10 runners stealing. As a batter, Bower's logged four home runs and has 17 hits on the season, including five doubles.Β
In the Big Ten rankings, Bower is second in hit by pitch (10) and second in hit by pitch per game (0.63). He's also 10th in the conference in sacrifice bunts (2).
IMPACT RELIEVER
Josh Emanuels collected a save in both of Washington's wins during the opening weekend. The redshirt senior currently sits fourth in the Big Ten in total saves, 57th nationally.Β
WASHINGTON DEBUTS
19 Huskies have made their program debuts through four games (Banks, Brandenburg, Bronzini, Bujacich, Crawford, Curran, Denomme, Gilbert, Henning, Hotchkiss, Knight, Kole, Nichols, O'Neal, Sanders, Taggart, Thomas, Tims, W. Woodward).
INAUGURAL BIG TEN SEASON
Washington will compete in the Big Ten for the first time in 2025. The Huskies join the new-look conference as one of 17 competitors. Washington will face Nebraska, Maryland, Rutgers, Purdue, UCLA, Illinois, Northwestern, Iowa, Oregon, and USC this season.
This year'sΒ conference tournament will feature 12 teams and incorporate pool play with four groups consisting of three teams each. The four pool winners will meet in the single-elimination semifinals on May 24, followed by the championship game on May 25.
NEW FACES
The Huskies return 20 players while losing 21 following the 2024 season. Of the returners, four position starters come back to Montlake along with 10 pitchers.
BIG TEN PLAYERS TO WATCH
Transfer pitcher Max Banks, along with returners Isaac Yeager and AJ Guerrero were each named among the Big Ten's most notable players for the 2025 season.
Banks, a native of San Francisco, pitched three seasons at Chapman before joining the Huskies. He was named to the ABCA All-Region third team his sophomore year, and also earned first team All-SCIAC honors following a season with 12 starts, 76 innings, and 84 strikeouts.
Isaac Yeager was a key pitcher for the Dawgs in 2024, as he made 21 relief appearances and posted a 6.34 ERA in 38.1 innings with 31 strikeouts.
AJ Guerrero figures to be one of the conference's best run producers in 2025. The senior slugger moved into a tie for fifth all-time in career home runs last season with 33, with a career-high 15 of them coming in 2024. He also knocked in a career-high 50 RBIs last season.
D3 DIAMONDS
For the third straight year, Washington has hit the NCAA Division III ranks to add to its pitching staff through the transfer portal. The Huskies added right-hander Max Banks who enjoyed a strong three-year career at Division III Chapman, collectively going 12-4, 3.35 in three seasons with a 185-to-67 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 150 2/3 innings. Last season, Washington signed right-hander Spencer Dessart out of Middlebury College in Vermont, who posted a 4.32 ERA with 63 strikeouts over 50 innings. And in 2023, UW brought in D3 transfer Kiefer Lord out of Minnesota's Carleton College, with Lord going on to be a third round draft choice in the 2023 MLB Draft.Β
IT CAN WAIT
For the third year in a row, a Washington commit turned down the opportunity to sign with an MLB team to join the Husky roster. Jackson Hotchkiss was selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks, but opted to take his talents to UW first. Last season, Blake Wilson was drafted in the 20th round of the 2023 MLB Draft by the Kansas City Royals but still made his way to Montlake. Former Husky Aiva Arquette was a 18th round draft choice by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2022 before coming to campus.
