Gabe Matthews – Syndication Server

Oregon baseball signs Mark Wasikowski to contract extension

A source has confirmed to Ducks Wire that Oregon is giving baseball coach Mark Wasikowski a contract extension. Length or terms are yet to be disclosed.

Not only is it the right thing to do, but it’s the smart thing to do as well.

A source has confirmed to DucksWire that Oregon Ducks baseball coach Mark Wasikowski’s contract has been extended, but the length and terms of the new contract were not disclosed.

When Wasikowski was hired at the end of the 2019 season, the Ducks were barely mediocre, and in just two seasons, Oregon hosted an NCAA Regional and was oh so close to moving on to a Super Regional. It would have been the Ducks’ first Super Regional since 2013.

In 2019, Oregon fell to 27-29 overall and 10-19 in conference play. It was the Ducks’ fourth straight year without going to the post-season and the program wasn’t trending in the right direction. That was when Oregon decided not to renew George Horton’s contract and go in a different direction.

It didn’t take the Ducks long to find their guy as Wasikowski was hired three weeks after the 2019 season ended.

After just three seasons at the helm of Purdue’s baseball program, the former Oregon assistant turned the Boilermakers completely around and he did the exact same thing with the Ducks.

Wasikowski led Purdue to a 39-win season in 2018, leading the Boilermakers to just the third NCAA Regional appearance in school history and only the second since 1982. The Boilermakers finished second in the Big Ten regular-season while finishing as the conference tournament runner-up.

During his first season at Purdue, Wasikowski led the Boilermakers to 29 wins, a 19-win improvement from the 10-44 campaign the team had the year before his arrival.

At Oregon, Wasikowski’s team improved right away and it looked like they were going to have a nice season, but the 2020 pandemic hit, and the Ducks finished the year after only 15 games played. That improvement showed itself in a big way in 2021 as Oregon was just one game from winning its first conference title since the program’s resurrection in 2009.

The Ducks finished the regular season 39-16 and 20-10 in Pac-12 action. They featured the conference Player of the Year in Aaron Zavala and his fellow All-Americans Robert Ahlstrom and Gabe Matthews.

Wasikowski missed out on being named the Pac-12 Coach of the Year as that award went to Arizona’s Jay Johnson, who later left the Wildcats to go coach at LSU.

Along with his immediate success, Oregon didn’t want to see Wasikowski do something similar as Johnson, so the Ducks thought it would be prudent to extend his contract for another five seasons.

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Oregon baseball takes a big step forward, but wants more in 2022

Oregon’s baseball season was a successful one, but the Ducks showed they are capable of a lot more in 2022 and beyond.

In the four seasons before Mark Wasikowski took over the Oregon Ducks baseball program, they were floundering around the .500 mark, and in college baseball, that’s mediocre.

Oregon didn’t bring baseball back in 2009 to just be mediocre.

The Ducks could see signs of the turnaround right away in 2020, but the pandemic hit and the season was canceled after just 15 games. In some strange way, it gave Oregon time off the field to go into the weight room, to recruit, and to build up everything it needed to be successful on the field.

Whatever they did, it worked. Oregon proved that the turnaround is nearly complete by being one game away from winning their first conference title and just one inning away from going to a Super Regional. Unfortunately, that one inning where a few mental lapses occurred ended the season with a 9-8 loss to LSU.

But those lapses shouldn’t define a season. Instead, Oregon should take solice in the fact it can be a successful program in many ways. Before the Ducks were offensively challenged and relied heavily on pitching and defense.

The 2021 Ducks proved there’s more than one way to skin a cat. The Ducks featured their best offensive lineup in the program’s history.

Kenyon Yovan went from one of the best pitchers in the Pac-12 to one of the best power hitters in the country with his school single-season record of 17 home runs. The senior proved PK Park can be the home of a premier power hitter and Oregon has to hope that attracts more power hitters to consider the Ducks in the future.

Recruiting homegrown talent also paid dividends. Besides Beaverton’s own Yovan, Salem’s Aaron Zavala won the Pac-12 Player of the Year. First baseman Gabe Matthews turned into a MLB prospect as well as Eugene’s own Robert Ahlstrom, the ace of the pitching staff and closer Kolby Somers from Hillsboro.

Look for Wasikowski to keep mining Oregon high schools and the Pacific Northwest. It worked for Oregon State in its national championship seasons and Oregon proved homegrown talent can help with the program’s turnaround.

No one knows what 2022 will bring to PK Park, but this season showed that Oregon can be and should be a destination for top talent. Mediocrity won’t be acceptable any more and Omaha is finally within the Ducks’ reach.

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Gabe Matthew makes history in Oregon baseball’s latest victory

Matthews broke the Oregon career RBI record while the Ducks dismantled the No. 20 Gonzaga Bulldogs.

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With a 10-3 win over the 20th ranked Gonzaga Bulldogs on Tuesday, the No. 7 Oregon Ducks moved into a position to clinch the first-place spot in the Pac-12 conference later this week.

On top of that, senior Gabe Matthews had two doubles and two RBIs in the contest, breaking the Oregon record for the most runs batted in during his career in Eugene, according to The Oregonian‘s James Crepea.

Alongside Matthews, Kenyon Yovan had a double, a home run, and three RBIs, and Josh Kasevich went 3-for-4 with two RBI singles.

The Ducks are now in a great position with the postseason on the horizon. They are currently ranked well inside the top-10 in the nation, depending on which poll you choose to look at, and their series against the 15th-ranked Stanford Cardinal later this week will offer the opportunity to clinch the top spot in the conference.

At this point, it is almost a certainty that the Ducks will end up hosting a regional in the NCAA baseball tournament once the regular season is over.

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Ducks fall as Bruins salvage the series finale in extra innings

UCLA’s JT Schwartz’s two-run blast in the 10th inning was just enough to hold off the Ducks for the 7-6 win in the weekend finale.

A sweep would have been nice, but the Oregon Ducks baseball team will have to settle for a 2-of-3 series win over UCLA.

The entire series went back and forth with Oregon claiming the first two games. But UCLA’s two runs in the 10th inning was just enough to hold off the Ducks for the 7-6 win in the weekend finale.

Even with the loss, Oregon is now tied with Oregon State on top of the Pac-12 standings as both teams hold a 10-5 record. The Ducks are now 24-9 overall as they look to host San Jose State for a short two-game set this week.

As with the first two games with the Bruins, the series wrap-up contest was a close one throughout. Oregon held a 2-1 lead going into the sixth inning when JT Schwartz hit a Brett Walker offering out over the rightfield fence into the Duck bullpen for the 3-2 lead.

Gavin Grant gave Oregon the lead right back with a single to center and it was the Ducks who were ahead 4-3. Tanner Smith later singled home Grant for the 5-3 advantage.

It was an advantage that didn’t last long, however.

UCLA scored one in the seventh and then tied the game when Matt McLain belted a solo homer center, a section of PK Park that doesn’t see the ball fly over the wall often.

The score stayed knotted up at 5-5 until Schwartz hammered his second home run of the day, a two-run shot to left-center. UCLA held a 7-5 lead, but the Duck, to their credit, didn’t go quietly into the night.

After Josh Kasevich lined out to begin the frame, Gabe Matthews doubled down the left-field line. Sam Novitske struck out for the second out, but Nick Bellafronto kept the game going with an infield hit. Tristan Hanoian drove in Matthews with a bunt single to make it 7-6. Unfortunately for the Ducks, Tanner Smith’s grounder to second ended the game.

With the conference season halfway finished, the Ducks are in prime position to possibly win the Pac-12. Oregon has already gone through the toughest part of its schedule. The remaining teams have a combined conference record of 27-45. Only Stanford has a winning Pac-12 mark of 8-4 and that three-game series will be at PK Park later in the year.

After the mid-week series with San Jose State, the Ducks will travel to Pullman to take on Washington State. Currently, the Cougars are 6-11 in Pac-12 play, but they have a winning record of 18-15.

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Oregon baseball goes for the sweep after defeating UCLA in extra innings

Sam Novitske’s single gave Oregon the 3-2 extra-inning win over UCLA at PK Park Saturday.

In what Winnie the Pooh would consider a blustery day, the Oregon Ducks baseball team had to go 10 innings to defeat UCLA for the second straight game.

Both Oregon and the Bruins had their chances to score throughout the day, but it was Sam Novitske’s single to left that scored Bryce Boettcher for the victory.

With the win, Oregon goes to 24-8 overall and 10-4 in conference play. The Ducks also moved ahead of Oregon State for first place, a half-game ahead of the Beavers, who aren’t playing conference games this weekend.

Kenyon Yovan got the 10th inning started the right way with a solid single to right. Boettcher replaced the Duck’s power hitter on the bases and moved up to second on an errant pick-off play. With first now open, Aaron Zavala was intentionally walked.

Josh Kasevich hit into a fielder’s choice, putting runners on the corners with one out. Gabe Matthews also received the intention pass as UCLA wanted to put a force on every base, hoping to wiggle out of the jam. But Novitske was able to rip a 2-0 pitch to left for the win.

Wiggling out of jams seemed to be the theme of the day for both teams. Oregon managed to get themselves in a major pickle in the top of the ninth as the Bruins managed to have runners on second and third with no out.

Duck pitcher Andrew Mosiello struck out Michael Curialle for the first out. Then the fireworks began.

Noah Cardenas grounded to Kasevich at shortstop, who processed to throw home, getting Mikey Perez in a run down. Catcher Jack Scanlon ran Perez back to third where UCLA had to runners at third base. Jack Filby, who was on second, was the runner that was out, but in the confusion, Bruins third base coach Rex Peters put his hands on Scanlon. This sent Oregon coach Mark Wasikowski bursting out of the dugout demanding what was going on.

After order was restored, Mosiello whiffed Kyle Karros to end the inning.

Kolby Somers, who earned his seventh save in the series opener, came on to pitch a perfect 10th inning and was credited with the win.

Oregon will go for the series sweep Sunday afternoon with Brett Walker (4-1, 3.53 ERA) on the mound where he will go up against Jesse Bergin (4-2, 4.29 ERA) for a noon start time at PK Park.

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Oregon baseball’s Gabe Matthews once again named player of the week

Gabe Matthews is continuing his hot streak this season, being named player of the week yet again after a dominant weekend performance.

The hot streak continues for Oregon Baseball’s star Gabe Matthews.

Just a week after being named the Pac-12 Player of the Week, Matthews is adding another trophy to his case, with the Bobby Bragan Collegiate Slugger Award naming him their player of the week as well, according to GoDucks.com.

Once again this week, Matthews crossed the .600 mark at the plate, going 10-for-15 with eight runs scored. In all four games that Oregon played, three of which were victories, Matthews had multiple hits, with two doubles and a triple.

In the Ducks’ game against USC on Friday, Matthews became Oregon’s all-time hits leader, passing J.J. Altobelli with his 212th career base hit.

With Matthews leading the way, Oregon’s 13th-ranked team in the nation continues to forge ahead, sitting near the top of the Pac-12 standings and stacking up wins.

They are now getting set to host a series against the UCLA Bruins at PK Park in Eugene over the weekend, with the first game starting at 6 p.m. on Friday.

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