BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – The No. 25 UTSA baseball team hits the road to face UAB at Young Memorial Field in Birmingham, Ala. The first two games will be streamed on CUSA.tv on Friday at 5 p.m. and Saturday at 2 p.m., while the series finale will be streamed on ESPN+ on Sunday at 1 p.m.
QUICK HITS
UTSA has won all nine of its three/four game weekend series this season, including four series sweeps. Three of those weekend series sweeps came in conference play against Florida Atlantic, Western Kentucky and Middle Tennessee.
The Roadrunners are at the top of the conference in the top hitting and pitching categories, including first in earned run average (3.92) and batting average (.315). Simon Miller is fourth in the nation in ERA (1.20), seventh in the nation in wins (7) and 11th in the nation in saves (8). Antonio Valdez is third in the nation in triples (6) and Sammy Diaz is the fifth-toughest batter to strike out in the nation (17.5).
In conference play, the Roadrunners are tied for first with Dallas Baptist with 130 runs scored and 122 RBI. UTSA leads the conference with a .397 on-base percentage in league play, while sitting in second with a .467 slugging percentage. Playing in close situations in C-USA action, the Roadrunners have held strong as they hold the conference-best eight saves.
SIMON (MILLER) SAYS
Junior Simon Miller has had a truly phenomenal season, leading the nation in ERA for more than a month. As of April 26, he's currently fourth in the nation in ERA, seventh in the nation in wins and eighth in saves.
Miller earned a pair of midseason honors, including D1Baseball Midseason All-American Second Team and NCBWA Stopper of the Year Midseason Watch List. He was named to NCBWA's Preseason Watch List before the start of the season as well.
Miller earned the Conference USA Pitcher of the Week honors on Feb. 28, his first weekly honor in his career as a Roadrunner. He earned the honor after earning a win and save, leading UTSA to a 4-1 record during the week of Feb. 21.
Prior to the start of the season, he was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Preseason Watch List and Conference USA Preseason All-Conference Team as one of just two relief pitchers on that conference team (the other reliever being his teammate Daniel Shafer).
REELING IN THE RANKINGS
For the second consecutive week, the Roadrunners hold the No. 25 spot in the D1Basebalal rankings, college baseball's elite poll. UTSA also saw three more rankings this week, including No. 23 in Baseball America, No. 28 in NCBWA and No. 24 in Perfect Game.
After a 4-0 record during the week of April 10, the UTSA baseball team made its first appearance in the D1Baseball Rankings in program history last week on April 17, clocking in at No. 25. The Roadrunners also earned a spot on three other polls during the week of April 17 - No. 22 in Baseball America, No. 25 in Collegiate Baseball (first appearance) and No. 28 in NCBWA.
The Roadrunners first found a spot in national rankings during the week of April 3, earning No. 24 in Baseball America, No. 27 in NCBWA and No. 23 in Perfect Game.
LEADING THE ROADRUNNERS
Antonio Valdez leads the team with a batting average of .377, 51 RBI, 61 hits, 43 runs, six triples and 13 stolen bases. Taylor Smith has a team-high 10 home runs and Leyton Barry leads the team with 12 doubles.
On the mound, Simon Miller leads the team with a 1.20 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, seven wins, eight saves and 61 strikeouts. Other key performers include Ulises Quiroga (6-2, 47 K's), Luke Malone (1.23 WHIP, 51 K's), Ruger Riojas (4-0, 1.14 WHIP) and Daniel Shafer (1.22 WHIP, 5 saves).
IN THE C-USA AND IN THE NATION
The Roadrunners lead the conference in multiple categories – batting average (.314), ERA (3.81), hits (435), on-base percentage (.414), runs (314), scoring (7.8), strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.86), triples (21), triples per game (0.52), and walks allowed per nine innings (3.07).
Miller leads the conference in ERA (1.20) and wins (7). Valdez leads the conference with 50 RBI (28th in the nation) and six triples (third in the nation). Sammy Diaz is the fifth-toughest batter to strike out in the nation (17.5).
GOING STREAKING
The Roadrunners have been a part of a lot of streaks this season, the biggest one being their 10-game winning streak early in the season.
Taylor Smith is currently on a reached-base streak of 34 games. You read that right: Smith has reached base in every game going back to nearly the beginning of the season, impressively.
Antonio Valdez went on a similar streak, reaching base in 26 consecutive games to start the season.
LAST WEEK FOR THE ROADRUNNERS
The Roadrunners hold a 31-10 overall record, after a thrilling walk-off win (9-8) over Houston Christian on Tuesday. Caleb Hill shined for UTSA, going 3-for-4 at the plate with a run and two RBI. Ryan Beaird earned his second win, keeping the Huskies scoreless in the final 1.1 innings pitched.
Last weekend, UTSA took a series victory over FIU, taking the first two of a three-game series against the Panthers. The first game was a blowout in which UTSA beat the FIU by 22-8, its second-highest scoring game this season. The Roadrunners then secured the series victory with a 9-8 game two win, before the Panthers took the final game by 6-1.
SCOUTING THE BLAZERS
UAB holds an 13-27 overall record, after defeating Jacksonville State by 8-6 on Tuesday. Last weekend, the Blazers were swept by Charlotte in a road series in Queen City. In conference play, UAB has won only one series and that was against the last-place FIU Panthers.
UAB was voted to finish sixth out of ten teams in the Conference USA Preseason Coaches' Poll. They currently sit in a tie for last place with FIU in the conference standings.
Logan Braunschweig leads the Blazers with a .345 batting average and 40 hits. Christian Hall has a team-high five home runs and 24 RBI, while John Marc Mullins leads the team with 25 runs.
SERIES HISTORY VS UAB
The Roadrunners lead the all-time series by 7-4 over the Blazers. The teams last played each other in a midweek matchup last season on May 19-21, 2022, when the Roadrunners took two games of a three-game series at home to end the regular season against the Blazers.
UTSA holds a 4-3 advantage over UAB on the road in Birmingham, Alabama. The Roadrunners last played the Blazers at Young Memorial Field on May 1-2, 2021, taking two games of the three-game series.
IN MIDSEASON FORM
D1Baseball released its midseason position rankings during the week of March 27 as a slew of Roadrunners made the lists at their respective positions.
Simon Miller checked in at No. 9 in the top 50 relievers list, while Luke Malone is No. 53 in the top 100 starting pitchers list.
Antonio Valdez earned No. 18 in the top 50 third basemen list, while Matt King landed at No. 29 in the top 50 shortstops and Leyton Barry sits at No. 40 in the top 50 second basemen list.
Uli Quiroga earned a feature at No. 33 in the top strike-throwers list.
Simon Miller was also named to the D1Baseball Midseason All-American Second Team.
FUEL TO THE FIVE
The Roadrunners were picked to finish fifth in the Conference USA, after a phenomenal season in 2022 in which UTSA broke multiple program records and advanced to the C-USA Championship game. Defending champion Louisiana Tech was voted to finish first. C-USA newcomer Dallas Baptist was picked to finish second, followed by Florida Atlantic at third and Charlotte at fourth.
ON DECK
The Roadrunners return home for a seven-game homestand, beginning with a Tuesday, May 2nd matchup against Sam Houston. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. (CT) at Roadrunner Field on CUSA.tv.
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