This game is in sunny California, although it looks like it would have been fine today at PK Park. We owed them a series at their house when a prior one scheduled was terminated due to flooding on the eve of the series in the past.

Santa Barbara....home of FishDuck.com writer Alex Heining, and one of my favorite '90s band, Toad-the-Wet-Sprocket.

The pitcher for Santa Barbara Gauchos has not been announced, but I assume it will be Jackson Flora, who has an incredible ERA of 0.94 and will go up against Oregon's Will Sanford. (1.44 ERA)

The other Gaucho starters also look really good in Nathan Aceves, (3.77) and Kellen Montgomery. (3.86) In terms of hitting--Oregon has the edge with more homers, and six starters hitting over .300 while Santa Barbara has four.

Looks like another low-scoring scrappy game!

Will Sanford

0-0 after one inning. I guessed correctly on the Gaucho starter, and man...he has nasty sideways action, and hasn't given up a run in over a dozen innings?

Good test for our hitters. Meanwhile Oregon's Will Sanford gave up a walk and a plinked batter, but generated three fly balls.

0-0 after two innings. The Ducks have a hard time hitting the Santa Barbara pitcher, but got some gifts in a walk, and getting plinked...but stranded them.

Will Sanford brushed away the opposing batters, 1-2-3.

0-0 after three innings. So isn't this lovely? It was stated that the Gaucho pitcher, Jackson Flora, was named the No. 2 Prospect for the MLB Draft! No wonder we are having trouble with him! But Oregon's Ryan Cooney got a double, and Jax Gimenez walked...and we left them stranded.

Meanwhile Will Sanford got into a bases-loaded jam, and you could see him mentally lock-in and strike out the next two batters. Whew!

P.S. When you doing intermittent fasting as I and the eating window comes open? I'm cooking dinner-baby! So next innings will be late reporting...

0-0 after four innings. The Gaucho pitcher threw a 99 mph pitch? Whew! That's why we got nothing this inning.

Oregon's Will Sanford is going to challenge my blood pressure, as he got into another bases-loaded jam...and then struck out the next two!

0-0 after five innings as the pitcher's duel continued, although both pitchers have very high pitch counts and I believe they are both done after this inning.

Nothing again on offense, and this time Will Sanford got out of a jam with only two runners on base! He has over 100 pitches...

0-0 after six innings. Oregon brought in Luke Morgan to replace Sanford, and not Tanner Bradley? Morgan is a sophomore from Grants Pass who has not been used that much in relief, but he is the first reliever this weekend?

But he got two strikeouts, and kept them scoreless! A very nasty curve-drop-ball that looks like it plunges three and a half feet at the plate. Wow!

1-0 Ducks after seven innings. With the Santa Barbara ace retired for the day, we saw Jack Brooks smash a solo HR over the CF wall!

They brought in Luke Morgan to pitch again, as he must have his confidence now, and that of the Oregon coaches. His curve was deadly again!

1-0 Ducks after eight innings. Oregon strands two on base...

NOW we see Tanner Bradley, and in his 10 outings--nine of them he did not give up a single earned run. Damn his sideways action both away and toward the plate is tough. Catcher Burke-Lee Mabeus made a terrific play sprinting to a dribbler hit, and firing to first base to barely beat the runner. Whew!

Ducks win 4-0 as Oregon's pitching depth was the difference. Once their ace left--we could go to work on offense.

Gabe Miranda bunted down the 3rd baseline, and caught them sitting back to then beat the throw to first. Ryan Cooney hit a high infield bouncer that slowed down to allow him to get on base safely. Jax Gimenez sees everybody coming in close to defend the bunt, and hits if over the right fielder's glove and rolls to the wall. Miranda scores from second, and Cooney went from first to third. Such fast base-runners this year!

The relief pitcher for Santa Barbara slipped as he was pitching, and it was called a balk...thus Cooney is scored, and Gimenez moves to third. Drew Smith is intentionally walked.

Then the Ducks sucked the infielders into a pickle/hot box between first and second base with Smith...while Gimenez scores before the out to get the fourth run!

Devin Bell finished it off with his curve drop-ball, and a 97 mph heater to mess up the batters. Even with that...Maddox Molony was backing up the 3rd baseman on a hit through the infield, and snagged the grounder, turned his body and made the long throw in time for the out!

Hitting, pitching and fielding. Be proud of this team!

The official game recap will be posted below 2-3 hours from now.

OREGON ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE | FRIDAY, MARCH 27, 2026

BASEBALL | @OregonBaseball

Ducks Blank Gauchos to Take Series Opener

 

GOLITA, Calif. — After six scoreless innings, No. 20 Oregon was finally able to break through for four runs over the final three innings to claim a 4-0 nonconference win over UC Santa Barbara in game one of the series on Friday night at Caesar Uyesaka Stadium.

 

In a matchup between two of the top starting pitchers in college baseball, both teams threatened into the middle innings but neither team could come through with a big hit to push a run across the plate.

 

Oregon (22-4) ran up UCSB starter Jackson Flora’s pitch count in innings two through four, forcing the No. 2 starter in the country according to D1Baseball to throw more than 20 pitches in each of those innings. Despite the high pitch count, the Ducks stranded six runners in the first four innings including three in scoring position. 

 

UCSB (15-8) had similar frustrations against Oregon starter Will Sanford, the No. 19 starting pitcher on D1Baseball’s list. The Gauchos (15-8) stranded 10 runners in five innings against Sanford, including leaving the bases loaded in both the third and fourth innings.

Will Sanford at UCSB

Neither Sanford nor Flora factored in the decision with both leaving the game after five innings without allowing a run. Sanford gave up two hits with five walks and four strikeouts. Flora also allowed two hits with three walks and five strikeouts.

 

Oregon’s bullpen ended up besting the UCSB bullpen leading to the Ducks’ win. Luke Morgan (1-0) picked up his first career win, tossing two scoreless innings. Tanner Bradley and Devin Bell also chipped in a scoreless frame. The Ducks’ scored four runs against the Gauchos bullpen.

 

How It Happened: Scoreless heading into the seventh inning, Jack Brooks changed that with one swing of the bat with one out in the seventh. Brooks crushed the first pitch he saw 443-feet with a 110 mile per hour exit velocity over the towering scoreboard beyond the right-field fence.

 

The Ducks tacked on three insurance runs in the top of the ninth, sparked by a Gabe Miranda leadoff bunt single. Brooks moved Miranda to second with a sacrifice bunt before Ryan Cooney reached on an infield single moving Miranda to third. After fouling off a squeeze bunt attempt, Jax Gimenez ripped a line drive double over right-fielders Max Staggs’ head to score Miranda and move Cooney to third.

A New Star Reliever? Luke Morgan

gave Oregon two scoreless innings.

 

Cooney scored on a balk when Stunner Gonzalez tripped while starting to deliver a pitch for a 3-0 lead. After a Drew Smith intentional walk, the Ducks stole a run when Smith intentionally got caught in a rundown long enough for Gimenez to score from third to make it a four-run game.

Box Score Notes: The shutout was Oregon’s fifth of the season, including the Ducks’ second on the road trip … Gimenez extended his hitting streak to 13 games, matching the 10th longest in Oregon’s modern-era history … The two teams combined to leave 22 runners on base (UCSB 13, Oregon 9) … They combined to go 3-for-24 with runners in scoring position with only one of those hits scoring a run, while going 1-for-21 combined with two outs.

 

On Deck: Oregon and UCSB play game two of the series on Saturday with a 3:05 p.m. first pitch (ESPN+).

 

Thought You'd Enjoy This...

They did not have videos available during the game, so a couple are now showing up. Good Stuff!