Category Archives: College baseball

Friday-night expectations? UTSA’s Orloski embraces the challenge

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Starting pitcher Robert Orloski. UTSA lost to UT-Arlington 10-9 in the Roadrunners' baseball season opener on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Nineteen-year-old freshman Rob Orloski is expected to get the ball to pitch tonight for the UTSA Roadrunners. UTSA opens a three-game series at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi at Chapman Field. – File photo by Joe Alexander

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Hit hard in his first two starts as a collegian, UTSA freshman pitcher Rob Orloski showed signs last week that he can handle the Friday-night expectations.

Whether he starts or enters in long relief tonight at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, the 19-year-old righthander hopes to build on last Friday’s performance, when he carried the load in a 12-0 victory at home over Grand Canyon University.

Fischer Kingsbery, Orloski and Cooper Hrbacek combined to limit the explosive Lopes to four hits in the first shutout by Roadrunners pitching since 2022.

Orloski, the player of the year in Idaho in 2022, worked six innings from the third through the eighth, allowing only three hits.

Facing a good offensive ball club, the 6-foot-4 righthander struck out seven and walked two and allowed a baserunner to reach third only once.

Afterward, his teammates gave him the game ball in the locker room.

“That was awesome,” Orloski said. “I mean, I got to thank God and the coaches for giving me the opportunity to keep pitching on Friday. To give me the opportunity to go out and prove myself. It’s a surreal moment.

“It’s something that you dream of, just, getting the opportunity to pitch on Friday as a freshman and getting the win and helping the team win.”

Securing his first victory in the combined shutout was meaningful for him.

“Fish started off the game great (with) two clean innings,” Orloski said. “Then, me going in there and having some help from the defense. And then Cooper being able to shut it out, it was a great game for the team.”

Orloski’s transition from high school to college has been bumpy at times.

Named to start in UTSA’s season opener, he yielded six runs and was tagged with the loss in a 10-9 setback to UT-Arlington. In his second start, the Roadrunners beat the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks 7-6 at the Sugar Land Classic, but Orloski once again gave up six runs on six hits.

Combined, Arlington and SFA unloaded on him for five home runs.

At the same time, UTSA coaches weren’t really sweating it because while his pitch location needed improvement, his raw talent was obvious. Through three starts, Orloski has shown that he likes to challenge hitters, utilizing a fastball that seems to have late explosion.

He has struck out 20 in 15 innings of work.

UTSA coach Pat Hallmark’s assessment of Orloski in the days leading into the season opener seem to be holding up. “Eventually,” Hallmark said at the time, “Rob’s going to be a very good college pitcher, so we might as well start finding out when right now.”

For Orloski, a baseball journey that started with major league games he would watch on television in his Idaho home has been quite the experience, already.

In many ways, it’s been a quintessential American experience, starting with a dream and then with a question to his father.

“Dad, do you think I could pitch?” he would say, in not so many words.

Robert Orloski, the pitcher’s father, has been supporting his son in his diamond ball field pursuits ever since.

“He’s been my coach from 8- to 12U,” Orloski said Tuesday afternoon, outside the dugout at Roadrunner Field “He even helped (me) in high school. So he’s always been there coaching.

“Just, step by step. Teaching me to just be strong on the mound. Always attack. Just have that mentality on the field.”

Orloski’s demeanor on the mound? A lot of it comes from years of conversations with his father at the kitchen table, in the car, or on the lake fishing for bass.

“He’s just been able to teach me the basics,” Orloski said. “I’ve had good coaches all the way (up), teaching me more of the advanced stuff. But he’s really been the one to teach me my mentality on the field.”

In 2022, Orloski reached a pivotal moment in his career. He was named player of the year as a junior at Middlegton High School in his home state and then started fielding inquiries from college coaches.

“I had a few other options up in the Northwest, in the Oregon area (and) the Washington area,” he said. “Main reason I came down here was because of the coach. Coach Hallmark, coach (Zach) Butler and (Ryan) Aguayo. I had family down here. So it was an easy move. An easy decision for me, I think.”

After completing his high school career in 2023, Orloski came to another crossroads. The Boston Red Sox drafted him in the 20th round in July.

“It was a pretty awesome call,” Orloski said. “I mean, I was super ecstatic about it. (It’s) still a surreal moment for me knowing that I got drafted by the Red Sox. I couldn’t be happier to be here right now, but it’s still awesome.”

Orloski acknowledged that he gave serious thought to the idea of going straight from high school baseball into the pros.

“Tough decision,” he said. “It was a tough road. It was stressful at times. But when it all came down to it, after getting drafted and knowing the situation, I knew I wanted to come down here (to UTSA).

“Getting an education … has always been a goal of mine. Getting a diploma and everything. So I think school and coming here has been a great choice for me. I don’t regret a thing.”

For Orloski, making the move from Idaho to Texas came with a twist. He wasn’t the only one in his family making it. His parents — Robert and Angela — have since moved into the area, as well.

They’re living in the Canyon Lake area.

“It’s nice to be able to be with them and go do stuff” Orloski said. “Like, going fishing at Canyon Lake. It’s been fun. Going there with my dad and my uncle. It’s been fun. An easy transition.”

UTSA coaches would agree that it’s been fun to watch Orloski develop as a player, although from another standpoint, the largemouth bass at Canyon Lake may not be completely thrilled with his move into the area with a rod and reel in hand.

“I haven’t gone too much,” Orloski said. “But it’s been fun when I’ve gone. Caught three or four each time.”

Coming up

Three-game series at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s Chapman field, starting tonight at 7. Series continues Saturday at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.

Records

UTSA 7-6
Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 7-8

Baseball: UTSA smashes four homers in 21-4 victory over Tarleton

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Trailing by two runs early, the UTSA Roadrunners sent 13 batters to the plate in a seven-run second inning Wednesday night, rolling to an easy 21-4 victory over the Tarleton State Texans.

All told, UTSA stroked 19 hits and four home runs in the midweek home game at Roadrunner Field, avenging a 14-10 loss to the Texans in Stephenville on Feb. 20.

Caleb Hill, Alexander Olivo, James Taussig and Tye Odom all homered for the Roadrunners, who have scored 58 runs in five games since Feb. 27, a nine-day run in which they have compiled a 4-1 record.

Freshman Diego Diaz produced four hits, while Odom and Matt King had three apiece.

Righthander Fischer Kingsbery (1-1) pitched to four batters in relief and struck out all of them for the Roadrunners, who blanked the Texans in six straight innings from the third through the ninth.

Records

Tarleton State 9-5
UTSA 7-6

Coming up

UTSA at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Friday, 7 p.m.

Notable

James Taussig, a 6-foot-5, left-side hitter, has homered in three consecutive games. The Houston native has eight RBIs in his last four. Olivo and Hill had two hits apiece against Tarleton and raised their batting averages to .438 and .419, respectively. Kingsbery. a right-handed pitcher, has yielded no runs on two hits in five innings over his last three appearances. In that span, he has struck out nine and walked none.

Roadrunners baseball on the upswing leading into home game vs. Tarleton State

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Back-to-back losses at the Sugar Land Classic a few weeks ago left the UTSA Roadrunners searching for that missing something. A day after dropping a 4-1 decision to the Creighton Bluejays, they gave up five early runs to the Lamar Cardinals and lost 5-3 at Constellation Field.

All in all, a 3-5 record at that point wasn’t what anyone in the Roadrunners’ camp wanted or expected.

Not to worry. The Roadrunners turned it around last week with four victories in five games against solid competition, boosting them to 6-6 leading into a Wednesday night home game against the Tarleton State Texans.

The Roadrunners don’t have everything ironed out in their quest to generate early-season momentum. But in a road victory at the University of Houston and two wins in three days at home over the Grand Canyon University Lopes, they have displayed some of the toughness and resilience that Coach Pat Hallmark always likes to see.

“I didn’t think we were real tough initially,” he said Tuesday afternoon. “We do look like we’re getting tougher. We do look like we’re still resilient and that we like to compete. Maybe another box we need to check is to play better defense and run the bases better. We’re starting to hit a little bit. I’m not disappointed in the pitching despite the total runs (allowed). I think we’re still pitching fine.

“The bats need to stay competitive, which they have been, but the next two boxes is that we need to shore up the defense a little bit. We’re pretty inconsistent there. And the baserunning, I got to look (as head coach) in the mirror on all of it. But if the team doesn’t run the bases good, certainly it could be some coaching there. So, we need to run the bases a little better.”

Coming up

Tarlton State at UTSA, Wednesday, 4 p.m.
UTSA at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Friday, 7 p.m.
UTSA at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Saturday, 6:30 p.m.
UTSA at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, Sunday, 1 p.m.

UTSA scores on a wild pitch to win in the ninth inning

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Matt King scored on a wild pitch in the bottom of the ninth as UTSA edged the hard-hitting Grand Canyon University Lopes 10-9 Sunday afternoon at Roadrunner Field.

With the win, UTSA took two of three games in the series from Arizona-based GCU. Coming into Sunday, the teams had split a pair, with UTSA winning 12-0 on Friday night and then with GCU bouncing back to score a 9-7 victory on Saturday afternoon.

In the finale, Grand Canyon unleashed a four home-run attack. UTSA answered with 14 hits, including a three-run homer by James Taussig. With the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Lopes reliever Shawn Triplett threw a breaking pitch in the dirt that got away from the catcher, allowing King to score from third base.

Ruger Riojas pitched four innings of relief to earn the victory. Riojas (3-0) allowed three hits and one run, including a game-tying homer to Dustin Crenshaw in the top of the eighth. Riojas struck out five and walked none.

Records

Grand Canyon 6-5
UTSA 6-6

Coming up

Tarleton State at UTSA, Wednesday, 4 p.m.

Baseball: UTSA scores five in the first inning and blanks Grand Canyon, 12-0

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By Jerry Briggs
For The JB Replay

UTSA freshman Diego Diaz from Pharr sparked a five-run first inning, and then the pitching dominated the rest of the way in a 12-0 victory over the Grand Canyon University Lopes on Friday night at Roadrunner Field.

Fischer Kingsbery, Rob Orloski and Cooper Hrbacek combined on the first shutout for the Roadrunners in two years. The Lopes, from the Western Athletic Conference, were limited to four hits.

Kingsbery worked the first two innings and then turned it over to Orloski, a freshman from Idaho, who pitched masterfully through the eighth. In his six innings, he allowed only three hits and two walks. With good command on a fastball and a breaking pitch, he struck out seven. Hrbacek closed in the ninth.

In the bottom of the first, Diaz stroked a two-out, three-run double to left field off Grand Canyon ace Daniel Avitia.

It was the first hit of his UTSA career, and after all three baserunners crossed the plate ahead of him, the Roadrunners had a 5-0 lead. Diaz took third on a throw to the plate on the play and slid in head first safely, bringing UTSA players in the dugout to their feet to cheer him.

Ty Tilson went four for four at the plate for the Roadrunners, of the American Athletic Conference, who had 13 hits in the opener of a three-game series against the Lopes.

Records

Grand Canyon 5-4
UTSA 5-5

Coming up

Grand Canyon at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
Grand Canyon at UTSA, Sunday, 1 p.m.

Notable

Phoenix-based GCU arrived in San Antonio with five wins, including victories in Arizona against Southern Cal, BYU, Ohio State and Nebraska. UTSA entered the series coming off its biggest win, an 8-7 road victory Tuesday afternoon against the Houston Cougars. UTSA trailed 7-2 in the game and rallied with six straight runs to pull it out.

Baseball: UTSA rallies on the road to stun Houston

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By Jerry Briggs
For The JB Replay

Ruger Riojas pitched three scoreless innings following an offensive explosion that featured three straight solo homers and six straight runs, as the UTSA Roadrunners rallied on the road to beat the Houston Cougars, 8-7, Tuesday afternoon.

UTSA's Ruger Riojas pitching against Incarnate Word on March 1, 2023, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s Ruger Riojas yielded one hit across three scoreless innings to earn his first save of the season. – File photo by Joe Alexander

It was UTSA’s best victory of the season, a welcome development for a ball club that had lost five of its first eight.

Credit the Roadrunners for not dropping their heads after they fell behind by five runs against the Cougars, who are playing their inaugural season as a member of the Big 12. Houston bunched four hits and scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth to open a 7-2 lead.

UH leadoff man Jake Rainess sparked the outburst with a double. Rainess, a transfer who played for the America East champion Maine Black Bears last season, finished the day with two hits and two runs scored.

After the Cougars took charge, the Roadrunners answered in the top of the sixth with three straight, no-out home runs — first by Caleb Hill and then by Matt King and Alex Olivo. For Hill, it was his second homer of the game and his fourth of the season. All of the blasts in the sixth came off lefthander Jose Torrealba.

Just like that, the UTSA bench was energized. The visiting team, losers of two of three at the Houston-area Sugar Land Classic last weekend, added three more runs in the top of the seventh to take the lead.

Hill drove in one run with a single, his third hit of the day. King followed with a triple to center to make it 7-7 and then scored the go-ahead run on a wild pitch.

Meanwhile, Riojas entered the ball game in the bottom of the seventh as the sixth Roadrunners pitcher of the day. He would also be the last.

Riojas pitched three scoreless, allowing only one hit, to finish off the Cougars. The sophomore righthander from Wimberley struck out two and walked one.

In the ninth, Houston pinch hitter Kenneth Jimenez battled Riojas in his inning-opening at bat, only to pop up in foul territory to third. After that, Rainess struck out swinging and Alex Lopez flied to right.

Drake Smith (1-0) pitched 1 and 2/3 innings to earn his first victory of the season for UTSA. Riojas notched the nine-out save and lowered his earned run average to a team-leading 1.59.

Records

UTSA 4-5
Houston 6-2

UTSA season results

Feb. 16 – L, 9-10, UT-Arlington
Feb. 17 – W, 7-2, UT-Arlington
Feb. 17 – W, 2-1, UT-Arlington
Feb. 18 – L, 4-5, UT-Arlington
Feb. 20 – L, 10-14, at Tarleton State
Feb. 23 – W, 7-6, SFA at Sugar Land Classic
Feb. 24 – L, 1-4, Creighton at Sugar Land Classic
Feb. 25 – L, 3-5, Lamar at Sugar Land Classic
Feb. 27 – W, 8-7, at Houston

Coming up

Grand Canyon (Ariz.) at UTSA, Friday, 6 p.m.
Grand Canyon at UTSA, Saturday, 2 p.m.
Grand Canyon at UTSA, Sunday, 1 p.m.

Baseball: Roadrunners take a 2-2 record on the road against the Tarleton State Texans

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Ty Tilson. UTSA beat UT-Arlington 2-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Third baseman Ty Tilson and the UTSA Roadrunners emerged from opening weekend with a 2-2 record. Sandwiched around a doubleheader sweep on Saturday were one-run losses Friday and Sunday. – File photo by Joe Alexander

Pat Hallmark’s UTSA Roadrunners are set to play on the road for the first time this season. They’ll be in Stephenville on Tuesday afternoon to take on the Tarleton State Texans. First pitch is at 4 p.m.

Records

UTSA 2-2
Tarleton 1-2

Opening weekend

Last weekend, Roadrunners split four games at home against the UT Arlington Mavericks. Tarleton played on the road and lost two of three to Southeastern Louisiana.

Coming up

UTSA will play three games this weekend in Sugar Land at the Sugar Land Classic. On Friday, they’ll face the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks at 3 p.m. Saturday, they’ll meet the Creighton Bluejays at 11 a.m. On Sunday, the Roadrunners will close out the three game with a 2 p.m. contest against the Lamar Cardinals. Next Tuesday, on Feb. 27, they’ll play at the University of Houston at 3 p.m. UTSA returns home to Roadrunner Field on March 1-3 to face Grand Canyon (Ariz.).

Baumann’s walkoff winner lifts UTSA to a doubleheader sweep

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Aiden Baumann delivers the winning hit, and the UTSA Roadrunners celebrate a 2-1 victory and a doubleheader sweep of UT Arlington. – Video by UTSA athletics

By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

On a cold and blustery February afternoon in San Antonio, pinch hitter Aiden Baumann’s two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the ninth inning scored the winning run Saturday in a 2-1 victory for the UTSA Roadrunners over the UT Arlington Mavericks.

With the win, UTSA swept a doubleheader on the second day of the season. UT Arlington won the season opener Friday night, holding on in the ninth inning to take a 10-9 decision.

In response, the Roadrunners bounced back to claim victory in the first game of the double dip Saturday, winning 7-2 in seven innings. After a short break to catch their breath, the two teams played again, this time in a nine-inning contest.

Zach Royse pumps his fist after striking out the final batter he faced. UTSA beat UT-Arlington 2-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Zach Royse pumps his fist after striking out the final batter he faced. UTSA beat UT Arlington 2-1 in the second game of a doubleheader. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Baumann, a part-time player in his first appearance of the season and in only the 10th appearance of his career, delivered with a hit to right field that ended the day’s proceedings, giving UTSA a 2-1 edge in the season-opening series.

The two teams will play the finale of the four-game set on Sunday at 1 p.m. at Roadrunner Field.

UTSA coach Pat Hallmark praised his players’ mental toughness in setting aside Friday night’s disappointment and responding with solid play, on a day with difficult weather conditions, to claim their first two wins of the season.

“It was a better day,” Hallmark said. “We just played tougher … You know, this game is not easy. Failure is part of it. Being able to fail and turn around and make the next play. All those little things.”

Someone asked Hallmark in the postgame about his team’s resilience.

“I said we were resilient today, but it’s (only) three games (into the season),” he said. “We need to be resilient 30 games into it. I hope we’re still as resilient (then) as we were today, and I think we will be. It’s a good sign.”

The first game of the day was highlighted by a few standout defensive plays, including one that featured second baseman Isaiah Walker leaping to catch a line drive and flipping the ball to second base to double off a runner, effectively taking away a couple of runs while ending the inning.

Third baseman Matt King also hit the highlight reel on a foul pop up that came down just outside the field of play. King dashed toward the falling spheroid on its descent, collided with a waist-high wall and made the catch while falling into an area where fans usually sit.

Ty Tilson. UTSA beat UT-Arlington 2-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s Ty Tilson takes a rip during an at bat in Game 2 .of Saturday’s doubleheader. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Starting pitcher Ruger Riojas earned the victory in allowing two runs in 5 and 2/3 innings of work. The sophomore from Wimberley struck out six while walking none.

In the second game, which started a little after 3 p.m., players, coaches and fans were fortunate that temperature rose into the high 40s on a sunny afternoon. But the wind whipped in from the northeast for the entire game, blowing so hard that it kept the flags fluttering constantly.

As for fans seated around the ball park in the shade, some huddled under blankets.

Others moved into sunny areas as the shadows extended. By the seventh, eighth and ninth innings, the rightfield berm became a popular gathering spot. Fans stood with hands plunged into coat pockets, watching as both teams moved ominously toward what looked like it might be a 1-1 tie going into extra innings.

The Roadrunners, however, had other ideas. With lefthander Austin Wallace entering the game in the ninth for Arlington, UTSA’s Mark Henning opened the inning with a line shot that got past third baseman Tate Bethel and down the line.

Arlington leftfielder Ryan Ellis tracked it down and fired into second base, but by that time, Henning had a full head of steam, and he dove into second base head first — well ahead of the throw — for a double.

At that point, Wallace retired James Taussig and Ty Tilson on fly ball outs, with fans gasping on each play.

Taussig’s line drive to right field might have been one of the hardest hit balls all afternoon. It was a rocket. But it went straight to rightfielder Tyson Pointer for the first out. Tilson followed by stroking a ball into right center that looked like it had a chance to fall, only to have centerfielder Garrison Berkley come sprinting toward it to make a sliding catch for out No. 2.

Broc Parmer. UTSA beat UT-Arlington 2-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Catcher Broc Parmer worked nine innings behind the plate in the second game of a doubleheader. – Photo by Joe Alexander

From there, Hallmark elected to send Baumann, a right-handed batter, to the plate to pinch hit for the left-side hitting Dalton Porter.

Baumann came through with only his third hit in a UTSA uniform to win the game. Fittingly, when he sliced it down the rightfield line, some drama ensued. Pointer ran hard and dove for it. Just as the ball hit into his glove, it popped out onto the grass.

As Henning rounded third, raced for the plate and touched home for the winning run, one gaggle of Arlington fans seemed transfixed on the nearly spectacular catch that wasn’t made. With the ball on the turf, they fell silent. Meanwhile, UTSA fans celebrated, and Roadrunners players dashed out of the dugout and onto the field to mob Baumann.

Baumann said it was almost like a blessing that the wind was blowing in so hard.

“If the wind’s not blowing like that, the ball is probably caught,” he said. “When the wind’s blowing in like that, there’s always a chance.”

Baumann said the walkoff game winner was his second in the last calendar year. The first came last summer when he was playing summer ball in Jefferson City, Mo. His hit on Sunday had a different feel.

“This feels great,” said Baumann, who once played for the New Braunfels High School Unicorns. “We’re really close as a team. I know we’ve got a lot of new guys. But we’ve been around each other since the fall, working hard together. This means a lot for this team.”

Zach Royse and Braylon Owens pitched well to hold Arlington down. Royse worked six innings and allowed only a run in the fifth inning. In the meantime, he kept Arlington batters off balance, allowing only three hits while striking out six and walking three. Owens, meanwhile, yielded two hits in three scoreless innings to earn the win in relief. He struck out three and walked one.

Braylon Owens pitched the final three innings in relief and earned the win. UTSA beat UT-Arlington 2-1 in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday, Feb. 17, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Braylon Owens pitched three scoreless innings of relief to earn the win in a 2-1 victory over UT Arlington. – Photo by Joe Alexander

UTSA’s defense late in the game was solid, particularly first baseman James Taussig, who deftly dug out a couple of balls on throws from the infield.

Records

UT Arlington 1-2
UTSA 2-1

Coming up

UT Arlington at UTSA, Sunday at 1 p.m.
UTSA at Tarleton State, Tuesday at 4 p.m.

A photographer’s eye view of the Roadrunners on opening night

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Pat Hallmark. UTSA lost to UT-Arlington 10-9 in the Roadrunners' baseball season opener on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Coach Pat Hallmark, in the blue shirt, pays a visit to the mound to make a point in Friday night’s season opener. – Photo by Joe Alexander .

The UTSA Roadrunners play the UT Arlington Mavericks in a doubleheader today, with a seven-inning game set for noon, followed by a nine-inning game that will start about 3 p.m. Arlington broke out to a couple of nine-run leads early in the season opener Friday night and then held on for a 10-9 victory. I wanted to share a package of photos by Joe Alexander. Here are some of his best images:

Relief pitcher Cooper Hrbacek. UTSA lost to UT-Arlington 10-9 in the Roadrunners' baseball season opener on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Relief pitcher Cooper Hrbacek worked two scoreless innings in the opener to help the Roadrunners stay in the game. Hrbacek is from Abilene where he attended Wylie High School. He also played for McLennan College. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Hector Rodriguez. UTSA lost to UT-Arlington 10-9 in the Roadrunners' baseball season opener on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Junior Hector Rodriguez joins the UTSA squad this season as a transfer from Galveston College. He played in high school at Houston Westside. – Photo by Joe Alexander.

Zane Spinn. UTSA lost to UT-Arlington 10-9 in the Roadrunners' baseball season opener on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Shortstop Zane Spinn hails from Holland, Tex. He’s played in college at Temple JC and at Sam Houston State. – Photo by Joe Alexander.

Lorenzo Morresi. UTSA lost to UT-Arlington 10-9 in the Roadrunners' baseball season opener on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Lorenzo Morresi, from Macerata, Italy, started at catcher for the Roadrunners. Morresi has played at New Mexico Junior College. He also represented Italy in the Haarlem Baseball Week in the Netherlands. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Starting pitcher Robert Orloski. UTSA lost to UT-Arlington 10-9 in the Roadrunners' baseball season opener on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Hard-throwing pitcher Rob Orloski comes to UTSA from Middleton, Idaho. The Boston Red Sox selected him on the 20th round of the draft last summer. He elected to play at UTSA. – Photo by Joe Alexander

Alex Olivo. UTSA lost to UT-Arlington 10-9 in the Roadrunners' baseball season opener on Friday, Feb. 16, 2024, at Roadrunner Field. - Photo by Joe Alexander

Alex Olivo started in the opener as a designated hitter. Olivo also plays first base. He comes to UTSA from Texas Southern. He played previously at Deer Park HS and Ranger College. – Joe Alexander.