ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Golden Grizzlies baseball team is set to open up its 2024 season on the road as the team travels to Moraga, Calif., for a weekend series against Saint Mary's of California.
 
Due to forecasted weather, the schedule has been altered. The team was originally scheduled to play Friday, Saturday and Sunday, but will now play a doubleheader Friday and wrap up the series Sunday. Friday's doubleheader will start at 1:00 p.m. ET, as game two is expected to start at 4:40 p.m. ET. Game one of the doubleheader will be a standard nine-inning game, while game two is seven innings. The series finale will take place Sunday with first pitch slated for 3:00 p.m. ET.
 
On Wednesday, the Golden Grizzlies were picked third in the Horizon League Baseball Preseason Poll after it fell in the Horizon League Championship the season prior. Oakland returns all three players who earned #HLBASE All-Tournament Team honors in Brandon Heidal, Brandon Nigh, and Ian Cleary as Brandon Decker returns after being named Horizon League Reliever of the Year along with getting a 2023 All-League First Team nod.
 
On the bump to start the season is junior standout Hunter Pidek, followed by senior Decker and Sean Fekete as the three rightys look to start the Golden Grizzlies season on a high note. Decker, who was most known as being a standout reliever, was named to the 2024 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Preseason Watch List. Decker was one of 73 players who were named to the initial Watch List as the award is given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I Baseball.
 
SCOUTING THE GAELS
The series marks the first matchup between the Gaels and Golden Grizzlies as both teams begin the 2024 season against each other. The Gaels, who compete in the West Coast Conference, are led by Eric Valenzuela who enters his seventh season as the team's skipper but first season after a stint with the Long Beach State Dirtbags. Valenzuela spent 2014-2019 with St. Mary's before his new position and holds a 180-156 record with the Gaels.
 
The Gaels are coming off a 23-28 season, as it was 14-13 in conference play, and ended its 2023 season in the WCC Tournament semifinals. St. Mary's last won its conference tournament in 2016 and advanced to the NCAA Tournament for the first and only time in program history.
 
The Gaels, who were picked fourth in the WCC Preseason Poll, will face its first current Horizon League team with the opener against Oakland. On St. Mary's, three players were named to the All-Preseason Team as Christian Almanza comes back as the most notable player for the Gaels. The first baseman earned WCC Co-Player of the Year honors and made All-WCC First Team following the 2023 season. The graduate student led all players in home runs during conference play with 12, and hit .320 on the season in WCC play.
 
On the bump, Connor Linchey is touted as the team's number one starter as he also earned an All-Preseason Team nod. The graduate student was named First-Team All-Conference and appeared in 15 games with 11 starts in the 2023 season. The right-handed pitcher struck out 55 batters in 75.1 innings and finished with a 3.11 ERA while finishing 5-1 on the year.