HAYWARD, Calif. -- The 2019 season officially starts for the Cal State East Bay baseball team this week with a non-conference series against Menlo College.

The Pioneers will host the season opener Friday at 2 p.m. and the finale of the three-game series on Sunday at noon. The teams will head across the bridge to Atherton for game two of the series on Saturday at 12 p.m. Rain is in the forecast all weekend in the Bay Area, so be sure to check eastbaypioneers.com and follow @EastBayPioneers on Twitter for any weather-related schedule updates. 

SEASON PREVIEW
Veteran head coach Mike Cummins enters his third season with the Pioneers in 2019, coming off a 2018 campaign in which they finished 24-26 with a 21-23 record in the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA). The Pioneers were in the postseason race until the final week of the season and missed qualifying for the playoffs by just two games. This year they have their sights set on returning to the CCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016.

The Pioneers return a large senior class, led by All-CCAA infielders Dakota Conners (.310 avg, 14 2B, 36 R) and Adam Hollar (.326 avg, .432 obp). They're joined by utility men Steve Robinson and Jacob Eder, as well as catcher Matt Cantelme, who's back for his fourth season. East Bay also has a trio of experienced seniors in the outfield in Paul Bryniarski, Kyosuke Ushimaru, and Joey Dice, all of whom had substantial playing time in 2018. 

There are nine new positions on the roster to compete for spots in the lineup, all junior college transfers besides freshman Sean Banks. The Pioneers will hope for a significant contribution from junior outfielder Ryan McSwain, who spent time at Arkansas Little Rock and Cal before hitting .411 last year at Skyline College.

There has been a great deal of turnover to the Pioneer pitching staff, which last year was anchored by All-Region southpaw Alex Vesia, who broke several of the program's career records before being drafted by the Miami Marlins. Just four hurlers return from the 2018 squad -- seniors Jacob Nelson (23.0 IP) and Jordan Milligan (15.0 IP), junior Ransome Alexander (21.2 IP), and sophomore Mark Woinarowicz (25.0 IP). As such, there will be lots of innings up for grabs for the 10 newcomers to the CSUEB staff. Right-hander Dylan Dudley (Modesto JC) and left-hander Brian Martinez (Ohlone College) have impressed during the preseason and will likely factor into the starting rotation. 

PRESEASON POLL
The Pioneers were picked to finish eighth in the CCAA this week according to a preseason poll of the conference's 12 head coaches, which matches their final standing in 2018. The top four squads in the preseason poll have also been ranked in the Top-30 nationally in the Collegiate Baseball Division II poll. Below are the full CCAA poll results:

1.    UC San Diego  --  119 points (9 first place votes)
2.    Cal Poly Pomona  --  104 (2)
3.    Cal State Monterey Bay  --  102 (1)
4.    Chico State  --  99
5.    Cal State LA  --  75
6.    San Francisco State  --  64
7.    Sonoma State  --  63
8.    Cal State East Bay  --  49
9.    Stanislaus State  --  45
10.  Cal State San Marcos  --  26
11.  Cal State San Bernardino  --  25
12.  Cal State Dominguez Hills  --  21

OUTLOOK ON THE OAKS
Menlo posted an overall record of 17-27 last season as a member of the California Pacific Conference in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). Justin Wallis (.374 avg) and Brice Foster (.345) are the top returning hitters for the Oaks. Carlos Jimenez is their most experienced pitcher, tossing 54.1 innings in 15 appearances.