HAYWARD, Calif., -- The 2020 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.
 
SEASON PREVIEW
Veteran head coach Mike Cummins enters his fourth season with the Pioneers in 2020, coming off a 2019 campaign in which they finished 22-28 with a 19-25 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 four games. This year they have their sights set on returning to the CCAA Tournament for the first time since 2016.
 
The Pioneers return a talented rotation on the mound, led by All-CCAA pitcher Brian Martinez who led the entire CCAA in both innings pitched (82.2) and complete games (6). The left-hander ranked third in the league in wins with a 7-3 record and was named both CCAA and West Region Pitcher of the Week after tossing a four-hit shutout against Cal State Dominguez Hills. Mark Woinarowicz finished third in the CCAA in saves (8) and led CSUEB with 2.61 ERA.
 
East Bay also has a trio of experienced position player in Robert Lujan (.300, 30 Hits, 20 Runs), Ryan McSwain (.288, 40 Runs, 4 HRs, 20 RBI), Omar Sanchez (.280, 42 Hits, 1 HR, 21 RBI) and Ryan Thomasy (.262, .369 ob%, 27 Hits) will look to led the offensive punch for the Pioneers. 
 
The Pioneers will hope for a significant contribution from some junior college transfers and freshmen alike. Francisco Pedraza, Samuel Esparza, Cole Anderson, Jordan Macias, Adrian Padilla, Enrique Nunez, Derek Flower, Shane Cancilla, Donovan Bailey, Garrison Finck and Steven Manzo will all likely factor into the starting rotation for CSUEB.
 
PRESEASON POLL
The Pioneers were picked to finish ninth in the CCAA last week according to a preseason poll of the conference's 12 head coaches, which matches their final standing in 2019. Below are the full CCAA poll results:
 
 

2020 CCAA Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll
Rank	Institution	Points (First-place votes)
1.	UC San Diego	119 (10)
2.	Cal State Monterey Bay	108 (2)
3.	Cal Poly Pomona	102
4.	Chico State	90
5.	Stanislaus State	82
6.	Sonoma State	58
7.	San Francisco State	56
8.	Cal State LA	51
9.	Cal State East Bay	44
10.	Cal State Dominguez Hills	33
11.	Cal State San Marcos	30
12.	Cal State San Bernardino	19

 

OUTLOOK ON THE OAKS
Menlo posted an overall record of 15-26 last season as a member of the California Pacific Conference in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA). The Oaks are off to a 3-1 start to the season.