Mines (21-17, 14-10 RMAC) at MSU Denver (27-19, 18-10 RMAC) – Sunday, 12 p.m. – Doubleheader – Denver, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]
Mines (21-17, 14-10 RMAC) at MSU Denver (27-19, 18-10 RMAC) – Monday, 12 p.m. – Doubleheader – Denver, Colo. [Live Stats] [RMAC Network]

---

BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN
The Colorado School of Mines Baseball team returns to action this weekend after the Orediggers' bye week gave them an 13-day hiatus from competition. Mines climbs back in the saddle with a four-game, Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference series at MSU Denver. After a schedule change due to rain in the forecast, the conference set will be played as a pair of doubleheaders starting at noon on Sunday and Monday at the Assembly Athletic Complex in downtown Denver. Both twin bills start with a nine-inning game and end with a seven-inning game. Only two weeks remain in the regular season, and three teams are within a game of each other for #3 in the conference standings. That makes every contest critical for a shot at the postseason.
 
LIVE COVERAGE
Every Mines home game and all RMAC games can be seen live and for free on the RMAC Network at www.minesathletics.com/tv. Additionally, the Orediggers' home games will feature play-by-play commentary from Miles Dunklin. The RMAC Network can also be found on Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Firestick, and Android TV devices by going to the app store and searching "RMAC." Fans can also follow @OrediggersBSB on "X" (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.
 
WEATHER FORECAST
With thunderstorms moving in Friday night, and rain all day on Saturday. The schedule change was a no-brainer. Sunday features partly cloudy skies and a high of 60 degrees. Monday gets better with more sun and temps nearing 70 degrees. With the shift and new outlook, sunscreen and light layers will be a must for those planning to attend.
 
REMEMBERING REGIS
The last time Mines was in action was April 12-14 at Regis. The Orediggers and Rangers split the four-game, RMAC series with Mines winning game one and game three by scores of 19-6 and 12-5. Regis won games two and four with margins of 11-10 and 17-8. Most notable for Mines was a run-rule victory after eight innings in game one and a rally back from 10-2 in game two which still ended in a loss for the visitors. Luke Folsom and Marcus Lee were the weekend's winning pitchers with Jackson Bakovich and Weston Siefken taking the losses. Trent Nielsen led the way for the Orediggers at the plate. He hit .500 and score 10 runs with seven RBI while notching two doubles and a home run. Canon Humphreys sprayed three doubles and a triple across four games. Tyler Pina had 10 RBI thanks to two home runs. Mason Andrews went long twice as well. Evan Bilter, I-Ly Hsue, and Luke Folsom added one home run apiece. As a team, Mines posted a combined batting average of .397 and slugged .685 thanks to 16 doubles, one triple and eight home runs. The Oredigger pitching staff posted an 11.79 ERA and struck out 17 batters with 17 walks.
 
TWO WEEK WARNING
Including this weekend, just two weeks remain in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference's regular season. Teams left with bye weeks are CSU Pueblo and MSU Denver. At the top of the RMAC standings is Colorado Mesa (29-13, 19-5 RMAC) which needs just four total wins in its last eight games to wrap a 12th consecutive conference crown. The Mavericks last two series are against New Mexico Highlands and Adams State. Alone at #2 is MSU Denver (27-19, 18-10 RMAC). The Roadrunners are three games up on #3 Regis (24-17-1, 15-9 RMAC), but MSU Denver won't play the last weekend of the regular season. Only one game separates the third-seeded Rangers from Mines (21-17, 14-10 RMAC) and Adams State (19-23, 14-10 RMAC) who are tied at #4. CSU Pueblo (26-19, 15-13 RMAC) currently holds the sixth, and final, spot in the projected bracket for the conference tournament. However, UCCS (14-26, 11-13 RMAC) has improved its play as of late and is nipping at the heels of the ThunderWolves. New Mexico Highlands (7-35, 3-21 RMAC) and Colorado Christian (5-36, 3-21 RMAC) have been mathematically eliminated from the postseason. The only team in the league that has technically clinched a berth in the RMAC tournament is Colorado Mesa.
 
SCOUTING MSU DENVER
After the first 30 games of the season, Metropolitan State University Denver was sitting 14-16 overall. However, the Roadrunners have caught fire since and gone 13-3 including an active five-game winning streak going into the weekend. That run puts them at 27-19 overall and 18-10 in RMAC play. Their three losses in the 16-game stretch came at the hands of CSU Pueblo and Adams State. Last weekend, MSU Denver swept Colorado Christian in Lakewood while stacking up 69 runs. The Roadrunners scored 29 of those runs in the series finale on Monday. MSU Denver's recent surge has moved the downtown Denver squad up to #2 in the RMAC standings. Overall, the Roadrunners rank #2 in the nation in doubles, slugging percentage, and runs. They also rank top-six in the nation in scoring, home runs, hits, and batting average. Individually, in a loaded lineup, Jesse Velders takes the spotlight. The junior-college transfer and RMAC newcomer is hitting .481 with 55 runs on 62 hits including 20 doubles, three triples and nine home runs with 54 RBI. He's #1 in the nation in batting average, #3 in slugging percentage, #4 in on-base percentage and doubles per game, and top-50 in toughest to strike out, runs, RBI, and hits per game. Former All-RMAC stars Zach Schuler, Cam Yuran, Caleb Albaugh, and Jake Williams are still in the lineup as well. On the mound, Jack Slominksi and Reichle Arcilise spearhead the starting rotation. Slominksi is 6-3 with a 5.53 ERA and 68 strikeouts compared to seven walks in 13 appearances and 12 starts. He also has one save and one complete game. Arcilise is 4-2, touting 54 strikeouts and 19 walks on the way to a 6.38 ERA in 11 appearances and nine starts. After the departure of closer Eric Cox, MSU Denver covers the final innings by committee with five individuals touting one save apiece.
 
OREDIGGERS AGAINST THE ROADRUNNERS
From 2009 to 2023, Mines and MSU Denver have faced off 70 times. The Orediggers have won 34 of those games and lost 36. Last season, the Orediggers and Roadrunners split their regular-season conference series in Golden. The home team took games two and four by scores of 4-3 and 17-6. The visitors won the opener 10-1 and claimed game three by a 14-7 margin. Marcus Lee and Alex Honeyman both delivered victories on the mound. Lee's came on a walk-off single from Luke Folsom who drove in Andrews for the 4-3, eight-inning victory in game two. Adam Houghtaling, Caden Bonds, Luke Folsom, Jackson Woolwine, Danny McDermott, and I-Ly Hsue combined to hit seven home runs in the series. Mines and MSU Denver also played a non-RMAC game in Golden in 2023. The Roadrunners won, 11-6, despite home runs from Houghtaling and Trent Nielsen along with two doubles off the bat of Woolwine. The Orediggers have not taken a series from MSU Denver since sweeping the Roadrunners on the last weekend of the regular season in 2019. Those victories capped a stretch where Mines was 18-4 against MSU Denver from 2016-19.
 
WALTER PENNINGTON UPDATE
Walter Pennington continues to dominate at the Triple-A level for the Kansas City Royals. So far in 2024 for the Omaha Storm Chasers, Pennington sits 2-0 with a 1.72 ERA thanks to 20 strikeouts compared to three walks and seven hits in nine games and 15.2 innings of work. Earlier this spring, the former Oredigger starter reported for Big League Spring Training. There, he made seven appearances and finished 0-1 with a 1.69 ERA thanks to 11 strikeouts and two walks across 5.1 innings. Last year in the minor league system, the Broomfield, Colo., native went 7-2 with a 3.18 ERA in 49 appearances including one start. He earned one save as well while striking out 75 batters in 70.2 innings of work. Across four years in the MLB's minor league system, Pennington is 18-8 with a 3.79 ERA. He boasts 196 career strikeouts and has only walked 83 batters in 119 games for a total of 197.1 innings pitched. The lefty also touts two starts, eight saves in 11 opportunities and 14 holds.
 
IN THE PROS
Over the last six years, four Orediggers have entered baseball's professional ranks. Mikey Gangwish (2016-19) was the first as he played professionally in Australia before returning to a contract with the Evansville Otters of the independent Frontier League. He has since retired and earned his master's degree at Mines. The second was Trevor Kehe (2017-19) who was drafted in the 36th round of the MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Baltimore Orioles. He worked in the Orioles organization for three years and advanced as far as High-A ball with the Aberdeen IronBirds before retiring. Rounding out but leading the trio is Walter Pennington (2017-20).
 
THE SKIPPER
The 2024 campaign marks Mines' sixth season with Robby Bales as head coach. During his tenure as the Oredigger skipper, Bales holds an overall record of 138-102 with a mark of 89-69 in RMAC play. He has coached 17 All-RMAC players, 10 all-region players, three all-Americans, two RMAC Pitcher of the Year winners, one RMAC Freshman of the Year, seven CoSIDA Academic All-Americans, one MLB Draft Pick and had one player signed as a free agent in the MLB. Additionally, Bales has guided Mines to the NCAA Tournament once, and RMAC Tournament three times, advancing to the regional and conference tournament final in 2019. Bales' teams have also performed in the classroom as the squad brought home the RMAC Brechler Award in 2020, 2021, and 2023 as the team boasting the highest combined GPA in the conference.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Mines will close the 2024 regular season at home with a four-game series against UCCS running May 3-4. There will be a doubleheader Friday at 3 p.m. and another twin bill Saturday at 12 p.m. Saturday also includes Senior Day festivities prior to the start of the doubleheader. Tickets can be purchased online or at the gate. Live stats and free video on the RMAC Network will be available as well.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines baseball on "X" (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @OrediggersBSB. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, "X" and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.