First baseman Anthony Martinez hit two homers and drove in four runs as the 20th-ranked UC Irvine baseball team defeated Hawaii 6-3 at Les Murakami Stadium.
In winning Thursday’s opener of a three-game series, the Anteaters improved to 20-3 overall and 6-1 in the Big West. The ’Bows fell to 15-8 and 2-2.
“That was the first time in my career I had a multi-homer game,” Martinez said. “It was a great feeling, a great way to contribute to help my team win.”
A crowd of 2,017 saw a pregame ceremony in which UH renamed the press booth after former sportscasters Don Robbs and Jim Leahey. Robbs was the radio broadcaster for 40 seasons through his retirement in 2016. Leahey, who was the “Voice of the Rainbows” during a 30-plus-year radio and television career, died last year.
The ’Bows took 1-0 lead in the first. After Matthew Miura drew a full-count, two-out walk, Austin Machado hit a high chopper to the right side. First baseman Anthony Martinez fielded the ball, and threw to pitcher Nick Pinto. But Pinto mishandled the ball, which then rolled in front of the UCI dugout on the right side. Miura raced home for the game’s first run.
But Martinez, an amateur magician, made that deficit disappear when he lined a shot over the fence in right field to tie it at 1 in the second inning.
“It was a slider on a two-strike count,” Martinez said. “I put a good swing on it, got barrel. I think the wind helped that one out.”
UH coach Rich Hill said of Martinez: “He’s one of the best hitters in the country. He’s a Team USA guy. He’s a complete hitter. Good hitters hit mistakes.”
The Anteaters then took a 2-1 lead after Thomas McCaffrey and Will Bermudez both singled and Chase Call was hit by a pitch to load the bases. McCaffrey scored on Luke Spillane’s looping single to left.
In the UCI fifth, shortstop Woody Hadeen singled and third baseman Jo Oyama reached on a fielder’s choice. Two batters later, the 6-foot-3, 230-pound Martinez pulled a three-run shot to right for his second homer of the night and fourth of the season.
“It was the same thing (as the first homer),” Martinez said. “I tried to put a good swing on the ball. Whatever happens, happens.”
Last season, Martinez hit 11 home runs as a freshman while leading the Big West in hitting (.394).
Nick Pinto, a senior who has emerged as the ace of an otherwise freshman-dominant rotation, spaced five hits and allowed two runs — only one earned — in six innings.
“I was able to mix well,” Pinto said. “They did a great job with two strikes. I was able to get some weak contact at the end. I was doing a good job. Dan (Bibona, UCI’s pitching coach) was calling a great game.”
Pinto and relievers Nick Rincover, Ricky Ojeda and Ricky Tibbett held UH leadoff hitters to 0-for-9 with three strikeouts. Tibbett got the final four outs for his second save.
The ’Bows cut their deficit to 6-3 when Jared Quandt, who pinch-hit for pinch hitter Sean Rimmer, drew a two-out, bases-loaded walk. But pinch hitter Aaron Ujimori, who represented the potential go-ahead run at the plate, could not capitalize, grounding out to strand three ’Bows.
“I thought our guys took some really good at-bats,” Hill said. “Jared Quandt had a great at-bat. Stone Miyao had a great at-bat (to walk to fill the bases). We strung ’em together. We put ourselves in a position to tie the game, to win the game. The winning run’s at the plate in the eighth inning. And we just didn’t get it done.”
The series continues tonight with UH left-handed pitcher Randy Abshier set to make his seventh start.
BIG WEST BASEBALL
Conference Overall
W L Pct. GB W L
UC Irvine 6 1 .857 — 20 3
CS Northridge 5 2 .714 1 15 10
UCSB 4 2 .667 11
2 14 8
UCSD 4 3 .571 2 17 6
!-LBSU 4 3 .571 2 14 8
Cal Poly 4 3 .571 2 12 11
Hawaii 2 2 .500 21
2 15 8
UC Davis 3 4 .429 3 13 11
CS Fullerton 2 5 .286 4 9 15
CS Bakersfield 1 6 .143 5 5 20
UC Riverside 0 4 .000 41
2 9 13
!-does not include one tie
Thursday
UC Irvine 6, Hawaii 3
Cal State Northridge 13, UC Davis 9
UC San Diego 7, UC Riverside 3
Long Beach State 4, CS Bakersfield 1
Cal State Fullerton 8, Cal Poly 2
x-UC Santa Barbara 3, San Jose State 2
Today
UC Irvine at Hawaii, 6:35 p.m.
UC Davis at Cal State Northridge (2)
UC Riverside at UC San Diego
Cal Poly at Cal State Fullerton (2)
Long Beach State at Cal State Bakersfield
x-San Jose State at UC Santa Barbara
Saturday
UC Irvine at Hawaii, 1:35 p.m.
Long Beach State at Cal State Bakersfield
Monday
UC Riverside at UC San Diego
x-non-conference game
NO. 20 UC IRVINE 6, HAWAII 3
ANTEATERS AB R H BI BB SO
Hadeen ss 4 1 1 0 0 1
Oyama 3b 5 1 1 0 0 1
Kendle dh 4 0 0 1 0 1
Martinez 1b 4 2 2 4 0 0
McCaffrey c 4 1 1 0 0 0
Bermudez 2b 4 0 1 0 0 1
Call rf 3 0 0 0 0 1
Carney lf 4 0 0 0 0 3
Spillane cf 4 1 3 1 0 0
TOTALS 36 6 9 6 0 8
RAINBOW WARRIORS AB R H BI BB SO
J. Donahue ss 4 0 1 0 1 1
Tsukada lf 4 0 1 1 0 0
Miura cf 4 1 0 0 1 1
Machado dh 5 0 1 0 0 2
Duarte c 4 1 1 0 0 1
K. Donahue 1b 4 0 2 0 0 0
Miyao 2b 3 0 1 0 1 0
Zeigler rf 2 1 1 0 1 0
Rimmer ph 0 0 0 0 0 0
Quandt ph/rf 0 0 0 1 1 0
Ickes 3b 2 0 0 0 1 0
Ujimori ph/3b 1 0 0 0 0 0
TOTALS 33 3 8 2 6 5
UC Irvine (20-3, 6-1) 020 030 100 — 6 9 1
Hawaii (15-8, 2-2) 100 010 010 — 3 8 1
E–Pinto; Ujimori. LOB–UC Irvine 5; Hawaii
10. HR—Martinez 2. HBP–Call. SH–Hadeen. SF–Tsukada. SB–Spillane. CS–K.
Donahue.
UC IRVINE IP H R ER BB SO
Pinto (W, 5-1) 6 5 2 1 2 3
Rincover 1 0 0 0 2 0
Ojeda 2
3 2 1 1 1 1
Tibbett (S,5) 11
3 1 0 0 1 1
HAWAII IP H R ER BB SO
Giroux (L, 3-1) 41
3 6 4 4 0 6
Bodendorf 22
3 3 2 2 0 2
Dyball 12
3 0 0 0 0 0
Harrison 1
3 0 0 0 0 0
WP–Rincover. HBP–by Giroux (Call). Umpires—(Plate): Greg Charles. (First): Scott
Letendre. (Second): Jeff Henrichs. (Third):
Eric Peterson. T—3:03. A–3,291.
