On the second pitch of the game, transfer Matt Eureste homered to left in his Oregon debut. This was a theme for things to come as Oregon’s bats pounded the Rainbow Warriors 12-0.
Cole Irvin took the mound on a 40-45 pitch count in his return from Tommy John surgery, a raised number since last Monday where Horton said he would be at 30-35. Irvin was dominant in his 43 pitches, collecting four strikeouts in four innings and allowing just two hits and no walks. His command was sharp, but his velocity was down.
The two Seminole State College transfers, Brandon Cuddy and Phil Craig-St. Louis, combined for six hits in nine at bats and Cuddy had two RBIs. Eureste, who had impressed the coaching staff the most of the three, had the most impressive at bat. His leadoff home run would be his only hit of the night, but he did collect two RBIs and set the tone in the leadoff spot.
Oregon controlled the game from the second pitch and never looked back. With the score 3-0, the knockout punch came in the sixth when Oregon scored seven runs on four hits and one Hawaii error. Cuddy started the rally with a triple that knocked in Mitchell Tolman and the runs continued to pour. A single and a wild pitch later and the Ducks were up 6-0. But then freshman Jakob Goldfarb connected for a two-run home run to left field, landing similarly to Eureste’s shot.
Conor Harber came in relief for Irvin in the fifth and was equally dominant. Harber, who Horton said is a starter and was planning on using him in this situation, went five innings with four strikeouts and allowed just two hits to finish off Hawaii.
The Rainbow Warriors defense didn’t help their cause to get back into it. But their offense was having enough trouble in their own right. Hawaii compiled six errors on opening night.
With all things considered, this was an excellent start for Oregon. The pitching was dominant and the hitting was loud, especially from their new faces. It was a good start for a long journey ahead.
Oregon plays next on Saturday at 3:05 p.m. for the second game of the series.
Follow Andrew Bantly on Twitter @andrewbantly