BERKELEY - With a four-game sweep of Cal State Bakersfield providing plenty of forward momentum, the Cal baseball team hits the road for the second time in three weeks as the Bears head to Texas to compete in the Frisco Baseball Classic. The three-game round-robin tournament, which will be hosted by the Double-A Frisco RoughRiders at Dr. Pepper Ballpark, begins Friday with a 1 p.m. (Pacific) contest against Baylor.

Action continues Saturday at noon against Louisiana Tech and the final game of the weekend is set for Sunday at 9 a.m. against nationally ranked Texas A&M. All three games will be streamed live through the Frisco Classic Facebook page (Facebook.com/FriscoClassic) and fans can access player bios, schedules and a host of other content through both the Frisco Classic website (FriscoClassic.com) and the Frisco Classic mobile app.

Cal makes the trek to Texas with momentum in its corner after a highly productive first weekend at Evans Diamond. Three blowout victories highlighted the first homestand of the year and junior outfielder Jonah Davis was named Pac-12 Player of the Week thanks to a four-game stretch in which he went 8 for 14 with four extra-base hits (two home runs) and 12 RBIs. By the time the weekend was complete, the Bears ranked fifth in the country in team batting average (.361), sixth in on-base percentage (.450) and seventh in runs scored (73). Sophomore Andrew Vaughn leads the Pac-12 in home runs with five while Davis leads the Pac-12 in RBIs with 15.

PROBABLE STARTERS

Friday vs. Baylor, 1 p.m. (PT)
Cal: RHP Jared Horn (2-0, 3.60 ERA)
Baylor: LHP Cody Bradford (1-0, 0.00)

Saturday vs. Louisiana Tech, noon (PT)
Cal: RHP Joey Matulovich (0-0, 4.66)
Louisiana Tech: LHP Logan Robbins (2-0, 0.82)

Sunday vs. Texas A&M, 9 a.m. (PT)
Cal: LHP Matt Ladrech (1-1, 3.27)
Texas A&M: RHP Mitchell Kilkenny (2-0, 1.42)

LAST TIME OUT
Cal sweeps four-game series vs. CSU Bakersfield

• The Bears enjoyed their first home series of the 2018 season as runs were plentiful in a four-game sweep of CSU Bakersfield. Scoring a combined total of 58 runs over four games, the Bears earned wins of 17-6, 5-3, 23-2 and 13-2 against the Roadrunners.
• Junior left fielder Jonah Davis earned his first Pac-12 Player of the Week nod for his work against CSU Bakersfield. The La Jolla, Calif. native went 8 for 14 with one double, one triple, two home runs and 12 RBIs over the four-game series. He ended the weekend as the Pac-12 leader in RBIs with 15.
• On the mound, Cal's usual starting trio of Jared Horn, Joey Matulovich and Matt Ladrech again gave the Bears a chance to win in all three starts. Ladrech was especially impressive, tossing seven innings and allowing just one earned run in Cal's 13-2 win on Sunday. Sophomore Rogelio Reyes got the call as Cal's fourth starter and also pitched well, throwing six innings of one-run ball in a 23-2 victory.

SCOUTING THE BAYLOR BEARS
Last Meeting: Cal and Baylor last met for a pair of games in 2014 with the Golden Bears picking up two wins in San Diego. Cal got started with an 8-5 win over the Bears thanks in part to a five-RBI day from Derek Campbell. Two days later, Ryan Mason worked two innings in relief to earn the win while Trevor Hildenberger earned save No. 3 in a 5-3 Cal victory. 

Series Record: Cal leads 5-2

Baylor's 2018 Record: 3-3 overall 

• Head coach Steve Rodriguez's crew will face Pac-12 competition for the second week in a row after a trip to UCLA last week yielded just one win in three tries. The Bears picked up an 8-6 victory on Saturday but fell 5-2 on Friday and 3-0 on Sunday.
• A pair of sophomores has emerged to lead Baylor offensively as Andy Thomas entered the week with a .429 average and Davis Wendzel wasn't far behind at .409. Another freshman, C/1B Shea Langeliers, has earned plenty of preseason buzz and joined Cal's Tanner Dodson and Andrew Vaughn on several preseason All-America lists.
• On the mound, sophomore left-hander Cody Bradford leads the way with a 1-0 record and 0.00 ERA in two starts so far this season. Senior Troy Montemayor is Baylor's top option at the back end of the bullpen and has three saves and a 0.00 ERA in three appearances entering the week.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
Last Meeting: n/a

Series Record: First meeting

Louisiana Tech's 2018 Record: 5-4

• Head coach Lane Burroughs has Louisiana Tech off to a good start as the Bulldogs also play closer to home after spending last weekend in California. A four-game split at Pepperdine came courtesy of wins on Friday and Saturday as the Bulldogs won 9-3 on Friday, split a doubleheader on Saturday and fell 2-1 on Sunday.
• Junior catcher Chris Clayton has enjoyed a strong start to the season at the plate as he carries a .409 average and team-high seven RBIs into mid-week action. Mason Mallard (.323) and Mason Robinson (.320) are also among the team's leaders in batting average.
• The Bulldogs have been particularly strong on the mound in the early stages of the season and they carry a team ERA of 1.62 into the week. Probable Saturday starter Logan Robbins has played a big role in compiling that number, going 2-0 with a 0.82 ERA in his first two starts.

SCOUTING THE AGGIES
Last Meeting: The Bears and Aggies met in a memorable NCAA Regional showdown in 2015 with host Texas A&M advancing thanks to two wins in three highly competitive contests. Cal won the first meeting 2-1 in 14 innings and the legend of "El Gaucho" landed a spot in Cal Baseball history as Mitchell Kranson's walk-off home run helped the Bears earn the win. The Aggies rebounded with an extra-inning win of their own, winning 4-3 in 12 innings before earning a 3-1 victory to capture the Regional

Series Record: 4-4

Texas A&M's 2018 Record: 9-0 overall

• The Aggies entered mid-week play with a perfect 7-0 record thanks to series sweeps of Rhode Island and Cornell along with a mid-week win over Stephen F. Austin. Head coach Rob Childress' squad is ranked No. 10 in the latest D1Baseball.com poll.
• Offense hasn't been hard to find for the Aggies in the early stages of 2018 and they carried a .356 team batting average into Wednesday's game against Incarnate Word. Zach DeLoach sat atop the list when it comes to average with a .484 mark while Logan Foster came next with a .480 average and team-high 10 RBIs.
• Texas A&M has also been strong on the mound so far this season with a team ERA of 1.38 entering Wednesday's game. Projected Sunday starter Mitchell Kilkenny enters the weekend with a 2-0 record and 1.42 ERA in two starts.

NEXT UP
Cal returns to Evans Diamond for four games next week. The Bears host Xavier on March 6 at 7:05 p.m. in Cal's first mid-week game of the season. Brown comes to town for a four-game weekend and it will be a Bears vs. Bears showdown from March 9-11. After a trip across the Bay Bridge on March 13 to take on San Francisco, Cal opens Pac-12 play at home from March 16-18 against Oregon State.