BERKELEY – California begins the 2023 season on Friday with a three-game series against the Houston Cougars, beginning Friday at 4:30 p.m. PT at Schroeder Park in Houston. Saturday's game is also slated for a 4:30 p.m. first pitch with Sunday's finale scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. PT.
 
All three games will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Bob Slovak and Kyle Rogers handling play-by-play duties. The Bears are 3-5 against the Cougars, but have won their last two matchups. Cal opened the 2022 season with a 4-2 win over the Cougars in 10 innings at the MLB4 Tournament hosted in Scottsdale, Arizona.
 
HOW TO FOLLOW

• Game 1: ESPN+ (Bob Slovak (play-by-play), Kyle Rogers (analyst) | Live Stats
• Game 2: ESPN+ | Live Stats
• Game 3: ESPN+ | Live Stats

 
PROBABLE PITCHERS

• Game 1: LHP Ian May vs. RHP Cade Citelli
• Game 2: RHP Paulshawn Pasqualotto vs. LHP Kyle LaCalameto
• Game 3: TBD vs. TBD

 
QUICK HITS

• In the Mike Neu era, which is entering its sixth season, the Bears are 3-2 on opening day and 7-10 overall on opening weekends. Last year, Cal defeated Houston 4-2 in 10 innings en route to a weekend sweep over opponents TCU and San Diego State in the MLB4 Tournament.
• Sophomore catcher/designated hitter Caleb Lomavita was named to the inaugural Pac-12 Preseason All-Conference Team. Lomavita had a stellar 2022 season in which he earned College Baseball Freshman All-American honors and was named to the All-Pac-12 First Team.
• Cal returns four starters from last year's starting lineup. Back for the Golden Bears: INF/C Dom Souto, outfielder Rodney Green Jr., C/DH Lomavita, and outfielder Nathan Manning. That quarter combined to club 21 home runs and drive in 111 RBI. Overall, Cal returns 16 letter winners from last year's quad.
• Weekend rotation: On Friday, Cal will go with sophomore lefty Ian May. Saturday will see the return of Paulshawn Pasqualotto to the bump. In 2022, May went 2-1 with a 5.06 ERA in 20 appearances with eight starts. Pasqualotto earned Freshman All-American honors in 2021 going 4-3 with a 4.57 ERA in 43.1 innings pitched. In five of his eight starts, he tallied five or more strikeouts.
• Of the 34 players on the roster, 32 are from California in 2023. Of those 32 Californians, 20 are from Northern California. The two out-of-state athletes: are Lomavita (Hawaii), and Pasqualotto (Nevada).
• Under Mike Neu (2018-present) the Bears are 64-48 against non-conference foes. Since 2018, Cal has gone 14-9 ('22), 14-11 ('21), 5-11 ('20), 15-9 ('19), and 16-8 ('18) in non-conference matchups. On the road, the Golden Bears are 47-50 in that same period.

 
UP NEXT
The Bears will return to the Bay Area for the first of two non-conference contests against rival Stanford. Tuesday's non-conference game is scheduled for a 6:05 first pitch and will be televised on the Pac-12 Network.
 
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