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The Michigan Wolverines have faced a gauntlet so far this season in two weekend tournaments, and they have fared well. Michigan is 4-3, with three of those four wins coming against ranked teams. The Wolverines also won their opening weekend tournament in Surprise, Arizona, which was, well…a surprise.
Michigan wasn’t predicted to be great this year, but the results of the first two weekends are promising. The three losses have come to No. 19 Oregon State (in extra innings; the Wolverines beat the Beavers in their other matchup), No. 21 Florida State and Kansas State.
The Wolverines will once again be somewhere warm this weekend, as they will head to California to take on San Diego in a three-game series. Let’s take a closer look at this weekend’s matchup.
San Diego this season vs. last season
San Diego was one of the best teams in the WCC last year. The Toreros finished 28-30 overall record and a 19-5 conference record. They made it all the way to the WCC Championship with a spot in the NCAA Tournament on the line, but St. Mary’s ended up earning the auto bid.
The Toreros are off to a hot start in 2026, as they are 6-1 with wins against Charlotte (twice), Long Beach State, Utah, Creighton and San Diego State. The lone loss came against Charlotte.
San Diego’s record is impressive, but it has not been tested like Michigan has. The Toreros have zero ranked wins to Michigan’s three, so the difficult schedule the Wolverines started with could end up giving them an advantage.
Players to watch
Offensively, San Diego has three players who are hitting .300 or better so far, and all three have started all seven games. Outfielder Aden Howard is leading the way for the Toreros so far, as he is hitting .345 to start the year. He is 10-of-29 with one double, three triples, one home run and seven RBIs.
Catcher Jayden Lobliner is also having a hot start to the season, as he is 9-of-3o (.300) so far. He also has some pop in his bat, as three of his nine hits have been home runs. Lobliner can turn a mistake into runs very quickly. He has 10 RBIs on the year. Lastly, infielder Gabe Springer is hitting .300 as well. He has three doubles, one triple, one home run and six RBIs to start the season.
It’s hard to know what a pitching rotation will look like for a weekend series in college baseball, especially this early in the season. But Michigan will likely face Kyle Bade, Diego Gutierrez and Drake Frize, three guys that all have two starts under their belts this season.
Bade has been the best of them so far, tossing nine innings pitched and giving up three earned runs. Gutierrez has been solid as well, giving up four earned runs in 10 innings pitched. Frize has struggled a bit, as he has given up seven earned runs in nine innings pitched.
Overall, this will be another tough test for Michigan, but this is a winnable series. Programs out west are always solid, but the Wolverines have already notched a few impressive wins this season.
Series schedule
- Game 1: Friday 2/27 @ 9 p.m. ET, ESPN+
- Game 2: Saturday 2/28 @ 9 p.m. ET, ESPN+
- Game 3: Sunday 3/1 @ 4 p.m. ET, ESPN+
Looking ahead
Michigan will be out in California for a while, as the Wolverines have another series next weekend against Pepperdine. In between Pepperdine and San Diego, however, Michigan will have a mid-week clash against Cal State Northridge on Tuesday. The Matadors are 5-3 to begin the year with wins against Seattle (three times), St. Mary’s and Cal Baptist.