The Lobos open the 2004 season this weekend with games against Kent State, No. 23 Nebraska and Northwestern University in the Ultimate Dugout Baseball Fiesta Tournament at Isotopes Park.
With the new season comes an influx of new talent, and these first few games will showcase two new starting pitchers who hope to kick off the '04 campaign with their first wins as Lobos.
Junior transfer Cooper Eddy will start the first game of the tournament against Kent State. The hard-throwing righty said being the opening-day pitcher is an honor.
A more imposing task faces Saturday starter Danny Ray Herrera. A freshman left-hander from Texas, Herrera will make his collegiate debut against Nebraska, last year's Big 12 champ and the 23rd-ranked team in the country.
"It's going to be a real tough challenge," said Herrera, who wasn't even expecting to start this year.
"I'm really glad I get this chance," he said. "Hopefully I can prove myself."
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Being thrown into the fire at the onset of his career at UNM doesn't faze Herrera either.
"I like challenges, and I've always liked playing against big teams," Herrera said.
Head coach Rich Alday said he isn't worried about Herrera's youth - or anyone else's for that matter.
"We've told our freshmen, 'You're no longer a freshman,'" Alday said. "They've gotten their feet wet, and now they've got to go out and compete."
"Herrera's going to be really good for us," Alday added. "He'll probably be nervous for his first start, but he'll be fine."
Alday said it will be exciting to see how his new pitchers throw this weekend against good competition.
"They both throw a lot of strikes, which is what we look for," he said. "It's a little bit different playing Division I baseball compared to high school or junior college. It'll be interesting to see how they do."
On top of kicking off a new season with new starters, the Lobos begin an entire new era of UNM baseball on Friday when they officially make the move to Isotopes Park. The Lobos played just three games there last season and lost all three, but the park will now serve as UNM's permanent home field.
"It's definitely really exciting," Alday said. "It's going to be so good for the fans because they'll be able to be in the shade and out of the wind. The atmosphere there will be great, and hopefully we'll be seeing some bigger crowds."
After coaching 15 years at UNM, Alday said he is ecstatic to be moving into the new state-of-the-art ballpark.
"It's going to be really exciting," he said. "We're really looking forward to it and so are the players."
