PASADENA, Calif. – After proving itself as a program on the rise the past few seasons, the Caltech baseball team is looking to impress yet again as they enter their 2023 campaign.
The team's recent success cannot be understated. After not winning a single conference game between 1988 and 2017, the Beavers have completely turned it around, picking up SCIAC wins in every season since 2017. If not for the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in a shortened 2020 season and a fully-suspended 2021 season, the Beavers very likely would have tallied even more.
The program began seeing major improvement in 2017 when the squad notched eight total wins and two against SCIAC opponents, breaking the 29-year losing streak against conference foes. This season proved not to be a fluke, as the 2018 team picked up four wins including yet another against a SCIAC squad.
Between 2018 and 2019 saw the arrival of current head coach Kevin Whitehead, who elevated the program even further. The team achieved an 8-win season in 2019, including victories against five different SCIAC opponents – something that hadn't been done in 61 years. He has since picked up eight more wins and multiple against conference foes. The team won more games last year than they did in total from 2004 to 2015, and this year's group is looking to build on those accomplishments.
"We're more competitive now than we've been, but we still have a lot to prove," said Whitehead. "We have a lot of returning guys and a lot of freshmen who will step up ... Our senior leadership and some other leadership have brought a really good team atmosphere and team culture."
The 2023 squad sees a crop of fresh faces joining a solid crew of returners, with eight freshmen joining the existing roster of six sophomores, six juniors, and three seniors. The Beavers return seven of their 11 batters who recorded 38+ at-bats in 2022, and seven of their 11 pitchers who appeared in 7+ games.
One of those returners is senior outfielder Will Dembski, who in 2022 became the first player in Caltech history to be named to a D3Baseball.com All-Region team. The Pella, Iowa native achieved All-Region Third Team in addition to being awarded All-SCIAC Second Team honors. Dembski's ten home runs last year were good for fifth-best in the conference, while his batting average (.357) and RBI total (30) placed him 18th and 29th, respectively. Dembski led the team in nearly every batting statistic last season and was the team leader in stolen bases, notching six on seven attempts. And on top of his abilities, the Beavers will rely on him as a role model.
"He's one of our main leaders," Whitehead said, also naming senior outfielder Jack Warren in that category. "They've earned that."
Warren is one of the other major names returning to the Beavers, who last spring tied for second on the team in batting average (.300) and hits (30). He was third for Caltech in RBIs (16) and total bases (47) and was a major part of the team's success at the plate.
Joining the two seniors in the lineup is sophomore infielder Jack Fishel, who was third on the team in runs scored last season (15). Whitehead noted that the young Fishel has registered very strong at-bats leading up to the start of this season.
Also returning to the squad will be junior infielders Gautam Chawla, who earned a starting position this offseason, and Leo Jenkins, who was second on the team in RBIs last year with 17. Other returners who will be in starting roles include sophomore infielder Garrett Knuf and sophomore outfielder Thorsen Kristufek, both of whom Whitehead expects will perform well. Sophomore catcher Edward Speer will also return, looking to take on a bigger role in his second season.
On the mound, the team loses two key pitchers to graduation, allowing for a mix of returners and newcomers to lead the way.
"We're going to look for guys to step up on the mound," said Whitehead. "We have a lot of guys who can contribute -- so they're just going to have to show that they can. It's going to be fun."
One of the names in that mix of pitchers includes returning right-hander Kyle Reese, a junior who will hope to make an impact right away in the Beavers' opening series versus Providence Christian.
"He's an older guy now," said Whitehead. "We're hoping he can step up and lead us on the mound."
The team also returns right-handed pitcher and senior Steven Yee, who last year was third for the Beavers in innings pitched (33.2) in addition to being third in ERA among pitchers who recorded 11 or more innings. Yee recorded a key save in the Beavers' 8-5 win over Whittier last season, part of the Beavers' doubleheader sweep against the Poets.
Fellow senior Arya Mevada, a left-handed pitcher, will also be used on the hill. Mevada recorded 10.2 innings in 2022. After graduation this May, both Yee and Mevada will be joining front office jobs in the MLB.
Whitehead is excited to see how his newcomers add to this existing crew of vets. The team's eight freshmen represent the largest recruiting class in Whitehead's tenure.
"They're all going to have a role, which is exciting," said Whitehead. He also noted that a few of the newcomers will be stepping up as two-way players, pitching and stepping in to bat.
Joining Whitehead on the staff this year will be assistant coaches Grant Victor and Hank Whitehead. In general, Kevin Whitehead noted that he and the coaching staff want to ensure the players are working on their routines and taking care of their health.
"It's about making sure that we're intentional with what we're doing in practice and pacing [our] health so that we're better in late March than in late January," said Whitehead. "Working on the process and getting better has been our main focus. How we get better is by trying to be consistent."
Key games for the Beavers include the season opener on Saturday, Feb. 4, when the Beavers will head to Glendale to face Providence Christian in a doubleheader (10 a.m. and 1 p.m.). Caltech defeated the Sea Beggars 13-0 in their first game last season. The Beavers will then return to Pasadena for their home opener on Saturday, Feb. 11, where they will face Puget Sound in another day of back-to-back games (11 a.m. and 2 p.m.).
Caltech's first conference matchup will be at Occidental's Anderson Field on Friday, Feb. 17 at 2 p.m., before the Beavers return home on Saturday, Feb. 18 for their home SCIAC doubleheader. The team's final regular season home game will be on April 29, with the SCIAC Championship being held May 12-14. All games will be available to watch via the SCIAC Network.
