UA baseball team opens its season with seven new players

Today at 3 p.m. at Frank Sancet Field the Arizona baseball team opens its season against St. Mary's University of San Antonio, Texas.

The Wildcats, who have seven new faces in the starting lineup, will put senior left-hander Rob Shabansky on the mound to face off against junior Eric Siege.

Arizona associate head coach Bill Kinneberg said Shabansky will be on a pitch count to start the season off.

"We are going to start Rob slower than most because we don't want to overuse him," Kinneberg said. "He will get 60 pitches this week, 75 next week at Hilo and 80 to 90 against New Mexico. After that he should be fine."

Shabansky finished 1998 with a 5-1 record and an ERA of 3.35 in just seven appearances. His season was cut short due to an elbow injury.

"It is real early in the season and we want to make sure our guys are healthy in March, April and May," UA head coach Jerry Stitt said.

Coming in for Shabansky will most likely be junior Dave Abbott.

Stitt also said the lineup is still up in the air, but sophomore Ernie Durazo will play first base today and juniors Rafell Jones or Brad Fendley could be the designated hitter.

Saturday and Sunday's pitchers are junior Josh Pearce and freshman Ben Diggins, respectfully. Diggins could also see time at first base and DH during the series.

St. Mary's at Arizona Where: Sancet Field When: Today at 3 p.m., tomorrow and Sunday at 1 p.m. What: The 1999 college baseball season opens with this non-conference match-up . . . Arizona lost its only two previous meetings with St. Mary's in 1995 . . . The game marks the return of senior left-handed starter Rob Shabansky, who was injured last March against California and did not pitch again in 1998.

As for the batting order, sophomore shortstop Keoni DeRenne will hit leadoff, followed by junior center fielder Troy Gingrich.

"I'm not sure what the (rest of the) lineup is going to be," DeRenne said, "but a lot of people know where they are going to be on this team. Everybody is working hard and ready to get after it."

The Wildcats don't know much about their opponent, Stitt said, other than the fact that St. Mary's head coach John Babtista is a former UA graduate assistant.

"It will be an outstanding experience to come back and play at Sancet Field. I will be in front of a lot of family and friends," Babtista said.

St. Mary's is at a disadvantage in this game because they have only been together for a week as a team and practice has been tough because it's been raining in northern California, Babtista said.

"Right now through the work we have been doing, we haven't been scoring a lot of runs, but I expect them to swing the bats like Coach Stitt's team normally does. Our pitchers will be tested early," Babtista said.

The Wildcats know they have the talent to win this series, but they also realize that game experience is the most important thing they need to work on.

"For us as a team we need to keep playing day in and day out," DeRenne said. "It is a learning experience for us against a lesser competition before we get into Pac-10 play."

Dan Rosen can be reached at Dan.Rosen@wildcat.arizona.edu.