Takeaways from Oregon State's thrilling walk-off win over UCLA

CORVALLIS — In a game that featured 23 runs, 32 hits, and six home runs, it was ultimately a fastball up and in that decided Saturday's thriller at Goss Stadium.

Dallas Macias staged a nine-pitch battle before drawing a bases-loaded walk with two outs in the bottom of the ninth to plate Wilson Weber and give Oregon State a 12-11 home win over UCLA. Easton Talt, who came on to pinch hit at the start of the inning, cracked a leadoff single to get the Beavers going.

Weber was then hit by a pitch, Jabin Trosky followed with a sacrifice bunt, and Travis Bazzana was intentionally walked to set the stage for Macias.

"Great battle," Oregon State coach Mitch Canham said of Macias' walk-off walk. "It's (a 3-1 count), to be patient — maybe he got (a pitch) that he could have handled — but feeling the situation, having the confidence to go deep (in the count), sometimes guys are just in swing mode. So, I love the fact that he was willing to take that and then battle off a couple of strikes to draw the walk.

"That was an excellent at-bat."

Brady Kasper smashed two home runs, and five different Oregon State players finished with multiple hits. With the win, No. 7 Oregon State improved to 38-12 on the year and 16-9 in Pac-12 play.

Here are three takeaways from OSU's close-fought win.

Oregon State's resiliency

Midway through the third inning, Oregon State appeared to be in big trouble.

The Beavers' standout starting pitcher, Jacob Kmatz, was tagged for six runs, including four earned, in 2 2/3 innings of work on the night. While he was far from his best on Saturday, Kmatz was stung by a few Oregon State defensive mishaps. He also surrendered a grand slam to Roch Cholowsky that, off the bat, looked like a routine pop-up. But a heavy wind carried it over the center field fence.

"We went out there and didn't have Kmatz's back, which was extremely unfortunate," Canham said. "We were kicking the ball around. So, he had to make a quick exit from the game. You can't ever let that happen. So that was a bit of a message; I think (the players) saw that I was upset."

Whatever transpired in the Beavers' dugout after their tumultuous top of the third ultimately sparked a rapid comeback.

Oregon State erupted for seven runs in the bottom of the third, with the majority of the damage coming on a towering three-run homer from Kasper.

Saturday marked the second week in a row that Oregon State has scored seven runs in a single inning while trailing. It did so against Washington State in Pullman last Saturday, too, and nearly orchestrated a big comeback in the bottom of the ninth before losing, 10-9.

"I think it goes to show that our lineup is never down, no matter how down it can seem," Oregon State outfielder Gavin Turley said. "If our hitters are fired up, it's a dangerous spot to be in as a pitcher. You can't make any mistakes — especially back-to-back mistakes."

Gavin Turley's big moment

It will get lost in the shuffle after Saturday's chaotic ninth inning, but Turley nearly delivered the decisive hit for the Beavers.

With the game knotted at 10-10, the sophomore outfielder launched a go-ahead home run to deep left field to send the sellout crowd of 4,032 into a frenzy. Turley's big moment was wiped out when the Bruins battled back to tie the game in the top of the ninth.

Nonetheless, the sequence will serve as a confidence booster for a player who has been instrumental in the middle of the order this season. Turley's homer was his 17th of the season. After Saturday's 2-for-4 showing, he leads the Beavers with 62 RBI on the year.

"It's an emotional day," Turley said. "You hit the go-ahead home run and then we back to being tied. So it's like, 'Oh, man.' But honestly, in the end of it, I could care less. We won the ballgame; that's what I'm here to do."

OSU's continued confidence in Bridger Holmes

For much of this season, Oregon State closer Bridger Holmes has been unhittable.

The 6-foot-4 junior was named to the Stopper of the Year watch list earlier this spring. He has 11 saves on the year and has struck out 36 batters in 24 2/3 innings of work. More often than not, Canham and pitching coach Rich Dorman have been able to count on him in high-leverage situations.

On Saturday, though, Holmes had arguably his worst moment of the year. After Turley's go-ahead homer, Holmes surrendered a pair of singles in the top of the ninth. With two outs, he had an opportunity to slam the door on UCLA and end the game, but hit two consecutive batters with pitches to send home the tying run.

Don't expect Canham and Dorman's faith in their star reliever to shift anytime soon, though.

"He'll be ready for tomorrow," Canham said of Holmes. "He will. ... He's fine. He'll be ready. He told me today, 'You need me to throw every day? I'll throw every day. I wanna pitch this weekend — I don't care what the situation is, I wanna pitch.'"

What's next for Oregon State

The Beavers will look to complete a series sweep of the Bruins at noon Sunday. The game is set to air on Pac-12 Oregon.

Eric Segura (5-1, 5.11 ERA) is expected to get the starting nod for Oregon State.

Jarrid Denney covers high school sports and Oregon State for the Statesman Journal. He can be reached at JDenney@salem.gannett.com or on X @jarrid_denney

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: OSU baseball looks to win series over UCLA on Sunday in Corvallis