Bieser's GCU debut gets pro test at Mexican Baseball Fiesta
9/26/2026 9:24:00 PM | Baseball, Paul Coro
Share:
Despite 6-run inning, Lopes fall 10-6 to Yaquis de Obregón in Maryvale
By: Paul Coro
Head coach Steve Bieser's first Grand Canyon baseball team made its field debut against another squad Saturday night with a fitting celebration staged 3 1/2 miles from campus.
After reconstructing the roster and repertoire of GCU baseball since his early June hire, Bieser and his staff needed an on-field test that the Mexican Baseball Fiesta provided with a fan environment and a professional opponent that lifted Mexican baseball and challenged Lopes baseball.
GCU lost 10-6 in eight innings to Yaquis de Obregón, a Mexican Pacific League club, at the Milwaukee Brewers' spring training home, American Family Fields of Phoenix, but Bieser left content with encouraging performances and teachable moments to build toward his first Lopes season.
Obregón's starting lineup included former MLB All-Star and World Series champion Aledmys Diaz and former San Diego Padres player Allen Cordoba, and the Yaquis brought in ex-MLB relief pitcher Jeff Brigham crosstown from where he pitched for the Diamondbacks last season.
Facing an Obregón lineup with six starters who were 29 or older, the Lopes slipped into an 8-0 hole before fighting back with a six-run seventh inning. The doubleheader event enacted a time limit that denied GCU's ninth-inning at bat in front of more than 1,000 fans.
"It was a really good thing for us to get out there, see what we have and see how our guys respond to outside competition," Bieser said. "I thought we competed well. We made a lot of mistakes. We did some things that were losing baseball. We're going to learn from those things, grow and continue to get better. It couldn't have been a better way to start the fall."
Obregón's first two pitchers carry 30 combined professional seasons, but GCU put a runner on base in each inning before the seventh-inning breakthrough. The Lopes, playing with wood bats, put a runner or two in scoring position in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings before each stanza ended on back-to-back strikeouts.
Jake Echols
Junior Andrew Ildefonso and freshman Kahanu Martinez, two of 26 GCU newcomers, each doubled without scoring before the Lopes capitalized with the first five batters reaching base in the seventh.
After a leadoff single by sophomore shortstop Austin Owens, sophomore Aspen Alexander crushed a high, 2-0 fastball in his first at bat of the game to the park's deepest spot ("Bieser told me to get my pitch and don't miss it," Alexander said). His 410-foot blast knocked off the center-field wall, turning into a two-run, inside-the-park home run.
"We've been putting in the work the last couple of months, and everything's coming together," said Alexander, a Lake Stevens, Washington, native who redshirted last season. "We have a really talented squad. It was nice to get out here and compete finally. It was really good for us to compete against a really good team in a fun environment. Bieser and the new coaching staff have been running a really tight ship. I'm excited to see what we can do."
After senior outfielder Carson Ohland doubled, another two-run hit came on junior and Scottsdale native Reece Van Devander's ground-rule double. A Yaquis error allowed a fifth run before sophomore Samuel Jenkins, who transferred from McClennan Community College in Waco Texas, punched in the final GCU run with an RBI single.
Meanwhile, sophomore left-handed pitcher LJ Drummond was delivering an electric pair of perfect innings that included him striking out three consecutive Yaquis. The stadium's constant music was different for some, but Drummond enjoyed finding a rhythm to it.
"I felt amazing once I got used to it," said Drummond, a Miami transfer who was dealing his fastball, slider and change-up. "I love the coaching staff and the friends that I've made here and just how they carry themselves with the Christian way."
GCU used six pitchers in the game and played a two-platoon lineup to start a fall season that will include four more exhibitions against Arizona junior college teams at GCU Ballpark. Bieser liked what he saw in a modified pitching approach from the senior right-handers at the top of his rotation, Jake Echols and Mason Goodson.
Carson Ohland
Hints of the pressure-creating Bieserball style were flashed, whether it be Ildefonso stealing third base after a leadoff double or a squeeze bunt attempt that went foul.
"If you execute it, it starts to create some chaos," Bieser said. "Those are things that are really correctable. There were so many small things that can be fixed easily, so that's what is exciting. There was no quit when we went down 8-0. There's no quit in this group.
"I can't wait to get back Monday and break it down, so guys start to understand how important every play of the game is. Once we get them to understand that, we'll keep them locked in a little longer. If you get away with mistakes in the fall and come out on top, it doesn't have the same effect."
GCU players were calling their own pitches, leading to a change-up that went for a three-run home run on a pitch choice the staff would not have made. The professional at bats and pitches from Obregón players provided lessons for the Lopes. The coach also learned quite a bit. Although he has coached for 24 years, Saturday night marked the first time that he led a GCU team into competition.
"It really felt like how we're going to play," Bieser said. "It was really cool to just kind of look around. It was a great environment. It energized us. It was a great way to start."
