They say home is where the heart is. But the Horned Frogs are hoping home is where the wins are starting with Friday’s series opener against conference opponent San Diego State.

Baseball season will officially kick into high gear for the Horned Frogs this weekend when they begin a string of seven straight home games in a span of 10 days. The homestand will tie the team’s longest of the season. The team has another extended stay in late April.

A 14-6 record to start the season, not including last night’s contest against Baylor, had the Horned Frogs ranked 16th in Baseball America’s Top 25 rankings.

The series against SDSU (16-8), winners of nine of their last 11 games, will be the Horned Frogs’ second bout against another Mountain West Conference team this season. The Horned Frogs took two of three from Utah last weekend in Salt Lake City and currently sit in fourth place in the conference.

Last season, the Horned Frogs shredded SDSU for 30 runs during a three-game series in San Diego, but only managed to walk away with two wins.

At the conclusion of this weekend’s series, the Horned Frogs will have a two-day layoff before hosting the UT Arlington on Wednesday night. The Horned Frogs bested the Mavericks 11-3 in Arlington on March 3.

A series against conference-leading New Mexico next weekend will conclude the Horned Frogs’ lengthy stay in Fort Worth.

Aztec ace to pitch Friday

San Diego State right-handed pitcher Stephen Strasburg, a potential No. 1 overall pick in June’s MLB Draft, is expected to take the mound for the Aztecs tonight.

The 6-foot-4-inch, 220 pound junior, who frequently eclipses 100 mph on the radar gun, has been almost unstoppable this season. In five starts, Strasburg is 4-0 with a 1.57 ERA.

He has struck out 74 batters in 34.1 innings of work, giving him an average of 19.4 strikeouts per nine innings of work. The NCAA record for strikeouts per nine innings in a season is 16.8.