Drifters Debrief: Week Eight
Hunter Dryden pitching for the Drifters in 2023
Springfield — Springfield Drifters alum Hunter Dryden delivered in his Eugene Emeralds debut, striking out six over four scoreless innings against the Hillsboro Hops on Saturday. The Deer Valley, Washington, product only allowed two hits in his Class-A Advanced debut, as the Emeralds beat the Hops 10-4 to secure a series victory. Dryden, who pitched for the Drifters in 2022 and 2023, was drafted by the San Francisco Giants in the 17th round of the 2024 MLB Draft out of Whitworth University. Last season, Dryden excelled at the Class-A level, finishing with a 2.90 ERA and a 5-3 record in 21 starts for the San Jose Giants. The right-hander, who is the Drifters' all-time strikeouts leader, fanned 103 batters while allowing just 41 walks in 93 innings last year in San Jose.
Out in Michigan, “Mr. Drifter,” Cooper Mullens, singled in the bottom of the ninth inning to drive in two runs and walk off #15 Oregon, securing an upset series victory for the Wolverines in the finale. Mullens, a Marist High School graduate who is returning to Springfield for his fourth season in 2026, had two doubles over the weekend for Michigan. The walk-off hit was extra special for Mullens, who grew up a Ducks fan thanks to his father, who has served as Oregon's Athletic Director since 2010.
Back in Eugene, Kai Keamo (22’), Tyler Biddinger (24’) and Griffin Scott (26’) impressed. Keamo and Biddinger, who both play at Bushnell, put together solid performances for the Beacons. Keamo struck out seven across six innings and Biddinger fanned two across 2.1 innings of scoreless baseball against the Mountaineers. Scott, a left-hander from Lane who is committed to Oregon, struck out four in three scoreless innings for the Titans against Clark Community College.
Scott’s teammate at Lane, Austin Takahashi, is also joining the Drifters this summer. Takahashi thrived at the plate, finishing 7-for-15 with a double and four RBIs for the Titans in their series win over the Penguins.
Down in California, Diego Vazquez (2026), Andrew Gauna (24’ & 25’) and Dawson Santana (23’) all had big weekends. Vazquez, finished with two doubles, a home run and seven RBIs during an 8-for-13 weekend at the plate for Fullerton College. Gauna smashed three home runs and drove in eight during a 1.417 slugging weekend for San Diego, and Santana drove in four runs on four hits during a .500 weekend at the dish for San Diego State. For his efforts, Gauna was named the West Coast Conference’s Player of the Week.
Other notable performances over the weekend include Trey Newman (23’) striking out eight batters over five innings for Portland, Keenan Anzai (26’) fanning seven batters over four innings for UC Davis, and Mac Moyer (22’) hitting his first home run for Nebraska during a 5-for-10 weekend.
You can view the full list of Drifters alumni currently playing college baseball on the alumni and records page here.
The Springfield Drifters begin their fifth season of West Coast League baseball on May 29, with their first home game scheduled for June 2. You can view the full schedule here. Season tickets are now on sale at driftersbaseball.com with single-game tickets available beginning April 2.