By Cesar Rivas, May 12, 2026
Despite having the best start of his Bronco career, senior left-handed pitcher Dylan Esquival had his season cut short after tearing his Ulnar Collateral Ligament in his left elbow.
Esquival breezed through six no-hit innings with seven strikeouts against Colorado State University Pueblo Feb. 20. But when he went to the mound warm-up for the seventh inning, Esquival knew he injured his elbow after two warm-up pitches and walked off the mound.
“At first I was more shocked, but then it slowly crept into denial,” Esquival said. “Then obviously, the MRI and stuff came out with it. So, then I just came to terms with what I had to, and I had to deal with it.”
Cal Poly Pomona baseball head coach Randy Betten said as a coach, he never wants to see an athlete, whether it be his own or the opposition, leave a game due to injury.
At the time, Esquival led the CCAA in ERA with 0.00 and strikeouts with 25, across four starts, including nationally ranked Colorado Mesa and Hope International. With success comes recognition, as he earned CCAA and NCBWA Pitcher of the Week honors for his outing against Colorado Mesa.
The hot start even drew scouts from MLB teams, such as the Toronto Blue Jays, Cincinnati Reds, Atlanta Braves and Colorado Rockies, to witness the Rancho Cucamonga native.
Esquival credited his early success to finding a rhythm every time that he stepped on to the mound.
“I felt like to start this season the way it did, it was just like everything felt good, everything felt strong,” Esquival said. “It was really easy to find a rhythm quickly when you feel as good as we all did as a team, not just myself.”
Apart from his rhythm, CPP assistant and pitching coach Anthony Mizrahi attributes Esquival’s success to his mindset on the mound. He said it’s an attribute the coaching staff found while scouting Esquival from South Hills High School in West Covina.
Mizrahi recalled the discussions the coaching staff had and how they were impressed Esquival had no other offers at the time, with where his pitching mechanics were at the time.
“The stuff is really good, but his mentality is what really sets him apart and what makes him different,” Mizrahi said. “He’s beyond tough when it comes to when he’s trying to get people out. He truly believes that nobody has a chance, and that’s what made him different.”
Despite not being able to pitch for the remainder of the campaign, Esquival has kept a positive mindset throughout the season, doing what he can to support his team from the dugout.
According to Betten and Mizrahi, this is nothing new for Esquival as he has always been a team first player during his time as a Bronco.
“He’s always been a team-first mentality guy since the day stepped on campus,” Betten said. “He’s always been rooting on his teammates when the days he’s not pitching or if he’s in the bullpen that day, rooting on the starter and when his opportunity was able to focusing and get prepared to pitch. But no, he continues to do that. Obviously, that’s a character thing for him, and he does it right day in and day out, to help us be successful, and he’s a big part of it. He’s a big part.”
While being side-lined Esquival has been working with trainers both on and off campus in hopes to strengthen the ligament enough to throw though the pain. This isn’t the first time Esquival missed a part of the season, as he had a similar injury during his junior year.
With the Broncos falling in the CCAA Tournament Championship May 9, Esquival aims to receive an extra year of eligibility by redshirting this season in hopes of coming back even stronger next year.
Esquival added if it was the last time suiting up in a Bronco uniform, the thing he will look back on the most is all of his teammates throughout his collegiate career.
“I don’t think there’s been a year where there hasn’t been just, a good group of guys that are willing to work,” Esquival said. “… Especially this year, I mean, this team is every single guy that’s in the dugout right now is just absolutely willing to run through a wall for you. I mean these guys are so tight right now, and they have a huge rhythm growing, and it’s hard to stop a team like that.”
The Broncos were announced as the No. 3 seed in the NCAA Division II Tournament and will face Cal State San Bernardino May 14, in a single-game elimination.
Feature image courtesy of Cesar Rivas
