There is no mistaking the moment when “POWER” by Kanye West blares through the speakers at John Smith Field on Friday nights. Every fan in the stand feels the energy coming onto the field as a right-handed, 230-pound 6-foot-3 senior pitcher steps onto the mound.
He scrapes the dirt where his left leg will land, licks his right hand and rubs it on his outside leg, tossing the ball from his glove to his right hand. He reclaims his time as he looks to his catcher and settles into his throw.
This humble, yet highly efficient pitcher, is Ethan Lay, a kid from small town Colusa, California. He is the two-time Western Athletic Conference Pitcher of the Week and a member of the College Baseball National Pitcher of the Year Watch List, but he does more than strike batters out.
RELATED: Split happens: Sac State wins two of four against the Pacific
Guided by his faith, family, friends and coaches, Lay has quickly made a name for himself ahead of the 2026 WAC baseball tournament and the 2026 MLB Draft.
“His work paired with his preparation, like for a start day and how locked in he is on that day is insane,” senior pitcher and roommate Colin Hunter said of Lay. “Everything he does in his post-throw stuff and doing workouts on his own time when we’re not required to be in the weight room speaks volumes about him.”
While he remains humble, his numbers speak for themselves. This season, Lay has posted a 4-2 record with a 1.05 WHIP and a 2.85 ERA over 72.2 innings, striking out 80 batters while only walking 10.
Lay, a mechanical engineering major, has been guided heavily by both his parents, Eric Lay, a collegiate pitcher at Cal State East Bay and teacher, and his mother Jennifer Lay, who is also a lifelong teacher in Colusa. They both have stressed the importance of maintaining his education.
“I do really enjoy my school work,” Lay said of his outside hobbies. “I really like math and physics and the education that goes along with mechanical engineering.”
This passion is not lost on his parents.
“That’s probably the thing I’m most proud of,” Eric Lay said of his son’s dedication to education. “Playing Division I baseball and being a mechanical engineering major, it takes a ton. He enjoys learning, probably as much as he does throwing the baseball.”
These moments shine most when Ethan is outside of the bright lights.
“We’re both huge Dallas Cowboy fans,” Eric Lay said. “We took a tour of the stadium and I’m like, ‘oh, here’s the locker rooms and here’s the cheerleaders’ lockers, let’s look at the field and stuff,’ and Ethan’s like looking up the floorboard and looking at like the engineering, looking at the new stuff they’re doing to host the World Cup. He was pretty involved with what was going on and he has a real passion for it.”
Lay’s passion for learning excels on the field, as he has grown from his time at Chico State to his now Division l career for the Hornets.
“I mean, I always wanted to play for a Division I and for a program with the resources that I knew that I could get better at,” Lay said of Sacramento State. “So, once I gained enough experience [at Chico State], I knew I could find a place that has those resources and I could take that next step.”
This next step has propelled him as one of, if not the best pitchers at the mid-major level and he is quickly gaining the attention from scouts across Major League Baseball ahead of the 2026 MLB Draft that runs from July 11 to 12.
“It’s always been my dream to play professional baseball,” Lay said. “I think I have put myself in a good position to give myself a chance of doing that.”
Lay never takes the credit for the position he is in, always pointing to his faith in Christianity, his family, friends and coaches.
“I can’t even take any of the credit myself,” Lay said. “It’s beyond me, to be honest. It has been amazing.”
As the Hornets currently sit in fifth place in the WAC standings, they are set for a deep run in the 2026 WAC tournament, with their ultimate goal of making it to the 2026 College World Series.
No matter what happens the rest of the season, sports fans can always find Lay’s family and friends in the stands behind home plate.
“All you want for your kids is for their dreams to come true,” Jennifer Lay said. “We’ve always said we just want him to get his shot, and he’s got his shot.”
