Paso Robles, a mere 40-minute drive from San Luis Obispo, has a population of just over 30,000, yet has produced two of the more compelling stories on the Cal Poly baseball team.
Mustang starting pitchers Jakob Wright and Carson Turnquist both have unique paths to success, but they began in Paso Robles.
Both Paso Robles High School graduates, Wright and Turnquist have fulfilled their dreams of playing for their local university, but not without turmoil along the way.
When their former head baseball coach, Jonathan Thornhill, was coaching at Atascadero High School before his stint with Paso Robles High, he knew that Wright had the potential to flourish after his team faced the left-hander on the mound.
“Just listening to what our hitters were saying coming back from their at-bats, we knew he was something special,” Thornhill told Mustang News through email.
When Thornhill became the head baseball coach at Paso Robles High in 2018, he inherited Wright as a sophomore, already knowing the special talent he possessed. Yet, a lanky freshman righty caught his eye.
Given Turnquist’s frame, a strong support system at home and the specialized pitching coaches he saw every year, it was obvious to Thornhill that the young flamethrower had a bright future.
It was evident that the duo could pitch, but for Wright, that was not his main focus. Wright excelled at the plate and in the outfield, prioritizing those parts of his game while still periodically pitching.
As a prominent tandem of aces at the top of the pitching staff, Wright and Turnquist showed a natural competitive fire.
“They lifted together, talked pitching together and I am sure they just vibed together as high school student-athletes,” Thornhill said. “They would have the occasional chirp towards one another but it was nothing of the malicious intent, it was simply to have fun and challenge one another.”
As a result, the pair grew stronger. As the two progressed through high school, they began to attract attention from colleges.
When Cal Poly extended an offer to Wright, the decision became simple. Growing up attending games at Baggett Stadium, an opportunity to play for his hometown university felt like a no-brainer.
Although recruited as a two-way player out of high school, head coach Larry Lee saw Wright’s raw talent on the mound and shifted the focus to pitching entirely once at Cal Poly.
As for Turnquist, the path to becoming a Mustang was less conventional.
Despite being recruited by Cal Poly out of high school, the right-hander chose to play for the University of Oklahoma largely due to the track record of their pitching coach, who regularly worked with future hall-of-fame pitcher Clayton Kershaw.
Turnquist appeared in just five games with the Sooners in his freshman year. Given his competitive nature and desire to be on the mound as much as possible, he decided to enter the transfer portal.
Deciding on where to pitch next, the relationship between the Paso Robles natives played a major role in Turnquist’s decision to return to California’s Central Coast.
“When I hit the portal, I knew based on my relationship with Jake in high school everything was going to be good [at Cal Poly],” Turnquist said. “[My relationship with Jakob] was definitely factored into my decision.”
Now, years older, the local duo’s relationship remains the same. Both are driven by the idea of winning.
Turnquist and Wright believe that striving to win is the most important quality a team can possess, and Turnquist could sense that feeling while making his decision to become a Mustang.
Through his first two seasons at Cal Poly, Wright had pitched just over 18 innings due to injury after redshirting freshman year.
Frustrated with his lack of availability, Wright began working closely with pitching coach Seth Moir, who put Wright on regular throwing programs to keep the promising southpaw healthy.
Given his skillset, staying on the field became the last piece for Wright to become dominant.
Dominant is an understatement of Wright’s performance this year. Thrust into the role as the team’s ace and Friday starter, Wright has excelled, leading a stellar pitching staff in earned run average (ERA) and strikeouts.
“I think [staying healthy] was the biggest problem for me,” Wright said. “When I’m on the field I am who I am.”
As for Turnquist, Tommy John surgery has prevented him from stepping on the mound as a Mustang thus far, but constant work behind the scenes has prepared the sophomore to be ready to go by the time next season rolls around.
“I’m kind of hidden right now but everyone’s going to see the work pay off,” Turnquist said. “I’m super excited man.”
When Turnquist first appears next year, however, Wright will likely no longer be his teammate.
Due to his emergence this year and boasting some of the best stats in the country, Wright is likely to hear his name called in the early rounds of the upcoming MLB Draft.
A dominant pitcher in the spotlight and a promising pitcher hiding in the shadows both yield sky-high potential, sticking together every step of the way.
Although the journeys have been nothing short of unorthodox, the Paso Robles natives have fulfilled their dream of suiting up for their local university.
Despite being teammates now, Wright and Turnquist will have to wait for perhaps the next level to pitch together once again.