Long Beach State University Athletics
Dirtbags Prepare for Cal
2/6/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Dirtbags Embark on Seven Game Roadtrip Record: 3-0 Big West: 0-0 | Hi Rank: No. 12 | vs. Ranked Teams: 3-0 LBSU Embarks on Seven-Game Roadtrip: The No. 12-ranked Dirtbags (3-0), fresh off the program's first-ever sweep of then No. 17-ranked USC, will embark on a seven-game roadtrip over the next two weeks, traveling to Berkeley this weekend to take on the Golden Bears (1-2, play USF on Tuesday), who dropped out of the top-25 after losing two of three at UC Irvine last weekend. This weekend LBSU will send out pre-season All-American RHP Jared Hughes (1-0, 3.00) against National Pitcher of the Week RHP Brandon Morrow (1-0, 0.00) on Friday at 1:30 p.m., before RHP Andrew Carpenter (0-0, 3.60) takes to the hill on Saturday at 1 p.m. against RHP Michael Cooper (0-1, 10.80). In Sunday's finale, RHP Vance Worley (0-0, 10.80) will take on RHP Tyson Ross (0-1, 9.00). Head Coach Mike Weathers is just two wins away from surpassing Bob Wuesthoff (161) for third all-time in coaching victories at LBSU. A Look at California: The Golden Bears enter the week at 1-2, having to play San Francisco on Tuesday... Friday starter Brandon Morrow was named the National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball after pitching six and one-third no-hit innings while striking out 12 at UC Irvine... Morrow pitched just 25 innings last year but is the ninth-rated junior according to Baseball America... the rest of the staff did not fair as well, combining for a 8.67 ERA the rest of the way... Cal returns seven of nine position players for seventh year Head Coach Dave Esquer headed by two All-Americans in Brennan Boesch (.355 last year), who ranked second to Dirtbag Evan Longoria in homers in the Cape this past summer and shortstop Allen Craig (.304, 35 RBIs), the Northwoods League MVP... Cal was 34-23 last year and just missed the NCAA Tournament... Cal is picked to finish fourth in the Pac-10. Courting the Rankings: LBSU rose in both national polls this week, ranking has high as No. 12 in Collegiate Baseball and No. 17 in Baseball America. LBSU began the season ranked No. 16. The Dirtbags began the season ranked in the top-25 in all three national polls for the 16th time since 1989. Boatright Named Big West Player of the Week: Fifth-year senior Sean Boatright following two game winning hits against USC, including a two-run homer in the eighth off of USC closer Paul Koss on Saturday, and a .400 average, was named the Big West Player of the Week for the first time in his career. Boatright turned down an offer from the Marlins to comeback for his senior season, as in the fall he earned the Todd Hart Courage Award given to Boatright, who has battled through various injuries throughout his career. Dirtbags Sweep USC: The Dirtbags paced by late inning heroics swept USC for the first-time in school history in a three-game series, winning 4-2, 9-6 and 8-6. Sean Boatright (two-run) and Brandon Godfrey produced back-to-back doubles lost in the fog by USC rightfielder Roberto Lopez in the sixth to give LBSU a 4-2 lead in the opener. Jared Hughes was the benefactor, retiring 12 in a row following two runs in the first. On Saturday at USC, it was more Boatright has his two-run homer off of All-American closer Paul Koss gave LBSU a 7-6 lead. Mike Malott picked up his first win since 2002 (with SJSU) by retiring five straight. On Sunday, the Dirtbags fought back from a 5-0 deficit and tied it at 6-6 on a Brandon Godfrey two-run single, before Danny Espinosa laced a two-run triple to set the sweep in motion. Donnie Hume gave up one run over 3.1 innings of relief before Brett Andrade picked up his second save of the series. LBSU batted .354 for the weekend and had a .552 slugging percentage. Year Two for the Weathers Show: Cirivello's Restaurant at 4115 Viking Way in Long Beach will again the site for the Mike Weathers Show every Wednesday, from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. This week's show will feature Evan Longoria and Andrew Carpenter. The show will not only feature Coach Weathers, but a select player from the team. Prizes and tickets will also be given away during the show. Fans can email questions to the show at kwrmsports@yahoo.com. How About Those Bats: The Dirtbag bats came alive for the first weekend of the year against USC, batting an impressive .354 with an even stronger .552 slugging percentage following nine doubles, two triples and two homers. The offense produced nearly eight runs a game as five starters of at least two games batted over .375. Strong Debuts for the Newbies: A couple of freshmen had strong debuts for the Dirtbags in shortstop Danny Espinosa (Santa Ana) and catcher Kip Masuda (Kaneohe, HI). Espinosa batted .462 for the week with four RBIs and a .769 slugging percentage, completing all 16 of his attempts at short, while Masuda went 3-for-4 and threw out a runner in his Sunday start for Tito Cruz. For the first weekend, 14 newcomers saw action. Better with Age: Four seniors also had strong weekends for The Beach, as catcher Tito Cruz (Glendale) batted .375 for the week catching the first two games of the series, while first baseman Scott Bradley (Walnut Creek) went 2-for-6 with an RBI double. On the mound, Brett Andrade (Pleasanton) had two saves for the weekend, while Mike Malott (Saratoga) pitching healthy for the first time in truly four seasons, retired all five batters he faced for his first win since 2002. Bullpen the Key to the Weekend: The Dirtbag bullpen was the key to the weekend, especially following a combined 11 runs (six earned) given up by the team's Saturday and Sunday starters, as combined, the bullpen allowed just one run over 12 and two-thirds innings of work. Power from the Middle: The Dirtbags 3-4-5 hitters this first weekend combined to bat .355, led by Evan Longoria (Downey) and Sean Boatright's (Mission Viejo) .400 averages and Brandon Godfrey (Cypress) .375 average. Those three hitters combined for 10 of the team's 21 RBIs. Dirtbags Picked Second in Big West: According to the pre-season coaches poll and Baseball America's college preview issue, Long Beach State is picked to finish second to CS Fullerton. The Titans are ranked as high as No. 5 nationally this season. As usual, the teams will play two series this season, one from March 24 to 26 at Goodwin Field, and the conference series to close out the Dirtbags regular season from May 26 to 28. Catch the Dirtbags Over the Airwaves: For the second season, veteran broadcast Rob Buska will broadcast the team's games over the radio and internet. All home games can be heard in the Long Beach area on 1370 AM, with all games after 6 p.m. heard on KWRM's larger signal available in Orange County and the Inland Empire. Fans traveling with the team can tune their radios to 88.1 FM and listen to the Long Beach State broadcast at the visitor's ballpark. All games will continue to be over the internet at www.longbeachstate.com. Hard Look at Dirtbag Duo: Infielder Evan Longoria (Downey) and Friday night righthander Jared Hughes (Laguna Beach) made a couple of pre-season national of player of the year watch lists, as the duo are both on the Wallace Player of the Year list, while Hughes is an initial candidate for the Roger Clemens Award, given two years ago to former Dirtbag Jered Weaver in its first year of existence. National Recognition for Duo: Evan Longoria (Downey) and Jared Hughes (Laguna Beach) were both placed on pre-season All-America teams, as Longoria was a first team selection by Baseball America, and made the third team in Collegiate Baseball. The NCBWA and Baseball America each chose Hughes as a third team All-American. According to Baseball America, Longoria was rated as the 10th-best prospect for the 2006 draft, while Hughes was the 33rd-best prospect. Some of the Best Tools?: According to Baseball America, Evan Lonogoria, the sixth-best college player in the country, is one of the nation's best pure hitters, while Jared Hughes, the 15th-best collegian, has some of the nation's best command, amongst college players. According to Baseball America's Allan Simpson, "Longoria is a late bloomer, who came of age last summer in the Cape Cod League..." Strong Summers: Infielder Evan Longoria (Downey) was named the Cape Cod MVP and a first team Summer All-American after leading the Cape in homers (8) and RBIs (35). Jared Hughes (Laguna), who went a perfect 7-0 in the Cape, and was a two-time Cape player of the week, was also a Summer All-American (second team). The duo were starters for the East at the Cape Cod All-Star Game. Second baseman Chuck Sindlinger was named an All-Star out of the Central Illinois League after batting .300 with a .435 on-base percentage. Nation's Toughest Non-Conference Schedule: According to Sebaseball.com, the Dirtbags feature the nation's toughest non-conference schedule, featuring series against No. 1-ranked Texas and fellow top-25 programs, Wichita State, Baylor, USC, and CS Fullerton and single games against Pepperdine, Rice and Oklahoma. And Your Name is?: The Dirtbags feature 23 newcomers including: switch hitting freshman shortstop Danny Espinosa (Santa Ana), from the CIF state champions; junior centerfielder Robert Perry (Sunnyvale), a transfer from Santa Clara who was an All-WCC pick; and designated hitter Chris Lopez (West Covina), who hit 28 homers in two years at East LA Junior College. On the pitching staff, which only features a combined 41 innings from last year outside of Hughes, junior college transfer Andrew Carpenter (West Covina) and freshmen righthanders Scott Turmail (Florissant, MO) and Vance Worley (Sacramento) are expected to see heavy workloads. Freshman lefthander Shane Peterson (Temecula), is a two-way player in the mold of former Dirtbag Jason Vargas, who is now pitching for the Marlins. In Review: The Dirtbags reached its 15th NCAA Regional in 2005, falling at home and watching USC advance to the Super Regionals, finishing 37-22. The team has appeared in four College World Series and two Super Regionals. They have hosted three-straight playoff series. Since becoming Head Coach in 2002, Mike Weathers-led teams have produced 31 professional players and watched seven players make it to the Major Leagues. Eight players have been drafted in the first three rounds over the last four years. Since Leaving The Beach...: Former Dirtbag players have prospered in professional baseball since leaving The Beach, as 10 former players are amongst Baseball America's list of top prospects for the 30 Major League teams, according to the South Day Daily Breeze. In 2006, LBSU had a record 13 players playing in the Major Leagues, as Jason Vargas (Florida) and Chris Demaria (Kansas City, now with Milwaukee) each made their Major League debuts. Both the 10 prospects and the 13 Major Leaguers, are amongst the most from any college program. Also, former players Troy Tulowitzki (Colorado), Jered Weaver (LA/Anaheim), Russel Rohlicek (Chicago), John Bowker (San Francisco) and Todd Jennings (San Francisco) have all been invited to Major League spring training camps. World Baseball Classic Features the Dirtbags: Two former pitchers are members of the World Baseball Classic and Team Italy in February in Astros reliever Mike Gallo and Angels farmhand and Italian Olympian Kasey Olenberger. Gallo, who just completed his third year in the Majors, was the team's keynote speaker at the Leadoff Dinner on January 26. Baseball to Endow Scholarship for Coach: The baseball program is in the process of endowing a scholarship named after former Head Coach Bob Wuesthoff (1964-69), who led the 49ers to their first conference title in 1964. The seven-man committee of former players and coaches, led by LBSU's first coach John McConnell has already raised $60,000 en route to $150,000 over five years. Those interested can call (562) 985-4662 for more information. |
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