49ers Begin Eight-Game Roadtrip
4/10/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Beach Travel Across the Southland For Four Record: 15-15 Big West: 3-0 | High Rank: none After a Week Off, Beach Play Eight on the Road: Long Beach State Baseball (15-15, 3-0 Big West) fresh off a nine-day layoff will get back in action on Tuesday when they travel to San Diego State (10-26) to begin an eight-game roadtrip. Lefthander Lance Sewell (0-1, 9.00) will oppose LBSU freshman righthander Scott Turmail (1-1, 3.97) at 6 p.m. LBSU will remain on the road and return to Big West play on Thursday through Saturday when they travel to CS Northridge (16-19, 1-5 Big West) for a three-game series. Jared Huges (5-1, 2.97) will get the call in the opener for The Beach against talented righthander Craig Baker (5-5, 3.15) at 2 p.m. On Friday, Andrew Carpenter (4-2, 3.23) will try for his fifth 49er win against righthander Chuck Fick (3-5, 5.59), also at 2 p.m. On Saturday at 1 p.m., an undetermined 49er starter will go against CSUN starter Edwin Quiarte (2-5, 5.79). The Beach opened up Big West play with a sweep of UC Irvine, as LBSU is coming off maybe the toughest month in Division-I baseball this year when they faced off against perrenial Omaha favorites, Baylor, Texas, Wichita State and CS Fullerton in March. Though the team went just 4-10 in the month, the team's sweep hopefully has changed momentum. Courting the Rankings: The Dirtbags dropped completely out of the rankings for the first time since May 7, 2001 on March 27. LBSU's highest ranking was on February 6, 2006 when they were No. 12 in Collegiate Baseball. The Dirtbags began the season ranked in the top-25 in all three national polls for the 16th time since 1989. A Look at San Diego State: The Aztecs enter Tuesday's game at 10-26 and 4-3 in the Mountain West... San Diego State is batting .271 as a team with a .948 fielding percentage and a 6.93 team ERA... after losing 14 in a row from March 5 until March 29, SDSU has won four of six, winning the pre-season MWC Tournament, before losing two of three to New Mexico... outfielder Paul Smyth leads the club with a .363 average, while first baseman Brock Ungricht is batting .307... three players have over 20 RBIs, Smyth, outfielder Curt Mendoza and second baseman Nick Romero. A Look at CS Northridge: The Matadors play at the University of San Diego on Tuesday prior to the early Easter series with The Beach... CSUN enters the week at 16-19 and 1-5 in the Big West... the Matadors were swept by CS Fullerton and lost two of three to Cal Poly last weekend, including a blown lead in the ninth on Saturday against Cal Poly... CSUN is batting .275 at the plate, have a 5.15 ERA and have a .947 fielding percentage... Brett Blumenthall leads the club with a .356 average and team-best 23 RBIs, while Raymond Ravago is batting .351... junior Craig Baker is the team's legitimate ace has a .258 opponent batting average, posting a 5-5 record and 3.15 ERA... Joe Rocchio is the team's closer with five saves... former 49er pitching coach for the 1993 CWS squad, Steve Rousey, is in his fourth year. Regional Projections: Baseball America came out with its mid-season projections for the field of 64 and according to the Durham faithful, the Dirtbags are the No. 2 seed at USC along with San Diego and San Diego State. CS Fullerton is hosting Oregon State, Fresno State and Illinois-Chicago, while Cal Poly plays in Fayetteville. Twelve opponents are in Baseball America's tournament field. The writers also noted that the Big West with UC Irvine and Pacific should also put forth strong resumes. Mid-Season Prospects: The Dirtbags also feature two players, not surprisingly, in Baseball America's mid-season college update. Third baseman Evan Longoria (Downey) is listed as the top college position player in the country and fourth-best college player, while Jared Hughes (Laguna Beach) is the 19th-best college pitcher and 29th best collegian. Longoria is also named as the top position player midway through the college season. Longoria has risen from the 10th-best prospect overall in the draft to begin the season. 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 an even earlier 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. time slot. The spring break edition of the show will feature Danny Espinosa, Scott Turmail, Robert Perry, Jared Hughes, Andrw Liebel and Jordan Struble. 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 or during the game to radio voice Rob Buska at kwrmsports@yahoo.com. LBSU Snaps Losing Streak with Sweep: How sweep it is. Long Beach State, unranked for the first time since 2001, swept its Big West opening weekend with UC Irvine behind strong pitching which allowed just five runs all weekend and limited the Anteaters to a .160 batting average. Jared Hughes won the opener allowing run on four hits over eight innings of work to move to 5-1, as Big West Player of the Week Evan Longoria launched one of his two home runs on the weekend. Longoria also provided a number of defensive gems as well. On Saturday it was more Longoria, who had three hits and his seventh homer of the season, as Andrew Carpenter pitched his third complete game of the season. Carpenter gave up two runs on eight hits and struck out eight. On Sunday, Donnie Hume pitched a career-high 6.1 innings, giving up one run on two hits, before Vance Worley got the final four outs for his first career save. Hume and Worley's roles had been reverse to begin the year. Scott Bradley's two-out, two-run single in the sixth moved to be the difference. Longoria Earns Second Honor: Third baseman Evan Longoria was named the Big West Player of the Week for the second time this season on April 3 following a .455 clip and 1.091 slugging percentage. Longoria drove in five runs and scored another five thanks to two homers and a double amongst his five hits. Longoria's first has been re-lit after a bit of a slump in early March, as the junior has hit safely in 11 of the last 14 games. Hughes Lights Up the Weekend: Friday night starter Jared Hughes (Laguna Beach) is beginning to get in the same grove as last year when he won seven of his final nine starts in 2006. Hughes has given up one run on four hits in back-to-back starts and has a 2.66 ERA over his last six starts. He is 3-1 over that stretch, with two no-decisions, a two-run gem at Texas and a one-run, four-hit performance over nine innings at CS Fullerton. Hughes is 5-1 on the season with a 2.97 ERA. Opponents are hitting just .204 against him. Carpenter Back on Track: Saturday starter Andrew Carpenter (Vacaville) got back on track on April 1, pitching his third complete game of the season, giving up two runs on four hits. He struck out eight for the third time this season gving him 50 strikeouts and just 12 walks this season. Carpenter has reached the seventh in six of his last eight starts as he is 4-2 with a 3.23 ERA on the season. Back to Front: Sunday's game at Irvine on April 2 was a bit out of Bizzarro World, when former starter Vance Worley got the final four outs of closer turned starter Donnie Hume's six and one-third inning of work. Hume's outing, his longest of his career, was super. He gave up one run on two hits, as Worley, who was 1-4 as a starter, got his first career save. Freshmen Trio Provide Glimpse of the Future: With 23 new players, with 11 of them being freshmen, it was bound to happen that a few would emerge, especially in the field. Catcher Kip Masuda (.394) and outfielder Shane Peterson (.392) are both putting forth impressive seasons with the bat, as Masuda has also been solid defensively, throwing out 5 of 13 would-be base stealers. Peterson, who was not even in the mindset to hit to begin the year, because of his skill as a lefthanded pitcher, has caught fire since shifting between designated hitter and leftfield this season. Danny Espinosa has done it with the glove, playing all but six innings at short, while batting .265 and ranking second on the team with 15 RBIs. Bradley Continues to Produce: Scott Bradley's (Walnut Creek) game-winning single in the sixth on April 2 was just a continuation of a strong senior season for the Dirtbag first baseman. Bradley is batting .340 on the season in 22 games and 12 starts. Cline Provides Bat at the Top: Second baseman Matt Cline (Huntington Beach) is one of a handful of transfers this season who has stepped up in their first seasons at LBSU. Cline is batting .302 on the season over 21 games, ranking second on the team with 15 runs. Cline did not start playing regularly until February 25 and since then has hit safely in 13 of 18 games. Liebel Continues to Watch ERA Sink: Sophomore righthander Andrew Liebel (Pomona) continues to put forth a strong second-season, producing a 1-0 record and 2.03 ERA over 12 appearances this season. He along with freshman righthander Bryan Shaw (Livermore) have been the Dirtbags two most reliable relievers this season. Genghis Khan Fan Club: As one national writer put it, the Dirtbags have "a slate only Genghis Khan would love." Seventeen of its first 28 games were against ranked opponents and according to Boyd's World.com, LBSU has the second toughest strength of schedule in the country. LBSU's mark of 6-11 against those ranked teams is a little easier to stomach when you consider with 23 new faces, LBSU has lost five of those games by two runs or fewer, and two in the opponents' final at-bat. They've Done This Before: Dirtbag lore teaches us that Long Beach State baseball has traditionally been slow starters en route to return trips to Omaha and the College World Series. In 1998, the team started the season 2-8-1 before reeling off 12 in a row. In 1993, LBSU was 12-12 before winning 16 of 19. And finally in 1991, the 49ers were 5-8, before winning 20 of 21. Dirtbags in the Majors: To start 2006, the Dirtbags had eight Major Leaguers, including: veterans Chris Gomez (Orioles), Steve Trachsel (Mets) and Jason Giambi (Yankees), and up and comers, Bobby Crosby (A's), Jeremy Reed (Mariners), Jason Vargas (Marlins), Terrmel Sledge (Padres) and Mike Gallo (Astros). Abe Alvarez (Red Sox), Jered Weaver (Angels), Kasey Olenberger (Angels), Paul McAnulty (Padres), Chad Bentz (White Sox) and Chris Demaria (Brewers) began the year in Triple-A. Gold Glove Infield: If there was such a thing as the nation's top defensive infield, Long Beach State's four infielders around the horn from Brandon Godfrey (1B) to Chuck Sindlinger (2B) to Danny Espinosa (SS) to Evan Longoria (3B) may be it. Matt Cline, a junior college shortstop, has not missed a beat playing at second base as well. Espinosa leads the Big West with 84 assists at short. Not A Bad Set of Wins: So far this season the Dirtbags have beaten some pretty good pitchers. LBSU has five wins over All-American arms (pre-season or former winners), including two over USC closer Paul Koss, one over Cal's Brandon Morrow and Texas' Kyle McCullough and a pair of victories over National Pitcher of the Year candidates Ian Kennedy (USC) and Joe Savery (Rice). 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. 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: 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. All games will continue to be on the internet. 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. 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. 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. 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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