Long Beach State University Athletics
Beach Continues Roadtrip
4/17/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
LBSU Baseball Plays at a Pair of UC Schools Record: 16-17-1 Big West: 4-1-1 | Hi Rank: none Roadtrip Continues at UCLA and UC Davis: Long Beach State Baseball (16-17-1, 4-1-1 Big West) will be seeing a lot of blue and gold this week when they travel to UCLA (20-15, 5-4 Pac-10) on Tuesday at 6 p.m. and to UC Davis (13-18, play Cal on Tuesday) for a three-game series beginning on Friday at 2 p.m. On Tuesday, RHP Scott Turmail (1-1, 3.14) will be making his fourth start of the year against Bruin righthander Jason Novak (0-0, 5.21). Turmail in his first three Tuesday starts of the year has compiled a 3.72 ERA. Over the weekend, Jared Hughes (5-1, 2.65) and Andrew Carpenter (5-2, 2.96) will get the call for The Beach against the Aggie trio of LHP Michael Potter (2-2, 2.69), RHP Brent Nichols (0-2, 5.94) and RHP Bryan Evans (3-5, 3.91). LBSU, a half game back in the Big West standings after going 1-1-1 at CS Northridge last weekend, will continue conference play in two weekends when they host Pacific on April 28. The team returns home from its eight-game roadtrip on April 25 for a re-match with San Diego State. With Rice ascending to the No. 1 spot in the polls this week, LBSU has now faced three top-ranked teams this season, beating two of them (Texas, Rice) and getting swept by CS Fullerton. The Beach enter the week having gone 4-2-1 over its last seven, after dropping seven in a row near the end of March. Third Time's the Charm: Righthander Andrew Carpenter (Vacaville) was named the Big West's Pitcher of the Week for the third time this season following a five-hit complete game at CS Northridge last weekend. Carpenter struck out 10 and walked none, as he joins Jered Weaver (in 2003 and 2004), Cesar Ramos (in 2005), and Marcus Jones (in 1996) as three-time winners in the same season. Weaver set the record with seven during his 2004 National Pitcher of the Year campaign. Courting the Rankings: LBSU 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. 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. This week's show, an hour earlier starting at 5 p.m., will feature outfielder Allen Woods and Press-Telegram beatwriter Bob Keisser. 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. A Look at UCLA: Since beating Long Beach State back on February 28, the Bruins have won 15 of its last 21, which has included taking two of three from Ole Miss, sweeping North Carolina State and winning two of three at Arizona this past weekend... Hector Ambriz leads the club with a .337 average to go along with a team-best 23 RBIs, while Brandon Crawford has a .329 average and team-best 25 runs... the pitching staff boasts a 3.56 ERA, while the team is hitting .382 and fielding at a .974 clip... four pitchers have at least two saves.... UCLA is 11-8 at Jackie Robinson Stadium for second-year Head Coach John Savage. A Look at UC Davis: UCD, who play at Cal on Tuesday, have lost nine of its last 12, but have taken a single game from each of its last three Big West opponents, at UC Riverside, Pacific and at CS Fullerton last weekend in the series opener... the Aggies will be eligible for conference play in the 2007-08 athletic season as they are moving up from Division-II... outfielder Tyler LaTorre leads the club by batting .415 with 20 RBIs, while catcher David Treat is batting .340... UCD is batting .271 as a team, and stealing 30 of 41 bases... the team's ERA is 4.83 with the trio of Potter, Evans and Nichols tallying 22 of 31 starts... Nic Auroa has five saves in 17 appearances as the ace out of the pen... former Head Coach at Chapman and a member of the 1988 CS Fullerton College World Series team, Rex Peters, is in his fourth year at UC Davis. Longoria Feasts on the Big West: The conference is going to be glad when Evan Longoria (Downey) gets drafted. The 49er infielder is batting .381 in Big West games this season with three homers and 10 RBIs. It is not wonder UC Irvine and CS Northridge have combined to intentionally walk the nation's best position player four times in six games. Overall, Longoria is batting .336 with a team-best 22 runs, 27 RBIs, eight homers and .603 slugging percentage. He has made just two errors at third base, playing all but six innings this season. Hughes Hits a Hot Streak: Despite two no-decisions in his last three starts, Friday night ace Jared Hughes (Laguna Beach) has produced an impressive 0.73 ERA over his last 24.2 innings. Hughes has reached the seventh inning in each of his last seven starts, going 5-1 with a 2.65 ERA on the season. He has watched his ERA drop by nearly a run over the last month of the season. Hughes has struck out 47, and walked 23, with opponents batting just .204 against him. Carpenter a Workhorse: Righthander Andrew Carpenter (Vacaville) is the team's workhorse this season, compiling four complete games on the year and tossing 73.0 innings on the season. Carpenter's latest gem, a five-hitter, took just 105 pitches. Carpenter has lowered his ERA to 2.96 on the season thanks to back-to-back complete games, in which he has produced a 1.50 ERA, struck out 18 and walked just two. On the season, Carpenter has struck out 60 and walked just 13 with a .218 opponent batting average. Beach Continues to Look for Closer: Long Beach State's bullpen, which features four freshmen, two sophomores and two seniors, has tried four different pitchers at closer this season (Brett Andrade, Donnie Hume, Vance Worley and Bryan Shaw). Combined the quartet has closed eight games, but they also have blown four as well, including two last week (at San Diego State and at CS Northridge). Combined, the bullpen has surrendered seven leads. Senior Continues to Produce: First baseman Scott Bradley (Walnut Creek) has hit safely in seven of his last nine games, entering the week, raising his average to .323 on the season with 12 RBIs. Bradley has started five of the last six games at first. Perry Begins to Turn it Around: Transfer Robert Perry (Sunnyvale) may be starting to turn it around following a slow start. The centerfielder who has started all but one game this season has hit safely in seven of his last eight games to raise his average to .261 on the season. Hume Has Mixed Results as a Starter: Sophomore lefthander Donnie Hume (Vacaville) has had mixed results as a Sunday starter this season. Hume has a 1-1 record and 4.63 ERA over three starts, producing a gem against UC Irvine (6.1 IP, 1 ER) on April 2, but has struggled in two other starts. He could not get out of the second at CS Fullerton and out of the fourth at CS Northridge. Hume was moved to the bullpen following a 3.18 ERA over 10 appearances. Hume continues to be available out of the bullpen this season. 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. 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). They also have a no-decision against CS Fullerton ace Wes Roemer. 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 2005, 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, were 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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