Long Beach State University Athletics
Dirtbag Baseball readies for 2010
2/11/2010 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 11, 2010
Long Beach, Calif. - Coming off of a 25-29 campaign in 2009, the Dirtbags are turning back to many of the things that have made the program successful, and have a mature squad of returning players to help make it happen in 2010.
The Dirtbags welcome back 15 lettermen and seven starters from last year's team, and get nearly 80% of the team's offensive production back, giving the Dirtbags a solid core around which to bring back a focus on fundamentals and playing the right way. The team also welcomes back pitching coach Troy Buckley, who was a key part in head coach Mike Weathers' staff, and will help the skipper shoot for some key milestones with coaches Andy Rojo and TJ Bruce, as Weathers looks for 300 wins as the head coach at Long Beach State and 600 over the course of his career.
Steve Tinoco leads an infield that returns four of the five starters from 2009. The fourth-year senior led the 49ers with a .343 batting average last year, and is back to anchor first base for a second straight year. Also returning is the 49ers' double-play combination of Devin Lohman and Derek Legg. Lohman led the 49ers with 61 hits in 2009 and added 14 stolen bases, and Legg was one of the top freshman on the team, hitting .304 and adding some speed on the basepaths as well with 11 steals.
Also returning is Kirk Singer, a player whose late-season contributions with the bat, hitting seven RBI in one game against Cal Poly, complement a strong glove that can capably play any position in the infield. The 49ers also welcome Miami transfer Joey Terdoslavich, who's power and production following a redshirt season should immediately help fill the only hole in the lineup at third base. Newcomers in the infield include junior college transfer Matt Hibbert, and a pair of freshman in Matt Duffy and RJ Santigate.
Behind the plate, Kellen Hoime returns after taking the starting role last season. A strong defensive catcher, he threw out over half of potential base stealers on the year, and started a 36 games at backstop in 2010. The 49ers also bring in a junior college catcher, Juan Favela, and two freshman in Joel Thys and Jacob Lollar who can capably handle duties and share the load with Hoime.
The area of greatest depth for the Dirtbags comes in the outfield though, where Long Beach State has five returning players who can all produce for the team. Senior TJ Mittelstaedt was the team's top power threat in 2009, hitting six home runs and seven triples and can become one of the program's all-time leaders in games played in 2010. Also returning is the team's top stolen base threat, Jordan Casas, who grabbed 22 bags in 2009 while hitting .308, and Jonathan Jones, who comes back for his third season as a starter after being second on the team in hitting as a freshman and batting .325 over his career.
Also returning in the outfield are senior Tre Dennis and sophomore Brennan Metzger, who each played in over 30 games last season and each stole double-digit bases for the Dirtbags. Juan Avila is also another option in the outfield, joining the team out of Narbonne HS.
On the mound, Long Beach State will turn to Jake Thompson and Andrew Gagnon to lead a young group. Thompson enters his third season in the rotation while Gagnon comes into his second, and both will be relied to repeat the innings they tallied last season while anchoring the rotation. In the bullpen the Dirtbags have three returning members, including fourth-year senior Jason Markovitz, who will be an important arm as the team's top lefthander. The Dirtbags also bring back 32 bullpen appearances from David Brown and Josh Corrales, and that trio will help Long Beach State's usual contingent of junior college transfers and freshman to help create and identity in the bullpen and round out the rest of the weekend rotation.
As much a part of the Dirtbag tradition as fundamentals and hard play is the team's scheduling philosophy of playing the best, and again Long Beach State doesn't disappoint in 2010. Long Beach State will play a total of 14 teams that received votes in the preseason polls, and seven ranked foes in 2009. The 49ers start with two in the first week, hosting Pepperdine on opening night, February 19, before facing No. 3 Cal State Fullerton at Goodwin Field that following week.
After the first weekend, the Dirtbags make the first of two trips to play Pac-10 opponents against Arizona, which is followed by a late-March trip to Corvallis to play No. 10 Oregon State. Also on the road slate is a series with UNLV.
However, the home schedule is what stands out, with Long Beach State's traditional series with Wichita State sandwiched between two non-conference series against Washington and Stanford, along with home series in Big West play against Pacific, UC Santa Barbara, CS Fullerton and the final series of the regular season against Black & Blue rival UC Irvine.
Be sure to catch all of the coming action for the 2010 season, as the Dirtbags look to return to the postseason and improve on a preseason pick of fourth-place in the Big West. The Dirtbags welcome back major-leaguer Troy Tulowitzki to start the year by throwing out the first pitch at Long Beach State's home opener on February 19, 2010 at 6:30 p.m.
