Long Beach State University Athletics
Ten Former Dirtbags on MLB Opening Day Rosters
4/3/2017 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 3, 2017
LONG BEACH, Calif. -
Monday marks the full Opening Day for the 2017 Major League Baseball season, and there are 10 former Dirtbags on Opening Day rosters across the big leagues. A total of 13 former Long Beach State baseball players appeared in the MLB last season, making Long Beach State the most represented college or university in The Show for the seventh year in a row.
The season started for six teams on Sunday, with Evan Longoria and the Tampa Bay Rays playing in the first game of the new season against the New York Yankees. Longoria recorded the season's first RBI with a sacrifice fly in his first plate appearance, then hit the first home run of the 2017 season in his next trip to the plate. It's the second season in a row that a former Dirtbag has hit the season's first home run; Toronto's Troy Tulowitzki hit the first MLB homer of 2016, also in Tampa Bay.
Longoria and Tulowitzki are two of the players still with the same teams as a season ago. Bryan Shaw remains with the Cleveland Indians after their trip to the World Series in 2016, Jason Vargas is healthy and back in the Kansas City Royals starting rotation, Nick Vincent is entering his second season in the Seattle Mariners bullpen, and Marco Estrada is the Opening Day starter for the Toronto Blue Jays after his All-Star campaign in 2016.
Matt Duffy remains with the Rays after his midseason trade last year, but he is currently on the 10-day disabled list and hopes to make his season debut soon. If the Rays continue to play him at shortstop when he returns, he would form an all-Dirtbags left side of the infield with Longoria at third base.
There are also players set to debut on new teams, with Danny Espinosa joining the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim via trade, Jered Weaver signing with the San Diego Padres, and Jared Hughes signing with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Here is a full list of Dirtbags on MLB rosters to start the 2017 season:
Bryan Shaw (Cleveland)
Jason Vargas (Kansas City)
Danny Espinosa (Los Angeles (AL))
Jared Hughes (Milwaukee)
Jered Weaver (San Diego)
Nick Vincent (Seattle)
Evan Longoria (Tampa Bay)
Troy Tulowitzki (Toronto)
Marco Estrada (Toronto)
