Long Beach State University Athletics
Dirtbags Renew Rivalry with Cal State Fullerton This Weekend
3/22/2018 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Friday, March 23
Long Beach State at Cal State Fullerton
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Fullerton, Calif. (Goodwin Field)
Live Stream | Listen: 22 West Radio | Live Stats
Saturday, March 24
Long Beach State at Cal State Fullerton
Time: 6 p.m.
Location: Fullerton, Calif. (Goodwin Field)
Live Stream | Listen: 22 West Radio (Also on AM830) | Live Stats
Sunday, March 25
Long Beach State at Cal State Fullerton
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Fullerton, Calif. (Goodwin Field)
Live Stream | Listen: 22 West Radio | Live Stats
LAST TIME OUT
• The Dirtbags went to extra innings for the first time this season, losing 5-4 in 10 innings at LMU on a walk-off sacrifice fly. LBSU led 4-2 in the eighth inning, but couldn't hold the lead as the Lions won their seventh straight contest.
• Last weekend, LBSU got some quality pitching to win its first series of the season, taking the first and final game of the Tulane series. Zak Baayoun had 10 strikeouts over seven shutout innings on Friday, then three Dirtbags pitchers combined to one-hit the Green Wave in a 1-0 win on Sunday.
• Redshirt junior Tyler Radcliffe was the key in Sunday's victory, throwing a career-best seven innings against Tulane while only allowing a first-inning single. He also set a season high with six strikeouts and picked up his first win as a starter. Following his standout performance, Radcliffe was named Big West Pitcher of the Week for the first time in his career, joining Baayoun as LBSU's winners of that award this season.
SCOUTING THE TITANS
• The 2018 season has been a bit of a roller coaster for Cal State Fullerton. The Titans started the season getting swept at Stanford, and lost seven of their first eight games. Since then, however, things have started to turn around and the Titans have won four straight with a sweep of Grand Canyon last weekend followed by a Tuesday win over San Diego.
• Junior CF Mitchell Berryhill is hitting a team-best .315, but senior LF Chris Prescott has been Fullerton's best offensive weapon, hitting .310 with a team-best 14 runs and 10 RBIs. Prescott is also on a run of four consecutive multi-hit games. Sophomore C Daniel Cope leads the Titans with three home runs and has a .507 slugging percentage.
• The Titans have had some fluidity on the mound, but junior Colton Eastman has been the stalwart in the rotation, making five starts this season and posting an ERA of 2.59. He has 32 strikeouts in 31.1 innings, but has also issued 12 walks.
• Long Beach State won both regular season series with the Titans last season, winning six of the nine meetings overall. This is the first meeting between the Dirtbags and Titans since the Long Beach Super Regional at Blair Field last June.
PUT TO THE TEST
• Long Beach State is playing one of the most difficult non-conference schedules in the nation this season. The Dirtbags are playing three road series against teams that reached the College World Series in 2017 (TCU, Texas A&M, and Cal State Fullerton) all in the first six weeks of the season.
• The Dirtbags strength of schedule currently ranks 13th in the nation with a combined opponents' record of 232-134.
BOHL DIAMOND AT BLAIR FIELD
• Long Beach State received a multi-million dollar donation during the offseason from longtime supporter Marilyn Bohl. In recognition of her generous gift, , the Dirtbags' home field has been renamed Bohl Diamond at Blair Field.
• Bohl has been actively involved in supporting the Blair Field renovation project for years, and previously gave a one million dollar gift to help kick off the initial phase of the renovations prior to the 2016 season.
• So far, the renovation efforts have included a new outfield fence, the Troy & Danyll Tulowitzki Batting Facility, the Jered Weaver Bullpen, and improvements to the Dirtbags locker room. Future plans include new stadium lighting, improved field drainage, a new multi-purpose team room along the left field line, plus restroom and seating upgrades.
LB IN MLB
• For the eighth consecutive year, Long Beach State had more players in the major leagues than any other college or university. There were 15 former Dirtbags who played in the major leagues in 2017 and the all-time total for Long Beach State is 48 big league representatives.
• There were two former Dirtbags who made their MLB debuts in 2017. First, it was RHP Shane Carle who appeared for the Colorado Rockies on April 14. Later in the season, C Mike Marjama made his debut with the Seattle Mariners on September 3.
• Kansas City Royals lefthander Jason Vargas made his first All-Star Game appearance during the 2017 season. The Dirtbags will be giving away commemorative Vargas bobbleheads prior at the UC Irvine game on April 7.
