Long Beach State University Athletics
Dirtbags Face UCSB in Long Beach This Weekend
5/10/2018 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Friday, May 11
Long Beach State vs. UC Santa Barbara
Time: 6 p.m.
Location: Bohl Diamond at Blair Field
Live Stream | Listen: 22 West Radio | Live Stats
Saturday, May 12
Long Beach State vs. UC Santa Barbara
Time: 2 p.m.
Location: Bohl Diamond at Blair Field
Live Stream | Listen: 22 West Radio | Live Stats
Sunday, May 13
Long Beach State vs. UC Santa Barbara
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Bohl Diamond at Blair Field
Live Stream | Listen: 22 West Radio | Live Stats
LAST TIME OUT
• The Dirtbags have won four straight games, with a sweep at UC Riverside last weekend followed by a 5-1 victory on Tuesday night at No. 11 UCLA. That victory in LA gave Long Beach State a season sweep of the Bruins, and gives LBSU four consecutive wins in midweek games.
• Junior Clayton Andrews was brilliant in Saturday's win, setting a new career high with 13 strikeouts. He tossed eight innings of one-run ball while surrendering no walks and five hits. At the plate, he was 4-for-5 with a walk, meaning he reached base as many times as the Highlanders did while he was on the mound. On Monday, it was announced that Andrews earned Big West Pitcher of the Week honors for the second time this season.
• Freshman Leonard Jones continued his hot streak at the plate, collecting eight RBIs during the UC Riverside series. The first baseman had three hits in each of the first two games, and two more hits on Sunday to give him six multi-hit games in his last seven. Jones also added his first career home run in the first inning of the series finale, staking LBSU to a 3-0 lead. He earned Big West Player of the Week for the first time in his career.
• LBSU defeated UCLA on the strength of a five-run fourth inning, capped by a three-run home run from junior Shaq Robinson. Dylan Spacke earned his third save in the last four games by striking out the side looking with the bases loaded in the ninth inning.
SCOUTING THE GAUCHOS
• UCSB is right at .500 after going 1-3 last week. The Gauchos dropped a home series against CSUN, despite outscoring the Matadors 19-12. UCSB then lost 3-1 at home on Tuesday against Pepperdine. The Gauchos have yet to win a road series this year, posting a 4-10 record away from home.
• Sophomore CF Tommy Jew is the only Gaucho to play in every game this season, leading the team with a .301 average and 33 RBIs. Junior SS Clay Fisher has driven in 30 runs and has a team-best 13 stolen bases in 14 attempts.
• These teams met in Santa Barbara to start Big West play last season. UCSB won the first contest before the Dirtbags responded by winning the final two games of the set.
TWO-WAY CLAYTON
• Junior CF/LHP Clayton Andrews has been a consistent two-way contributor this season, among LBSU's leaders in both batting average (.301) and ERA (2.58).
• Andrews has been named both the Big West Player of the Week (Mar. 26) and Pitcher of the Week (Apr. 9) this season. He is the first player in conference history (going back to 1987) to win both awards in the same season.
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 university in 2017. There were 15 former Dirtbags who played in the majors in 2017, and the all-time total for LBSU 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.
• Long Beach State began the 2018 season with 10 former players on MLB rosters, with a handful of others waiting in the minor leagues. LBSU's list of current big leaguers is: Shane Carle (Atlanta), Matt Duffy (Tampa Bay), Marco Estrada (Toronto), Jared Hughes (Cincinnati), Evan Longoria (San Francisco), Mike Marjama (Seattle), Bryan Shaw (Colorado), Troy Tulowitzki (Toronto), Jason Vargas (New York Mets), and Nick Vincent (Seattle).
