Dirtbags Open 2020 Season With Three-Game Series vs. Cal

Friday, February 14

Long Beach, Calif.

6 P.M.

Long Beach State University

California

Photo by: John Fajardo

2/13/2020 12:29:00 PM | Baseball

Game Notes (PDF)

Long Beach State is hosting a three-game series on Bohl Diamond at Blair Field this weekend, kicking off the 2020 baseball season against the Cal Golden Bears. Opening Night is this Friday, with first pitch scheduled for 6 p.m. with postgame fireworks to follow.

By: Tyler Hendrickson, Associate Athletic Communications Director

Friday, February 14
Long Beach State vs. Cal
Time: 6 p.m.
Location: Bohl Diamond at Blair Field
Watch: Beach Vision | Listen: 22 West Radio | Live Stats

Saturday, February 15
Long Beach State vs. Cal
Time: 3 p.m.
Location: Bohl Diamond at Blair Field
Watch: Beach Vision | Listen: 22 West Radio | Live Stats

Sunday, February 16
Long Beach State vs. Cal
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Bohl Diamond at Blair Field
Watch: Beach Vision | Listen: 22 West Radio | Live Stats

A LOOK BACK AT 2019
•   The 2019 season was a difficult one for the Dirtbags, which included an 11-game skid to start the season against an elite national schedule. Long Beach State ended up in a three-way tie for seventh place in the Big West Conference standings, aided by a six-game home winning streak to close the season.
•   Redshirt Junior Jacob Hughey was a .324 hitter to lead the Dirtbags lineup, earning second-team All-Big West honors following the season. He led a group of four All-Conference honorees for the Dirtbags, including returners Adam Seminaris and Chris Jimenez.

THE VALENZUELA ERA
•   Eric Valenzuela was hired in June of 2019 to become the eighth head coach in program history. He was previously the head coach at Saint Mary's College, where he posted a 180-156 record in six seasons with the Gaels. He also retained his coaching staff from Moraga: Associate Head Coach Bryan Peters and Assistant Coach Daniel Costanza.
•   Valenzuela is a Southern California native, playing at Bishop Amat High School before playing college baseball at Arizona State and Pepperdine. He has previous Division I coaching stops at Saint Mary's San Diego, and San Diego State.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN BEARS
•   Cal went 32-20 last season, finishing fourth in the Pac-12 and earning an NCAA Regional berth. Interestingly, the Golden Bears played against both the Dirtbags and new head coach Eric Valenzuela. Cal played a split series against Saint Mary's, winning two of the three contests against Valenzuela and the Gaels. Later in the season, Cal earned a three-game sweep of the Dirtbags in Berkeley, hitting nine combined home runs in the series.
•   Cal will have to deal with the loss of its top three pitchers and top three hitters, including Golden Spikes Award winner Andrew Vaughn at first base. Junior Quentin Selma is the top returner on offense after hitting .311 with 10 homers, 14 doubles and 27 RBIs last season. Speedster Darren Baker is a veteran at second base, and is also the son of new Houston Astros manager, Dusty Baker.
•   Cal has a 37-32 lead in the all-time series with the Dirtbags. The last time Cal played in Long Beach was in 2012, when the No. 20-ranked Golden Bears lost two of three.

LOOK WHO'S BACK
•   Leading hitter Jacob Hughey returns for his redshirt senior season after hitting .324 in 2019. He leads a large crop of returners in the lineup, as less than 28 percent of the at-bats taken last season were by departed players. Infielder Santino Rivera has 101 starts in his two years on campus. Other key contributors Chase Luttrell, Calvin Estrada, Tyler Porter, Kaden Hogan, Chris Jimenez, and Aidan Malm each started 28 or more games last season.
•   Junior Adam Seminaris is an experienced Friday Night Starter who had a 3.35 ERA in 14 starts in 2019. He has 24 starts in his Dirtbags career and is coming off a successful summer in the Cape Cod League. Sophomore Alfredo Ruiz made five starts as a freshman and has made great strides this offseason. Senior Tyler Gums should be a key reliever in a bullpen that will feature several new faces.

LB IN MLB
•   Long Beach State had more former players in the big leagues than any other college or university from 2010-17, with 12 MLB representatives in 2019, again placing the Dirtbags among the nation's leaders.
• Jeff McNeil was named a 2019 NL All-Star, representing the New York Mets in the Midsummer Classic. His All-Star Game debut was the 20th All-Star appearance by a former Dirtbag, and the fourth in the last five seasons by four different players. There has been at least one former Dirtbag in 11 of the last 12 All-Star Games, with a combined 14 ASG selections since 2008.