Friday, March 19
Honolulu, Hawaii
9:35 P.M.
Long Beach State University
at
Hawai'i
Dirtbags Return to the Diamond, Open 2021 at Hawaii
3/17/2021 3:55:00 PM | Baseball
Long Beach State is set to play their first games in 376 days after the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the 2020 season.
LONG BEACH, Calif. – The Dirtbags are set to open their 2021 season this weekend at Hawaii, their first games since March 8, 2020. They will play a four-game series against the Rainbow Warriors this weekend with a doubleheader on Saturday.
Friday, March 19
Long Beach State at Hawaii
Time: 9:35 p.m. PDT
Location: Les Murakami Stadium (Honolulu, Hawai'i)
Watch | Live Stats
Saturday, March 20 (DH)
Long Beach State at Hawaii
Time: 3:35 p.m. PDT
Location: Les Murakami Stadium (Honolulu, Hawai'i)
Watch | Live Stats
Sunday, March 21
Long Beach State at Hawaii
Time: 3:00 p.m. PDT
Location: Les Murakami Stadium (Honolulu, Hawai'i)
Watch | Live Stats
LAST TIME OUT
• The Dirtbags were one of the best stories in college baseball in 2020 until COVID-19 ended the season abruptly leaving everyone wondering what could have been. After a 14-41 season in 2019, Long Beach State rebounded big under a new coaching staff, going 10-5 and ranking as high as No. 12 in the national polls.
• Speaking of the new coaching staff, leading the group is head coach Eric Valenzuela. After six seasons at St. Mary's, he was brought on board to lead the Dirtbags beginning in 2020. Valenzuela brought his Gaels staff with him as Bryan Peters serves as the Associate Head Coach and Daniel Costanza is the Assistant Coach.
• The 'Bags were hot in 2020 winning every weekend series they had, including then No. 6 Mississippi State and a sweep over then No. 17 Wake Forest.
ABOUT THE DIRTBAGS
• LBSU breaking into the top 25 last season marked the first national ranking for the Dirtbags since ending the 2017 season ranked No. 8 by Baseball America.
• The Dirtbags were picked to finish second in the Big West Conference pre-season coaches' poll behind conference favorite UC Santa Barbara.
• Around the country, the Dirtbags were also picked to make the postseason by both D1Baseball.com and Baseball America.
• Long Beach State was forced to stay off the field during the pandemic, not getting a chance to play any fall ball and were not permitted for team practice until February 15. Because of that, they are one of two teams in the Big West that will play a 40-game conference-only schedule.
SCOUTING THE RAINBOW WARRIORS
• Hawaii enters the weekend with an 8-2 record riding a seven-game win streak sweeping Hawaii Pacific and Hawaii Hilo the last two weekends.
• The only DI team they have faced was opening weekend against Arizona State. The Sun Devils took two of three from the Rainbow Warriors.
• As a team, they're leading the conference hitting .325, slugging .454, and getting on base at a .430 clip.
• On the mound, they have a 2.45 team ERA with opponents hitting .236 against them.
• Individually at the plate, Kole Kaler leads the Warriors with a .400 average (18-45) and seven stolen bases while Alex Baeza leads the team with two home runs, 13 RBI, and 11 runs scored.
• Their projected weekend starters are 4-0 with a sub-2.00 combined ERA so far this season. Aaron Davenport leads the staff with 20 innings, posting a 1.35 ERA with 28 strikeouts while Austin Texeira has thrown 14 innings without allowing an earned run.
• In the all-time matchup, the Dirtbags lead the series 20-8. LBSU has won the last three games against the Warriors sweeping the 2019 series.
Complete Game Notes (PDF)
Friday, March 19
Long Beach State at Hawaii
Time: 9:35 p.m. PDT
Location: Les Murakami Stadium (Honolulu, Hawai'i)
Watch | Live Stats
Saturday, March 20 (DH)
Long Beach State at Hawaii
Time: 3:35 p.m. PDT
Location: Les Murakami Stadium (Honolulu, Hawai'i)
Watch | Live Stats
Sunday, March 21
Long Beach State at Hawaii
Time: 3:00 p.m. PDT
Location: Les Murakami Stadium (Honolulu, Hawai'i)
Watch | Live Stats
LAST TIME OUT
• The Dirtbags were one of the best stories in college baseball in 2020 until COVID-19 ended the season abruptly leaving everyone wondering what could have been. After a 14-41 season in 2019, Long Beach State rebounded big under a new coaching staff, going 10-5 and ranking as high as No. 12 in the national polls.
• Speaking of the new coaching staff, leading the group is head coach Eric Valenzuela. After six seasons at St. Mary's, he was brought on board to lead the Dirtbags beginning in 2020. Valenzuela brought his Gaels staff with him as Bryan Peters serves as the Associate Head Coach and Daniel Costanza is the Assistant Coach.
• The 'Bags were hot in 2020 winning every weekend series they had, including then No. 6 Mississippi State and a sweep over then No. 17 Wake Forest.
ABOUT THE DIRTBAGS
• LBSU breaking into the top 25 last season marked the first national ranking for the Dirtbags since ending the 2017 season ranked No. 8 by Baseball America.
• The Dirtbags were picked to finish second in the Big West Conference pre-season coaches' poll behind conference favorite UC Santa Barbara.
• Around the country, the Dirtbags were also picked to make the postseason by both D1Baseball.com and Baseball America.
• Long Beach State was forced to stay off the field during the pandemic, not getting a chance to play any fall ball and were not permitted for team practice until February 15. Because of that, they are one of two teams in the Big West that will play a 40-game conference-only schedule.
SCOUTING THE RAINBOW WARRIORS
• Hawaii enters the weekend with an 8-2 record riding a seven-game win streak sweeping Hawaii Pacific and Hawaii Hilo the last two weekends.
• The only DI team they have faced was opening weekend against Arizona State. The Sun Devils took two of three from the Rainbow Warriors.
• As a team, they're leading the conference hitting .325, slugging .454, and getting on base at a .430 clip.
• On the mound, they have a 2.45 team ERA with opponents hitting .236 against them.
• Individually at the plate, Kole Kaler leads the Warriors with a .400 average (18-45) and seven stolen bases while Alex Baeza leads the team with two home runs, 13 RBI, and 11 runs scored.
• Their projected weekend starters are 4-0 with a sub-2.00 combined ERA so far this season. Aaron Davenport leads the staff with 20 innings, posting a 1.35 ERA with 28 strikeouts while Austin Texeira has thrown 14 innings without allowing an earned run.
• In the all-time matchup, the Dirtbags lead the series 20-8. LBSU has won the last three games against the Warriors sweeping the 2019 series.
Complete Game Notes (PDF)
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