At the halfway point of the season, the UCLA baseball team is
right where it wants to be: above .500 with a chance to make a run
at the Pac-10 championship.
UCLA (16-13, 1-2 Pac-10) has won 11 of its last 14 games and the
Bruins still feel energized, having already surpassed last
season’s meager win total of 15.
“We are leading the Pac-10 in pitching and defense,”
UCLA coach John Savage said. “We’ve had our moments
offensively, as well. The Pac-10 is a pitching-dominant league, so
we’re going to need to execute very well on offense the rest
of the way if we’re going to succeed.”
The pitching of the Pac-10 was on display over the weekend as
the Bruins scored just four runs against Washington’s
pitchers.
This weekend, the Bruins will take on the Washington State
Cougars (21-10, 3-3) who, along with the Bruins, have been one of
the biggest surprises in the Pac-10 this year.
“We are both two teams who had difficult years last
year,” Savage said. “But, they took two of three from
Stanford, and had a chance to win the series against Arizona State.
They’ve got a bunch of good young players.”
The Bruins are another team with good young players who should
improve as the season goes on. So far it has been the pitching that
has kept the team above .500, but there is still much work to be
done if UCLA is to compete in the
Pac-10.
“We need to improve all around,” junior starting
pitcher Hector Ambriz said. “Right now our pitching has been
carrying us and keeping the team in most games. But with our
pitching staff, defense and offense, a Pac-10 championship (is a
realistic expectation).
“We have to have a goal of winning every series from here
on out. Why not make a run for it?”
The offense, prior to the weekend games against the Huskies, had
been on fire. In the previous 12 games, the Bruins averaged nearly
nine runs a game. For a team that had a fair amount of trouble
hitting the ball last year, it has been a marked improvement.
“Our attitude has changed,” senior outfielder Chris
Jensen said. “We’re not settling for the one-run inning
anymore. When everyone’s staying aggressive, hitting gets
contagious, and that’s what you’re seeing
now.”
This weekend will be the conference home opener, and for the
Bruins to have a chance at the Pac-10 title, they will need to hold
home field advantage.
“In the Pac-10, every weekend is a dogfight,” Savage
said. “We’ve got to make sure we take care of our home
field.”
INJURIES: Closer Brant Rustich, who was
expected back this weekend, has had a setback and will be out for
at least three more weeks.
“There’s inflammation on a tendon on the end of his
middle finger,” Savage said. “He’s been out since
Feb. 21, but our guys have been battling without him. You’ve
got to give credit to (Josh) Roenicke and (Paul) Oseguera for
stepping up into that closer role.”