Twenty is somewhat of a magic number in baseball. It’s the number of wins a pitcher aims for at the start of each season, and it can signify a dominating single-game performance if achieved in terms of strikeouts or runs.
For the UCLA baseball team, it represents the current point of a winning streak as players prepare to host Pepperdine tonight at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
Although No. 6 UCLA (20-0) has yet to hit the roughest patches in its schedule ““ Pac-10 play begins this weekend ““ winning 20 games against any competition in baseball is a remarkable achievement.
“This game is based on failure,” sophomore third baseman Dean Espy said. “I mean, if you succeed 30 percent of the time, you’re still a good hitter. It can be real humbling real quick.”
Senior starting pitcher Garett Claypool will seek his third win of the season against the Waves (8-14), who will likely counter with their traditional mid-week starter, sophomore Aaron Gates. If he does get the nod, Gates will have his hands full with a Bruin offense that is batting .364 as a team and has scored 163 runs in its 20 games.
Sophomore second baseman Tyler Rahmatulla continues to justify coach John Savage’s writing him in at third in the batting order, as he leads the team with a .453 average. Espy ““ the transfer from South Mountain Community College in Phoenix ““ has been a welcome addition, hitting .415 with four home runs.
“It’s contagious, no question about it,” said Savage of the offensive production and scrappy mentality. “When guys use the middle of the field, … it’s a string of guys that wear down a pitcher. We’ve got a bunch of combinations left and right. You can’t say enough about what we’re doing right now offensively.”
After putting up gaudy numbers in blowouts during the first month of the season, the Bruins were tested by Cal Poly over the weekend. UCLA was forced to come from behind on Friday and Saturday in winning 4-3 and 6-4. With Pepperdine representing the final tune-up before Pac-10 play, maintaining steadiness up and down the roster will be paramount ““ not that that’s been a problem thus far.
“Every day guys come to the ballpark ready to play with the same approach,” redshirt senior Blair Dunlap said. “Day in and day out, we try to stay consistent. Every guy on this team has a role. … Everyone is willing to accept that role and excel.”
With reports from Blair Angulo, Bruin Sports senior staff.