Baseball must improve to avoid wave of frustration vs.
Pepperdine
By Brian Purcell
Daily Bruin Contributor
Just two statistics are needed to sum up the year that the UCLA
baseball team is having: 36 earned runs allowed, 22 unearned runs
allowed.
The Bruins have a case of the boots, and they need to find a
cure if they are to realize their high preseason expectations.
They have now committed 28 errors in 10 games, including six in
Wednesday night’s loss vs. Cal State Fullerton. The miscues came
from all over the field this time as six different players had one
error each. It was the second time this year that UCLA has
committed six errors in a game.
A team needs to take the good from the bad, and the Bruins can
find solace in the fact that despite their multitude of mistakes,
they still have a respectable 6-4 record and have earned the No. 9
spot in Baseball America’s most recent poll.
The hitting and pitching has been good enough most of the time
to outweigh defensive lapses. However, they will need all parts of
their game clicking if they want to continue to win. They are in
the midst of a brutal part of their schedule, and Six-Pac play
looms just around the corner.
This weekend would be a good time for the Bruins to start
fielding and throwing the ball. They take on Pepperdine (4-5) in a
three-game set, and will need to be sharp if they are to overtake
the talented Waves.
Despite their mediocre record, Pepperdine is currently ranked
No. 11 by Collegiate Baseball. Seven of its games have come against
ranked opponents, and its pitching staff includes preseason
All-American Randy Wolf (1-0, 0.69 ERA), who the Bruins will face
on Friday night.
UCLA will counter Pepperdine’s pitching with its usual array of
southpaws. Jim Parque will take the mound on Friday night while
Ryan Lynch and Pete Zamora will start the remaining two.
Pepperdine’s problems this year have come with the bat, as they
have accumulated a sluggish .267 batting average, compared to the
Bruins’ .298 mark. The Waves, however, have committed just seven
errors on the season, an average of less than one per game.
Bruin pitchers would be grateful for a similar
performance.Comments to webmaster@db.asucla.ucla.edu