Dirtbags 2014 Out-Of-Conference Preview: part 3

Rounding out the OOC series previews are the road trips for the Dirtbags, which all feature opponents who traveled to Long Beach in 2013.

Wichita State (ISR: 92, RPI: 103) – Last year nearly turned into a nightmare of a season for our (partially) cross-country rival, who started the year dropping three games to Pittsburgh, then losing four games to the snow. However, the Shockers, rebounded to win 39 games and the Missouri Valley Conference tournament.

The Dirtbags have won their last three series against WSU, including a sweep in Blair Field last year, and a near-sweep in their 2012 trip to Eck Stadium. However, the 2014 Shockers could be a dangerous club, as they retain several key players including their top four hitters; 1B Casey Gillaspie (.299/.447/.517), C Tyler Baker (.328/.394/.466), OF Garrett Bayliff (.379/.439/.425), and 2B Tanner Dearman (.301/.404/.335); and their entire weekend rotation; closer-turned-starter RHP Cale Elam (3.17, 75/30, 93.2 IP), RHP A.J. Ladwig (4.54, 68/15, 85.1 IP), and RHP Garrett Brummett (1.16, 24/11, 38.2 IP). This experienced team will be lead by new Head Coach Todd Butler, former assistant and recruiting coordinator for two Omaha-bound Arkansas squads. Add the fact that this is easily the Dirtbags' longest road trip of the regular season, geographically speaking, and this could be another tough test for Troy Buckley's boys.

Arizona (ISR: 34, RPI: 59) – two game mid-week series – Long Beach State split two home mid-week games last season against the then-defending champion Wildcats. That series was the first test of the pitching depth for a team that had no healthy returning starters. Though the 2014 Dirtbags return LHPs Jake Stassi and Ryan Strufing, this two game set in Tucson could serve as a similar measuring stick for the rotation, with returners LHP Nick Sabo and RHP Ryan Millison (the starters from last year's series) and newcomers RHP Christian Belleque and LHP Cameron Pongs potentially getting the nods.

Most of the major players from the Wildcats' Omaha team are gone but they return a large portion of last year's lineup, including dynamic middle infielders 2B Trent Gilbert (.344/.407/.448) and SS Kevin Newman (.336/.398/.392). It will be interesting to see how the Dirtbag lineup, particularly players like Michael Hill and Richard Prigatano, approach hitting in Hi Corbett, where the speed/gap power combo remains U of A's M.O..

Cal State Fullerton (ISR: 2, RPI: 6) – In what is typically the final warmup before conference play, this series could be the Dirtbags' most difficult of the season as Fullerton is likely to be a top five team in the pre-season rankings. Some wins in this series would be a big boost to the RPI and would look great on LBSU's regional bid resume, but I don't really care about that.

After losing 22 of 25 to the Titans (3-15 in the Troy Buckley-era), the six meetings this season have to take on a greater significance. How Long Beach State performs on the road against likely one of the better Fullerton teams in recent years will serve as a strong indicator of the strength of the Dirtbag moniker.

They will be combated with one of the best rotations in the nation, RHP Thomas Eshelman (1.48, 83/3, 115.2 IP), RHP Justin Garza (2.03, 95/17, 115 IP) coming off all-universe freshman seasons, RHP Grahamm Wiest (3.27, 76/13, 104.2 IP), not to mention about 12 other All-Big West arms.

If there's a weakness to be found, it could be Fullerton's comparatively unproven lineup. Gone is a large portion of last year's lineup, including Big West players of the year Michael Lorenzen and Carlos Lopez, though they do retain legitimate conference POY candidates 1B JD Davis (.318/.407/.436) and 3B Matt Chapman (.285/.415/.457). Though the Titans always have a steady pipeline of talent, the 2014 outfield and shortstop positions will have a hard time replicating the production of their predecessors (not that they'd necessarily have to).

LBSU's best chance here is to be able to exploit that new-look lineup behind strong pitching and grind out some low-scoring victories.

It's regional or bust next year for Long Beach State, but while simply earning a bid would seem to make 2014 a successful enough campaign, if the Dirtbags can get through this gauntlet of a schedule there's no telling how they can go. The key, of course, will be surviving the regular season.  

Dirtbags 2014 Out-Of-Conference Preview: part 2

We opened our examination of Long Beach State's 2014 schedule by looking at schools like Vanderbilt, Arizona State, and UC Irvine. If that wasn't enough, we still have two teams left on the home schedule that are only coming off of College World Series qualifying, and College World Series winning, seasons.

Indiana (ISR: 12, RPI: 12) – The Hoosiers only traveled west of Omaha once last year, and that was all the way to Lincoln to take on the Cornhuskers. Yet in 2014 they'll be spending a weekend in Long Beach, their first trip to California since 2012 when they went 3-5 against Cal Sate Northridge, San Diego, and Loyola Marymount. Though they don't go west often, last year's IU team was well traveled, going to Florida four times, twice for tournaments, once to play the Gators (a series they won), and finally to face the Seminoles in the Super Regionals (a series they swept). Despite their somewhat improbable 2013 season, Indiana looks poised for a repeat, returning four of their five biggest workhorses from their pitching staff, including LHP Joey DeNato (2.52, 87/43, 103.2 IP), who tossed a shutout against Louisville in the College World Series.

On the hitting side, the Hoosiers return an experienced and well-balanced lineup, with good speed, solid power, and a strong ability to draw the walk and get on base. They're lead by All-Americans, C Kyle Schwarber (.366/.456/.647) and 3B Dustin DeMuth (.377/.433/.545), among several other returning starters from the 2013 lineup.

Between this, the Vanderbilt series, and the trip to Wichita (more on that later), the Dirtbags are going to have a well geographically-balanced schedule on their hands next spring.

UCLA (2013 ISR: 6; RPI: 9) – For the second consecutive season, the Dirtbags will host a series against the reigning national champions. UCLA small-balled their way to the title last year, hitting zero homers at TD Ameritrade Park, with something like 477 bunts. Such an offensive output could yield similarly successful results in spacious Blair Field, where the Bruins scrapped together a 3-2 mid-week win over the Dirtbags a year ago. Pitching was obviously UCLA's strength in 2013 and despite suffering some major losses to their championship staff, they return a solid crop of arms in 2014. Leading the way will be RHP Cody Poteet (4.84, 56/31, 70.2 IP), top prospect in the West Cost Summer League according to Perfect Game; LHP Grant Watson (3.01, 55/16, 92.2 IP), LHP Hunter Virant, and living legend RHP David Berg (0.92, 78/11, 78 IP, 24 saves).

The Bruins return the majority of its relatively light-hitting lineup, including OF Brian Carroll (32 steals) and it's top four leaders in sacrifice hits, meaning this series could quickly turn into a repeat of last June's Omaha bunt-a-thon. Also back is three-hitter 3B Kevin Kramer (.278/.382/.376), who had a team best four hits against LBSU last season.

In the Dirtbags' corner is that 11-1 victory over the Bruins at Jackie Robinson Stadium last year against an erratic Poteet; easily the worst loss of the Bruins' championship season.

Up next, we wrap up our look at the out-of-conference slate by looking at the foes Long Beach State will be facing on the road.

Dirtbags 2014 Out-Of-Conference Preview: part 1

We're still waiting on the official announcement on the Long Beach State 2014 schedule, but the out-of-conference slate was recently announced on twitter (one of the two accounts the Dirtbags seem to have) and it's a thing of beauty. Though they're again going a tad heavy on the home games, next season's schedule has the potential to be the strongest in years, which is saying quite a bit. In the first of three posts, we take a look at some of the teams headed to Blair Field this spring...

Vanderbilt (2013 ISR: 4; RPI: 2) – The Commodores cruised to a series win against the Dirtbags to open what would be a historic season for VU. Frankly, in retrospect it's amazing Long Beach State even managed to win one game at the Hawk, given how good the Dores turned out to be. Vandy would go on be win a record 26 SEC games and become a national seed. In that three-game series, Vandy outscoured LBSU 31-19, despite being tied with 30 hits each. The difference would be Vanderbilt's trademark base on balls (18) and fearless baserunning (seven steals, plus more extra bases taken than I care to remember).

Vandy lost half a minor league team-worth of players to the draft, but will nevertheless open 2014 as one of the top teams in the nation. On the hill for Vandy will be Golden Spikes Finalist RHP Tyler Beede (2.32 ERA, 103 K/63 BB, 101 IP) who tossed five solid innings against the Dirtbags last February, albeit while struggling to manage a tight strike zone. Senior RHP TJ Pecoraro (5.97, 15/14, 34.2 IP) also returns but was hit hard in Long Beach State's Sunday win last year and will have to fight his way back into the rotation against RHPs Walker Buehler (3.14, 57/25, 63 IP), Tyler Ferguson (4.21, 21/11, 25.2 IP), and LHP Philip Pfeifer (3.68, 47/30, 63.2 IP). Ferguson and Pfeifer both had mediocre relief appearances against the Dirtbags last season.

SS Vince Conde (.307/.380/.458) is arguably the best of the few returning starters, though a plethora of part-timers from last year seem poised to become impact players. What will be interesting to see is what the Dores offensive approach will look like after losing five players that drew 30+ walks, and four of five players with 15+ steals in 2013, but rest assured the 2014 lineup will present a challenge for Dirtbag pitching it what's likely to be the first series of the season.

“Mini-Tournament” featuring Arizona State, Wright State, and UC Irvine – This series is actually going to include two games at home (versus Arizona State and Wright State) and one on the road (at UC Irvine). This will be the first tournament-style weekend for in Blair Field since the start of the 2010 season, and oddly enough it'll conclude with ASU playing WSU on Sunday, while the Dirtbags are down in Orange County battling the Anteaters. It's confirmed that this will be the second weekend of the season.

Arizona State (ISR: 15, RPI: 20) – Last season's series in Tempe resulted in a three-game sweep for the Sun Devils and one of the most anemic offensive outputs from the Dirtbags all year. LHP Ryan Kellogg (3.15, 54/17, 103 IP) is likely to get the ball for this Friday game. Kellogg tossed seven, two-hit, scoreless frames against LBSU a year ago, leading ASU to its second shutout of the series. Several of ASU's top hitters from last year are gone, but the Sun Devils bring in a strong recruiting class and a solid core of returners lead by SS Drew Stankiewicz (.295/.363/.396) and 1B Dalton DiNatale (.302/.397/.405).

Wright State (ISR: 202, RPI: 219) – Wright State returns to the southland after being swept at UCLA last spring, however the Raiders are an unfamiliar foe to Blair Field. Wright State finished fourth last season in the Horizon League; a conference whose only regional representative, Valparaiso, suffered an early season sweep to the Dirtbags. Wright State will see a lot of lineup turnover in 2014 but returns senior OFs Kieston Greene (.335/.396/.492) and Mark Fowler (.308/.383/.390).

UC Irvine (ISR: 29, RPI: 80) – The Anteaters are coming off a disappointing 2013 and saw further coaching turnover in the summer, resulting in the exit of revered assistant Pat Shine. However they did manage to take two of three against the Dirtbags last season (the first series since 2010 that didn't include a no-hitter!). Irvine enters 2014 with lower expectations and may not quite be the pitching-rich team they've been in recent years, but they return some star-studded hitters like 3B Taylor Sparks (.360/.388/.581), 1B Connor Spencer (.373/.443/.491), and SS Chris Rabago (.269/.325/.356). The Dirtbags will be heading to Irvine for the Sunday-finale of this tournament. The back of the Irvine rotation is currently up in the air but a strong returning candidate for this role is sophomore southpaw Elliot Surrey (3.95, 10/5, 13.2 IP). It's also been announced the Dirtbags' regular season will close with a home conference series against the Anteaters. 

Utah Valley (2013 ISR: 211; RPI: 232) – Utah Valley! It's Utah Valley you guys! A favorite of myself and writers like Eric Sorenson from two years ago make the trip out to Long Beach next season, their first in the re-vamped WAC. These Wolverines, however, are a far cry from the 2012 squad that won 47 games behind a .959 OPS. After seeing their run production drop by over 40% in 2013, the 2014 team will return a somewhat more experienced lineup lead by Sophomore’s 3B Stone Ramsey (.307/.402/.457) and 1B Mark Krueger (.323/.374/.453). On the pitching side Utah Valley also saw a slight regression in 2013, and lose 2012 Great West Pitcher of the Year RHP Adam Gunn, among others. Top returners include likely Friday starter RHP Devin Nelson (3.55 ERA, 61/17 K/BB in 78.2 IP) and reliever RHP Brian Whatcott (1.69, 19/11, 26.2 IP).

The Wolverines will likely be the Dirtbags' weakest weekend opponent next year, and their 2013 stats and RPI weren't that dissimilar from arguably LBSU's weakest foe last season; the Seattle Redhawks. The same Seattle Redhawks that came to Blair Field and won two out of three.

Up next: We round out the home schedule with one-forth of last year's College World Series field.

Reviewing "Baseball in Long Beach"; mainly the Dirtbag parts.

The Summer Leagues have been over for several weeks now, so apart from the occasional scrimmage or two (Dirtbags vs. Trojans on November 23!) we're about to enter the most dead part of the baseball year. Thankfully, Long Beach Register's Bob Keisser's new book Baseball in Long Beach was released just in time to help fend off any offseason withdrawals.

As pretty plainly expressed in the title, the book is an anthology of sorts of baseball in the 562, ranging from biographies of Long Beach-natives that went on to become baseball icons, to the history of college and prep baseball in the city. The book starts out modestly, giving due notice to the reverence the city's baseball community had for Press-Telegram sports editor Frank T. Blair, and the role Blair played in pushing for a ballpark that would serve as the city's baseball epicenter. Keisser quickly shifts gears, however, and covers the lives of favorite sons turned Hall-of-Famers like Bob Lemon and Tony Gwynn.

While these chapters are probably obligatory, many die-hard baseball fans, and certainly Long Beach fans, are already to some degree familiar with several of the stories referenced. The bios, however, serve as nice segues into the stories of lesser-known natives Bobby Grich and Vern Stephens, two should-be Hall-of-Famers who are profiled in the curiously titled chapters “Moneyball” and “Moneyball, Part II”. It's an interesting look if for no other reason than both Grich and Stephens's outstanding big league careers seem to have fallen under the radar as history has passed. Keisser examines how the advancement of sabermetrics have created a swell of Hall-of-Fame support for the previously dormant cases of Grich and Stephens. Though Keisser's use of advanced statistics creates a compelling case for both players, the overabundance of statistics referenced (advanced and traditional) occasionally causes the stories behind the players themselves to get lost.

Eventually, Keisser focuses Baseball in Long Beach on baseball in Long Beach, digging deeply into the the rich history of the area's several high schools. Covering high school baseball history for one specific city might seem like an awfully niche subject, particularly if the reader is a non-Long Beach native like myself, but one can't help but be impressed with the sheer volume of baseball talent that the area has produced, and Keisser allows no one of significance to slip through the cracks. Moreover, the overview Keisser gives serves as a nice foundation and backstory to the real heart of the book (as least as far as I'm concerned), the history of Long Beach State baseball and the rise of the Dirtbags.

In clearly laying out the history of the region's prep and Junior College baseball programs, Keisser sets up the telling of how a hastily assembled group of players on a perennial loser of a school managed to use it's lack of funding and facilities as a motivating force. You know the story of the mud-caked uniforms that became the then-49ers' signature look, but the book also focuses on other Omaha-bound LBSU teams, including the '93 squad which became the first to call Blair Field home, only to struggle out of the gate. One interesting anecdote referenced involved Coach Dave Snow holding “practice” on the track, rather than the baseball field, and running his team (the first ever to officially be known as the Dirtbags) after a disappointing weekend series. As Keisser puts it, in words that seem all too relevant today: “[the message] was clear – you didn't become a Dirtbag just by being on the team, and the coach was willing to do whatever it took to get that point across.”

There's a chapter dedicated to some of Long Beach State's biggest names in the major leagues, though Evan Longoria has noticeably little coverage. The portion on Troy Tulowitzski, inparticular, is intriguing, as it's obvious Tulo's passion for what it means to be a Dirtbag still plays a heavy role it the all-star shortstop's approach to the game.

Keisser's telling is truly comprehensive, as he goes on to cover the stellar career of long time big league scout Harry Minor; the Jeff Buroughs-lead Little League World Series teams of the '90's; several championship clubs from amateur leagues such as PONY and American Legion; and he provides anecdotes about the California Winter League, the old Pacific Coast League, and the multiple failed attempts at an independent league team in Long Beach (no mention of the American West Baseball League's proposed Long Beach Splash, who apparently folded this past summer before games were ever played).

Keisser's book is well worth a read, particularly if you're suffering from the offseason blues, and those with at least a passing familiarity of the region's baseball prowess should appreciate the thoroughness of Keisser's coverage. Bringing this back to the Dirtbags, I'll close with an excerpt on Long Beach State's status in the post-Snow era, as the Dirtbags enter 2014 still trying to find their previous glory:

“What's mostly been lost is that thing Snow always sought – players who buy in 100 percent to the type of play and discipline he wanted. There's been a lot of players excited to be a Dirtbag but very few with the discipline and commitment to play like one.”

Five lukewarm questions for the Dirtbags this summer

The Dirtbags failed to make the regionals once again, yet it's been a busy June for Long Beach State baseball. Shane Carle was just drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Day Two of the MLB Draft (an LBSU pitcher going to the Pirates? Can't help but wonder if ex-Pirate Troy Buckley had some input on that); many Dirtbags have started their summer league seasons; and damn-near a fifth of the 2013 squad just up and left. So before I fully transition into my DC Grays summer league coverage (and find out just when exactly I can go to a game), I wanted to address a few of the questions facing Dirtbag baseball as we look ahead to the 2014 season.

1. How will Johnny Bekakis rebound?

After spending the spring on the couch for academic reasons, Bekakis is back(is) on the playing field, teaming with fellow-Dirtbags Zack Rivera and Josh Frye with the LaCrosse Loggers in the Northwoods League.

Though it’s still early in the summer (so early it’s still spring) Bekakis has gotten off to a decent start in the NWL, tallying seven hits and four steals through the Loggers’ first nine games while manning centerfield for LaCrosse (Bekakis spent his first two seasons for the Dirtbags primarily in left field). Assuming he picks up where he left off in 2012, Bekakis should be back in left for LBSU next season, likely hitting at the top of the lineup.

What will Richard Prigatano prove in the Cape?

Playing in the Cape Cod league usually means more for a player’s draft status than his collegiate production. Nevertheless, Prigatano seems to be gearing up for big 2014 after showing a small but noticeable step forward in 2013. The would-be junior right fielder improved both his slugging and on-base percentages last season, but he still needs to find a way to better utilize his natural power in spacious Blair Field, and his poor strikeout-to-walk ratio (33:13 last season) remains a concern.  How he performs against the nation’s best prospects this summer should give us an idea of what we can expect next spring.

Will Jason Martin, Matt Ball, or Garrett Hampson end up at Blair Field next year?

If you’d asked me yesterday I would’ve said: maybe, yes, no. Now, after two days complete in the MLB draft, I’ll adjust that to: no, probably, and hopefully.

Jason Martin was the first LBSU recruit to go this year, plucked by the Astros in the 8^th round. That high of a selection likely means he’s going to skip school and play semi-pro (because, c’mon, it’s the Astros).

Matt Ball seemed likely to go to Long Beach State from the start, but a little bird told me he’s likely to be drafted in Day Three, so the odds of his going pro just went a little higher. Still, he’s not likely to get a huge signing bonus so I’d say the odds are still in our favor.

Garrett Hampson is the name we’ll be keeping an eye on until the signing deadline in August. Pre-draft reports had Hampson going in the round 2-4 range, but he’s somehow managed to slip outside the top ten rounds. Teams will be a little more bold with their selections early in Day Three, but if Hampson manages to fall outside round 15 that could be an indication that teams have some signability concerns.

If Ball makes it to campus he may fill the void left by the recently departed David Hill, as being the underclassmen with the best chance to start on weekends in 2014. Both Martin and Hampson could provide some much needed speed and athleticism to a Dirtbag lineup that hasn’t been able to produce much in several years. Hampson also fills a void in the Dirtbags’ infield. We’ll try not to get our hopes up, but Martin, Ball, and Hampson could all be key pieces of the 2014 Dirtbags… if they go to school.

4. Will anyone go Matt Anderson on us?

As a reminder, Anderson was the Dirtbag would-be senior righty that went undrafted last year, only to have an insane season in summer ball and sign a pro contract anyway. Bekakis, Frye, and Nick Rosetta are the only would-be seniors playing summer ball this year, and none of them were major parts of the 2013 Dirtbags, so seeing them go pro would be a bit of a stretch. Don’t expect any surprise departures this summer (I mean, besides David Hill going one-and-done).

5. What will be the big question marks entering Fall Ball?

The biggest one will be what is the overall health of the team with Ryan Strufing, Kyle Friedrichs, and Prigatano (and possibly Michael Hill) all coming off injuries? Among the position battles at hand, the Sunday starter gig (Nick Sabo being the early frontrunner) and the left side of the infield (too many candidates to name) will be biggest competitions entering 2014.

Stay tuned for updates on all of these questions in the coming days and weeks...

Going Gray (with some notes on the Tallahassee Regional)

Yes, I'm alive.

There's no sense in going into detail about what's kept me away; it was the usual "real life" crap. You know, boring stuff. Unfortunately those same reasons limited my college baseball attendance to two (TWO!) games all season.... and it was a double-header... and it snowed.... at a baseball game.... what kind of fantasy world of a city am I living in?

But thankfully Dirtbag Blues is back just in time for the Summer Leagues, specifically the DC Grays' second season. The Grays served as my primary baseball surrogate last season and will have to fill that role for me again this year (for the Grays personnel that read this: I was the creepy quiet guy with the big goofy red scorebook... it's kinda my trademark).

To celebrate the return of the one team I'll actually be able to watch on a (semi) consistent basis this year, I've decided to hit the reset button on my blog and turn it into a #GraysArea (this is a thing, apparently). My old posts are still floating around and will probably make a return by next spring, but for now I'm not going to overthink this blogging stuff. Just a nice, boring template for my nice, boring content.

I'll have more on the 2013 Grays in the next few days, but for now you might catch a sneak peak of a few players who will be participating in the Regionals this weekend; specifically the Tallahassee Regional. The Florida State-hosted regional will feature three members of the Grays; Troy infielder Peyton Fuller; and Savannah State right-hander Sherman Graves and outfielder Mendez Elder. Fuller and Graves don't figure to factor into the tournament too much (though Graves could see some action if the Tigers' bullpen gets taxed early), but Elder is worth keeping an eye on. The freshman from Atlanta was a big part of the Savannah State offense this year, posting a .379 on-base percentage with 10 stolen bases.

I've got plenty to say about the 2013 Dirtbags (and the Dodgers... good God...) including some notes about next week's draft, but there will be plenty of time for that. For now, Go Grays!

Series Preview: Dirtbags @ Pacific, 4/5-7

Twelve second scouting report on Pacific.

Overview

It’s been awhile. In my absence the Dirtbags have had their souls crushed by San Diego State, received a kick to the groin from Cal State Fullerton, and played a solid series in their conference opener against Cal State Northridge.

The Pacific Tigers, meanwhile, played poorly to begin the year, poorly against Creighton, and assembled a local little league all-star team to play Fullerton in their stead last weekend. I don’t really hold the contempt for Pacific that my rhetoric may reflect, but as I’ve said on multiple message boards “good luck in the WCC next year, Tigers.” (I frequently follow this up my lamenting about how I wish the Big West could find a tenth school. Apparently, beggars can be choosers)

What's at stake

You’ll notice even before I stopped writing altogether, I stopped mentioning the Dirtbags RPI numbers (currently #138, 36th in SoS, 1-8 record against teams in the top 25, and an overall “RPI record” of 8.3-16). That’s because any hope the Dirtbags had of grabbing an at-large regional bid has long since disappeared. Sure, there’s a chance LBSU could go on a tear and post a record of 27-3 the rest of the way, but in that scenario they’d probably simply win the conference’s automatic bid anyway.

And that’s what’s at stake. The 2-1 Dirtbags will have to win the Big West to be playing June baseball this year, so from this point forward just about every series is a must-win, and this weekend may be a “must-sweep”. Taking only two out of three wouldn’t be crippling to the Dirtbags’ conference hopes, but would likely reflect a talent-gap of a team that simply can’t win a 27-game conference season.

As for Pacific, they’re going to do their best to keep their net runs in the –30 range for the series. I swear to God, if they win this series, there will be bloodshed.

Tale of the Tape

Pitching Match-ups

Friday: RHP Shane Carle (3:35 ERA, 33:12 K:BB, 43 IP)  vs. LHP John Haberman (8.44 ERA, 15:8 K:BB, 21.1 IP)

Carle has been the Dirtbags’ top pitcher all season and should continue to be so. The occasional blow up has kept his ERA in the less-than-outstanding range, but typically he’s been a good bet to get a quality start.

John Haberman has pitched better than his 8.44 ERA indicates but still, his ERA is 8.44. Seriously, guys.

Saturday: LHP Jake Stassi (2.73 ERA, 19:11 K:BB, 29.2 IP) vs. RHP Michael Benson (3.43 ERA, 11:13 K:BB, 42 IP)

Stassi has been one of the surprises of the season for the Dirtbags as he continues to offer consistently solid outings. Since a shaky three-inning start against Arizona State back in early March, Stassi has gone three straight outings of six-plus innings while allowing only one run.

Benson is somewhat of the antonym of Haberman. His performance this year has been slightly less impressive than his decent ERA would imply, though last season he was easily the Tigers best pitcher.

Sunday: RHP David Hill (4.55 ERA, 20:16 K:BB, 31.2 IP) vs. TBA

David Hill has settled into the Sunday role nicely, thus far, pitching two consecutive quality starts against Big West opponents. It’d be unfair to expect much bigger things out of him for this season, but his ceiling is sky-high.

The Sunday starter for the Tigers will likely be either Cory Popham, Michael Hager, or Kyle Crawford. Only one of those options (Crawford) is an unhittable-lefty.

Lineup:

Juan Avila and Ino Patron have returned to the Dirtbag lineup to give the offense a badly needed boost. Avila is back after suffering a hand injury, while Patron returns after letting Royce Murai hit for him the first five weeks of the season. Both Avila and Patron have pushed their on-base percentages over .350 and Patron is slugging .418

In an interesting development, it appears The Colby Brenner Show has gone the way of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, and Jeff McNeil moved into center field for the entire CSUN series last week. Colton Vaughn has taken over at second base and has some dynamic speed of his own, while currently boasting a .357 on-base mark. Keep an eye on his progress, as the redshirt sophomore could grab a starting role in 2014 if McNeil or Michael Hill depart for the professional ranks this June.

The Tigers typically offer an offense that isn’t horrifyingly awful, though this year they have just a .306 team on-base percentage and a .329 slugging mark. First baseman Erik Lockwood (.333/.418/.449 in 23 games) remains the team’s biggest threat. Catcher Jason Taasaas, with .383 OBP, is having a solid year but aside from that there aren’t many noteworthy performances from the UoP lineup. Senior second baseman Dustin Torchino has been something of a sparkplug for the Tigers for much of his career, but has disappointed thus far with a .645 OPS. Although Pacific will soon be leaving the Big West, it might be worth watching freshman outfielder Gio Brusa. Brusa has gotten off to a slow start (.414 OPS) but has the potential to be one of the better Tiger hitters in recent memory.

Dirty Talk

I’m still working on getting this blog back up to speed, so I wasn’t able to find a Pacific fan for “Dirty Talk” this week. But that’s okay because I have something even better, a chat with ever-present Fullerton fan Dave Wright from two weeks ago that I never posted. Sorry for the delay, Dave.

Dirtbag Blues: Having already climbed into the top 10 in most polls, how do you think this year's team compares to other Titan squads of the past several years? Dave Wright: There is much more cohesiveness with this year's team than there was in 2011, the last year that Serrano was the head coach, or last year in Vanderhook's first season.  There were major internal issues in 2011 and there was a transition period last season that isn't uncommon with a new coaching staff where some players didn't have as big of a role that they thought they would.  It helps that there are more seniors on the team than any other team at Fullerton in recent memory because the leadership from the seniors has been excellent. The one area on the field that this team is much better in than the previous two teams is the ability to hit for power, which they haven't done much at all since the BBCOR bats were introduced other than Nick Ramirez in 2011.  The rest of the team hit 8 HR's that year and Fullerton only hit 10 HR's last season but they have already hit 11 HR's.   DB: What could be the Titans biggest weakness? DW: The team hasn't been stringing together many hits on the weekends, hitting in the .235-.240 range in each of the last four weekend series.  However, they have seen some pretty good pitching in those series against TCU, Oregon and Texas A&M and the best starter they have seen was probably Alex Gonzalez last weekend at Oral Roberts, who is likely to be drafted in the first two rounds. DB: What's Michael Lorenzen's draft stock look like right now? Any other draft-eligible Titans making a name for themselves so far?  DW: Lorenzen has been hitting much better than he did in the last six weeks of 2012 and is driving the ball with more authority.  He will probably be drafted either late in the first round or in the second round.  The player who can be drafted in June who has made the biggest jump from last season is Chad Wallach.  The MLB guys obviously like his bloodlines but he has gone from being a poor defensive catcher, after being converted to the position last year, with a below average bat to a solid defender and one of the better hitters on the team.  There aren't too many juniors on the team so the other players who are going to be drafted are seniors and the one who is standing out is Carlos Lopez, who has gotten himself in much better shape and is having a great season. DB: I'm gonna challenge you here... who's been better, Justin Garza or Thomas Eshelman? When was the last time the Titans had two freshmen arms that were so good, so early? DW: They have been about the same.  Eshelman is a bulldog who doesn't throw as hard as Garza, who has a live arm, but Eshelman is a little more polished.  Fullerton had two solid freshmen in the weekend rotation last season with Kenny Mathews and Grahamm Wiest and had a couple of pretty good freshmen in the rotation in 2009 with Noe Ramirez and Tyler Pill, which is the last time that the Titans went to Omaha. DB: Austin Diemer looks like he's gotten off to a very nice start, any other Titans who have had surprisingly strong/poor seasons? DW: Diemer has very good speed and will be the starting CF in 2014 after Lorenzen has moved on.  He just needed to get some playing time after getting used to hitting against D1 pitchers.  Wallach, whom I already mentioned, is another one who is having a surprisingly good season. DB: We both know the Dirtbags are going to win the conference, but hypothetically speaking... who poses a bigger threat in the Big West to the Titans; UC Irvine or Cal Poly? DW: Interesting question.  Everybody expected Irvine to have a very good pitching staff and those guys have delivered but their offense has been surprisingly good and their defense has been excellent despite losing three senior starters up the middle at 2B, SS and CF.  Cal Poly returned most of their lineup but hasn't been hitting much until recently and the main reason why they got off to such a good start is due to their pitching being excellent.  They look like two pretty evenly matched teams. DB: We've talk a little about this before, but in general what do you think caused such a large regression for the Dirtbags in recent years, and what do you think they need to do to get back on track? DW: Long Beach stopped getting the amount of front line talent that they were getting in Mike Weathers earlier years as recruiting slipped and the talent level has been below average compared to where it was up to 2008 and that is a big reason why the program has regressed.  Troy Buckley has started to get the program solidified since returning as an assistant for the 2010 season but he probably needs one more big recruiting group to get the talent level in the program close to where it was in 2007-2008 when Long Beach hosted regionals in both of those seasons.

I’ll look forward to chatting with Dave again in four weeks, in the mean time you can find him on twitter here, where you can ask him pretty much anything about the Titans.

Dirtbags' Keys to the Series

An absent supporting cast

Though Avila and Patron have rebounded, Jeff Yamaguchi and the trio of freshman Eric Hutting, Zach Rivera, and Jonathan Serven have regressed, leaving the LBSU lineup awfully top-heavy. Some more support from the 5 through 9 hitters are badly needed for this light-hitting offense.

The Stassi/Hill weekend combo

The Dirtbags may have finally solidified the back end of their rotation and if Stassi/Hill are able to keep the Tigers offense at bay it’s hard to image the Dirtbags could lose this series, or even fail to sweep.

Don’t screw it up

It still seems like the Dirtbags haven’t been able to get running on all cylinders this year, and the team’s imbalanced output has been even more glaring in the last couple weeks. Rookie righty David Hill tosses a strong game against Fullerton…. Michael Hill’s inexplicably called out at third base to end the game; the Dirtbags manage to get seven hits against Northridge’s Jerry Keel… Shane Carle somehow gets lit up by a poor CSUN lineup.

The Tigers may end up being the worst opponent the Dirtbags face all season, if there’s going to be a series where everything should go right for Long Beach, this would be it.

Up Next: For the Dirtbags; San Diego State and UC David; for me, probably writing a remorse-filled letter begging Pacific to stay in the conference.

Series Preview: Wichita State @ Dirtbags, 3/15-17

I had a "shocker" related clip I wanted to play but it wouldn't load, so here's my default backup: Troll 2. Enjoy.

Overview

Travel has forced me to write much of this the Thursday before last weekend’s series against Arizona State, so my analysis here will be a bit brief and somewhat vague. I’ll make up for it in this week’s edition of “Dirty Talk.”

What’s At Stake

Things have gone so far south lately that this series may not matter in the end. Barring some remarkable situation in which the Dirtbags would crush conference competition yet still fail to grab the automatic bid, an at-large selection isn’t happening this year. Either way, the Dirtbags have held a nice rivalry with the Wichita State Shockers (11-5) over the years, so this is always a series worth watching. A series victory for Long Beach State would also be nice to get things back on track before conference play opens in two weeks.

Tale of the Tape

Pitching Match Ups

Friday: RHP Cale Elam (3.26 ERA, 17:5 K:BB, 19.1 IP) vs. RHP Shane Carle (1.82 ERA, 17:6 K:BB, 24.2 IP)

Saturday: LHP Kris Gardner (4.91 ERA, 6:1 K;BB, 11 IP) vs. LHP Jake Stassi (6.00 ERA, 8:6 K:BB, 9 IP)

Sunday: RHP AJ Ladwig (3.86 ERA, 18:4 K:BB, 21 IP) vs. RHP David Hill (4.60 ERA, 10:5 K:BB, 15.1 IP)

Ten days ago I, half-jokingly, said on twitter that Stassi needed to be starting weekend games based on his fantastic relief outing against UCLA (4 IP, 7 K). Long Beach State, totally seriously, decided to go ahead and start him last weekend. The results weren’t great (3 ER, 3.1 IP) but Stassi may get a longer leash in his second start of the year this weekend.

I have mixed feelings about the switch to the Sunday spot. Jon Maciel’s results weren’t great (5.48 ERA) but his peripheral stats were strong (20 K, 7 BB, 21.1 IP) implying he should have better luck soon. However, Coach Buckley has said for some time that he sees Maciel as a reliever long-term. On the flip side, it’s exciting to see Hill finally get his first career start. It’s probably a good bet at this point that Hill will have a permanent weekend job by next season with a slim, but not outlandish, possibility that he’ll be pitching on Fridays.

Lineups

I won’t say too much commentary on this for now so we can hurry up and get to “Dirty Talk”, but the Shockers’ have gone heavy on the platooning thus far, with 11 players having started at least seven of the team’s first 16 games. Regulars include switch-hitting senior third baseman Erik Harbutz, left-handed catcher Tyler Baker, and the team’s 3-4 hitters, first baseman Casey Gillaspie and designated hitter Johnny Coy.

The Dirtbags lineup… well, there’s not much to talk about so I’ll be brief. Jeff Yamaguchi is predictably seeing his strong early season numbers regress a little, and should probably be dropped in the order. Michael Hill is the only hitter swinging the bat right now, and really needs to be moved to the heart of the order very soon. Juan Avila and Ino Patron… get it together, guys. And Colby Brenner (.446 OPS) has really struggled, to the point where I may have to resign as president of his fan club very soon…

Dirty Talk

This week I’m thrilled to have the commentary of WSU Director of Operations, broadcaster, and former All-American pitcher Shane Dennis. Really makes up for the crappy 500 words I threw together, which preceded

Dirtbag Blues: First off, what the hell’s going on with the weather out there?

Shane Dennis: WSU played opening weekend but it was tough; temperatures in the high 30s with plenty of wind that made it uncomfortable. (Pittsburgh) made it uncomfortable, too. WSU got swept in a home series for the first time since 1970. A trip to Tulsa netted a win against Oral Roberts on the 19th. Then, between the 21st and the 27th, Wichita got 21 inches of snow, 14 inches on the 21st and that wiped out what amounted to eight games. Biggest snowfall in Wichita in years.

DB: Between the Pittsburgh series and all those canceled games, is there much cause for concern over how slowly this season has started for the Shockers?

SD: With eight days to sit around with a 1-3 start, it was rough. Forced indoors, soul-searching after four games is never fun and now you have to just practice and practice and no opponent to try and beat. There was (and is) plenty of concern. That’s not how it goes around here. It’s win or…..win. No other recourse. Plus, with three straight years of no NCAA, EVERYONE is antsy around here when you’re scuffling.

DB: LBSU’s struggles have been a bit more pronounced, but it looks like both programs have taken a bit of a dip in the last couple years. What’s been the biggest cause for the Shockers’ recent downturn and how far is the program from getting back to Top-25 territory?

SD: I think WSU is just about always on the cusp of top 25s to start seasons, if for no other reason Gene Stephenson’s track record. His clubs will get the benefit of the doubt, and in a particular year, if they have a lot of returners they’ll at least be receiving votes or in the top 30. I think the biggest reason that’s tangible for a downturn is the college baseball programs that are more interested in fielding competitive teams, frankly. More people over the last 10 years have seen that college baseball can become somewhat lucrative and if you build some good facilities you can parlay that into a good program. Many programs somewhat close to Wichita State have put more and more money into their baseball budgets and perhaps start to attract more prospects because of that and it’s leveled the playing field, somewhat.

How far is the program away? Hard to quantify but two of the last three years, the RPI of WSU has been right on the edge of NCAA-at-large-worthy, so I guess there’s that. But Wichita State isn’t used to depending on at-large berths. Conference championships and conference tourney championships are what WSU is used to locking up and that’s been rarer the last three years.

DB: What can you tell me about that dynamic duo in the middle of the order, Casey Gillaspie and Johnny Coy?

SD: Casey Gillaspie is a lot like his brother Conor when he was here, in that they both have incredible batting eyes. They rarely chase pitches, rarely strike out and almost always have a quality at-bat. Difference is, Casey has more raw power at this point in his college career and is a switch hitter. Every team likes to have a guy or two in the lineup that makes you say, “Good, we got our guy up there now”. Casey is one of those guys right now, because of what I mentioned.

Coy is an interesting guy because he was our main threat last year, leading the team in homers, RBI, average, slugging and on-base %. Unlike Gillaspie, he’ll overswing now and then and get himself out more. But mistakes to him go a long, long way. Like Gillaspie he has true game-changing, raw power but has a few more holes in his swing. If he’s going well or on a hot streak, you don’t want to be a third baseman or a pitcher. When he barrels balls up, it comes off his bat differently than other college players.

DB: How has Cale Elam’s transition to the rotation been going? In general, what kind of year do you expect from an experienced Shocker staff?

SD: Cale Elam was a lockdown closer for WSU for two years. Due to a junior college signee going pro instead, the staff decided to have Elam start. He has a good sinking fastball, down movement on all his pitches and really good makeup, along with being a good athlete on the mound. It’s hard to say if he was a better reliever because he could go max effort for as long as needed, but so far he’s still trying to settle into the starter’s role. The team is confident when he goes out there because he competes, but he isn’t that power arm that WSU has historically rolled out on a Friday. The jury is probably still out on Elam being a Friday-caliber guy, but he’s not a guy that normally will beat himself. In my opinion, because of the BBCOR bats and Elam’s ability to throw strikes consistently, that’s a start.

The staff as a whole doesn’t have big arms, but like I said, strike-throwers can get you by today. That’s not to say WSU is without ability. Albert Minnis and closer Brandon Peterson probably have the most electric stuff. Minnis is a long-to-middle relief guy with a great sinker slider combo from the left side and induces one ground ball after another when he’s right. Peterson is the guy most likely to sit at 90-92 with his heater. TJ McGreevy is a big-framed strike thrower that has done a better job eating up the middle innings. Lefty Aaron LaBrie is an innings eater in the mid-innings. Overall, very good at throwing the ball over the plate, but most will need help from the defense.

DB: What's the biggest challenge this year's team faces as it tries to get back to the regionals?

SD: I think the biggest challenge for WSU this year is simply this: get back to winning the (Missouri Valley Conference) and win the conference tourney. WSU tries every year to get good RPI games but because the schedule is made sometimes two years out, that’s sometimes a crapshoot. The leadership on the team has to come from within. For the first time ever, no one on a roster has played in the NCAAs. That has to make the players hungry. In turn, they don’t have that NCAA experience to draw on, so they need to get back to having a hunter mentality. Against most teams, WSU will be the hunted, in that it’s still a big deal for other programs to beat Wichita State. Getting that edge back will be a huge start.

Kudos to Shane for putting up with Pittsburgh, snow, and a second-rate blogger these first few weeks of the season. Be sure to check him out on twitter for additional commentary on Shocks baseball.

Dirtbags’ Keys to the Series

The Offense

This has really turned into the key to the season, at this point. The offense needs to start seeing more from their most talented hitters, Patron, Avila, and Richard Prigtano. Freshman Eric Hutting and Zach Rivera are more than holding their own thus far, and juniors Michael Hitt, Jeff McNeil, and Jeff Yamaguchi are having breakout seasons. The ‘Bags have a legitimate potential to be a solid hitting team, but right now they may have the worst offense among the mainland Big West teams.

A New Look Bullpen

The one sure benefit from the recent rotation shake up is it allows Maciel and lefty specialist Landon Hunt to return to the relief corps. While the rotation on Saturdays and Sundays may continue to be a questions mark, stabilizing the back end of the bullpen could be a huge step forward for a pitching staff that, as Coach Buckley puts it, needs more “defined roles.”

Up Next: Cal State effing Fullerton. Oh and San Diego State, too, but who cares.

Series Preview: Dirtbags @ Arizona State, 3/8-10

In Soviet Russia, the Dirtbags follow me... I guess.

Summary

My blog efforts have been about as productive as the Dirtbags’ offense against a left-handed pitcher (get use to hearing about that), but it’s not going to get much better this week (well, hopefully the Dirtbags’ offense will), as I’ll be abroad for the next few days. You’ll have to forgive any typos for now, as I likely won’t have a chance to correct them anytime soon.

The Dirtbags enter their final non-conference road series of the year with a mark of 6-7.

Arizona State is coming off a huge weekend in which they beat vaunted SEC club Arkansas twice and currently have a record of 7-2-1. They’re ranked 20th in the nation by Collegiate Baseball.

What’s at Stake

Our hopes at an at-large bid. That’s probably a bit of a hyperbole, but this weekend presents the Dirtbags best opportunity to inflate their non-conference achievements of the year, which could be vital to their post-season hopes if they fall short of a Big West title. 3.9 “RPI wins” are up for grabs.

Tale of the Tape

Pitching Match Ups

House of Sparky writer Nick Marek had a few comments on each of the Sun Devil starters, below. See this week’s “Dirty Talk” segment for more from Nick.

Friday: RHP Trevor Williams (1.29 ERA, 21:3 K:BB, 21 IP) vs. RHP Shane Carle (1.00 ERA, 14:5 K:BB, 18 IP)

“Trevor Williams is hands down the ace of this staff and he was awarded with many preseason awards including All-American honors and he was placed on the Golden Spikes Award Watch list which is given to the nation's best collegiate baseball player.”

Saturday: LHP Ryan Kellogg (1.20 ERA, 13:1 K:BB, 15 IP) vs. TBA; Projected: LHP Nick Sabo (1.86 ERA, 9:4 K:BB, 9.2 IP)

“Kellogg… can throw gas. Kellogg basically earned his spot in the rotation after his second appearance and  [pitched] against No. 1 Arkansas on Saturday.”

Landon Hunt came out of the pen this week against UCLA, so his weekend status is in question for now. If he does start he’ll need to get things turned around soon to keep that rotation position. If he doesn't start this weekend look for Sabo to start, or RHP David Hill to get his first career nod.

Sunday: LHP Adam McCreey (6.57 ERA, 11:7 K:BB, 12.1 IP) vs. RHP Jon Maciel (5.00 ERA, 18:6 K:BB, 18 IP)

Two lefties? Crap…

“McCreery did not pitch much his freshman year because he suffered an arm injury and pitched out of the pen. This year, he has struggled a bit with his command and could be at risk of losing his spot in the rotation to freshman Brett Lilek if he doesn't turn things around soon….

Head coach Tim Esmay is not afraid to utilize all of his options and if someone is struggling, then he will replace them. Plain and simple. He is very good about playing the hot arm or the hot bat and this year he has turned a lot to the pitching. ASU's bullpen has been phenomenal thus far.”

Lineups

The Sun Devils have boasted a solid offensive club thus far, with three everyday players posting on-base percentages over .400 (Kasey Coffman, Max Rossiter, Michael Benjamin) and four players slugging better than .450 (Coffman, Rossiter, Trever Allen, James McDonald). Their usual lineup looks like this, with a few variations:

CF Kasey Coffman, LH

SS Drew Stankiewicz, LH

C/DH Max Rossiter, RH

2B James McDonald, Switch

RF Trever Allen, RH

C/DH Nathaniel Causey, LH

3B Michael Benjamin, RH

LF Jake Peevyhouse, LH

1B David Graybill, RH

As for the Dirtbags, Zach Rivera has been emerging as a valuable piece to the Dirtbags’ lineup, posting an .888 OPS in limited action, though he hasn’t secured a spot in the field just yet. For all I’ve said in support of CF Colby Brenner, his OPS is just .486, though he remains a solid table setter with an on-base percentage .386. I’d be nice to see him get more of chance against left-handed pitching, but Rivera may force him out of the lineup for now. It’ll be interesting to see who gets leadoff duties against the southpaws this weekend. So far the games have been split between OF Josh Guerra and 2B Jeff McNeil. McNeil will keep batting in the top two spots no matter what.

No other new developments with the lineup seem to be on the horizon, although if Michael Hill keeps up his hot hitting (1.093 OPS) he may find himself batting in the middle of the order soon.

Dirty Talk

This week I’m happy to be joined by Nick Marek, writer for House of Sparky, part of SB Nation. Nick's also a broadcaster for the ASU men's hockey team, which recently finished third in the ACHA Nationals. He’s what Nick had to tell us about ASU (baseball, that is)…

Dirtbag Blues: What's the general state of the program as it comes out of its post-season ban?

Nick Marek: Honestly, this team has already moved past the post-season ban and during the preseason press conference, the players showed that they are more than ready to get back to the NCAA baseball tournament. The one noticeable thing about the Sun Devil's roster is that there are so many freshmen.

As of February 28, 12 freshmen have seen playing time for ASU and they are going to be an important part of ASU's success this season. People have been overly alarmed about the state of ASU baseball when honestly there is nothing different about the program. The only difference between 2012 and 2013 is that the team can compete in the National Tournament.

DB: What can you tell me about that freshman class? Looks like ASU has a pretty talented crop of outfielders joining the program.

NM: The freshman class was a top-20 recruiting class compared to the rest of the NCAA and the strength of the class was on the pitching end, which is ASU's highest need. Ryan Kellogg, Ryan Burr, and Brett Lilek are unreal pitchers and Tim Esmay is using Kellogg as the team's Saturday starter and he said in a press conference that Lilek and Burr will both be starters for ASU in the future but he loves using them in the bullpen because they are a second threat to opposing lineups.

Eric Melbostad is the other freshman pitcher who eats quite a few innings in the pen and will be used in late inning roles (possibly a set-up man like Burr)…

As for the offense, David Graybill and RJ Ybarra are the two immediate stand outs of the offensive group. Graybill has already started a few games and he has a ton of raw power who can be used at first or DH. Graybill, in my opinion, has the tools to be a Pac-12 first team All-Freshmen as does Ybarra. Ybarra plays behind the dish but the problem is that Rossiter and Causey can both steal his time as catcher. Rossiter is a senior leader and one of the better players on the team so he should play 2-3, if not all three of the teams' games behind the plate… I would not be surprised if Tim Esmay moves Causey to a different position (maybe 1B in the future) to clear room for Ybarra. But that's probably looking to next year.

DB: The 3-0-1 weekend speaks for itself, but what more can you tell me about ASU’s strong showing in the Coca-Cola Classic? The Sun Devil’s gotta have some sort of weakness, right?

NM: The biggest thing from the Coca-Cola Classic was sweeping the two game series against Arkansas and beating Ryne Stanek (a first round MLB Draft potential pitcher). ASU played very well in Surprise and no matter whom they beat the rest of the season, no win will beat sweeping No. 2 Arkansas. Sure sweeping UCLA or Oregon or Stanford or Arizona will be nice and a very good piece to add to the post-season resume, but it is not very often teams can say they swept a team in the SEC. Not to mention that team is a top five team in the country.

The major weakness is the team's fielding. It is atrocious. I don't know the stat on the top of my head but over the first ten games of the season, they have to have at least 15 errors. That's not Arizona State baseball and… they will focus on that in practice this week. Fielding is basically the reason they struggled against Gonzaga. They gave up five unearned runs in one inning against the Zags.

Surprisingly, ASU has shocked all of us in terms of pitching depth largely in part because of the freshmen class but I'm concerned about how long the starting pitchers are going. Trevor Williams should not be a concern but is coach only going to allow Kellogg and McCreery for pitch 5 or 6 innings? I love the bullpen but I want to get more consistency out of the rotation otherwise the bullpen could be overworked during the season. Esmay is really good about monitoring pitch counts and it is still very early in the season. I think after he saw McCreery suffer basically a season ending injury last year, he wanted to take things slow and give his young arms time to mature.

DB: Having never been there, what’s Packard Stadium like? What kind of home-field advantage (if any) does ASU get from it?

NM: Packard Stadium gives ASU a tremendous home field advantage especially since the Sun Devil faithful are called the best fans in the west coast based on attendance. The fans are very vocal and it's a very good family atmosphere as well. I think all the tradition the program has and the players that have come through Tempe (Barry Bonds, Paul LoDuca, Dustin Pedroia, Jason Kipnis, Mike Leake, etc) have caught visiting team's attention.

Keep in mind this may be the last or second to last year the Sun Devils will play at Packard. They are moving over to Phoenix Municipal Stadium (The Oakland A's spring training facility) because it will be upgraded facilities, stands and press box for ESPN and Pac-12 Network to broadcast more home games.

Kind of sad that we are saying goodbye to all of that history.

DB: I asked WildcatAuthority's Cody James Martin this same question... what can you tell me about the baseball rivalry between Arizona State and Arizona? 

NM: The rivalry is one of the best in college sports. The past decade, Arizona State has won the title of being the better team in Arizona, but fans were frustrated to see the Wildcats win in Omaha.

We are not poor sports about it because you have to give their fab five and their rotation credit for helping Arizona win the National Title. I think it's going to be even a more heated rivalry this year because of the impact that football, basketball, hockey and other sports have made in the university's sports community.

There is nothing better than a good college sports rivalry and I never get sick of hearing the "Bear Downs" and "Fork 'Ems." 

DB: Off-topic but since we may be seeing these guys on ESPN in late June, any thoughts to offer regarding Arkansas?

NM: Pitching. Pitching. Pitching. Arkansas is one of the best teams in the nation because they have some of the best MLB prospects in the starting rotation and out of the pen. Honestly, there is nothing flashy about their batting and they are a little above average and do not have a ton of power but they don't need to when they can lock down opponents to around three runs. But they are disciplined and well coach so you need to work ahead of the count…. teams need to be prepared to be perfect in all aspects of the game but they are beatable.

I'd like to thank Nick for basically writing most of my preview this week. Be sure to check out his work on House of Sparky and follow him on twitter @nmarekasu14. Nick will also be calling a couple of the games this weekend on pac-12.com.

Dirtbags’ Keys to the Series

Southpaw struggles

This is the second straight weekend that the Dirtbags will have to face a pair of lefties.  This sucks for reasons I mentioned during my recent hissy fit, but it’s an issue the Dirtbags are going to have to figure out if they have regional hopes this year.

Avila and Patron’s arrival

The leaders of the Dirtbag offense have been largely ineffective thus far, with Juan hitting just .227/.358/.250 and Ino .245/.298/.302. Long Beach State needs to start getting more out of its #3/4 hitters (against both righties and lefties).

Up Next: You guys won’t see anything from me until next week’s Wichita State Preview, which will feature some words from former All-American Shane Dennis.