UCLA
Cal Poly
Bruins Set for Weekend Series with Cal Poly
April 27, 2017 | Baseball
LOS ANGELES โ The UCLA baseball team opens a three-game non-conference weekend series against Cal Poly from Jackie Robinson Stadium on Friday starting at 6 p.m. (PT). The Bruins come into the weekend with an overall record of 19-18.
Probable Starters
Friday, April 28 - 6:00 p.m. PT
UCLA โ Griffin Canning, RHP, Jr. (3-2, 2.75 ERA)
CP โ Erich Uelmen, RHP, Jr. (2-6, 3.21 ERA)
Saturday, April 29 - 2:00 p.m. PT
UCLA โ Moises Ceja, RHP, Sr. (2-3, 2.44 ERA)
CP โ Spencer Howard, RHP, So. (3-1, 2.31 ERA)
Sunday, April 30 - 1:00 p.m. PT
UCLA โ Jon Olsen, RHP, So. (2-1, 3.47 ERA)
CP โ Bobby Ay, RHP, So. (1-3, 4.35 ERA)
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UCLA Quick Hits
UCLA is 19-18 overall on the season including 10-8 in Pac-12 play.
- Griffin Canning has tied a career-high with 12 strikeouts three times this season. He has 88 total punch outs in 11 starts, good for seventh in NCAA and tops in the conference. He also the Pac-12 with 50 strikeouts during Pac-12 play and ranks inside the top-10 in the conference in ERA, opposing batting average and innings pitched.
- Sean Bouchard fourth in the Pac-12 in slugging percentage at .594 and third in home runs with seven. He also ranks inside the top-11 in the conference in doubles, RBIs and total bases.
- Scott Burke is fourth in the NCAA in pitching appearances with 26 and top-10 during Pac-12 play in earned runs and walks allowed. He is also 44th on the NCAA's career active list for appearances with 78.
- Kyle Cuellar is top-10 during Pac-12 play in batting average, on-base percentage and doubles. He had his reached base safely streak end on Sunday at 24 games.
- Daniel Amaral leads the Pac-12 with 12 stolen bases this season.
- UCLA is 7-5 this season against ranked opponents, including 5-3 in its last eight consecutive games played against top-25 opponents.
- The Bruins pitching staff ranks 15th in the NCAA in hits allowed per nine innings at 7.63, 35th in ERA at 3.54, 38th in WHIP at 1.28 and 67th in strikeouts per nine innings at 8.5.
Promotions
This weekend is Alumni Association Weekend as all Alumni Association members will receive four free tickets to each game. On Friday, a Student Shuttle Bus will be available for all UCLA students with a free hot dog, bag of chips, drink and Jersey Mike's coupon including for all who ride the bus. On Saturday it is First Responder Appreciation Day as all Frist Responders will receive four free tickets. Sunday is always Little League Day at Jackie Robinson Stadium as local area youth team are invited to attend the game for free.
Week in Review
UCLA dropped two out of three games at home over the weekend to the No. 1 Oregon State Beavers before defeating No. 9 Long Beach State on Tuesday.
- On Friday, Griffin Canning tossed 7.0 innings and struck out 10 batters, while Nick Kern sent the game to extra innings with a two-out two-run home run in the ninth inning in a 4-2 loss in 10 innings.
- The Bruins picked up their first win against the Beavers since 2015 after scoring seven runs in the first three innings. Sean Bouchard drove in three runs and Moises Ceja threw 6.0 shutout innings.
- UCLA dropped the rubber match on Sunday, 2-1, as Jon Olsen threw 6.1 scoreless innings and Jack Stronach drove in UCLA's only run in a double in the seventh inning.
- On Tuesday, UCLA earned the season sweep of Long Beach State as they defeated the ninth-ranked Dirtbags, 5-1 as Gavin Johns went 3-for-3 with two RBIs and Justin Hooper allowed one run in 5.2 innings.
Scouting Cal Poly
The Mustangs enter the non-conference weekend with a record of 18-21, including 8-4 in the Big West. Cal Poly averages just over five runs a game and the offense is led by Alex McKenna who is hitting .368 and leads the team in home runs, RBIs and stolen bases. Howard Spencer leads the Mustangs on the mound with a 2.31 ERA and a 3-1 record in seven starts, while Erich Uelman is 2-6 in a team-high 61.2 innings pitched with a 3.21 ERA.
The Bruins vs. the Mustangs
UCLA has faced Cal Poly 31 previous times, posting a record of 24-7 against the Mustangs. The Bruins won two out of three games last season over CP on the road, including a 19-0 victory to earn the series victory on March 27. UCLA is 8-4 in its last 12 games against Cal Poly and at home, the Bruins are 5-2 in the last seven games vs. the Mustangs. Under John Savage, UCLA is 11-7 against Cal Poly.
NCAA Rankings
UCLA as a team is ranked in the top-100 in the country in a number of categories:
- 15th in hits allowed per nine innings - 7.63
- 26th in fielding percentage - 0.979
- 35th in ERA - 3.54
- 38th in WHIP - 1.28
- 57th in shutouts - 3
- 67th in strikeouts per nine innings - 8.5
Pac-12 Leaders
Over halfway through Pac-12 play, several UCLA players are ranked inside the top-10 a number of categories:
- Kyle Cuellar: 3rd in on-base percentage (.472), T6th in walks (11), T7th in double (6), T8th in batting average (.373).
- Michael Toglia: T3rd in triple (2), 6th in slugging percentage (.592), T6th in walks (11), 7th in on-base percentage (.459).
- Sean Bouchard: T4th in doubles (7), T8th in RBIs (14), T10 in runs (14).
- Griffin Canning: 1st in strikeouts (50), 3rd in innings pitched (40.2), T4th in wins (3).
- Jon Olsen: 3rd in opposing batting average (.173), 7th in ERA (2.64), T10th in strikeouts (23).
- Moises Ceja: 7th in opposing batting average (.231), T8th in strikeouts (24), 9th in ERA (3.06).
200 K's
Griffin Canning is the 22nd pitcher in UCLA program history, and the eighth pitcher since John Savage took over the program in 2005, to surpass the 200 strikeout mark.
- 1. 460 - Trevor Bauer (2009-11)
- 2. 376 - Gerrit Cole (2009-11)
- 11. 258 Tim Leary (1977-79)
- T12. 249 - Hector Ambriz (2003-06)
- T12. 249 - Griffin Canning (2015-Pres.)
Canning Effect
Griffin Canning has excelled on the bump for the Bruins this season and is one of the top starters in the country. Earlier this season, he was selected to the Golden Spikes Midseason and Preseason Watch Lists and named a Preseason All-America third team selection by Baseball America. He lasted at least 5.0 innings in 24 of last 25 eligible starts, including throwing 7.0 or more innings in 14 of the 25 starts. He currently ranks 15th in strikeouts with 249 and 19th on the NCAA's active career list for complete games with five. In addition, Canning ranks top-100 in the country in several individual categories:
- 4th in games starts (11)
- 7th in strikeouts (88)
- 34th in strikeouts per nine innings (11.53)
Tough Road
The Bruins have played one of the toughest schedules in the country as UCLA ranks No. 15 on the NCAA's Toughest Schedule Report. UCLA's opponents have accumulated a 0.583 winning percentage coming in to this week. The Bruins also rank No. 1 in strength of schedule by Boyd's World and No. 3 by Warren Nolan.
Freshman Stepping Up
A number of UCLA freshman have made a big impact this season:
- Kyle Cuellar is the team leader in batting average at .348 and on-base percentage at .447. He is also second on the team in slugging percentage at .467 and in RBIs with 19. He had his team-best 24-game reached base streak ended on Sunday.
- Michael Toglia is second on the team in on-base percentage at .417 and third in slugging percentage at .436. He is hitting .327 in Pac-12 play and is third on the team with 12 RBIs. Toglia is batting .406 with three home runs and seven RBIs over the last 10 games.
- Ryan Kreidler is fourth on the team in batting average at .262 and tied for third in RBIs with 18. He hit his second career home run in win over No. 1 Oregon State. During Pac-12 play he is hitting .294 with two home runs and eight RBIs.
- Chase Strumpf is second on the team in home runs with four and has 18 RBIs, including 14 during Pac-12 play. He is the first UCLA player since 2000 to drive in seven runs in a single game on April 2 at Arizona State.
- Jack Stronach is second on the team hitting .353 during Pac-12 play with five doubles and has recorded nine RBIs. He has recorded hits in seven of his last nine games played and has eight RBIs.
Savage to Lead USA Baseball
UCLA Head Coach John Savage was named the manager for the 2017 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team. Savage previously served as an assistant coach on the 2000 USA Baseball Collegiate National Team. The 2000 team finished the summer with a 27-3-1 record that won a gold medal at Haarlem Baseball Week in the Netherlands. The U.S. will host three international friendship series against Chinese Taipei, Cuba, and Japan in 2017.
Baby Bruins
The Bruins welcome 14 newcomers to Westwood for the 2017 season. The recruiting class was ranked No. 16 by Baseball America. Three newcomers had been previously selected in the MLB draft as Ryan Kreidler, Michael Toglia and Jeremy Ydens were each 2016 MLB Draft selections. Over the summer, Toglia was named the MVP of the West Coast League in 2016 after hitting .306 with a league-best seven home runs and 40 RBIs. Toglia (No. 8), Kreidler (No. 22) and Chase Strumpf (No. 85) were named to D1Baseball's Top Freshman Prospects list. Incoming catcher Will McInerny was named the 2016 CIF-SS Division 4 Player of the Year, while Gavin Johns transferred from Yavapai College and was named an All-NJCAA Region second team selection.
It's a Family Affair
UCLA has bred a strong athletic tradition and many current players are following in the footsteps of their notable family members.
- Daniel Amaral's father Rich and brother Beau played baseball at UCLA, while his sister Jessica played softball.
- Jordan Myrow's father John and godfather Dave Roberts played baseball at UCLA.
- Jake Pries' father Jeff played baseball at UCLA.
- Nick Valaika's brother Pat played baseball at UCLA and was a member of the 2013 National Championship.
Watch Live
UCLA is scheduled to be featured on television at least 16 times in 2017 with 15 of those contests being carried by the conference's Pac-12 Networks.
Listen Live
This season all 56 regular season games and any potential postseason games will be broadcast live online at uclabruins.com. UCLA radio veterans John Ramey and Tim Wilhelm return to call all of the action at home and on the road.
Follow UCLA Baseball
Follow UCLA Baseball all season long on their various social media platforms.
Twitter: @uclabaseball
Instagram: @uclabruinsbaseball
Facebook: UCLA Baseball
Snapchat: ucla.athletics
