No. 3 UCLA Faces CSUN in Midweek Tune Up

Tuesday, February 26

Northridge, CA

2:00 PM

UCLA

UCLA at CSUN

Jake Hirabayashi has started the last two games at 3B for UCLA, collecting a hit in both (photo: Don Liebig)

Photo by: Don Liebig/ASUCLA

No. 3 UCLA Faces CSUN in Midweek Tune Up

February 25, 2019 | Baseball

Game Notes (PDF)CSUN Video Stream Live Audio

No. 3 UCLA Heads Over The Hill For CSUN Showdown
After returning home from an east coast road trip at No. 19 Georgia Tech, No. 3 UCLA will stay local for its midweek contest, driving through the Sepulveda Pass to take on CSUN on Tuesday, Feb. 26. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. UCLABruins.com will carry a live audio broadcast of the game, and fans can also follow along on Twitter at @UCLABaseball.

Projected Pitching Matchups
Tuesday, Feb. 26 - 2 p.m. PT
UCLA - Nick Nastrini, RHP, Fr. (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
CSUN - Cruz Daddario, RHP, RJr. (0-1, 6.75 ERA)

The Story So Far
UCLA is 6-1 to start the 2019 campaign, sweeping St. John's to open the year, shutting out LMU to wrap up a four-game homestand, and then taking two of three on the road at No. 19 Georgia Tech this past weekend. This is the fifth time in 15 seasons under head coach John Savage that the Bruins have won at least six of their first seven games.

UCLA Pitching Gets Off To Hot Start
UCLA's pitching has been driving the boat in the early going, as the Bruin staff has produced some of the best numbers in the nation. The Bruins lead the Pac-12 in the following statistics: ERA (0.84, third nationally), hits per nine innings (3.94, fourth), shutouts (three, second), strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.30, 11th), strikeouts per nine innings (12.1, 11th), and WHIP (0.75, second). The Bruins didn't allow a single earned run over their first four games, a first for the program since 2011. The streak without an ER lasted 37 1/3 innings.

Big Innings
UCLA has put up a crooked number in at least one inning in all but one game so far this season. The Bruins have scored four or more runs in a single inning in four out of their seven games this season.

Don't Mess With The Bull(pen)
As good as UCLA's starting pitchers have been, the bullpen has been downright unhittable. Over 23 2/3 combined innings of work, Bruin relievers allowed just seven hits while striking out 39 (a 14.8 K/9 ratio). The UCLA pen has allowed just one earned run to this point of the season, a 0.38 ERA. Right-handers Kyle Mora, Holden Powell, and Nate Hadley all co-lead the Pac-12 Conference with five appearances.

Savage Eyes A Pair Of Milestones
Heading into the midweek matchup, UCLA head coach John Savage is in striking distance of a pair of career milestones. As of Tuesday, he needs seven wins for 500 at UCLA and 19 wins for 600 overall in his career.

Last Weekend In Review
UCLA won two out of three last weekend on the road at No. 19 Georgia Tech. It was the first time the two teams had met since the 1999 season.
-UCLA was dealt its first loss of the season in Friday's series opener in Atlanta, as the Yellow Jackets emerged victorious via an 11th inning walk-off home run from catcher Kyle McCann. Earlier, the Bruins came back from deficits of 2-1 and 3-2 to force extras. UCLA had an opportunity to go ahead in the top half of the 11th, but a pair of standout defensive plays by GT kept the game tied. Kyle Mora was a tough-luck loser, allowing the home run after three strong innings of relief.
-The Bruins evened the series with an 8-2 triumph on Saturday. Matt McLain and Michael Toglia each had multiple extra-base hits as UCLA collected a season-high 13 hits as a team. Toglia doubled in the eventual game-winning run as part of a four-run third, and McLain followed with a two-run homer, the first of his career. Once taking the lead, starter Jack Ralston and the bullpen put the clamps down. The pen in particular was effective, holding the Jackets without a hit over the final four innings of the game.
-UCLA pulled the series out with a 6-0 shutout win on Sunday. Freshman Jesse Bergin did the heavy lifting on the pitching side, allowing just two hits and holding GT to an 0-7 line with runners in scoring position over six strong innings. Jake Pries had three hits to lead the UCLA offense, while five different batters drove in a run.
-UCLA outscored Georgia Tech 14-2 over the final two games of the series.

Midweek Notes
The Bruins won their first midweek of the year last Tuesday, shutting out Loyola Marymount 5-0. UCLA is 8-4 in midweeks dating back to the start of last season, which includes a 2018 split against CSUN. The Bruins are staying local for their entire midweek slate in 2019, as their furthest opponent is UC Irvine (52 miles). UCLA doesn't leave Los Angeles County for a midweek contest until Apr. 23 (at Cal State Fullerton). All of UCLA's midweeks this year are scheduled on Tuesdays.

Scouting The Matadors
CSUN is 5-3 so far this year after a pair of four-game series. The Matadors split with Kansas State, 2-2, in the season's opening weekend before taking three of four from Gonzaga this past weekend. CSUN is coming off a third-place finish in the Big West last season, the team's best finish since 2002. This year, CSUN has a .287/.390/.481 team slash line, with seven players batting over .300. Kyle Barrett has been the team's top offensive player, slugging .656 with five extra-base hits and eight RBIs. As a team, CSUN has clubbed 13 home runs (11th most nationally). The squad has a 5.40 team ERA. Tuesday's scheduled starter, Cruz Daddario, started Friday against Gonzaga and allowed two earned runs in 2 2/3 innings.

Rankings Roundup
After last week's series win, UCLA stayed put in all but one major national poll. The Bruins are still ranked as high as No. 3 nationally (Baseball America, Collegiate Baseball), while both D1Baseball and the NCBWA have them at No. 4. UCLA was No. 7 in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll, which hasn't been updated since the preseason.

Give Me More Mora
Junior right-handed reliever Kyle Mora has been overpowering opponents this season, striking out a Pac-12-best 17 batters so far in just eight innings. His 19.1 strikeouts per nine innings rank third nationally. He retired the first 13 batters he faced this season, and bounced back to strike out the side on Sunday in the Georgia Tech series finale. He co-leads the Pac-12 with five appearances this year after ranking 11th nationally with 34 appearances a season ago.

Taking One For The Team
Small ball has treated the Bruins well so far in 2019, as UCLA leads the entire nation with 10 sacrifice bunts this year. Junior catcher Will McInerny leads the team and is second in the country with four sac bunts, one of five Bruins to lay down a sac so far.

Good Luck Getting A Hit
UCLA pitching has held its opponents to four hits or fewer in six of seven games this season. The one team to eclipse that mark - Georgia Tech with seven last Friday - needed 11 innings to do so.

Leading Off Right
UCLA leadoff hitters have done an exceptional job at getting on base, as the Bruins have a team .426 OBP in leadoff at-bats. Garrett Mitchell (1.000 OBP in three plate appearances), Chase Strumpf (.800 OBP in five PAs), and Ryan Kreidler (.750 OBP in eight PAs) have been especially adept at starting off innings on a high note.

Bruins Picked to Win Pac-12 in Preseason Coaches Poll
In a vote of all 11 Pac-12 coaches, the Bruins were picked as the favorites to win the league in 2019. UCLA received eight of 11 first place votes and a league-high 97 points. 2015 was the last time that UCLA was picked to finish first in the Preseason Coaches Poll, which was also the last time that UCLA won the league. Stanford (two first place votes, 90 points) and Oregon St. (one first place vote, 85 points) also received first place votes. They were followed in succession by Arizona (67), Washington (60), Arizona State (59), Oregon (49), California (37), USC (32), Washington State (15), and Utah (14).

Strumpf Named a Unanimous First Team Preseason All-American
UCLA junior Chase Strumpf was the First Team second baseman on every Preseason All-America team released this offseason, as he was honored by Baseball America, D1Baseball, Collegiate Baseball, NCBWA, and Perfect Game. He was one of just four players nationwide to gain consensus First Team status, joining catcher Adley Rutschman (Oregon State), first baseman Andrew Vaughn (Cal), and third baseman Josh Jung (Texas Tech). Strumpf slashed .363/.475/.633 last year with 12 home runs and 53 RBIs en route to All-America and Dick Howser Award semifinalist honors.

Toglia, Ydens Also Pick Up All-American Acclaim
Strumpf wasn't the only Bruin to get preseason publicity, as both Michael Toglia and Jeremy Ydens were named Preseason All-Americans. Toglia was a Second Teamer in D1Baseball and a Third Team choice in Collegiate Baseball, NCBWA, and Perfect Game, while Ydens was a Second Team outfielder per Collegiate Baseball. Toglia (.336 average, 11 home runs) and Ydens (.350 average, 28 extra-base hits) were key middle-of-the-order bats for the Bruins last year.

Fabulous Freshmen
UCLA's newest class of newcomers was ranked as high as No. 4 in the country (D1Baseball). The Bruins' new class was the highest-ranked in the Pac-12 and in the western half of the country. UCLA has turned in a top-25 recruiting class for five consecutive seasons, while the Bruins' No. 4 ranking is the highest for the program since 2015. A trio of frosh players were selected to D1Baseball's Top-100 Impact Freshmen List, including list-topper Matt McLain, catcher Noah Cardenas (No. 81), and right-handed pitcher Sean Mullen (No. 89).

McLain Chooses UCLA
The Bruins' freshman class is highlighted by Tustin, Calif. native Matt McLain, who opted to attend UCLA after being drafted in the first round (25th overall) of the 2018 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks. McLain is the second first-round draft pick out of high school to attend UCLA, following in the foosteps of Gerrit Cole (2008). Other high draft choices to turn down MLB overtures include Troy Glaus (37th overall, 1994) and Chase Utley (76th overall, 1997).

UCLA In The Positional Power Rankings
UCLA was well-represented in the D1Baseball.com positional power rankings, published just before the start of the season.
Chase Strumpf was the Bruins' top player, taking the No. 1 spot at second base. The Bruins' other starting infielders all made it as well: Michael Toglia was the No. 3 first baseman, Kevin Kendall was the No. 21 shortstop, and Ryan Kreidler was No. 29 at third base. All three of the Bruins' starting outfielders made the power rankings too: Jeremy Ydens (No. 15), Matt McLain (No. 37), and Garrett Mitchell (No. 62). A pair of Bruin starting pitchers were recognized (Ryan Garcia, No. 20 and Zach Pettway, No. 100) while Holden Powell (No. 35) made the relievers list.

Dynamic Duo Named to Golden Spikes Award Watch List
UCLA's Chase Strumpf and Michael Toglia were both named to the Golden Spikes Award Watch List prior to the new season. In 2018, Strumpf and Toglia were the most prolific Bruin teammates of the last 20 years. The right-side of the UCLA infield became the first Bruin duo since 2007 to hit double-digit home runs in the same season when Cody Decker (14) and Gabe Cohen (10) accomplished the feat. Strumpf and Toglia are just the fourth and fifth Bruins since 2001 with 50-plus RBIs and 10-plus home runs in the same season. The pair also became the first UCLA teammates since 2008 to each drive in over 50 runs in the same season (Casey Haerther, 52 and Brandon Crawford, 51).

Powell Named to Stopper of the Year Watch List
UCLA sophomore righty Holden Powell was named to the 75-man Stopper of the Year Watch List by the NCBWA. First awarded in 2005, the Stopper of the Year is handed out to college baseball's top reliever annually. Former Bruin closer David Berg is the lone pitcher ever to win the award multiple times.