University of California, Los Angeles, Athletics
Seven Bruins Named to 2023 MLB Opening Day Rosters
March 30, 2023 | Baseball
Seven alumni of the UCLA baseball program were named to the Opening Day rosters of their respective clubs as the 2023 Major League Baseball season officially began on Thursday.
Four Bruins โ right-handed pitcher Gerrit Cole (New York Yankees), shortstop Brandon Crawford (San Francisco Giants), third baseman Ryan Kreidler (Detroit Tigers), and center fielder Garrett Mitchell (Milwaukee Brewers) โ are slated to be in the Opening Day starting lineups for their team. Cole and Crawford will be facing off against each other at Yankee Stadium.
A trio of Bruins will be officially taking part in Opening Day festivities for the first time: Kreidler, Mitchell, and Oakland A's right-hander James Kaprielian.
Two more Bruins, infielder/outfielder Sean Bouchard and right-handed pitcher Griffin Canning (Los Angeles Angels) are opening the year on their team's Injured Lists.
In addition, two longtime MLB managers and UCLA alums return to their post for the new campaign in Dave Roberts (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Torey Lovullo (Arizona Diamondbacks).
Cole, who was selected to the UCLA Athletics Hall of Fame in 2022, is set to begin his fourth season in the Bronx. He's been one of the top pitchers in MLB since arriving in the show, earning Cy Young Votes in each of the last five seasons and six campaigns overall, including runner-up finishes in 2019 and 2021. Owner of a career 130-71 record, 3.23 ERA, and 1,930 strikeouts over 1,650 innings, Cole is a five-time All-Star and is once again expected to be one of the top pitchers in the league.
Crawford enters his 13th season with the Giants, and is set to join club legends Willie Mays and Barry Bonds as the lone players in franchise history to make 12 consecutive Opening Day starts at the same position. Crawford is a year removed from the best offensive campaign of his career, as he slashed .298/.373/.522 in 2021 while earning his fourth-career Gold Glove Award and placing fourth in NL MVP voting.
Kaprielian is beginning his third year as a rotation mainstay in Oakland, though he was on the IL for last year's Opening Day. He pitched to a 4.23 ERA over 26 starts last season, and has struck out 225 batters to this point over 257 career innings.
Kreidler and Mitchell meanwhile are beginning their first full Major League seasons. Both made their MLB debuts late in the 2022 season. Kreidler played four different positions for Detroit in September and clubbed a game-winning home run against Los Angeles Angels on Sept. 7, 2022. Mitchell swung a hot bat for the Brewers after making his MLB debut on Aug. 27, 2022, slashing .311/.373/.459 over 28 games with five extra-base hits and eight stolen bases. He kept it up during Spring Training, crafting a 1.030 OPS with four home runs and seven RBIs in just 12 games.
Stay up-to-date on all things UCLA Baseball by following the team Twitter account: @UCLABaseball.
