No. 23 UCLA Baseball to Host Three-Game Series Versus No. 20 Arizona
Arizona at UCLA - Game Notes 
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LOS ANGELES - The No. 23 UCLA baseball team hosts a three-game Pac-10 series against No. 20 Arizona this weekend, beginning Friday at 6 p.m. at Jackie Robinson Stadium. The Bruins (17-11, 7-2) have won nine of their last 13 games. Junior right-hander Gerrit Cole (6-1, 1.74 ERA) will start on the mound Friday night against Arizona (22-11, 4-5).
PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS
Friday, April 15 (6 p.m.)
Arizona - Kurt Heyer, RHP, So. (5-1, 1.38)
UCLA - Gerrit Cole, RHP, Jr. (4-2, 1.74)
Saturday, April 16 (2 p.m.)
Arizona - Kyle Simon, RHP, Jr. (6-2, 3.34)
UCLA - Trevor Bauer, RHP, Jr. (6-1, 1.67)
Sunday, April 17 (1 p.m.)
Arizona - TBA
UCLA - Adam Plutko, RHP, Fr. (2-3, 1.74)
LISTEN LIVE ONLINE (click here)
Each game against Arizona this weekend will feature a live audio broadcast online, free of charge, at uclabruins.com. Listen live as UCLA's John Ramey and Tim Wilhelm call the game from Jackie Robinson Stadium. In addition, fans can follow the action online through GameTracker, which provides pitch-by-pitch updates of the game in progress on uclabruins.com.
GETTING TO JACKIE ROBINSON STADIUM
Steele Field at Jackie Robinson Stadium is located on the grounds of the West L.A. Veteran Administration, north of Wilshire Blvd. and west of the 405 Freeway. From the 405 North, exit Wilshire Blvd. (west offramp), stay in the right lane coming down the offramp and turn right onto Sepulveda Blvd. Continue until Constitution Ave. and turn left. Parking lots for the ballpark are located on the north side of Constitution Ave.
TICKETS AND PARKING
Tickets for this weekend's games at Jackie Robinson Stadium cost $7 for adults and $5 for youth (ages 16 and under). Admission to all home Tuesday ballgames costs $2 as part of the Bruins' ongoing "Two-Dollar Tuesday" promotion. Parking on the VA grounds costs $7. UCLA's baseball concession stand is stocked with hot dogs, peanuts, nachos, chili, candy, sodas and much more classic ballpark food.
AGAINST ARIZONA
UCLA opens a three-game Pac-10 series against Arizona on Friday evening, with the Bruins sending right-hander Gerrit Cole to the mound in the series opener. The Bruins have won the season series against Arizona each of the last six years, having won two of three games in each of those seasons. Last April, UCLA won the first two of three games at Arizona, before the Wildcats earned a 6-4 victory in Sunday's series finale.
MIDWEEK MEETING
The Bruins collected their ninth victory in their last 13 games on Tuesday, defeating Long Beach State at Jackie Robinson Stadium, 6-4. Freshman right-hander Zack Weiss collected the victory by throwing five scoreless innnings. Weiss surrendered two hits, striking out five batters to earn his first win as a starting pitcher. Chris Giovinazzo led UCLA's offense, going 3-for-5 with one home run and one double.
PAC-10 ACTION
UCLA secured its third consecutive Pac-10 series victory last weekend, winning the first two of three games at Washington State. The Bruins notched their first series win in Pullman, Wash., since 2005. Gerrit Cole and Trevor Bauer hurled complete games on Friday and Saturday, respectively. The previous two weeks, UCLA earned series victories by sweeping Washington (April 1-3) and taking two of three games at USC (March 25-27).
POWER PITCHING
UCLA's pitching staff has posted a 2.05 ERA, the lowest mark among Pac-10 teams. The Bruins also lead the Pac-10 with 288 strikeouts and a .187 opponent batting average. UCLA's pitchers are atop the conference in strikeouts per nine innings (10.6) and hits allowed per nine innings (5.83). The Bruins have hurled six shutouts and limited the opposition to five hits or fewer in 14 of 28 games this season.
NUMBER CRUNCHING
In UCLA's 17 victories, the Bruins' pitching staff has limited the opposition to 25 runs (20 earned), for a 1.16 ERA. That translates to an average of 1.47 runs allowed per game when UCLA wins. The Bruins have limited their opponents to two runs or fewer in 16 of 28 games, going 13-3 in those contests. Opponents have scored five runs or more in seven ballgames with no more than eight runs in a single game (San Jose State, Feb. 27).
POINT BLANK
UCLA has thrown six shutouts through its first 28 games, the most shutouts for a Bruins' ballclub in one season since 1978. In comparison, UCLA's vaunted pitching staff hurled just one shutout last spring. Since 1967, UCLA has pitched six or more shutouts in four seasons. The Bruins' 1969 team hurled a school-record 10 shutouts. UCLA had nine shutouts in 1978, eight in 1967, and five in 2008, 1992 and 1977.
GC FIRING CGs
Junior right-hander Gerrit Cole threw his second consecutive complete game victory last Friday, striking out seven batters and walking one in a 3-1 victory at Washington State. Cole hurled his third complete game of the season, limiting the host Cougars to one unearned run and five hits. He moved into third place on UCLA's career strikeouts list. Cole ranks fourth in the Pac-10 in strikeouts (64) and sixth in ERA (1.74).
RECORD WATCH
Trevor Bauer established UCLA's career strikeout record with a 14-strikeout effort at USC on March 26. Gerrit Cole ranks third on the career list after having fanned seven batters last Friday at Washington State. This season, Bauer currently leads all Pac-10 pitchers with 97 strikeouts while Cole ranks fourth with 64. Bauer tied Alex Sanchez for the lead on UCLA's career wins list (27) last Saturday at Washington State, improving his all-time ledger to 27-7.
WEEKLY AWARDS
Trevor Bauer secured Pac-10 Pitcher of the Week honors for the sixth time in his career and third time this season, after having fanned 15 batters in a complete game at Washington State last Saturday. Bauer also earned Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week acclaim for the fifth time in his career after hurling his seventh career complete game (second this season). Bauer leads UCLA with 64.2 innings and ranks seventh on the school's career innings pitched list (301.1).
HEATING UP
UCLA's offense has batted at a .305 clip through the last eight games. Cody Regis carries a nine-game hitting streak into this weekend's series, batting .360 through UCLA's last 14 games. Regis has hit safely in 13 of the last 14 contests, having drawn two walks in the one game that he went hitless. Dean Espy, who leads the team with a .317 batting average this spring, has batted .373 with five doubles and nine runs in the Bruins' last 14 games. Steve Rodriguez (.381), Espy (.379), Beau Amaral (.370), Cody Keefer (.357), Regis (.355) and Pat Valaika (.333) have all batted above the .300 plateau through UCLA's last eight games.
LET'S PLAY ANOTHER
UCLA has added one game to its regular-season schedule against UC Santa Barbara on Wednesday, May 11. The Bruins had one game rained out (and never rescheduled) at Cal Poly the weekend of March 19-21. As a result, UCLA will face the Gauchos at Jackie Robinson Stadium on May 11 to ensure that the Bruins will complete a standard 56-game regular season. UCLA won its two meetings against UC Santa Barbara last season.
MR. VERSATILE
Midway through his sophomore year, Trevor Brown has played four positions on the infield at UCLA. Last season, he served as a catcher in addition to playing third and first base. This season, he has played at third, first and second. Brown has started UCLA's last eight games at second base in place of Tyler Rahmatulla (pending academic issue). Last summer, he played shortstop for the Wenatchee AppleSox (West Coast League).
CAUGHT RED-HANDED
Junior catcher Steve Rodriguez threw out four of five attempted base stealers in three games against Washington (April 1-3) and did not have any baserunners attempt a stolen base at Washington State (April 8-10). This season, he has thrown out 13 of 26 attempts, converting at a 50.0 percent clip (second-best in the Pac-10 among catchers who have had at least 20 attempts against).
POWER OF THE PAC
Six Pac-10 teams are currently ranked in one of the five college baseball polls. UCLA checks in at No. 23 in Baseball America, with its highest ranking coming from Collegiate Baseball (No. 12). Baseball America's poll features six Pac-10 teams, including Oregon State (9), Arizona State (10), California (16), Stanford (17), Arizona (20), and UCLA (23). Last season, a record eight Pac-10 teams advanced to NCAA Regionals, the highest percentage of teams to advance from one conference in the sport's history.
HONORING JACKIE ROBINSON
Friday marks the 64th anniversary of former UCLA standout Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier in major league baseball. Robinson made his major league debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947, becoming the first African-American to play in the major leagues. Robinson played football, basketball, baseball and track and field at UCLA from 1939-1941. He played baseball for the Bruins in 1940.
2010 IN REVIEW
UCLA advanced to the finals of the College World Series in 2010 for the first time ever. The Bruins earned their third trip to the College World Series (first since 1997), defeating Cal State Fullerton in an NCAA Super Regional. UCLA's 51 total wins and 43 regular-season victories established school records. The pitching staff led the nation with 700 strikeouts, (school record) after the Bruins opened with a program-best 22-game win streak. UCLA hosted an NCAA Regional for the first time since 1986 (first-ever Super Regional host).
FIVE-YEAR COMPOSITE
In conference games over the last five seasons (2006-10), UCLA ranks second in both wins (73) and winning percentage (.584). Overall, the Bruins rank third in total wins (177) and fourth in winning percentage (.584). UCLA finished second in the Pac-10 in 2010, after having posted a third-place finish the previous four years. The Bruins have advanced to the postseason in four of the last five seasons.