UCLA baseball coach John Savage’s office in the clubhouse at Jackie Robinson Stadium is large and comfortable, yet not all that different than a standard nine-to-fiver’s office. Photos of Savage’s children as well as career accomplishments dot the walls.
It’s been filling up in recent years.
Photos, newspaper clippings and a second-place trophy from UCLA’s trip to the finals of the College World Series of Omaha, Inc. have found their way into the office. The silver second-place trophy being the last thing anyone sees as they walk out the door, a reminder of how close the Bruins were to bringing home their first national title in 2010, which seems like a century ago after last season’s struggles.
The two newest additions to the shelf behind Savage’s desk represent the contradictory nature of the 2011 campaign. The Pac-10 championship trophy, UCLA’s first outright conference crown since 1986, and a photo of Savage with No. 1 overall MLB draft pick Gerrit Cole donning a Pittsburgh Pirates jersey on the day he signed a deal that included an $8 million signing bonus, have moved in.
At first glance, those two items alone should warrant more photos from a trip to another World Series in Omaha without mentioning No. 3 overall draft pick Trevor Bauer, who set career records at UCLA for wins, strikeouts and innings pitched.
They did not. Perhaps the best pitching tandem in the history of college baseball wasn’t enough to overcome dismal offensive performances and get UCLA out of an NCAA regional that the Bruins hosted as a No. 1 seed, something that still eats at Savage as he prepares for the 2012 season to begin tonight against Maryland.
“We got where we wanted to get,” Savage says before recounting UCLA’s disappointing ninth-inning loss to UC Irvine that ended its season early after being ranked No. 2 in the preseason. “It was a tough way to finish. It was a roller coaster.”
Since that abrupt ending to what looked like a promising season, so much has changed but so much remains the same for the No. 14 Bruins this year, who were picked to finish fourth in the Pac-12 by the conference’s coaches. Cole and Bauer are gone, as new ace of the pitching staff and sophomore right hander Adam Plutko is quick to note.
“They’re not coming back no matter how much people may want them,” said Plutko, last season’s Sunday starter who will take over for Cole on Friday nights.
Joining Plutko in the starting rotation will be sophomore Nick Vander Tuig on Saturdays, who struggled as the team’s closer last seasonbut is now fully recovered from Tommy John surgery, and sophomore Zack Weiss who went 5-3 as the team’s Tuesday starter a year ago. Freshman lefty Grant Watson is likely to fill the Tuesday role.
The bullpen, like last season, is a trouble spot. Junior Scott Griggs will take over the closer role despite averaging more than one walk per inning in 2011. Savage will turn to redshirt sophomore Ryan Deeter, redshirt freshman Eric Jaffe and freshman David Berg for depth, but he’s the first to note that it’s an unproven group.
“Roles are established now but 10 games in, they could change depending on how things go,” Savage said. “I like our depth but it’s somewhat inexperienced.”
Pitching wasn’t the problem in 2011; it was the bats that couldn’t seem to get going last season. Despite leading the conference in nearly every statistical category, UCLA ranked third to last in both batting average and home runs.
Former hitting coach Rick Vanderhook took off for the head coaching job at Fullerton shortly after last season and Savage brought on Rex Peters to try to spark some life on offense. Peters brings 18 years of experience as a head coach at Chapman University and UC Davis to the table and Savage said the players respect him and appreciate a new and different voice.
“Coach Peters has been great for this team and he works really well with all the hitters,” said junior right fielder Jeff Gelalich, arguably the team’s most consistent hitter a year ago.
Savage sits at his desk on a Tuesday night after just having watched his team compete in a three-inning scrimmage. He leans over the table and salivates at talk of getting the season started and “see(ing) where we’re at.”
“This team has an edge to it, which I like,” Savage said. “It has good chemistry, good leadership, this group of juniors have won 86 games in two years. They’re used to winning and the thought of winning without Gerrit and Trevor means a lot to them. They want to prove to everybody that they can do it and I don’t need to push it.”
After all, he could use some more hardware for that shelf.