By Mika McCaffrey
Daily Bruin contributor
The Bruins are preparing for an infamous rivalry match-up.
And Roman Martin is hoping his weekend prowess carries into the crosstown duel.
“I think (my mindset is) just trying to take this momentum into that series,” said the freshman infielder. “Taking it pitch by pitch really, that’s all we can do.”
UCLA baseball (7-11, 2-4 Pac-12) will face off against USC (7-13, 3-3) in a three-game series at Jackie Robinson Stadium Friday through Sunday.
The Bruins began the year with a highly ranked incoming freshman class, but as the season has progressed, the team has been unable to sustain a winning rhythm.
UCLA clinched not only a win but also a conference series victory over Washington State last weekend. The winning stretch – after losing seven games in a row – arrived right before the team will play an under-.500 USC with a chance to turn the tide in Pac-12 play.
This adaptability of UCLA’s “pitch-by-pitch” motto has been reflected in their recent wins.
Preseason All-Pac-12 players junior second baseman Duce Gourson and junior shortstop Cody Schrier only contributed two combined hits in their weekend-long series against the Cougars, but the Bruins still grabbed two victories.
Furthermore, the team is facing a string of pitching challenges with sophomore right-hander Finn McIlroy out with elbow soreness.
But injuries aren’t the only obstacle in the Bruins’ way heading into Friday.
The series arrives at a busy time for the team, as student-athletes will be taking their final exams and simultaneously preparing for the Trojans.
“You always got to be a little bit cautious around finals because guys have a lot on their minds and a lot of responsibility,” Coach John Savage said. “We’ll give them a day or two off and then get back at it during the middle of the week and then prepare for the weekend.”
One arm in, one arm out.
By Kai Dizon
Daily Bruin contributor
Early in the season, Savage admitted his team lacked pitching depth.
The MLB draft and transfer portal sapped eight pitchers from the Bruins from last season alone.
By Pro Baseball Radar’s wProd, – a cumulative point-based park and conference-adjusted stat that measures player production – former UCLA left-handers and transfers Gage Jump and Ben Jacobs rank ahead of every Bruin pitcher this season, both posting ERAs just over two in 17 and 16 innings of work for LSU and Arizona State, respectively.
The Bruins have yet to use a left-handed pitcher all season, much less one as effective as either since-transferred southpaw.
In preparation for the 2024 season, UCLA transitioned right-handed relievers junior Luke Jewett and McIlroy to the weekend rotation.
While Jewett is coming off, arguably, his best performance of the season – six innings of one-run ball with five strikeouts against Washington State – UCLA’s Friday night starter still holds a 5.46 ERA and 6.86 FIP.
The injury bug Savage said plagued the end of the Bruins’ 2023 campaign has come back to bite another victim – this time, McIlroy.
After the Carlsbad, California, local missed his Saturday start due to elbow soreness, sophomore right-hander Michael Barnett and freshman right-hander Landon Stump were bumped to start Saturday and Sunday, respectively, against the Cougars.
The two had their worst starts of the season. Barnett tossed just 2.2 innings while allowing four runs and walking six, while Stump, who also allowed four runs, walked five in his 3.2 innings of work.
“When you throw that many balls, you’re not going to win games,” Savage said. “Pretty simple.”
The weekend series against Washington State was hardly all doom and gloom, however.
Following graduate student transfer Rashad Ruff’s blown save against California on March 10 and sophomore Cody Delvecchio’s three straight appearances allowing a home run, the pair of right-handers bounced back against the Cougars. They combined for six shutout innings with six strikeouts, allowing just three hits across UCLA’s wins on Friday and Sunday.
The series finale also featured Chris Aldrich’s return to the bullpen following an undisclosed injury to start the year.
“Yeah, first time in a while,” Aldrich said following his outing Sunday. “You’ve just got to stay pitch-to-pitch – you can’t control everything.”
In 2023, Aldrich tossed 38.2 innings in 33 appearances, posting a 4.66 ERA, 1.53 WHIP and 8.8 K/9 – with only Delvecchio appearing more frequently.
Luke Rodriguez also shined in his weekend appearance – tossing a career-high 4.1 innings of one-run ball in relief on Saturday.
The freshman right-hander has yet to allow more than one earned run in a single appearance, posting a 2.20 ERA and 0.92 WHIP over 16.1 innings this season.
“I just try to keep the same thing,” Rodriguez said. “I have my pregame stuff that I go through, so I just stick by that and take it game by game.”
Rodriguez has started, relieved and appeared in high leverage so far, but the Bruins may have to solidify Rodriguez as the midweek starter if Stump continues to pitch weekend games in McIlroy’s absence.
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