30 Home Games Set For Trojans…

USC has released its 2012 college baseball schedule. The Trojans open their season Feb. 17-19 when they host a three game series with Jacksonville.

After a Feb. 21 game at Long Beach State, USC returns home to Dedeaux Field for a Feb. 14-26 three game set vs. Akron.

The Trojans head to Pepperdine for a Feb. 28 mid week game and then ventures across the country for a March 2-4 three game series at North Carolina. They host Cal State Fullerton on March 6 and then host DI Independent Cal State Bakersfield for three games March 9-11. The Trojans also visit Bakersfield for a single game on April 17.

A March 13 game vs. arch rival UCLA takes place at Dodger Stadium in the Dodgertown Classic.

Other non-conference opponents include UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara, and UC Riverside.

Pac-12 Conference play begins March 16-18 with a three game home series against new conference member Utah. Other conference home series are against Cal, Oregon State, Washington, and Arizona. Conference road series are at Stanford, Washington State, Arizona State, Oregon, and UCLA.

The Dugout in Omaha is your one stop for the most officially licensed 2011 College World Series apparel.

The Dugout is located right across the street from the Road To Omaha statue outside TD Ameritrade Stadium, but if you left Omaha without that College World Series hat, shirt or memorabilia you were thinking about you can still get it at Dugouthats.com!  The Dugout also has fitted college and minor league caps – just like the ones the players where on the field.

The best part is, when you click on one of the red links to Dugouthats.com you will save 20% on your order when you enter the coupon code CB360!

New AD Haden Makes First Coaching Change…

Frank Cruz

“We thank Chad Kreuter for his four years of hard work and service, but this move was necessary to revitalize our program. USC is synonymous with college baseball. This is the most successful and tradition-laden program in the country. We’ve won twice as many College World Series titles (12) as anybody. We need to get back to our championship ways.”

Kreuter, a former major league catcher, had a 4-year (2007-10) USC record of 111-117 (.487), including 39-63 (.382) in the Pac-10. His Trojans finished no higher than fifth in the league standings, placing ninth in 2007 and 10th in 2010. This past season, USC went 28-32 overall and 7-20 in the league. Under Kreuter, USC won just 3 of 14 games against crosstown rival UCLA.

“Because this move is being made much later in the year than is customary and with school starting here in 2 weeks, we have asked Frank Cruz to step in as head coach on an interim basis this season,” said Haden. “He has graciously accepted that challenge. Frank is a highly-regarded and experienced coach who was part of some very successful USC teams in the past, and we believe he will get our program headed back into a winning direction.

Chad Kreuter

“We will spend this coming season identifying the best coach possible for USC and we will include Frank Cruz in the pool of candidates. I’m confident we will find the right person to get us playing again at a championship level.”

Cruz, 51, spent the past 2 seasons (2009-10) as a volunteer assistant with the Trojans. He is in his second tour of duty at USC, as he previously spent 4 seasons (1993-96) as a fulltime assistant at Troy under then-head coach Mike Gillespie. During that first stint, the Trojans compiled a 169-86-1 record and made 4 straight NCAA Tournament appearances. In 1995, USC made its first College World Series appearance in 17 years, reaching the championship game and finishing with a 49-21 record.

“This is a bittersweet time for me,” said Cruz. “I really enjoyed working for Chad Kreuter and I have the utmost respect for him. I hate to see him go. He put his heart and soul into coaching the USC baseball team.

“I have had a great devotion to Trojan baseball ever since I came here to work for Mike Gillespie. I want this program to succeed in every way possible. I will get to work immediately to continue to improve our program and I appreciate the opportunity given to me to do that.”

Cruz was the head coach at Loyola Marymount for 12 years (1997-2008). He finished eighth in West Coast Conference history for overall victories (329) and sixth in conference wins (170). He was the WCC Coach of the Year 3 times (1998-2000-2004). The Lions won 3 straight WCC titles from 1998 to 2000 (the first time in school history) and made 3 consecutive appearances in the NCAA Tournament. His team also won 2 other WCC Coast Division titles (2004-05) that enabled the Lions to play in the conference championship series.

The Collegiate Baseball publication named Cruz the “Recruiter of the Year” in 1997.

While at LMU, he served a 4-year term on the NCAA Baseball Rules Committee.

Cruz was an assistant coach for the 2000 U.S. National Team as the squad compiled a 27-3-1 record, finishing up on a 21-game unbeaten streak. Team USA beat Cuba twice to win the 2000 IBAF Tournament in the Netherlands.

USA Baseball invited Cruz back again in 2004, this time as the head coach for Team USA. The team captured the program’s first gold medal at the FISU World University Championships in Taiwan, winning 12 of its final 14 games. He was named 2004 International Baseball Federation International Coach of the Year and USA Baseball National Development Coach of the Year.

Before USC, Cruz was the head coach at University High in Los Angeles, posting a 152-68 career record. He led University to the 1988 L.A. City baseball title, 4 Western League crowns (1988-90-91-92) and 6 trips to the L.A. City baseball playoffs. He was named the area Coach of the Year 3 times.

He attended Santa Monica College and transferred to Pepperdine, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in physical education in 1983 and a master’s degree in education in 1989. He is a graduate of St. Monica High in Santa Monica.

(USC Release)

Can ASU Keep On Winning Without Murphy?

2009 Pac 10 Champion:  Arizona State (No Pac 10 Postseason Tournament)

The More Things Change…:  There wasn’t much change at the top of the Pac 10 ranks, but there was some turnover in the middle.  Arizona State’s 2009 Pac 10 title was its third straight to give the Sun Devils their 10th straight NCAA appearance.  However, Washington State went from the bottom of the conference in 2008 to a second-place finish last year.  It was the Cougars’ first top five finish in the conference since 1991 and they earned their first NCAA Regional appearance since 1990.  Meanwhile, Oregon brought back baseball & played its first games since 1981, Oregon State was back in the tournament after staying home in 2008 and Stanford missed the NCAAs after a 2008 trip to the CWS.  The biggest news from the Pac 10 in 2009 though came in the off season with the departure of ASU head coach Pat Murphy.  The big question now is: Can ASU continue its success with a new head coach?

2010 Pac 10 Baseball Preview

Arizona

2009 Record:  (30-25, 13-14)

Mascot:  Wildcats

Head Coach:  Andy Lopez

Location:  Tucson, AZ

Vitals:  .314 BA, 46 HR, 71 SB, .387 OBP, .965 Fld%…5.46 ERA, 0 CG, 13 SV, 379 K, 215 BB, .293 opp. BA

Slight Returns:  The Wildcats have just 12 returning players from last year’s roster.  They will have as many as 16 freshman on the roster this season.

The Holes:  Pac 10 batting champion Dillon Baird (.433, 8 HR, 55 RBIs) leads the list of departed players.  Hunter Pace (.372, 15 SB) and Dwight Childs (.331) are gone from the line-up as well.  Arizona also loses its top starting pitcher, Preston Guilmet (6-5, 3.74 ERA), as well as relievers Cory Burns (2-0, 3.80 ERA, 40 appearances) and Jason Stoffel (2-1, 4.67 ERA, 39 app., 11 SV).

Who’s Back:  The top returning pitcher include Daniel Workman (3-1, 3.86 ERA), Joe Allison (5-1, 4.66 ERA) and Kyle Simon (3-5, 6.03 ERA, 11 starts).  Bryce Ortega (.324, 16 SB) and Steve Selsky (.318 will lead the offense).

Family Ties:  Brothers Michael and David Lopez will both wear the Wildcat uniform this season.  Their dad is head coach Andy Lopez.  Michael is a pitcher who redshirted last year, while David is a freshman infielder.

Tucson Time:  Arizona plays its first 26 games, including its conference-opening series vs. Oregon, on its home

Tim Esmay (ASU photo)

field in Tucson, AZ.  The Wildcats have a total of 44 home games in 2010.

Arizona State

2009 Record:  (51-14, 21-6)

Mascot:  Sun Devils

Head Coach:  Tim Esmay

Location:  Tempe, AZ

Vitals:  .303 BA, 75 HR, 116 SB, .418 OBP, .969 Fld%…2.90 ERA, 11 CG, 12 SV, 608 K, 157 BB, .239 opp. BA

Meet The New Boss:  Pat Murphy is gone after 15 seasons in the desert.  Murphy’s last win in a Sun Devil uniform was a 12-5 victory over North Carolina in Omaha, and it was the 1,000th of his career.  New head coach Tim Esmay is no stranger to the ASU

Kole Calhoun

program.  He played in the College World Series for Jim Brock’s Sun Devils in 1987 and ’88, and he was also an assistant to Murphy for the last five seasons.  Esmay was also the head coach at Utah from 1997-2004.

Line-Up Lowdown:  ASU returns 7 of its top 9 hitters who saw significant action in 2009.  The glaring losses are Pac 10 Player of the Year Jason Kipnis (.384, 16 HR, 71 RBIs, 27 SB) and catcher Carlos Ramirez (.338, 19 HR, 75 RBIs).  However, Kole Calhoun (.313, 12 HR, 53 RBIs) is back for his senior season.  Calhoun hit 3 HR with 11 RBIs in Omaha.  Sophomores Johnny Ruettiger (.360, 12 SB) & Drew Maggi (.309, 21 SB) and junior Matt Newman (.305, 7 HR, 54 RBIs) all return as well.

Oh Brother:  Senior co-captain Rauol Torrez (.250,15 SB) and soph. Riccio Torrez (.280, 6 HR) are the fifth set of brothers to play at ASU at the same time, but they are the first to start alongside one another in school history.  All 54 of Rauol’s starts came at third base, while most of Riccio’s were at first base.  The brothers are back as well to anchor the Sun Devil infield in 2010.

An Ace Down:  RHP Mike Leake (16-1, 1.71 ERA, 7 CG) and LHP Josh Spence (10-1, 2.37 ERA) were both good enough to be any team’s ace last year, but only senior Spence is back this season.  Leake signed after being taken in the first round of last year’s draft by Cincinnati.  Spence decided to return for his year after going in the third round to the Angels.  Other notable returning pitchers are LHP Mitchell Lambson (9-5, 3.01 ERA, 5 SV) and RHP Jordan Swaggerty (4-1, 4.50 ERA, 4 SV).

California

2009 Record:  (24-29, 9-18)

Mascot:  Golden Bears

Head Coach:  David Esquer

Location:  Berkeley, CA

Vitals:  .298 BA, 65 HR, 66 SB, .375 OBP, .966 Fld%…5.74, 2 CG, 13 SV, 423 K, 249 BB, .284 opp. BA

Big Bear Losses:  Cal loses three of its top four batters from last year, including two-way player Blake Smith (.319, 10 HR, 38 RBIs), who was drafted in the second round last year by the Dodgers.  Smith had two saves out of the

Mark Canha (Cal photo)

bullpen while starting three games as well.  Jeff Kobernus (.341, 8 HR, 20 SB) and Brett Jackson (.321, 8 HR, 11 SB) are both gone as well.

Top Bear Back:  Cal’s top overall hitter, Mark Canha, is returns.  The junior led Cal in average (.366), HR (12), RBIs (43), slg% (.634), and OBP (.444).  Brian Guinn (.315, 10 SB) and Danny Oh (.303, 7 HR) is back as well.

Plenty Of Pitching: The Golden Bears return most of their pitchers from a staff that finished with the worst ERA in the conference last year.  Reliver Dixon Anderson (3.98 ERA, 3 SV), LHP Chris Petrini (4-3, 3.98 ERA) and Erik Johnson (3-6, 4.41 ERA, 9 starts, CG, 4 SV) are among the top returnees.

No-Nonsense Non-Conference:  In consecutive weeks Cal plays non-conference games vs. 2009 CWS team Arkansas (3 at home), 2009 Super Regional team Rice (4 in Houston) and ’09 NCAA team Cal Poly (3 on the road).  They follow that with their Pac 10-opening series at Arizona State.

Call From The Hall:  Former Cal head coach Bob Milano was inducted into the ABCA Hall of Fame in January.  He won 688 games at Cal from 1978-1999 and led the Golden Bears to the College World Series in 1980, 1988 and 1992.

Oregon

2009 Record:  (14-42, 4-23)

Mascot:  Ducks

Head Coach:  George Horton

Location:  Eugene, OR

Vitals:  .227 BA, 16 HR, 60 SB, .296 OBP, .961 Fld%…5.07 ERA, 4 CG, 8 SV, 357 K, 239 BB, .271 opp. BA

Growing Pains:  Oregon fielded its first baseball team since 1981 last year, and things looked bright early when the Ducks beat St. Mary’s 5-3 in their season opener.  They lost the next two games of the series, but then won 2 of 3 games at home vs. defending national champion Fresno State.  That would be the high point of their inaugural season though, as they won just three games after March 31 en-route to a 14-win campaign.  Oregon finished last in the Pac 10 in these (and a few other) statistical categories:  Batting average, HR, runs, slg%, OBP, hits, RBIs, doubles, total bases, walks, strikeouts (by pitchers), saves.  They also committed the second most errors (85) in the conference behind USC”S 101.

The Bright Side:  After a bumpy first year George Horton returns all but five players who saw action last year, while nine freshmen and a handful of junior college transfers join the team.  Here’s a look at some of the returnees with the category in which they led the Ducks last year Curt Raulinaitis (batting avg.-.291), K.C. Serna (RBIs-19 & HR-3), Danny Pulfer (starts-55 & BB-19), Drew Gagnier (ERA-2.70, appearances-23, saves-7).  Starting pitchers Erik Stavert (5-6, 3.04 ERA, 14 starts) & Tyler Anderson (2-9, 15 starts) are both gone.

Homecoming:  Oregon opens the season at Cal State Fullerton, where Horton played and later spent 11 seasons as the Titans’ head coach.  Horton guided Fullerton to six College World Series appearances and the 2004 National Championship.  Current Fullerton head coach Dave Serrano was an assistant under Horton.

Oregon State

2009 Record:  (37-19, 15-12)

Mascot:  Beavers

Head Coach:  Pat Casey

Location:  Corvallis, OR

Vitals:  .278 BA, 23 HR, 53 SB, .392 OBP, .977 Fld%…3.93 ERA, 3 CG, 13 SV, 431 K, 199 BB, .245 opp. BA

Sam Gaviglio (OSU photo)

Locked Line-Up:  Oregon State returns six starters from last year’s team.  All-Pac 10 honoree Adalberto Santos (.320, 4 HR, 43 RBIs, 15 SB) and team HR and RBI leader Stefan Romero (..291, 5 HR, 51 RBIs) head the group.

Plus Pitching:  The Beavers’ 3.93 team ERA ranked second in the Pac 10 last year to Arizona State, and they return two starters, Sam Gaviglio (10-1, 2.73 ERA) and Tyler Waldron (6-4, 4.15 ERA), and closer Kevin Rhoderick (3-3, 4.18 ERA, 9 SV).  Gaviglio was a Freshman All-American last year.

Turn The Page:  Baseball America recently named Oregon State the #2 team of the past decade, while tabbing head coach Pat Casey the coach of the decade.  The Beavers won back-to-back National Championships in 2006 and 2007 and made an additional trip to Omaha.  They averaged 35.6 wins a season from 2000-2009.

Stanford

2009 Record:  (30-25, 13-14)

Mascot:  Cardinal

Head Coach:  Mark Marquess

Location:  Palo Alto, CA

Vitals:  .279 BA, 49 HR, 46 SB, .360 OBP, .977 Fld%…5.12 ERA, 2 CG, 8 SV, 381 K, 222 BB, .268 opp. BA

Rare Absence:  After a trip to the 2008 College World Series Stanford missed the NCAA Tournament last year.  It was

Colin Walsh (Stanford photo)

the second time in three seasons that the Cardinal failed to receive a post season bid, but it’s also just the third time since 1990 that Stanford did not at least go to an NCAA Regional.

Core Cardinals:  Stanford returns 2B Colin Walsh (.320, .466 OBP), SS Jeff Schlander (.232), catcher Zach Jones (.239, 3 HR), and OF Kellen Killsgard (.313, 9 HR, 46 RBIs).  Walsh was the team’s top hitter as a sophomore and was named a Cape Cod League All-Star last summer,  while Schlander was named the 2009 Pac 10 Defensive Player of the Year.  The team loses top run producer Brent Milleville (.306, 14 HR, 52 RBIs).

Cardinal Arms:  Starting pitchers Jordan Pries (4-4. 4.62 ERA) and LHP Brett Mooneyham (6-3, 4.14 ERA) are back to lead the weekend rotation.  The duo combined to make 22 starts last year as freshmen.

Gerhart’s Gone:  Two-sport sensation Toby Gerhart (.288, 7 HR, 36 RBIs, 7 SB) burst on the national scene on the football field in 2009.  He was the Heisman Trophy runner-up and won the Doak Walker Award after rushing for a school record 1,871 yards and 28 TDs.  Gerhart hit 16 home runs in three years with the Cardinal baseball team.  He was an outfield starter on the 2008 CWS squad.  He won’t play baseball this year as he prepares for the April NFL Draft.

Tough Tests:  Stanford opens the season by hosting a 3-game series with perennial power Rice.  They go to Austin, TX the next weekend for a 3-game set with 2009 national runner-up Texas.

UCLA

2009 Record:  (27-29, 15-12)

Mascot:  Bruins

Head Coach:  John Savage

Location:  Los Angeles, CA

Vitals:  .285 BA, 54 HR, 55 SB, .382 OBP, .969 Fld%…4.28 ERA, 5 CG, 12 SV, 509 K, 197 BB, .259 opp. BA

Power Outage:  UCLA loses its top two run producers, Cody Decker (.322, 21 HR, 53 RBIs) and Casey Haerther

Gerrit Cole

(.305, 9 HR, 42 RBIs) from last year’s team.  Haerther was selected in the 5th round of last year’s MLB Draft by the Angels, while Decker was tabbed in the 22nd round by San Diego.

The Line-Up:  Justin Uribe (.318, 3 HR, 23 RBIs) and Blair Dunlap (.301, 7 HR, 39 RBIs, 15 SB) are the top hitters back in the Bruin batting order.  Uribe will move from the outfield to first base this year.  Junior college transfer Dean Espy will be expected to step-in at third base as well.

Bruin Pitching:  Sophomores Gerrit Cole (4-8, 3.49 ERA) and Trevor Bauer (9-3, 2.99 ERA, 4 CG) will lead the pitching rotation.  Bauer had pitched a  team-high of 105 1/3 IP last year.  Cole is a Preseason All-American who struckout 104 in 85 IP last year.  He pitched for the USA Collegiate National Team last summer.

Big 12 West:  UCLA plays five games against three Big 12 teams in 2010.  The Bruins host Oklahoma State in one of their three games in the Dodgertown Classic (Vanderbilt & USC are the other two opponents there).  They also host a 3-game series vs. Nebraska and play Oklahoma in their last game of the Whataburger College Classic in Corpus Christi, TX.

USC

2009 Record:  (28-28, 13-14)

Mascot:  Trojans

Head Coach:  Chad Kreuter

Location:  Los Angeles, CA

Vitals:  .274 BA, 41 HR, 58 SB, .359 OBP, .954 Fld%…4.06 ERA, 5 CG, 10 SV, 438 K, 231 BB, .259 opp. BA

Top Losses:  USC loses three players, Grant Green (.374, 4 HR, 32 RBIs, 16 SB), Brad Boxberger (6-3, 3.16 ERA) and Robert Stock (5-4, 2.90 ERA, 4 SV), who were taken in the first two rounds of last year’s MLB Draft.  Green went with the 13th overall pick to Oakland.

Returning Trojans:  Ricky Oropesa (.314, 13 HR, 48 RBIs) was named a Freshman All-American last year.  He and Mike O’Neill (.319) are the top returning players in the USC line-up.  Sophomore RHP Andrew Triggs (5-3, 3.96 ERA) is expected to be the staff’s #1 starter.  Fellow Soph. Chad Smith (3-4, 3.40 ERA) and Sr. Kevin Couture (3-3, 5.66 ERA) return as well.

New Faces In Many Places:  A total of 15 newcomers (7 transfers and 8 freshman) will look to contribute for USC in 2010.  One of them is redshirt sophomore Mike Greco, who hit .250 with 2 HR and 27 RBIs in 46 games as a freshman at Army.  He sat out last year after transferring and will battle for a spot at first base this year.

Washington

2009 Record:  (25-30, 13-14)

Mascot:  Huskies

Head Coach:  Lindsay Meggs

Location:  Seattle, WA

Vitals:  .265 BA, 64 HR, 42 SB, .357 OBP, .967 Fld%…4.88 ERA, 1 CG, 14 SV, 387 K, 194 BB, .276 opp. BA

Lindsay Meggs

New Skipper:  2010 will be Lindsay Meggs’ first season as head coach at Washington.  He arrives after three seasons at Indiana State.  Meggs was named the 2009 Missouri Valley Conference Coach of the Year after guiding the Sycamores to a 33-21 record and a second-place conference finish.  Prior to that Meggs spent 13 seasons at head coach at Chico State, where he won Division II National Championships in 1997 & 1999.

Draft Losses:  The Huskies lose their top run producer, Ryan Conley (.303, 19 HR, 55 RBIs), who was taken by St. Louis in the 7th round of last year’s draft.  Top reliever Brian Pearl (3.05 ERA, 8 SV) and starter Jason Erickson (5-4, 4.34 ERA) were both drafted and signed as well.

Husky Returns:  Pierce Rankin (.299, 6 HR, 26 RBIs) and Troy Scott (11 HR, 31 RBIs) are the top returnees in the line-up.  Sophomore Andrew Kittredge (4-5, 4.27 ERA, 3 SV, 7 starts) and LHP Geoff Brown (4-4, 5.01), who made 31 relief appearances, are among the top returning pitchers.

Big Home Slate:  Washington’s first nine home games are three 3-game series vs. 2008 National Champion Fresno State, perennial power Cal State Fullerton and intrastate rival Washington State.

Washington State

2009 Record:  (32-25, 19-8)

Mascot:  Cougars

Head Coach:  Donnie Marbut

Location:  Pullman, WA

Vitals:  .273 BA, 56 HR, 44 SB, .358 OBP, .971 Fld%…4.34 ERA, 1 CG, 15 SV, 453 K, 184 BB, .279 opp. BA

The Drought Is Over:  Last year’s NCAA Regional appearance was the first for the program since 1990.  The Cougars swept five series in 2009, including three in Pac 10 play.  All of the sweeps came on their home diamond, where they had just three series sweeps in the previous 11 seasons combined.

Leaving & Staying:  WSU loses its top three hitters, Alex Burg (.346, 7 HR), Jared Prince (.343, 7 HR) and Greg Lagreid (.332, 5 HR), from last year’s NCAA squad.  They return stolen base leader Garry Kuykendall (.299, 11 SB), Matt Argyropoulos (.277), Shea Vucinich (.230, team-high 40 runs), and Derek Jones, who hit a team-best 12

Chad Arnold

home runs despite just a .223 batting average.

On The Mound:  Junior Chad Arnold (8-3, 4.39 ERA) will lead the weekend rotation.  Arnold got the team’s only NCAA win with an elimination game victory vs. Wichita State in the Norman, OK Regional.  He’s joined by David Stilley (3-3, 4.64 ERA) and reliever Seth Harvey (2.25 ERA, 22 app.).  The Cougars lose starter Matt Way (8-4, 2.43 ERA) and closer Jeremy Johnson (6-2, 2.90 ERA, 10 SV).

Texas Time:  Washington State plays 12 of its first 18 games in the state of Texas.   After four games in Lubbock they return home for a 4-game set vs. Utah and then return to the Lone Star State for three games at Texas A&M and two games at Dallas Baptist.  They end their spring trip with a 3-game series in Wichita, KS vs. Wichita State.

2010 Pac 10 Conference Predictions

Player of the Year:  Kole Calhoun – Arizona State

Pitcher of the Year:  Sam Gaviglio – Oregon State

Conference Champion:  Arizona State, with Oregon State giving the closest challenge

Arizona State Picked To Repeat As Champion

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. — ARIZONA STATE has been chosen as the favorite to win this year’s Pac-10 baseball title, according to a vote by the league’s coaches.

For the second-straight season, the Sun Devils were picked to win the Pac-10 crown receiving seven of nine first-place votes, earning 78 points overall. OREGON STATE also received two first-place votes and 67 total points for the No. 2 spot, while UCLA was picked third, totaling 65 points. Rounding out the top five was STANFORD, which nabbed 59 points overall and ARIZONA which grabbed a total of 44 points.

Winners of three-consecutive Pac-10 championships, the Sun Devils are coming off their 10th-straight trip to the NCAA Tournament and the program’s 21st trip to the College World Series. Last season, ASU’s pitching staff led the nation with a 2.90 ERA. This year marks the return of SR left-handed pitcher Josh Spence (10-1, 2.37 ERA, 125 strikeouts in 102.2 innings) and SO left-handed pitcher Mitchell Lambson (9-5, 3.01 ERA, 99 strikeouts in 83-plus innings). Spence and Lambson were two of four Pac-10 players named to the 10th-Annual National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Pro-Line Athletic Preseason All-American team.

The 2010 Conference baseball season gets underway Friday, March 25, when Arizona State hosts California in Tempe.

Results of the poll are as follows. Nine points are awarded for the first-place vote, eight points for a second-place vote, and so on. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their own team.

2010 Pac-10 Baseball Preseason Poll
1. Arizona State (7) 78
2. Oregon State (2) 67
3. UCLA 65
4. Stanford 59
5. Arizona 44
6. Washington State 42
7. California 36
8. USC 24
9. Washington 18
10. Oregon 17

(Pac-10 Release)

Irvine Head Coach Joined By Bob Milano & Jim Stone

Mike Gillespie

Gillespie, who took over the reins of the UC Irvine Baseball program in the fall of 2007, has had a storied career. Ranked 24th in victories among active coaches at the Division I level, Gillespie holds an 850-504-2 record with a .627 winning percentage.

In 2009 Gillespie was named the Big West Coach of the Year after leading UCI to its first-ever conference title with a 22-2 mark to boast the second-best winning percentage in conference history at .917.  The team was ranked No. 1 during the regular season for the first time, holding the spot for six straight weeks. The program also played host to an NCAA regional for the first time in school history.

In his first season with the Anteaters, Gillespie led UC Irvine to its third consecutive NCAA postseason appearance, as the team recorded the second-highest number of wins in the school’s Division I history with 42. UCI went undefeated in regional action prior to falling in three games in super regional play.

Gillespie’s coaching fame includes a 20-year career at USC, where he recorded a 763-471-2 (.618) mark and guided the Trojans to 15 postseason appearances, four College World Series appearances (1995, 1998, 2000 and 2001) and a national title in 1998 for which Gillespie was named National Coach of the Year by Collegiate

Bob Milano

Baseball and the American Baseball Coaches Association.

Former Cal head coach Bob Milano and Jim Stone from UMass-Lowell were inducted Friday as well.

Milano guided the California baseball program from 1978-1999 and led the Golden Bears to three College World Series appearances.  He retired in 1999 as the school’s most successful baseball coach with a 688-644-4 career record.

Head coach for 22 years and a veteran of 29 years directly involved in the Cal baseball program, Milano’s career not only included three College World Series appearances and a stint in 1997 as the head coach of the United States National Team, but a gold medal as an assistant

Jim Stone

coach for the USA National Team at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

Stone compiled a 801-393-7 record in 37 seasons at UMass-Lowell.  He had  seven 30-win seasons and at least 20 wins in each of his last 22 seasons.

Former Atlanta Braves pitcher Tom Glavine and current Tampa Bay Rays slugger Carlos Pena are among Stone’s most prominent former players.  Glavine won 305 games in his big league career, while Pena belted 39 home runs in 2009.