Beyond low expectations, two straight losing seasons, and anything on the baseball field lies a story line as large as the legacy of the man who created it. After 949 victories, 10 NCAA tournament appearances, and more major leaguers produced than any other college coach, this is UCLA baseball coach Gary Adams’ 30th and final season at the helm.
“You know, frankly, if it wasn’t for the media, it wouldn’t come up,” Adams said. “I haven’t made a big deal about it with the players. I don’t want the guys to win for me, but just for the sake of winning.
“So far, the year hasn’t been so different for me, but I’m sure as the last games roll around I’ll probably look back and say, ‘Well, this is the last time for me.’ But at practice I’m still thinking the same thing – ‘How do I make this team better?’ I’m going to focus on the journey, not on the destination.”
Despite Adams’ desire to concentrate on business as usual, this season will be a memorable one no matter what happens on the field.
Having lost relatively few of the main players from last season’s 28-31 squad, it seems a little odd that the Bruins (1-0) have been picked to finish seventh in the Pac-10, which is worse than the fifth place they ended up in last year.
“All I know is that those people that picked us aren’t out there every day in the fall, so it doesn’t matter what judgment they put on what team will be in first place or in seventh place,” senior co-captain Brandon Averill said. “Maybe halfway through the season they’ll have a better understanding of where we stand.”
Much of this low projection may be due to the fact that UCLA lacks an impact freshman, marquee slugger, or stalwart ace that strikes fear in opponents’ hearts.
If UCLA has a star, though, it is junior first baseman and pitcher Wes Whisler. Whisler, who was named 2002 Pac-10 Freshman of the Year and had a solid, but disappointing, sophomore season. He was still named to the All-Pac-10 team and put up a respectable .310 batting average. But Whisler’s power numbers dropped significantly, as he hit just nine home runs, half of the eye-raising 18 he launched in 2002. His pitching numbers also suffered; his ERA dropped from 4.06 to 5.66.
“I know that Wes wants to have a better year, but last year’s expectations were really high,” Adams said. “I’m expecting him to have a better year, but we’re not counting on him. It’s not as he goes, the team goes, nor is it that way for any of our players.”
Besides Whisler, the lineup is solid, if not spectacular. With eight returning starters, there are few of the typical position battles teams have heading into the season, although Adams says no team he has coached has maintained the same lineup throughout an entire season.
For now, leading off in center field is senior Chad Concolino, who has had a rough ride at UCLA, having redshirted his first two years as a Bruin, last year due to injury.
Following Concolino will be two juniors – shortstop Ryan McCarthy and right fielder Billy Susdorf.
“Ryan was our best executor last year as far as making contact, moving runners over, and hitting in the clutch,” hitting coach Vince Beringhele said. “Susdorf is our best hitter right now. We’ve got tremendous confidence in him to step up.”
Batting clean-up is Whisler and protecting him are freshman catcher Chris Denove, junior left fielder Matt Thayer, and third baseman Averill, who last year led the team in slugging percentage by a wide margin at .644.
Batting eighth and splitting time between first base and designated hitter is last year’s big surprise and winner of the team’s The Big Stick award for best hitter, sophomore Brett McMillan. McMillan has reconfigured his stroke to try to improve upon his impressive freshman year and has been pushed down in the lineup until he effectively works out the kinks.
Senior second baseman Preston Griffin, who led the team with 44 RBI, rounds out the lineup in the No. 9 position. Others expected to see significant playing time are senior infielder Mike Svetlic, freshman 3B/OF Jarrad Page, and sophomore outfielder Sean Carpenter.
“Our hitters are similar to last year, but a difference is we have more depth on the bench,”Adams said.
Senior Casey Janssen should take the hill Fridays as the team’s No. 1 starter. Most weekends, Whisler and sophomore Hector Ambriz should round out the rotation, with junior Bryan Beck receiving spot starts and a lot of weekday assignments. The Bruin pitching staff represents the most pressing need for improvement from last year when they posted a gaudy 5.95 ERA.
Overall, the games before the Pac-10 season starts are a good opportunity for UCLA. While it faces such top-25 teams as No. 9 Long Beach State, No. 21 Texas A&M, and No. 23 Nebraska, the Bruins will be playing teams that are less comfortable with their lineups and rotations.
Still, UCLA definitely has plenty of room to upgrade if it wants to reach the postseason for the first time since 2000.
“We have to improve on winning the close games. We also have to do a better job winning the midweek games this year. To do this, we need to do all the little things, and I think we will, because these guys have tremendous desire,” Adams said.
And as the season wears on, focusing on the field may grow more and more difficult as the games tick away on the career of the man who has become synonymous with UCLA baseball.
“I don’t expect it to affect us too much,” Averill said. “We’re not completely focused on this being Skip’s last year. At the same time, we would love to send him home to finish his career with a national championship.”
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