UCLA Baseball Falls 10-4 to UCSB; Looks to Even Series as Teams Head to Santa Barbara
UCLA Baseball Falls 10-4 to UCSB; Looks to Even Series as Teams Head to Santa Barbara
Zach Pettway gave up seven runs in 3-2/3 innings and the Bruins couldn't recover against the Gauchos.
Last night, UCLA opened this weekend’s home-away series against UC Santa Barbara at home, but it didn’t help as the Bruins lost 10-4. This afternoon, the teams will shift location to Caesar Uyesaka Stadium in Santa Barbara for game two of the three-game set starting at 2 pm PT. Today’s game won’t be broadcast but it will be livestreamed on BigWest.org.
Last Time Out
Zach Pettway’s season-long funk continued last night when the UCLA Bruins lost to UC Santa Barbara, 10-4. Pettway gave up nine hits and seven runs, all earned, in just 3-2/3 innings and he picked up his fourth loss of the season.
While Pettway kept the Gauchos off the scoreboard in the first inning, there wasn’t much good from the rest of his outing last night. In the second, Pettway gave up a lead off double. A bunt and a sacrifice fly later and the UCSB had a 1-0 lead.
He gave up a pair of singles to start the third inning and both runners would come around to score, increasing UCSB’s lead to 3-0.
It got even worse in the fourth. Pettway gave up a single to start the inning. After a fielder’s choice got the first out, he gave up a walk and an RBI single. And, if that weren’t enough, an RBI double followed, putting the Gauchos up 5-0 with runners on second and third. Pettway got the second out of the inning on a strikeout, but another single scored two more runs and, finally, John Savage had seen enough and he brought Jake Brooks in from the bullpen. The damage had been done, though, and a game that was close at the start of the inning had gotten out of control.
Finally, with an out in the bottom of the fifth, the Bruins got on the board with…a breadstick. That came on a solo homer by Mikey Perez that cut UCSB’s lead to 7-1.
The Gauchos got a couple of insurance runs in the sixth and, meanwhile, UCLA didn’t score again until the home half of the eighth. Again, they got just a breadstick. This time, they loaded the bases on three singles, but Pat Caulfield, pinch-hitting for Jon Jon Vaughns, hit into a rally-killing double play. Sure, the Bruins scored a run, but it took the Bruins from having the bases loaded with no outs to a runner on third with two outs, which became three when Perez flew out.
Josh Hahn came on to pitch the ninth for the Bruins and gave up a lead-off homer that made it 10-2, UCSB. The Bruins finally pieced together a multi-run inning in the bottom half of the inning, but it was too little, too late and UCLA fell 10-4.
This afternoon, Sean Mullen, arguably the Bruins’ best pitcher this season, takes the hill against UCSB’s Rodney Boone. This looks to be a good matchup. Both starters have won eight games this season and they both possess an under-3.00 ERA. I don’t think the Gauchos can count on taking such a big lead early in this one and the winner will likely be the team which gets to the other one’s bullpen first.
#22 UCLA Baseball (28-16)
Opponent: UCSB Gauchos (31-16)
Game Time: 2:00 pm PT, Saturday, May 15, 2021
Where: Caesar Uyesaka Stadium, Santa Barbara, CA
Live TV/Audio: None
Live Stream: BigWest.org
Live Stats: UCLA StatBroadcast
Probable Pitchers:
UCLA - Sean Mullen, RHP, Jr. (8-1, 2.90 ERA)
UCSB - Rodney Boone, LHP, So. (8-3, 2.47 ERA)
Weekend Notes:
This is your UCLA baseball vs. UCSB game two open thread.
Go Bruins!!
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