With improved hitting from last year, UCLA sweeps Utah in first away series of the season
Junior right fielder Jeff Gelalich leads UCLA with a .415 batting average and increased his home run count to six on the season against Utah.
Baseball
UCLA 5
Utah 1
By Daily Bruin Staff
April 1, 2012 11:43 p.m.
SALT LAKE CITY “”mdash; The UCLA baseball team got off to a hot start this season thanks to improved hitting from a season ago, but the Bruins won their first two conference series within the friendly confines of Jackie Robinson Stadium.
UCLA left no doubt that it could keep the bats going on the road in conference play when it posted a 16-0 win over Utah (7-19, 3-6 Pac-12) at Spring Mobile Ballpark in Salt Lake City on Friday. The Bruins went on to sweep the series, winning 9-6 on Saturday and 5-1 on Sunday.
Despite having two of the best pitchers in program history a year ago in No. 1 MLB overall draft pick Gerrit Cole and No. 3 overall pick Trevor Bauer, a combination of different bats as mandated by the NCAA and an inability to string hits together plagued the Bruins at the plate. UCLA hit just .263 last season with only two players hitting over .300.
This season, the No. 6 Bruins (20-5, 7-2) are hitting .312 as a team while six players are above the .300 mark, baseball’s benchmark for offensive proficiency.
“There’s a big difference from last year,” junior center fielder Beau Amaral said. “(First-year hitting coach Rex Peters) has been a big part of that. We feel really relaxed out here. We’re just confident. Things are going good. I think last year kind of lit a fire underneath us to get back out here and compete. We’re ready to go this year.”
More impressive perhaps than the hits picking up is the way UCLA has been able to scratch across runs. After hitting well as freshmen en route to the College World Series, last year was a grind at the plate for UCLA’s current junior class. This year, there are offensive success stories all over the roster.
For example, junior catcher Tyler Heineman is making the most of his plate appearances. Heineman reached base safely in each of his 10 at-bats in the latter two games of the series. He’s hitting .516 in Pac-12 play.
Junior right fielder Jeff Gelalich has reached base safely in all 25 of UCLA’s games this season. He’s hitting .415 with six home runs and other teams have started to notice. He was intentionally walked during his second plate appearance in Friday’s win because Utah was fearful he would put one over the fence; he did just that in his fourth at-bat of the game.
Gelalich said the switch is merely a reminder of the fickle nature of baseball.
“I don’t look at it as a big transformation,” Gelalich said. “Last year was a humbling experience. I remember the times when it was tough and it kind of goes to show that anything can happen in baseball.”
Amaral was named the Pac-12 player of the week last month after hitting .700 with a home run and two doubles in two wins over Washington State.
UCLA’s players admit they may have been putting too much pressure on themselves last season, but Peters has helped to change the mindset as they vie to get back to Omaha, Neb. for the College World Series.
“I don’t want to say that it’s a complete flip over,” said coach John Savage, careful not to detract from his former colleague and hitting coach Rick Vanderhook. “But with guys maturing and getting stronger, coach Peters has done quite a job.”
For the fourth straight week, the Bruins will not play a midweek game. UCLA will host No. 23 Oregon for a three-game series this weekend beginning on Thursday at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
