Strong Side: Coach John Savage is the driving force behind baseball’s rising success
UCLA baseball coach John Savage, now in his eighth year at UCLA, will have taken the Bruins to the postseason in six of the last seven seasons. Savage’s Bruins are still in the race to win the Pac-12 tournament.
By Daily Bruin Staff
May 23, 2012 1:42 a.m.
Don’t look now, but the UCLA baseball team is winning again.
Or do, it doesn’t matter, they’ll keep winning games.
The Bruins are well on their way to another 40-win season as they prepare to host the USC Trojans this weekend, and they’ve done it very quietly. You don’t hear much about the baseball team.
Their stadium isn’t on campus. They’re not flashy. They don’t have many superstars or troublemakers. They just win.
UCLA is ranked No. 9 in the nation and in a three-way tie for third place in the Pac-12 conference race heading into the final weekend of conference play, just two games behind conference leader Oregon.
Its RPI, the more important ranking in the eyes of the NCAA selection committee, is No. 3. The Bruins have played a grueling Pac-12 schedule, and yet they find themselves in line to host an NCAA regional for the third straight year. They could even host a super regional if they’re able to sneak up and steal a top-eight national seed when selections are announced Monday.
This team has found the right formula, but it’s nothing new. These guys are certainly more experienced than the 2010 miracle of a team that made it all the way to the College World Series final because these juniors were freshmen during that improbable run.
John Savage, now in his eighth year as coach of the Bruins, is the common denominator. Including this year, Savage will have taken UCLA to the postseason in six of the last seven seasons, and he’s developed a winner’s mentality around the program in the process. He recruits winners, develops them and sends them to the pros.
For proof, look no further than San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford, who has turned into an everyday MLB starter and was schooled in Savage’s program as recently as 2008. Trevor Bauer, the No. 3 overall pick in last year’s MLB draft, is already playing at the Triple-A level for the Arizona Diamondbacks, and No. 1 pick Gerrit Cole has a winning record and an earned run average under three for Pittsburgh’s Class A-Advanced team.
This brings Savage to the next step: sustaining success. Not that he looks to be slowing down anytime soon, but if he can point to former players of his making noise in The Show, he’ll be in Westwood for a long time.
The job Savage is doing with his current team could be his most impressive effort yet. He lost Cole and Bauer and turned to a starting rotation full of sophomores to support an offense that was anemic in 2011. Whether it was bringing in new hitting coach Rex Peters from UC Davis or just another year of maturation, the Bruins know how to hit. Six players have basically maintained a batting average more than .300 over the course of the season.
Getting back to Omaha, Neb. for just the fourth time in the program’s history will hinge largely on earning one of those eight seeds that guarantee hosting a super regional. UCLA is gunning with Stanford and Arizona to gain the approval of the selection committee.
The Bruins’ starting pitching has scuffled at times, but the steady bullpen has been a surprise and usually saves the day. A lot has to go right, especially at the plate, for a team to clear the first two rounds of NCAA competition, but Savage’s team is talented enough to do it. Last year, the Bruins didn’t get out of the regional they were hosting.
“This year, it just seems like we got it going,” Savage said. “We know we’ve had good offensive players. They’re a year older, they’re stronger. We’re a different offensive team from last year. There’s no question about it.”
UCLA might not win a game in Omaha, it may not even get to Omaha, but it doesn’t much matter. Savage will likely lose six out of eight position players to the draft, but that doesn’t matter either. He has turned UCLA baseball into a winner.
Savage will continue to bring in talented, moldable players ““ he’s got two stellar pitchers coming from Harvard-Westlake High School if he can keep them from the draft ““ and he’ll continue to produce results. He’ll methodically lead his teams through the throes of a Pac-12 baseball schedule. He’ll just keep winning.
Plan on attending some postseason games at Jackie Robinson Stadium? Email Strong at [email protected].
