The Bruins are heading to Berkeley for a three-game series to kick off conference play.

UCLA baseball (5-6) will face off against California (8-3) in its first Pac-12 conference game and series of 2024. The Bruins are currently on a three-game losing streak, most recently getting shutout in their midweek affair Tuesday against Long Beach State.

Sophomore right-hander Michael Barnett – who started for UCLA against UC Irvine on Sunday – said he thinks the team will be able to bounce back from a rocky start.

“I think we need to improve on just staying as a team and getting behind each other at the plate and on the mound and just keep trusting it,” Barnett said.

With a freshman-heavy team, many players have little experience with collegiate road games. UCLA’s only other road series this season was against No. 5 TCU, where the Bruins got swept.

Coach John Savage said this upcoming series against Cal will provide useful experience to the newer players.

“We are playing a lot of young guys, and they’re getting introduced to college baseball,” Savage said. “This will be a really good opportunity for us to go on the road and see that we can play better.”

Four freshman pitchers have thrown this season for a combined 25.4 innings and a shared ERA of 5.66.

One of these new players is freshman right-hander Luke Rodriguez, who came in for freshman right-hander Landon Stump and tossed three scoreless frames Tuesday.

Rodriguez said going forward, the team needs to get back to playing how it did when it swept Gonzaga to open the season.

“I think we’re trying to go attack and just trying to play loose,” Rodriguez said. “We’ll play like ourselves – like we were in the beginning of the year.”

Despite being under .500 for the first time this season, UCLA’s season is far from over. As the Bruins enter their series against the Golden Bears, they will have the chance to improve from their recent skid, losing six of their last eight.

Savage said preparation is key for the Bruins moving forward and into the series opener Friday.

“It’s about being detailed and making sure that you’re preparing the right way, making sure that you nail the weight room,” Savage said. “We want to be a really good practice team. We want to play how we practice.”