Eight former Bruins were on an MLB Opening Day roster Wednesday – half of whom were part of UCLA’s 2019 squad.

Coach John Savage hasn’t reached the College World Series since winning it in 2013, but 2019 was the closest he’s gotten – falling to Michigan 4-2 in game three of the NCAA Super Regionals.

“That 2019 team was really, really special,” Savage said. “Over 50 wins, and I think we were the number one team in the country for over three months.”

And through 24 games in 2025, No. 24 UCLA baseball (19-5, 7-2 Big Ten) has kept pace with the 2019 squad, which set a program record with 52 wins. If UCLA can sweep Purdue (20-4, 3-3) in its three-game weekend series – which begins Friday in West Lafayette, Indiana – it’ll be the Bruins’ best start through 27 games since 2010, when they began the season with a 22-game win streak and fell two wins short of a national title.

Coincidentally, the Bruins’ 19 victories in 2025 also tie their win total from last season, when they won just 19 of 52 contests in their worst season since 2005. A sweep of the Boilermakers would mean the Bruins would win more conference games through just four Big Ten series this season than they did all of 2024 across 30 Pac-12 bouts.

Roch Cholowsky continues to lead the Bruins at the plate. While the sophomore shortstop’s .899 OPS earned him Freshman All-American recognition, his OPS has jumped to 1.209 in 2025 – the seventh-best mark in the Big Ten and the best among the Bruins by 228 points. To add, Cholowsky has jumped from the No. 9 shortstop in the nation per D1Baseball’s preseason rankings to the No. 4 shortstop in its week six rankings, published Thursday.

But fellow sophomore infielder Cameron Kim said Cholowsky, one of UCLA’s three team captains, is more than just a leader on the diamond.

“Roch’s done a really good job – being a team leader, bringing us all together,” Kim said. “All the personalities are super compatible. And so we just try to have fun off the field too. We get together a lot and do a lot of team bonding and stuff. But I really do believe that Roch has done a really good job keeping us all together.”

Cholowsky, who could’ve gone in the first round of the MLB Draft directly out of high school, said on March 18’s episode of the Bruin Insider Show that a trip to the 2023 College World Series – where he watched future No. 1 overall pick Paul Skenes and No. 9 overall pick Chase Dollander pitch – ultimately solidified his interest in a college baseball career.

Like UCLA’s recent conference opponents Maryland and Indiana, Purdue appears to be an offensive powerhouse. In fact, the Hoosiers and Boilermakers are tied for the 16th most runs scored in the nation, while the Terrapins are just behind at 18th.

Of Purdue’s five qualified hitters with an OPS north of 1.000, first baseman Logan Sutter paces the team – and the Big Ten – with a mark of 1.377, slashing .432/.550/.827. Third baseman Brandon Anderson isn’t too far behind Sutter, slashing .380/.541/.684 for the conference’s sixth-best OPS.

To boot, Purdue ace right-hander Carter Doorn’s 2.54 ERA ranks fourth in the Big Ten among qualified pitchers, while Saturday starter left-hander Easton Story’s 3.62 mark slots in at 15th. Meanwhile, the Boilermakers’ closer, right-hander Avery Cook, has yet to allow a run across 14.1 innings, accumulating five saves.

The Bruins’ trip to Indiana will be their first to the Midwest since the 2018 NCAA regionals in Minneapolis. While UCLA had its first conference road series against Maryland from March 7 to March 9, Big Ten travel is still new for many on the team.

However, cross-country travel is far from foreign to sophomore utility Grant Gray, a wide receiver for UCLA football, which traveled 22,048 miles in 2024 – the most of any power conference team.

“Lot of traveling for both sports,” Gray said. “You find out some airport tricks and some airplane tricks, especially sleeping on an airplane. … Little tricks here and there that can help you out.”

Regardless, Savage and his team seem to be embracing the challenges of their new conference.

“It’s a new world, man,” Savage said. “And we’re enjoying it.”