If the Bruins have one thing on their side, it’s history – and the fact that it tends to repeat itself.

The 2011 Bruins, headlined by Gerrit Cole and Trevor Bauer, did not make it to Omaha, let alone win the Men’s College World Series.

They were eliminated in the Los Angeles Regional final at Jackie Robinson Stadium.

Instead, UCLA’s one national title came in 2013, headlined by the likes of Adam Plutko, David Berg, James Kaprielian, Zack Weiss and Kevin Kramer – all far less likely to turn heads than the pair of 2011 MLB Draft first-round picks.

However, UCLA also has a laundry list of things going against it – namely, the unfortunate costs of having a No. 1 recruiting class live up to the hype. UCLA had 10 players selected in July’s draft, nine of which were a part of the program’s 2023 crop.

Daily Bruin sports senior staffer Kai Dizon projects what the 2027 Bruins will look like.

Outgoing pitchers:

Friday night starter Logan Reddemann
Saturday starter Michael Barnett
Sunday starter Landon Stump
Left-handed relievers Ian May and Chris Grothues
Right-handed relievers Cal Randall, Justin Lee and Jack O’Connor

Right-hander Finn McIlroy was a senior last season but hasn’t pitched since 2024 because of injury.

Incoming pitchers:
Freshman right-hander Taden Krogsgaard
Freshman right-hander Colten Rainer
Freshman left-hander Nico Bavaro
Freshman right-hander Seddrick Henderson
Freshman right-hander Garrett Jacobs
Freshman left-hander Robert Zimmerman

Dizon’s projected weekend rotation:
Friday night starter: Junior right-hander Wylan Moss
Saturday starter: Junior right-hander Easton Hawk
Sunday starter: Sophomore right-hander Angel Cervantes
Closer: Senior right-hander Jake Swenson

It is true that Logan Reddemann didn’t appear for the Bruins after April 17, and Landon Stump was moved to the bullpen by season’s end.

Regardless, needing to replace the entirety of the 2026 opening weekend rotation would be a tall task for any program.

Luckily for coach John Savage and company, pitching appears to be the Bruins’ greatest strength.

Junior right-hander Wylan Moss seems favored to be the Friday night starter, given he’s held the fort down the past two years with Cody Delvecchio’s academic ineligibility and Reddemann’s arm fatigue.

Moss has a 2.70 ERA across 15 starts – 10 of which were weekend starts – and 21 relief appearances across his two years in Westwood.

Right-hander Angel Cervantes began the season as a midweek tandem starter along with sophomore right-hander Zach Strickland before eventually earning the Sunday starting job by season’s end – taking the bump in the Big Ten tournament championship and the NCAA regionals.

Though it took the former No. 50 overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft far longer than many assumed to make the weekend rotation, Savage’s history suggests he’ll give the sophomore a fair shot at keeping his spot – after all, former Bruin Stump held the role for three seasons before departing Westwood with a 5.23 ERA.

If Max Rajcic, Alonzo Tredwell, Luke Jewett and Delvecchio are any indication, junior right-hander Easton Hawk is the next high-leverage bullpen arm to get a promotion to the weekend rotation.

Hawk has been the Bruins’ panic button for the past two seasons, notching 22 saves in his collegiate career despite not earning his first until April 27, 2025. But the flamethrower’s arm may be more valuable starting games than closing them in 2027.

Senior Jake Swenson made just 18 appearances last season, totaling 12.1 innings and a less-than-ideal 5.11 ERA, but Savage chalked up much of Swenson’s struggles to an offseason injury that set the right-hander back in his development.

Swenson walked eight, plunked two and threw four wild pitches against the 54 batters he faced as a junior – but he also struck out 13.

The 6-foot-4, lanky right-hander – equipped with gold chains galore and as much emotion as anyone on the mound – could be lethal coming out of the bullpen if he can improve his control.

Of course, improving accuracy may be pitching’s toughest hill to climb.

Outgoing position players:
Catcher Cashel Dugger
First baseman Mulivai Levu
Third baseman Roman Martin
Shortstop Roch Cholowsky
Infielder David Mysza
Left fielder Dean West
Center fielder Will Gasparino
Right fielder Payton Brennan

Outfielder Jarrod Hocking played his senior season this spring but may have an additional year of eligibility as a class of 2022 recruit.

Incoming position players:
Redshirt senior outfielder Isaac Wachsmann
Junior infielder Taylor Kirk
Junior outfielder Brandon Leon
Freshman shortstop CJ Weinstein
Freshman outfielder Jaden Jackson
Freshman outfielder Hamilton Friedberg
Freshman catcher Christopher Cardenas
Freshman shortstop Tate Hammond

Dizon’s projected lineup:
1. Sophomore left fielder Trey Gudoy
2. Sophomore shortstop Aiden Aguayo
3. Sophomore first baseman Dominic Cadiz
4. Sophomore third baseman Maverek Russell
5. Right fielder Isaac Wachsmann
6. Senior catcher Blake Balsz
7. Second baseman Taylor Kirk
8. Designated hitter Brandon Leon
9. Senior center fielder Phoenix Call

One of the few challenges harder than replacing an entire weekend rotation has to be replacing an entire starting lineup – especially when that lineup is losing the No. 1 overall selection in the MLB Draft, shortstop Roch Cholowsky.

Sophomores outfielder Trey Gudoy and infielders Aiden Aguayo and Dominic Cadiz all received playing time their freshman year, but they were limited to just 263 at-bats across the trio.

Seniors catcher Blake Balsz and utility Phoenix Call are both program mainstays, but the former missed all of 2026 because of injury, and the latter slashed .217/.387/.321 as a junior.

The Bruins will bring in three transfers, but none come from the Power Four level – with redshirt senior outfielder Isaac Wachsmann arriving from Creighton, junior second baseman Taylor Kirk from Fordham and junior outfielder Brandon Leon from the College of the Desert.

The good news is that the Bruins didn’t have any members of their 2026 recruiting class scooped up by MLB teams in July’s MLB draft, according to Perfect Game. The bad news, perhaps, is that UCLA’s incoming class isn’t quite as impressive as those of past years. Shortstop CJ Weinstein is the crop’s highest-ranked recruit, per Perfect Game, at No. 132 in his class.

And unless Savage plans on playing a freshman at shortstop, the Bruins will be starting a shortstop who did not play the position last season.

The coach attributed much of the team’s not-so-distant 2024 difficulties to a lack of experience, culminating in a 19-33 campaign. By the looks of it, the Bruin offense may be doomed to endure similar struggles.

However, Savage has also maintained that excelling in pitching and defense are typically the most important aspects of any successful ballclub – it was certainly true for the 2013 team, which became the first to win the MCWS without hitting a home run in Omaha since 1966.

If UCLA wants to avoid a collapse in 2027, it will need it to be true once again.