University Southern California Trojans
Baseball Opens Season Wednesday
January 29, 2001 | Baseball
Jan. 29, 2001
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LOS ANGELES--The USC baseball team -- winner of 12 NCAA championships, more than twice as many as any other school -- will open the 2001 season on Wednesday (Jan. 31) against Santa Clara at 3 p.m. at Dedeaux Field. After Wednesday's contest, the Trojans will host Louisville for a two-game series on Saturday (Feb. 3) and Sunday (Feb. 4) with a 1 p.m. start for both games.
Upcoming Games Schedule
Wednesday, Jan. 31 vs. Santa Clara - Dedeaux Field - 3 p.m.
Saturday, Feb. 3 vs. Louisville - Dedeaux Field - 1 p.m.
Sunday, Feb. 4 vs. Louisville - Dedeaux Field - 1 p.m.
* - Pac-10 conference game All rankings based from Baseball America
RANKINGS --
USC is ranked No. 2 in the Baseball America and Collegiate
Baseball preseason poll and No. 3 in the ESPN/USA Today Baseball Weekly
preseason poll. Santa Clara and Louisville are not ranked in any polls.
SANTA CLARA NOTES --
Santa Clara returns all nine position starters as well
as two of its top three pitchers from a year ago. The Broncos were 22-37
last season and finished third in West Coast Conference play. Jack
Headley, last year's WCC Freshman of the Year, led the Broncos with a .380
average with 40 RBI. Head Coach Mike Cummins enters his fourth season at
the helm with a 69-99 record. USC holds a 100-32-1 all-time series
advantage against Santa Clara.
LOUISVILLE NOTES --
Louisville will open its 2001 regular season with the
two-game series against USC, the first of eight games in nine days on a
road trip that will feature stops at Cal State Northridge, Pepperdine and a
four-game series at Hawaii. The Cardinals were 17-37-1 last season and
finished eighth in Conference USA play. Senior outfielder Mike Hook batted
.279 with 29 stolen bases last year while senior second baseman Matt Jarboe
hit .341 in 36 starts for the Cardinals. Lelo Prado is in his sixth season
at Louisville with a record of 126-148-1. This is the first meeting ever
between the two schools.
PAC-10 PRESEASON POLL --
In a preseason poll of the Pac-10 coaches, USC was
picked to win the conference title. In order, the poll went as follows:
USC (six first-place votes), Arizona State (one first-place vote), Stanford
(one first-place vote), Arizona, California, UCLA, Oregon State, Washington
and Washington State.
COACH'S CORNER --
Mike Gillespie, in his 15th season as the Trojans' head
coach, has a 563-313-2 (.642) career record and has led USC to the 1998
national championship, three conference titles (1991-95-96), 12 trips to
the NCAA Regionals in 14 years (reaching the regional finals 10 times), and
trips to the 1995, 1998 and 2000 College World Series (Troy finished as the
nation's runner-up in 1995). He was named the 1998 National Coach of the
Year, the Pac-10 Coach of the Year three times (1991-95-96) and the West
Region Coach of the Year twice (1996-98). The starting leftfielder on USC's
1961 NCAA-winning team, he is one of just two men who have both coached and
played on championship teams. Gillespie also was named by the United
States Olympic Committee as the baseball coach of the year after serving as
the head coach for the 2000 U.S. National Team, which posted a 27-3-1
record and the best winning percentage in club history.
FRESH CUT LAWN --
Dave Lawn joins the coaching staff this season, replacing
John Savage as the team's pitching coach and recruiting coordinator.
Savage took over the head coaching position at UC Irvine, which is
scheduled to begin play next year. Lawn served as an assistant coach the
past 10 years at California. He was instrumental with recruiting classes
that were ranked in the Top 30 nationally from 1991 to 1998, including 1998
National Freshman of the Year Xavier Nady (San Diego Padres). He also
served last summer as manager for the Brewster Whitecaps of the Cape Cod
League. The Whitecaps won the league championship and set the franchise
record with 28 wins during the regular season.
YOUNG (ALL) AMERICANS --
The Trojans have three possible All-America
candidates on the roster this season. Senior pitcher Rik Currier already
has a couple of honors to his credit after earning Collegiate Baseball and
The Sporting News All-America second team honors last season. Currier is a
preseason All-America first teamer this season, according to Collegiate
Baseball. Senior shortstop Seth Davidson was named to the 1999 All-America
third team by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association and was
a Freshman All-America first teamer in 1998. Junior pitcher Mark Prior was
selected this season as a preseason All-America second teamer by Collegiate
Baseball and earned Freshman All-America second team honors while at
Vanderbilt in 1998.
OPERATION: OMAHA --
From 1948 to 1978, USC dominated the world of college
baseball with 11 national championships in 17 appearances at the College
World Series (the 1948 CWS was held in Kalamazoo, Mich., with the CWS
moving to Omaha, Neb., in 1949). After the 1978 season, the Trojans went
through a drought and did not return to Omaha until 1995, when Troy reached
the national championship game. Since 1995, the Trojans have made three
trips to Omaha in the last six years, winning it all in 1998. USC has the
most wins (73) at the CWS and is second for most appearances (20) behind
Texas.
PLAYING FOR THE U.S.A. --
Head Coach Mike Gillespie held similar duties last
year with the United States National Team. USC pitchers Mark Prior and
Anthony Reyes were on the team as well. Gillespie guided Team USA to a
27-3-1 record, posting the highest winning percentage (.900) in club
history. The team reeled off a 21-game unbeaten streak at the end of the
season, including capturing the Haarlem Honkbal Week championship in The
Netherlands. Prior was the winning pitcher in the championship game
against Cuba.
A CURRIER OF VICTORIES --
Senior Rik Currier (Dana Point/Capistrano Valley
HS) is coming off his best season as a Trojan pitcher, which helped him to
start the 2001 season on the Collegiate Baseball Preseason All-America
first team. Last season, Currier earned Pac-10 Conference Co-Pitcher of
the Year, along with Stanford's Justin Wayne, and All-America second team
honors by Collegiate Baseball and The Sporting News. He was USC's No. 2
pitcher in the rotation for most of the 2000 season, but moved up to the
No. 1 spot on April 7 at UCLA when Mark Prior could not pitch due to flu
symptoms (Currier remained the Friday pitcher for the rest of the season).
He responded by pitching his second complete game of the season in the
Trojans' 5-1 win over the Bruins. Currier allowed one run on five hits and
struck out a season-high 12 batters while only walking two. For the
season, Currier was 15-3 with a 3.31 ERA. In 125 innings of work, Currier
allowed 116 hits, walked 56 and struck out 141 batters. He won 10 of his
last 11 starts, including wins at No. 1 Georgia Tech in the NCAA Super
Regional and against Florida State in the Trojans' opener at the College
World Series.
"K"LIMBING UP THE CHARTS --
Rik Currier, with 141 strikeouts last year, is
in third place on USC's all-time career list with 329 strikeouts. He
surpassed Randy Flores and Randy Powers on the list with seven strikeouts
against Virginia Tech on May 26, 2000, at the NCAA First-Round Regional at
Fullerton, Calif.
Career Strikeouts
1. Seth Etherton, 1995-98 420*
2. Brent Strom, 1968-70 363
3. Rik Currier, 1998-00 329
4. Randy Flores, 1994-97 316
5. Randy Powers, 1987-90 312 *NCAA and Pac-10 record
DEALING WITH DAVIDSON --
Senior Seth Davidson from San Diego (USD HS)
returns to give the Trojans one of the top defensive shortstops in the
nation. Along with his prowess on the basepaths (see below), Davidson is
one of two current Trojans (Rik Currier being the other one) who were part
of USC's 1998 national championship team. Last year, Davidson went
10-for-14 (.714) with a double, home run and six RBI, earning him Most
Outstanding Player honors at the NCAA First-Round Regional at Fullerton,
Calif. Davidson led the team with 26 stolen bases. He had a 13-game
hitting streak snapped on May 19, where he batted .442 with eight stolen
bases. He hit safely in 23 of his last 24 games of the season. On May 21
at Washington, he pushed an RBI bunt single to second base to cap the
Trojans' three-run rally in the top of the ninth for a 4-3 win.
TO CATCH A THIEF --
Seth Davidson has been climbing in the school's career
list for most stolen bases. Davidson is fourth with 52 career steals and
needs just one to tie Damon Buford (1988-90) for third place. The school
record is 57, held by Mark Smith (1989-91). Last year, he tied the school
record with 26 stolen bases in a season, first set by Aaron Boone (1994).
Career Stolen Bases
1. Mark Smith, 1989-91 57
2. John Jackson, 1987-90 54
3. Damon Buford, 1988-90 53
4. Seth Davidson, 1998-2000 52
5. John Wells, 1976-79 50
PRIOR NOTICE --
Junior pitcher Mark Prior (Bonita/USD HS/Vanderbilt) will
get a lot of attention in 2001 as many view him as a possible top five pick
in this year's major league draft. The 6-5, 220-pound right-handed pitcher
was named to the Collegiate Baseball Preseason All-America second team
after he registered a 10-7 record with a 3.56 ERA last year. In 136 1/3
innings, he allowed 126 hits, struck out 150 batters (fourth-most in school
history) and walked only 46 batters. His best performance came on June 3,
2000, when he pitched eight innings and allowed only one run on six hits at
No. 1 Georgia Tech at the NCAA Super Regional. With the 6-3 win, the
Trojans qualified for the College World Series. He also hit four home runs
in 33 at-bats.
LUNAR ECLIPSE --
Sophomore second baseman Anthony Lunetta
(Riverside/Arlington HS) will look to build on last year's stellar freshman
campaign. He was third on the team with a .343 batting average
(80-for-233) and was named Pac-10 Freshman/Newcomer of the Year. He led
the team with 22 doubles. On June 2 at the NCAA Super Regional at No. 1
Georgia Tech, Lunetta hit two home runs in the Trojans' 7-2 win and hit two
home runs in a 2-for-4 day with five RBI on April 1 at Arizona. On March
18 at Stanford, Lunetta hit three doubles in a 3-for-6 performance with
four RBI in the Trojans' 11-7 win. He also belted two home runs in the
Trojans 6-5 win over UC Santa Barbara on March 7 and went 4-for-5 in game
two of a doubleheader on March 14 at San Diego. In his collegiate debut on
Jan. 29 at Pepperdine, he went 5-for-5 at the plate.
A REY(ES) OF HOPE --
Sophomore Anthony Reyes (Whittier/California HS) used
last year as a transition period as the Trojans' No. 3 starter and received
valuable experience behind teammates Rik Currier and Mark Prior. After a
summer with the USA National Team, Reyes is ready to establish himself as a
top future prospect. In his freshman season with Troy, Reyes went 6-6 with
a 4.02 ERA. In 96 and 1/3 innings, he allowed 98 hits, struck out 86 and
walked 45 as opponents hit .268 against him. His best performance came on
June 14 at the College World Series against Florida State when he struck
out a season-high 10 batters in 7 and 1/3 innings, allowing only two runs
on three hits.
READY AND ABEL --
Senior Abel Montanez (Montebello/Bishop Amat HS), who was
a team manager in 1998, did not make a start last year until April 25 at UC
Santa Barbara and then did not leave the starting lineup for the remainder
of the season. Montanez went 7-for-10 (.700), including a pivotal home run
(the first of his career) on May 28 vs. Cal State Fullerton in the
three-game NCAA First-Round Regional to earn a spot on the All-Tournament
team.
THE GREAT GARIBALDI --
Junior Rob Garibaldi (Petaluma/Santa Rosa College)
was steady for the Trojans last year at the plate and in the field as the
starting right fielder. Garibaldi finished fourth on the team with a .329
batting average and had eight home runs and 44 RBI. He made only three
errors for a .977 fielding percentage. He had a season-high 10-game
hitting streak snapped on June 2 at Georgia Tech.
PERSELL POST-SEASON POWER --
Senior Josh Persell (Sherman Oaks/Montclair
Prep) was a power source during last year's post-season run for the
Trojans. In eight post-season games, Persell was 11-for-28 with four home
runs (all solo home runs) and four RBI. He hit two solo home runs on June
2 at No. 1 Georgia Tech. He hit safely in 15 of his last 16 games. For
the season, Persell was second on the team with a .351 batting average
(67-for-191) with nine home runs and 40 RBI.
DEDEAUX FIELD --
This season marks the 27th year of play at Dedeaux Field,
where USC has an all-time record of 570-255-1 (.691). When USC hosted San
Diego State on March 30, 1999, it was 25 years to the day from when the
first game was played at Dedeaux Field. It was a special opening day in
1974, as in the first game of a doubleheader, Russ McQueen threw a
no-hitter against California. Dedeaux Field features dimensions of 335
feet down the right and left field lines, 365 in the right field power
alleys and 375 to the left field power alleys, and 395 to straightaway
center. The surface is a natural grass field and seating is around 1,800.
In 1994, Dedeaux Field received a state-of-the-art scoreboard/message
center, which was donated by the Port Family in memory of Al Port, whose
two sons, Randy (1967-69) and Jeff (70-72), both played baseball at USC,
and whose grandson, Ryan, also was a part of the program. Prior to the
1997 season, the first base pavilion was turned into modern office
facilities for the baseball coaching staff. The foyer of the office now
houses the newly created Al Port Trojan Baseball Hall of Fame. Prior to
the 2000 season, the most recent project saw the expansion of the press
box. Construction for the enlargement and improvement of the Hall of Fame
room, coaches' office, locker rooms and the umpires' room will begin after
the 2001 season. New additions will include an expanded players' team
room, another batting cage, more restrooms and bleacher seating along the
first-base side of the stadium, with completion of the project to be
completed prior to the 2002 season.
2000 SEASON RECAP --
After a 28-18 start, the Trojans used a 16-game winning
streak to propel themselves to a 20th appearance at the College World
Series. Despite going 1-2 at the CWS, USC shocked the college baseball
world by sweeping No. 1 Georgia Tech in Atlanta in the NCAA Super Regional
to earn its ticket to Omaha. The Trojans finished the season with a 44-20
record and a fourth-place finish in Pac-10 Conference play with a 16-8
record, one game behind tri-champions Arizona State, Stanford and UCLA.
Pitcher Rik Currier earned Collegiate Baseball and The Sporting News second
team All-America honors and was also named Pac-10 Conference Co-Pitcher of
the Year. Third baseman Justin Gemoll earned Collegiate Baseball third
team All-America honors while second baseman Anthony Lunetta was named
Pac-10 Conference Freshman/Newcomer of the Year.
TEAM OF THE 20TH CENTURY --
No other university can match the collegiate
baseball tradition of USC, and it showed when Baseball America awarded the
Trojans the title of ?Greatest Program of the 20th Century? in its Feb. 1,
1999 issue. Troy has an unprecedented 12 NCAA championships (no other
school has more than five), 36 conference titles and 20 College World
Series appearances (second most in the nation). Legendary former coach Rod
Dedeaux was named ?Coach of the Century? by both Collegiate Baseball and
Baseball America. Trojan players have been named All-American first
teamers 79 times, and 84 players have gone on to play in the majors,
including such stars as Tom Seaver, Fred Lynn, Ron Fairly, Randy Johnson,
Mark McGwire, Jeff Cirillo and Bret Boone.
