Weather clouds UCI baseball opener
The UC Irvine baseball season is scheduled to open Friday night at Anteater Ballpark against Minnesota. But all indications are that rain will wash away Friday’s game and also threaten Saturday’s scheduled 2 p.m. contest.
UCI Coach Mike Gillespie, entering his 10th season, pointed out the irony of a complete lack of rain forecasted for the weekend in Minneapolis.
The Golden Gophers last opened the season at home in 2001 and Gillespie said there was some talk, never realized, about moving the opening series to the Land of 10,000 Lakes.
Gillespie said that should Friday’s game be rained out, a doubleheader would be scheduled for Saturday. Though no rain is expected Sunday, Minnesota is scheduled to fly home following the originally scheduled 11 a.m. game, leaving little chance to squeeze in a second game, should weather prevent a Saturday doubleheader.
Daunting schedule
Minnesota, the 2016 Big Ten champion, is the first of several strong nonconference opponents that make up what Gillespie calls the toughest schedule in his UCI tenure.
TCU, ranked No. 1 in several preseason polls, visits Irvine for a three-game series March 10-12.
Additional opponents Seattle and San Diego have been picked to win their respective conferences, while Houston (at UCI Feb. 24-26) was picked to finish second.
UCI also visits Oregon for a three-game set April 7-9.
The Anteaters, who finished seventh in the Big West Conference last season and were picked to finish fifth in this season’s preseason coaches’ poll, open conference play with the first of a three-game home series against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on March 31.
Bishop tops rotation
Opening the season, the UCI’s weekend rotation includes junior left-hander Cameron Bishop (5-5 with a 4.61 earned-run average last season), Andre Pallante, a freshman out of San Clemente High, and Louis Raymond, a junior transfer from Cuesta Community College.
“[Pallante, a 6-0, 195-pound right-hander], has probably the best arm, in terms of velocity, that I’ve ever had anywhere,” said Gillespie, who coached 20 seasons at USC before coming to UCI. “He’ll throw 95 mph and he might throw 97, though he’ll pitch at 92. His goal in life is to throw it as hard as he can throw it.”
Pallante was 6-3 with one save and a 1.02 ERA last season at San Clemente. He struck out 100, walked 20 and allowed 41 hits in 75 1/3 innings.
Raymond, a Dana Hills High product who began his collegiate career at San Francisco, was 10-2 with a 1.57 ERA last season at Cuesta. He struck out 85 and walked 14, while allowing 73 hits in 103 innings.
Hiura worship
UCI junior Keston Hiura, an outfielder hampered by an elbow injury last season that continues to relegate him to designated hitter, was named to five preseason All-American teams and is on the Golden Spikes Award preseason watch list.
In two seasons, Hiura, the Big West Freshman Field Player of the Year in 2015, has reached base in 96 of his 103 games, with 14 home runs, 30 doubles and 94 runs batted in. He hit three home runs and drove in six runs competing for the USA Baseball national collegiate team in a series of international exhibition games over the summer.
Duarte returns
UCI also welcomes back senior shortstop Mikey Duarte, who missed last season with a torn elbow ligament after leading the team in hitting (.341 with a team-best 77 hits) and earning first-team All-Big West laurels in 2015.
Axelrod on world stage
A former Anteater, pitcher Dylan Axelrod, will become the first UCI player to play in the World Baseball Classic tournament.
Axelrod, a member of the 2007 College World Series team who spent parts of five seasons in the major leagues with the Chicago White Sox and Cincinnati Reds (2011-2015), will represent Israel, which opens against Korea Republic on March 6 in Seoul.
OCC futility continues
Orange Coast College concluded its men’s basketball season on Tuesday, finishing 8-19, 1-11 in the Orange Empire Conference.
It was the 10th straight losing season for the Pirates under Coach Steve Spencer, who has guided OCC to one playoff victory in his 16 seasons.
Since back-to-back appearances in the Southern California Regionals in 2006 and 2007, when the Pirates were 22-11 and 17-15, respectively, OCC is 89-186 (a .324 winning percentage). It is 33-87 the last 10 seasons in conference play (.275), with a top mark of 6-6 in 2014-15.
Twitter: @BarryFaulkner5
