College Baseball / Bob Cuomo : Nichols, Shibata Also Pitching In

Mike Harkey of Cal State Fullerton, Alex Sanchez of UCLA, Jack McDowell of Stanford and Gilbert Heredia of Arizona are generally regarded as the best college pitchers on the West Coast. And, as expected, they have pitched brilliantly at times this season.

But a couple of other pitchers--Brian Nichols of USC and Keith Shibata of UCLA--have been even more effective. Curiously, these guys, both of whom are used out of the bullpen, weren’t exactly being counted on to spell relief.

In fact, Nichols also is the Trojans’ starting catcher. He became a pitcher out of necessity. Coach Mike Gillespie simply didn’t have anybody else to fill the role of bullpen stopper.

Nichols, a junior who hadn’t pitched since his senior year in high school, worked at becoming a college reliever during fall practice. He has a strong arm, which one would expect from a catcher, and he throws strikes.

USC was 16-6 overall and in first place in the Pacific 10 Southern Division with a 5-1 record after winning two of three games against California in Berkeley over the weekend.

Nichols has had a hand in 13 of the wins, including all 5 in conference play. He’s 2-0 and has 11 saves, tops in the nation. At this rate, he has a chance to break the NCAA record of 22 set by Scott Wright of Fullerton in 1984.

Nichols made his 14th relief appearance Sunday against Cal. He worked 2 innings and yielded three hits, but no runs, and got the victory when USC scored three times in the eighth for a 7-4 win. It was his longest outing, and it was the first time he has allowed a hit since his first game.

In 15 innings, Nichols has struck out 16, walked 8, and allowed just 4 hits. He has yet to give up a run, earned or unearned.

UCLA’s Shibata, a senior with only a year of varsity experience--he didn’t compete in 1983, played for the junior varsity in 1984 and redshirted in 1985--was ticketed for long and middle relief by Coach Gary Adams.

But the left-hander is one of the reasons the Bruins are second in the Pac-10 Southern Division with a 6-3 record and were 14-8-1 overall after winning two of three games against Arizona State in Tempe last weekend.

Shibata, used primarily in middle and long relief last season--he also started four games--made 15 appearances and pitched 41 innings, during which he yielded 53 hits, 21 walks and struck out 35. He had a 4-1 record, no saves, and an earned-run average of 7.02.

He entered Saturday’s game against Arizona State with none out in the seventh inning and blanked the Sun Devils on one hit while striking out five to preserve UCLA’s 3-2 victory and earn his first save.

In all, Shibata, whose best pitch is a curveball, has made seven appearances this season. In 16 innings, he has allowed just 6 runs--4 earned--15 hits, only 1 walk, and has struck out 22. He doesn’t have a decision yet, but his ERA is 2.22.

College Baseball Notes Pepperdine is leading the West Coast Athletic Conference with a 5-1 record after sweeping a three-game series from defending champion Loyola Marymount last weekend. As has usually been the case with the Waves, who were 16-5-2 overall after Sunday’s 3-2 nonconference victory over Pacific, strong pitching is a major reason for their success. Because of injuries, two key members of the staff haven’t contributed much. Senior right-hander Tony Lewis, a 10-game winner last year, underwent surgery Feb. 22 to repair multiple cheekbone fractures suffered when he was hit by a line drive against USC. He could return in early April. Junior right-hander Patrick Dubar, a seven-game winner last season, still is recovering from the hernia operation he had in January. They’ve appeared in a total of five games and have a combined 1-1 record. Three freshman right-handers have helped carry the load. Craig Stiveson, Scott Singelyn and Randy Hacker have a combined 7-1 record. . . . Pepperdine also has been playing long ball this season. In their first 22 games, the Waves have 31 home runs, hit by 11 different players. In 61 games last year, they hit just 17. . . . UCLA second baseman Torey Lovullo, who leads the Pacific 10 in homers, hit his 11th Sunday against Arizona State. He has 38 for his career, which equals the school record set by Jim Auten in 1976-79. Lovullo also leads the Pac-10 in RBIs with 32.