Titans Appear Headed Toward College World Series Again

Cal State Fullerton, which in this decade has made four trips to the College World Series in six years, hasn’t reached Omaha in the last two years.

The Titans are 36-12 after a three-game sweep of Long Beach State last weekend. That’s only three fewer victories at the same stage of the season than the 1995 team, which won the national championship.

Those Titans, however, nearly defy comparison.

That team, led by Mark Kotsay and Ted Silva, was 39-9 after 48 games, won its final seven regular-season games and didn’t lose again in the playoffs. The Titans finished with an 18-game winning streak and 57-9 record after beating USC in the College World Series final.

But Fullerton’s recent run--16 victories in its last 17 games--indicates this team could be regarded as a leading contender to reach Omaha, barring a collapse in the final seven games of the regular season and the Big West tournament.

The Titans are ranked 10th by Collegiate Baseball and 14th by Baseball America this week. A strong finish would put them in consideration for a No. 1 seeding in one of the eight regionals.

“I think we’re putting it all together at the right time of the year,” Titan outfielder Aaron Rowand said.

Rowand definitely has.

In four games last week, including Fullerton’s victory over UCLA, Rowand had eight hits in 14 at-bats (.571). Five of those were for extra bases--four doubles and his 12th home run of the season. He was six for 12 and drove in five runs in three games against Long Beach.

During Fullerton’s 10-game winning streak, Rowand is 19 of 38 (.500) with 16 RBIs.

“I’m being a lot more patient now at the plate,” Rowand said. “You don’t see me swinging at balls in the dirt now. For the most part, I’m getting good at-bats and hitting the ball in the air a lot.”

Titan Coach George Horton says he thinks the added patience has been the difference for Rowand. “There were times when he’d get in his own way with his pitch selection,” Horton said. “He’s a much more disciplined hitter now, and that’s one of the reasons he has been more effective.”

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Horton has so many outfielders hitting well that he has difficulty deciding on a lineup.

“But, believe me, that’s a nice problem to have,” he said.

Reed Johnson went through a slump recently, but then hit .474 last week to raise his average to .324. Even when Johnson was having problems, Horton said he was reluctant to leave him on the bench because of his speed and his strong defense in center field.

Pete Fukuhara is 14 of 26 (.538) and Steve Chatham 11 for 25 (.440) in the last 10 games, and Chatham had three RBIs in eight at-bats against the 49ers. Chris Beck, another outfielder, is fourth on the team in hitting at .356, but has gotten only 14 at-bats in the last 10 games, mostly as a pinch-hitter.

That’s five solid outfielders.

Greg Jacobs also has been so strong in the designated hitter spot lately that Horton can ill afford to have him on the bench--even on days he’s pitching.

But Jacobs says he likes being able to do both. “That way if I make a bad pitch, I can make up for it with my bat,” he said. “I can get some payback that way.”

Jacobs was nine for 15 (.600) last week with five RBIs, and is 19 of 34 (.559) with 13 RBIs in the last 10 games.

Jacobs’ ability to take over as a starting pitcher after Jon Smith developed arm trouble has been another key factor for the Titans. There’s a good chance Smith will be back pitching before the regular season ends. “His last workout was a good one,” pitching coach Dave Serrano said.

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Pitchers Benny Flores (10-0, 2.94 earned-run average) and Erasmo Ramirez (7-5, 3.68), the transfers from Cal State Northridge, have been a steadying influence all season.

Flores became only the fourth Titan to go 10-0 in school history with his victory Friday against the 49ers. Tim Dixon finished 13-0 in 1995. Matt Wagner also went 10-0 in 1994 before finishing 12-1. Larry Navilhon went 14-0 in 1979 before taking his first loss in the College World Series.

Another plus for the pitching staff is the apparent return to top form of closer Adam Johnson.

After two appearances in late March when he gave up 11 runs--seven of them earned--in four innings, Johnson hasn’t given up a run in his last five appearances over 6 2/3 innings. He shut down Long Beach in the ninth inning Saturday and Sunday.

“The pitching last weekend was as good as we possibly could have expected,” Horton said.

And pitching is the key element for any team hoping to reach Omaha.

Titan Notes

The softball team (27-26) faces an uphill battle to gain an NCAA tournament at-large berth. Fullerton is ranked seventh in its region this week. “We’re hoping to get four teams in the tournament from our region, but five would be a longshot,” Coach Judi Garman said. . . . The track and field team had some good efforts in last weekend’s Cal-Nevada meet in Fresno. Gary Van Sluis set a school record of 16 feet 3 1/2 inches in the pole vault. TraShawn Banford had a personal best of 39-0 1/4 in the women’s triple jump, though it was wind-aided. “She had three good jumps and we’re still checking to see if one didn’t have enough wind to qualify for a school record,” Coach John Elders said. The 1,600-meter relay team of Quincy Sims, Omar Anderson, Gary Charles and Phil Sitner had a season-best time of 3 minutes 21.34 seconds.

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Coming Attractions

Key events this week for Cal State Fullerton:

* Baseball at Loyola Marymount today 2:30 p.m., and against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on Friday 7 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday 1 p.m. at Titan Field. The Titans are 36-12, 20-4 in the Big West Conference.

* Men’s and women’s track and field, at Steve Scott Invitational, UC Irvine; field events begin at 8:30 a.m., running events at 10.

* Softball against UC Santa Barbara on Saturday 4 p.m. and against Cal Poly San Luis Obispo on Sunday 1 p.m., Titan softball complex.