By After sweeping UC Irvine this weekend, the Long Beach State Dirtbags found themselves cracking Baseball America’s top 10 at No. 9.
The team will now look to get some payback after its 2-1, 11-inning loss to UCLA April 24.
The Dirtbags will welcome the Bruins (18-18, 10-8) to Blair Field after an impressive weekend, which included solid pitching from their starters. Junior Darren McCaughan threw his second consecutive complete game, which led to him being named Big West Pitcher of the Week.
LBSU (25-14, 10-2 Big West) has used a mixture of good pitching and timely hits to solidify the team while still being able to close out series. Last year, the 49ers struggled to finish teams – and it showed as the team only had three sweeps last year.
This year, the team has completed four to beat last year’s total.
Along with its success, LBSU has now found itself perched as the No. 1 team in the Big West with a two-game lead over Cal Poly in the win column.
Junior AJ Jones (1-1) is the probable starter for the Dirtbags Tuesday.
