UCLA Baseball Sweeps Dodger Stadium Classic

Just as I boldly predicted they would in the face of all you nay-sayers, UCLA Baseball won three impressive games this weekend in the Dodger Stadium Classic.

Honestly, if you saw this coming, you’re either a blind homer or a baseball savant.

First came #24 Mississippi State on Friday night, and Griffin Canning announced his arrival as UCLA’s ace with a 8 2/3 inning, 12 strikeout, five hit, one run outing. Tucker Forbes came in to get the last two outs of the game, but he hit the only two batters he faced, instead, loading the bases. Freshman closer Brian Gadsby came in to shut things down and secure the Bruins’ biggest win of the season thus far.

Griffin Canning shows he's next in line of stud @UCLABaseball righthanders. https://t.co/ZmC03qF7u8 pic.twitter.com/jxFXXXJlbs
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) March 5, 2016

On Saturday, the Bruin bats came up big when needed against Oklahoma, stringing together a four-run rally in the bottom of the seventh.

The capper came on Sunday, when UCLA faced USC in Dodger Stadium in the showcase event of the weekend. The Trojans staked a 3-0 lead early against Kyle Molnar, but the offense tied things up again in the fourth. Then both bullpens settled in for a great duel that lasted until the Bruins nabbed the winning run in the fourteenth inning.

June 9, 2012; Los Angeles, CA, USA; UCLA Bruins pitcher David Berg (26) celebrates after defeating the TCU Horned Frogs 4-1 in game two of the Los Angeles super regional at Jackie Robinson Stadium. UCLA earned a trip to the college world series with the win. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE /

So, does this portend a turning point to the Bruins’ season? Or is it a pleasant surprise in an otherwise modest rebuilding effort? Time will tell, but the encouraging thing is that the what went well this weekend were the strengths we expected this team to have before the season started: starting pitching, lockdown bullpen, and timely hitting. The team we saw on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday was the team we were hoping to see all season long.

The players credit their close loss in a Wednesday exhibition game to the NC Dinos, a Korean professional team, for bringing the team together and finally making things click. If so, it’s another testament to the greatness of Head Coach John Savage, who notched his 400th career win against USC on Sunday.

UCLA ‘won’ the Classic with a 3-0 record. Mississippi State and Oklahoma finished at 1-1-1 (they called their Sunday game a tie because of a travel curfew. USC finished last at 1-2. That might be my favorite part.

Next: Hamilton, Alford Receive Pac-12 Honors

Go Bruins!