ANTEATERS HEAD TO TEXAS: No. 24 UC Irvine travels to Houston, Tex., to participate in the Urban Invitational, hosted by Major League Baseball. The Anteaters, under fifth-year head coach Mike Gillespie, opens against Alabama State Friday (Feb. 17) and then takes on Southern Saturday (Feb. 18) before capping the weekend against Texas Southern Sunday (Feb. 19). The Friday and Sunday contests will be played at the Houston Astros MLB Urban Youth Facility in Houston while Saturday's game will be played at Minute Maid Park.
HONORING THE PRESIDENTS: UCI will complete the President's Day weekend with a home game against UNLV, Monday, Feb. 20, at Anteater Ballpark.
TUNE IN: Saturday's game against Southern University will be televised on the MLB Network with Greg Amsinger and Harold Reynolds calling the action. Check your local listings for more information on the MLB Network.
HAPPY ANNIVERSARY: This season marks the 10th year of Anteater Baseball since the program was reinstated in 2001 and began competition for in 2002. A successful program in the 1970's and '80's, UCI's baseball program was terminated following the 1992 season due to a state budget crisis. However, since the program's return, the Anteaters have advanced to the post-season seven times, including making its first-ever trip to the Division I College World Series in 2007. In celebration of 10 years, UC Irvine Athletics will honor the 2002 team on the field, Feb. 25, prior to first pitch against Washington.
Also, mark your calendars for Feb. 24, as UC Irvine Baseball honors 2011 Big West Pitcher of the Year, Matt Summers, in a pre-game ceremony at home plate. Summers, drafted in the fourth round by the Minnesota Twins, was 11-4 last season and undefeated in Big West games at 8-0. The right-hander, who had pitched just 37 innings in his first two years at UCI, emerged onto the national scene and struck out 100 batters in 117 innings while holding opposing teams to a .195 average.
STARTING STRONG: Under head coach Mike Gillespie, the Anteaters have kicked off each season with a sweep in the opening weekend. The last time UCI recorded a series loss in the first weekend of action was in 2007 when the team fell twice to California.
OPENING DAY START: Senior Crosby Slaught (Santa Barbara/HS) will open the 2012 season for UC Irvine against Alabama State this Friday. The right-hander was 7-2 with a 3.93 ERA in 2011, striking out 47 in 68.2 innings. Slaught walked 20 batters and allowed 30 earned runs in 14 starts and pitched in two combined shutouts. In three seasons, Slaught has compiled a 16-3 win-loss record, registering 116 strikeouts in 169.2 innings of work.
WHITEHOUSE TAKING ON SOUTHERN: Matt Whitehouse (Diamond Bar/Damien HS), who has been named a CollegeBaseballInsider.com preseason All-American, is slated to take on Southern at Minute Maid Park. The crafty southpaw was undefeated last season at 4-0 and boasted a 2.12 ERA. In 17 starts Whitehouse set down 63 batters in 72.1 innings while walking just 15. He limited opposing teams to a .207 batting average and yielded just 17 earned runs on the year.
THURMAN CLOSES OUT INVITATIONAL: Sophomore Andrew Thurman (Orange/Orange Lutheran HS) is expected to take on Texas Southern Sunday. Thurman made 23 appearances in his freshman campaign and started eight. He struck out 64 in 75.1 innings while walking 21 batters.
VETERANS COMMAND INFIELD: Pitching and defense, hallmarks of Anteater Baseball, will be the strength again in the 2012 with a host of seniors anchoring the infield.
Ronnie Shaeffer (Garden Grove/Pacifica HS) will be behind the plate, handling the Anteater pitching staff. Shaeffer, an American Baseball Coaches Association Gold Glove winner, was one of the top defensive catchers in the country last season. The senior held opposing teams to a .430 stolen-base average, giving up 27 steals in 63 attempts. Shaeffer was also named the Los Angeles Regional Most Outstanding Player after hitting .600 in three games with six hits and five RBI and drove in the game-winning run to knock out the Bruins and advance to the Charlottesville Super Regional. Shaeffer batted .264 on the year with 55 hits and 31 RBI.
Continuing up the middle, D.J. Crumlich (Irvine/HS) will resume his spot at short. Crumlich, a Los Angeles Regional All-Tournament honoree, led the Big West in runs scored with 51 while knocking out 70 hits and driving in 27. Crumlich also led the team with 15 doubles to go along with a pair of triples. In post-season play, the senior shared the team-high with a .476 average over six games.
Taking over at the hot spot for the Anteaters will be Tommy Reyes (Rancho Cucamonga/Bishop Amat HS). Reyes also shined in the post-season and was named the NCAA All-Regional Tournament second baseman in 2011. He batted .476 with 10 hits, including three doubles and two RBI in six post-season games. On the season, Reyes owned a .289 clip with 50 hits and 20 RBI. He also tacked on 11 doubles while holding a .966 fielding percentage.
Back for his senior year at first base will be Jordan Fox (Hacienda Heights/Bishop Amat HS). Fox tops the returners with a .323 average while posting 60 hits and 25 RBI. He was ranked fourth in the country in the "Toughest to Strikeout" category after striking out just six times in 186 at-bats. He shared the team lead with nine stolen bags and had a .995 fielding percentage.
Sophomore Dillon Moyer (Bradenton, Fla./Pendleton HS) is the lone underclassman in the infield and will make the start at second. A smooth-fielding infielder, Moyer saw action in 17 games last season while adding four hits and an RBI to the offense.
RAMIREZ JOINED BY NEW FACES IN THE OUTFIELD: Veteran Christian Ramirez (Santa Ana/Cypress College) will manage the outfield in center. Ramirez, a senior, hit .282 with 46 hits and 32 RBI. He was one of six Anteater to reach double figures in doubles with 10 and was second on the team with six steals. He had jut one error in 54 games played for UCI.
Expected to play right-field will be redshirt junior Scott Gottschling (Orange/Villa Park HS). Gottschling saw action in 36 games last season, while making 11 starts and hit .282 with 11 hits, including two doubles to go along with a pair of runs batted in.
Completing the trio in left-field will be junior Jeff Stephens (Novato/Sierra College). Stephens, a junior college transfer, was an all-conference player after batting .357 with 61 hits and 19 RBI.
ALABAMA STATE: Alabama State was 14-29 in 2011 and is under the guidance of first-year head coach, Mervyl Melendez. Melendez was previously at Bethune-Cookman, where he led the Wildcats to 11 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) titles in his 12 seasons as head coach.
SERIES RECORDS: UC Irvine faces Alabama State for the first time this Friday.
SOUTHERN: Southern was 29-19 last season and logged a team batting average of .313 while the pitching staff held an ERA of 4.73.
SERIES RECORDS: UCI is 1-0 against Southern University. The two teams met in 2011 at the Major League Baseball Urban Invitational, where UCI defeated the Jaguars, 7-1.
TEXAS SOUTHERN: Texas Southern was 23-28 last year. The team hit .277 as a team the pitching staff posted an ERA of 5.19.
SERIES RECORDS: UCI and Texas Southern will also meet for the first time this weekend.
UNLV: UNLV was 33-25 last year and finished fifth in the Mountain West Conference at 10-13. Returning 18 letterwinners, the Rebels are led by Trent Cook, who batted .368 with 85 hits and 51 runs scored. Also returning will be Brandon Bayardi who drove in 51 runs while hitting .325.
The team's top returning pitcher is Zack Hartman, who was 5-2 with a 2.35 ERA. Hartman locked up eight saves while striking out 29 in 38.1 innings of work his freshman year.
SERIES: UCI has a 40-34-2 series lead over the Rebels. UNLV edged the Anteaters, 4-3, in 2011.
______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
For UC Irvine Athletics ticket information, please call (949) 824-5000 or e-mail athletics.tickets@uci.edu. For more information click here.
For information on how you can help support UC Irvine Athletics, please call (949) 824-6933 or e-mail aaf@uci.edu. For additional information, click here.
You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
