UCLA Baseball: Five Questions to Answer Entering 2021

How normal was fall practice?

Going into the fall, there were questions about how much fall practice one could expect for teams on the West Coast, particularly those located in counties and municipalities that had imposed more pandemic restrictions than others. 

But UCLA, which fit into the category of teams you figured might have had fall practice compromised, ended up with something of a normal fall practice period. It was a little bit different, featuring a longer stretch of individual work than normal, but the Bruins were satisfied with what they got. 

“A little different, clearly, but at the end of the day, we got the work in,” UCLA coach John Savage said. “We got our new guys acclimated to our program. We got an evaluation and saw them play games. I think we ended up playing eight games, so we have a decent feel, heading into January, for what we have.”

It also stands to reason that UCLA’s roster situation would have made it easier to deal with a significantly altered fall schedule anyway. In a year when many teams are fielding rosters of 40 or more players, UCLA is sitting at 35 coming out of the fall and brought in a relatively small recruiting class. For the most part, the players expected to have big roles know the routine and wouldn’t have been thrown off by a unique fall practice period in any event. 

In other words, don’t expect the Bruins to skip a beat as the 2021 season gets going. 

Will the rotation be the same as last season?

UCLA brings back its entire weekend rotation from last year in fourth-year junior righthander Zach Pettway and third-year sophomore righthanders Jesse Bergin and Nick Nastrini. Pettway and Bergin were particularly good a season ago, with ERAs of 1.05 and 1.27, respectively. Nastrini struggled a bit more with a 4.60 ERA, but his ceiling is likely the highest of the bunch. 

UCLA is fortunate to have the opportunity to simply run back last year’s rotation, but Savage opened up that competition in the fall. 

Second-year freshman righthander Jared Karros is an obvious candidate to get into the mix after he struck out 16 and walked two in 14 innings last year. He served as the team’s midweek starter in 2020, so even if UCLA does end up with the same rotation next season, the possibility of four-game conference weekends means that he could find his way into weekend starts by default. Savage says that he was among the pitchers who made the biggest jumps this fall. 

Those four guys might be the incumbents, but there is another group of pitchers working to break through. They include second-year freshman lefthander Jake Saum, second-year freshman righthander Charles Harrison and two true freshmen in righthanders Jake Brooks and Kenji Pallares. 

Regardless of what a pitcher has already accomplished, Savage is looking for the same things in any starting candidate. 

“How well they hold their stuff (deep into games), how well they get opposite side hitters out, how well they do the second and third time through the lineup, there’s a lot of different metrics that you look at from a starter,” Savage said. “(Throwing) multiple pitches, secondary pitches, fastball command, game management, holding runners. There’s a lot that goes into throwing 75 to 100 pitches a night and you had better be pretty complete to do that.”

It’s tough to imagine the UCLA rotation looking much different in 2021 given what it has returning, but Savage wants to make sure no one is resting on their laurels. 

Who will close games?

Powell’s departure leaves a hole in the closer’s spot, but the Bruins are still in good shape there. One reason is that not a year goes by that they don’t have at least two absolute workhorses at the back of the bullpen. The other reason is that they have a plethora of great options to replace him. 

One is third-year sophomore righthander Sean Mullen, who allowed just one earned run in 9.2 innings last season in a relief role. 

Savage highlighted Mullen as one of the standouts of fall practice, and while he also contends that Mullen is part of the rotation competition, he likes what the righthander would bring to the table closing games. 

“He’s 93-94 (mph), he’s throwing a lot more strikes with his fastball, his cutter is really a new pitch (at) 88, 89, 90 (mph), a true cutter, slider, changeup, has a good concept of game management and holding runners and throwing multiple pitches in different counts,” Savage said. 

Freshman righthander Max Rajcic, the top recruit in UCLA’s most recent recruiting class, is also a candidate for the role. He’ll throw his fastball 93-95 mph with what Savage described as a “knockout punch” true curveball. He’s also made strides with his third pitch, a changeup. 

There are also a couple of returners to watch in fifth-year senior righthander Kyle Mora and fourth-year junior righthander Michael Townsend. That pair combined to surrender just one earned run in 21.1 innings last season. They’ll both have big roles in the bullpen next season, but perhaps they’re more likely to return to their spots as setup men than they are to move to the closer’s role. 

You can take it to the bank that UCLA will have an excellent bullpen next season, because it almost always does. It’s just a matter of figuring out where the pieces fit. 

Who takes over in center field?

With Mitchell now in the Brewers organization, the Bruins need a center fielder, and the way this competition plays out might end up being reminiscent of 2019, when Matt McLain, then a freshman infielder, won most of the playing time at the position. 

Right now, the primary candidates for the job are second-year freshman Michael Curialle and fourth-year junior Kevin Kendall, two converted infielders. Curialle might still be the shortstop of the future, but right now, he’s blocked by McLain. Kendall is actually the shortstop of the past, as he played a majority of his games there in 2018 and 2019 before missing all of last season due to injury. 

Savage likes the toolset each would bring to the position. 

“Both of them can play center,” he said. “They can go gap to gap. Curialle is a much bigger guy (at) 6-3, 200 (pounds). Kendall’s a much smaller frame (at) 5-10, 180. Both are righthanded, both throw very well. Curialle’s got probably a 60 arm (on the 20-80 scale), Kendall’s got a 50 arm. They both track the ball well, they go back on the ball well, they can throw people out.”

Versatility is a theme with UCLA’s position players, and that’s no different with Curialle and Kendall. The player who doesn’t win the center field job will likely have a prominent role somewhere else. Both can play second base, third base and shortstop, and Curialle provides additional versatility given that he has the arm to play right field.

How will the infield fill out?

There are a couple of certainties on the UCLA infield. McLain, a third-year sophomore, will return to shortstop and you can also go ahead and pencil in second-year freshman J.T. Schwartz at first base. 

Who will play second base and third base is more of a fluid situation. 

The leaders in the clubhouse are probably Kendall at second base and third-year sophomore Mikey Perez at third base. Kendall, as discussed, brings a lot of experience and athleticism to the table, and Perez stepped in and did a nice job last year, hitting .333/.476/.455 while playing three different infield positions. Those two players could also end up switching places if the situation calls for it. 

If Kendall ends up in the outfield, Curialle might find his way back to the dirt, where UCLA will want to get him in the lineup. Third-year sophomore Jake Moberg is another name to watch at third base after he started all 15 games there last year. If he doesn’t win the job at the hot corner, he’s an obvious candidate for at-bats at DH as well. 

While he won’t factor into the second base or third base discussion, one player who showed extremely well in the fall is second-year freshman catcher Darius Perry, a plus catch-and-throw backstop who is currently behind third-year sophomore Noah Cardenas, perhaps the best defensive catcher in the country. Perry’s reps at catcher might be limited because of Cardenas, but between spelling the starting catcher and perhaps finding some time here or there at first base, Savage will look to get him on the field when he can.