California Love

Two games, three University of California squads, and a lot of storylines.

Last November, UC Irvine Athletics ran a Black Friday special. Anyone who bought a small gift card good for UCI sports tickets would receive an extra pair of vouchers for a 2023 baseball game. As someone who considers Cicerone Field at Anteater Ballpark one of a select favorite places in Orange County, I was sold.

As the season moved along, I realized that my options to attend were dwindling. I decided that a matchup with UCLA on Tuesday, May 2 would be a fun local rivalry to witness. The Bruins also feature a couple of the sons of former major leaguers. Kyle Karros, shown above, is the son of former Dodgers standout Eric Karros while Jarrod Hocking’s father Denny played for the Twins. I attended a game between these two teams back in 2009 when the field was dedicated to former Chancellor Ralph Cicerone. In 2000, Cicerone restarted the baseball program in Irvine and the Anteaters held the top spot in the national rankings when he was honored less than a decade later.

The ‘Eaters and Bruins had faced each other already this season, with UCI seizing a 12-4 victory in Los Angeles on April 18. With the scene shifting to Orange County, the game would draw the seventh biggest crowd in stadium history. I could tell as soon as I arrived that this was something special because the concession stand lines were overflowing.

After Andre Antone retired the Bruins in the top of the first, UCI wasted no time in opening the scoring. Anthony Martinez, now hitting .388 for the season, delivered an RBI single and Chase Call drove in another run with a double. An unearned run gave the ‘Eaters a 3-0 lead in the second, then Call smashed a solo homer in the third to make it 4-0.

The game lasted nearly four hours thanks in part to 13 total walks, eight of which were issued by UCLA pitching. Martinez and left fielder Caden Kendle collected four hits apiece en route to a 12-3 victory. Third baseman Dub Gleed, pictured above, tripled and drove in four runs. Hocking led the Bruins with three hits, while starting pitcher Josh Hahn went 2-for-4 after being deployed as the designated hitter. Each team used seven pitchers, which is less of a problem when you’re not in the middle of a three-game weekend series. UCI falls just outside the Top 25 rankings list as of this writing, but the ‘Eaters have the talent to climb.

Speaking of the following weekend, I also planned to watch UCLA play at home against my alma mater Cal. The Golden Bears have struggled for most of the campaign but scored a 10-7 victory at Jackie Robinson Stadium in Los Angeles on Friday, May 5. Lest you think I spend all of my time at Division I ballparks, the Saturday matinee would be just my second live college game of the season.

The stage was set with the UCLA Alumni Band playing between innings. Much like during Friday’s contest, California roared to a 4-0 lead by the fourth inning. Kade Kretzschmar homered against starting pitcher Kelly Austin and Paulshawn Pasqualotto pitched around some wildness to deliver five scoreless frames for the Bears. Andrés Galan went on to pitch the next four innings for Cal, allowing a home run to Jack Holman and two runs total.

UCLA clawed within two runs after eight innings, but that’s when Cal decided enough was enough. Solo blasts by Dom Souto, Max Handron, and standout catcher Caleb Lomavita kicked off a five-run ninth that put things out of reach. The result was a 9-2 final score.

The Cal dugout was all smiles, while the Bruins were left with the prospect of a lost weekend as far as their postseason hopes are concerned. The Bears would go on to win 8-7 on Sunday for their first series sweep versus UCLA since 1991. The Bruins were ranked 22nd in the country only a short time ago, but their pitching proved to be a major area of concern all week.

I witnessed a nice moment when an adult fan near me snagged a foul ball, then handed it to a young boy holding a glove. The child thanked the man, then handed him one of his Little League baseballs.

While I was rooting for Cal, I can certainly appreciate some nice touches around UCLA’s home grounds. One installation pays homage to former Bruin Jackie Robinson, who as I have noted previously excelled in many sports during his time in Westwood.

I wanted to make one last stop during my excursion to Los Angeles County. I noticed a tweet about an art exhibition at the L.A. Louver gallery in Venice. Artist Gajin Fujita melds images of Los Angeles with concepts surrounding his Japanese-American upbringing. Tommy Lasorda Tribute brought back good memories of the exhibition about the former Dodgers and Team USA manager that I visited in Fullerton last year. A curator informed me that Fujita is friends with one of Lasorda’s children, and even celebrities such as rapper LL Cool J has attended this exhibit. Below is a piece entitled Omnipotent LA Sky.

It was a fantastic Saturday afternoon made even better by the fact that I received a complimentary game ticket via email, paid nothing to attend the gallery, and managed to park for free at both venues. Southern California is not a cheap place to live, but fun doesn’t always have to come at a cost. As I drove away from Venice, I was able to enjoy some outdoor art for good measure.