UCLA pitcher James Kaprielian drafted No. 16 overall by Yankees

James Kaprielian was taken by the New York Yankees as No. 16 overall in the MLB Draft, becoming the first UCLA baseball player to go in the first round since 2011.

On Monday, the 6-foot-4, 200-pound pitcher joined a club last entered by Gerrit Cole and Trevor Bauer, fellow right-handers who starred for the Bruins before going No. 1 and 3 overall four years ago. Cole actually helped convince Kaprielian to sign with UCLA.

UCLA coach John Savage said he noticed Kaprielian’s curveball the first time he saw him pitch as a high school sophomore, as well as a “good, physical, projectable body.” Continue reading “UCLA pitcher James Kaprielian drafted No. 16 overall by Yankees” »

MLB Draft: UCLA pitcher James Kaprielian a likely first-round pick

This evening, UCLA baseball will likely produce a first-round draft pick for the first time in four years.

Right-handed pitcher James Kaprielian, the Bruins’ Friday ace for the past two seasons, is projected to go off the board early in the MLB draft, which starts today at 4 p.m. PT. As a junior, the 6-foot-4 prospect led the Pac-12 with 114 strikeouts, and combined with closer David Berg for the first no-hitter in UCLA history.

Teams had expressed interest in drafting Kaprielian (10-4, 2.03) in the first two rounds in 2012, but Kaprielian product was set on attending UCLA. He was eventually taken in the 40th round by the Seattle Mariners, and became a reliever on the Bruins’ 2013 national title team as a freshman.

UCLA coach John Savage said that Kaprielian was somewhat underrecruited coming out Beckman High in Irvine, calling him a “football guy” who slipped through the cracks. That he wasn’t a big factor on the travel circuit suppressed his stock too.

“There wasn’t as much hype around him,” Savage said. “But we knew that he potentially could be a weekend starter. We saw his projection and his upside. We knew that this guy could pretty special. …We knew what we had.”

Based on numerous mock drafts, Kaprielian appears to be a lock for the first round. He is projected to go No. 10 overall by Sports Illustrated, No. 12 by ESPN, and No. 16 by Baseball America and MLB.com.

The last time a UCLA player was drafted in the first round was 2011, when pitchers Gerrit Cole and Trevor Bauer went first and third overall, respectively.

Here’s a list of all the Bruins ranked in Baseball America’s list of top-500 prospects: Continue reading “MLB Draft: UCLA pitcher James Kaprielian a likely first-round pick” »

UCLA’s season ends after 4-1 loss to Maryland in NCAA Regional

For the second straight year, the No. 1 overall seed couldn’t make it out of the NCAA Regionals.

This year, UCLA baseball was the one that fell, following Oregon State as the second straight tournament favorite to bow out early. In an elimination game against Maryland, the Bruins couldn’t scratch together enough offense in a 2-1 loss.

Afterward, head coach John Savage sat at the press conference table next to senior closer David Berg — whom he called the best reliever in NCAA history — and redshirt junior shortstop Kevin Kramer. He took the time to thank both: “They made my job a lot easier.”

“The culture of UCLA baseball — it is clearly in a position that we’ve never seen it before,” Savage said. “The last, let’s call it six years, since 2010. … We’re very proud. We have very proud team members. We know what we need to accomplish. We still need to accomplish a lot more.”

Click through to read the full game story from Jackie Robinson Stadium tonight.

UCLA beats Cal State Bakersfield to stave off elimination

As the ball tipped over the glove and into the outfield, the UCLA fans cheered.

They had good reason. With the top-seeded Bruins baseball team facing elimination in its own NCAA Regional, a fielding error at shortstop helped extend their season a little longer.

In a 9-1 win over Cal State Bakersfield on Sunday evening at Jackie Robinson Stadium, UCLA turned a one-run lead into a six-run cushion — batting in five unearned runs after Mylz Jones mishandled a likely groundout in the top of the seventh.

“I don’t know if you’ve ever tried to catch a 120-mile per hour knuckleball,” said CSUB coach Bill Kernan. “That’s what that was.”

It was Jones’ 12th error of the season, and likely the most costly of them all. Continue reading “UCLA beats Cal State Bakersfield to stave off elimination” »