Digging Into This Year’s Lineup
Stumbled upon buzz about the Southern California College Baseball Classic while sipping coffee last Tuesday. My college baseball fan buddies kept dropping hints about big names showing up in 2025. Decided to chase this down properly since local tournaments often fly under the radar.
Tracking Down the Squads
First thing Wednesday morning, hauled out my laptop and hit three different college athletic department sites. Found zero schedule updates – typical. Phoned my contact at USC’s admin office who mumbled something about “pending contracts”. Almost gave up till I remembered Coach Davis from Fullerton owes me a favor. Shot him a text: “Who’s actually coming next spring?”
His reply came while I was grilling burgers: “UCLA confirmed last week. Pepperdine might back out.” Grabbed my notebook and scribbled that down with ketchup stains on the corner. Thursday was pure phone tag hell – called Arizona’s assistant coach twice, left voicemails begging for updates between dentist appointments.
Sorting Through the Chaos
By Friday afternoon, my kitchen table looked like a sports bar exploded. Printouts everywhere, half my scribbles didn’t make sense anymore. Kept cross-checking against last year’s program guide while my dog chewed up the UC Irvine roster page. Finally pieced together the solid confirmations:
- UCLA Bruins (no surprise – they dominate every year)
- USC Trojans (heard their new pitcher’s throwing 95mph heat)
- Cal State Fullerton Titans (Coach Davis finally texted back “We’re in”)
- Pepperdine Waves (took 4 calls to verify)
Why Bother With All This?
Honest truth? My old man played Division II ball back in the 90s. He’d drag me to dusty fields every weekend growing up. Watching him light up explaining double plays taught me more than any YouTube tutorial. These college tournaments have that raw energy pro games lost years ago. Plus, seeing Fullerton’s shortstop – kid from my nephew’s high school – makes me feel weirdly invested.
Would I do this research again next year? Probably. Though next time I’m buying a stain-proof notebook.