Not just for bats anymore

Wednesday, Feb. 2, 2005 | 9:59 a.m.

UNLV baseball coach Buddy Gouldsmith might have seen his program transform itself before his very eyes Saturday on a wet Wilson Stadium field.

Last season, the Rebels were fueled by Eric Nielsen, who led the team by hitting .402, slugging .701, belting 16 home runs, driving in 87 runs and getting on base more than half the time he stood at the plate.

Saturday, however, Nielsen and a talented band of former Rebels were limited to five hits as the current UNLV team pounded out a 10-2 victory in an annual alumni game.

The Mountain West Conference has long been known as a hitter's league, with football scores produced by home-run parks and sore-armed hurlers. Gouldsmith believes a different blueprint will ensure future success and longer seasons.

"Really, the one thing you can always find in our league is big, strong, physical hitters," Gouldsmith said. "Over the long haul, that's not what will win you a national championship. You have to have baseball players and pitchers."

For a second consecutive season, the Rebels (37-24) ended '04 by getting eliminated in the NCAA West Regional. Friday night, they open their 2005 season against Cal State Northridge at Wilson Stadium.

Much will hinge upon Matt Luca, a 6-foot-6 junior right-handed power pitcher from Galveston, Texas, who struck out four and yielded only two hits over five scoreless innings in Saturday's alumni game.

In college, Friday night lights are reserved for a program's ace. At UNLV, that's Luca.

Former UNLV coach Jim Schlossnagle, now at Texas Christian, signed Luca in a recruiting coup, then the Lone Star State native went 7-5, with a 5.99 earned-run average, as a sophomore.

Although he struck out 99 batters over 85 2/3 innings, Luca struggled with a hits-plus-walks to innings-pitched ratio of more than 1.50-to-1. In professional baseball, that would spell a short career.

"Without a doubt, for the first time he endured some struggles," Gouldsmith said. "He didn't have great stuff, and he may have doubted himself, at times. Having gone through that adversity, he's stronger for it."

Gouldsmith foresees a Luca who challenges hitters more frequently with first-pitch strikes, getting them out with fewer pitches and, as a result, pitching deeper into games.

Gouldsmith saw that Saturday, when Luca threw 62 pitches during his five innings of work.

"That's where his maturity has taken over," Gouldsmith said. "That's a lot more democratic than he's been in the past."

Saturdays will be reserved, at least to start the season, for Derek Rodriguez, a Las Vegas native who closed for Arizona last season and will follow Luca in the UNLV rotation.

"He's been lights out since he's been here," Gouldsmith said. "That was a huge move for us. He solidified our rotation and makes us a lot better. His work ethic is unparalleled, he's athletic and has a great arm.

"And he played for a team that went to the College World Series. That experience is great for our guys to be around. He's lived through it, and I'm pleased with the way he's come in here."

Luca and shortstop Zeke Parraz, a senior out of Green Valley High, were picked for the preseason all-Mountain West team. Parraz, at .385, is the top returning hitter for the Rebels. He played third base a year ago.

"Out of loyalty and the guys we had," Gouldsmith said. "But Zeke played out of position. He'll be in more familiar confines at short, and we expect big things from his senior leadership, on the field and off."

Gouldsmith said he anticipates managing situations much more often than he did last season, when, for instance, he would have never pondered hitting for Nielsen. And the big hit likely won't play such a big role.

That's where someone like Ryan Kowalski, a sophomore infielder from San Diego who stole 20 bases in 23 attempts and owns one of the team's most discriminating eyes at the plate, might shine.

Pitching and defense, Gouldsmith preaches. Again, he points to that alumni game, in which his players committed no errors.

"We are a different-looking club," Gouldsmith said. "I think opponents will be very surprised when they see us pitch and how we play defense. Hopefully, that's the tale of our club for a long time."

Which could keep top local talent in Vegas and lure prodigal sons back home.

Rodriguez, pitcher Chris Huseman (Kansas State) and outfielder J.C. Sibley (Kansas) are Las Vegans who took advantage of a unique college baseball rule that allows players to transfer once during their careers without having to sit out a year.

Gouldsmith called them pleasant surprises and said their moves reflected well on the program.

"I'd like to think so," Gouldsmith said. "Had we not had some success, I don't think they'd want to come back and play for a team that's a loser. That's exciting."

As is a schedule that, according to Baseball America's preseason top 50 ranking, includes No. 3 Cal State Fullerton, a series at No. 4 Texas next week and No. 12 Arizona.

No. 33 Florida Atlantic and No. 40 UC-Irvine are also on the slate. UNLV is not among the top 50.

"We had to upgrade our schedule to have one that will produce a solid (Ratings Percentage Index)," Gouldsmith said. "Winning the league is an obvious goal, but not the ultimate goal. You have to be familiar and comfortable with playing those types of teams.

"To get out of a regional, you have to play those teams and beat them, and there's nothing like doing it to prepare you for it."