For the ninth straight year, the Trojans will not qualify for a regional, which means the boys in cardinal and gold will go home packing for the summer after their final tilt against Arizona this upcoming weekend.

The Trojans have four games left on the season, but let’s discuss the best and worst performances on both sides of the ball. This is a ballclub that is vastly different between their bats and their arms, something that has led to a mixed bag of success on the year.

Some members of the squad have reached the top rankings in the Pac-12 with their individual performances throughout the season.

Senior Adam Landecker is fourth in the conference with a .379 batting average, for players with at least 100 at bats on the year.

Sophomore starter Wyatt Strahan has the 10th-best ERA in the conference at 2.60, as part of his tremendous season switching from reliever to Saturday starter.

And in quite the feat, the Trojans have logged three complete-game victories this season, with Nigel Nootbaar most recently notching history with his shutout win over Washington State on May 12th.

Offensively, the Trojans are third in the conference in doubles with 88, and fifth overall in batting average, thanks to the efforts from five of their starters hitting over .300 on the season. Landecker, Greg Zebrack, James Roberts, Kevin Swick and Blake Lacey have helped the Trojans get to a .281 mark for the year.

Defensively, the Trojans can certainly be thankful for their catcher Garrett Stubbs, who has thrown out 52-percent of would-be stolen basemen. This has been the major bright spot in the field, besides the emergence of Timmy Robinson in center and Blake Lacey at shortstop for the fledgling Trojan defense.

James Roberts has struggled at third this season, his 14 errors being a team-high, but has also shown flashes of brilliance with his rocket arm. The outfield has been rather solid, with Bobby Stahel, Robinson and Zebrack manning the posts for the majority of the year.

The pitching staff as a whole has been a completely different story as their total ERA ranks second worst in the conference, at 4.60. This is largely in part due to the inconsistency of their bullpen, as Brooks Kriske leads the way registering the lowest earned-run average of all the USC relievers at a meager 4.05.

The most concerning stat however is the number of free passes the Trojans rotation is dishing out, nearly doubling their opponents –229 to 124– on the year.

Another interesting stat is the fact that the Trojans have allowed the most sacrifice hits in Pac-12 play, 61, fueling opposing offenses small ball approach to drive in runs.

All this being said, here are some the major team stats for the USC Men’s Baseball squad in Pac-12 play:

Hitting Stats:
Average: .281, (4th)
Slugging Percentage: .357, (6th)
Runs Scored: 121, (8th)
Hits: 255, (5th)
Doubles: 43, (3rd)
Walks Drawn: (9th)
HBP: 32, (2nd)

Pitching Stats:
Earned Run Average: 4.59, (8th)
Opposing Batting Average: .303, (9th)
Strikeouts: 131, (Last)
Walks: 112, (10th)

Fielding Stats: Fielding Percentage .980, (7th)
Errors: 32, (6th)
Double Plays Turned: 26, (4th)
Stolen Bases Against: 18, (4th Best)
Caught Stealing: 18, (1st)

Individual Batting Leaders For Trojan Starters In Pac-12 Play
1. Landecker, Adam .379
2. Roberts, James .351
3. Zebrack, Greg .333
4. Swick, Kevin .288
5. Stahel, Bobby .286
6. Lacey, Blake .271
7. Robinson, Timmy .259
8. Stubbs, Garrett .222

Full stats available here on the USC Website and Pac-12 site.

Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

The 2013 MLB Entry Draft takes place on June 8th, but it’s never too early to get in some mock drafts. Today, Dave Perkin of Sports Illustrated released the first version of his first round mock draft, which includes two coveted USC commits, Dominic Smith and J.P. Crawford.

Smith is a left-handed first basesman from Serra High School in Gardena, and is projected by Perkin to land with the South Siders, as the White Sox have the 17th overall pick. Of Smith, Perkin calls him the “purest high school hitter in this year’s draft”, a comment that Albert Almora received last year,  the sixth overall selection to the Cubs.

As for Crawford, a 6-foot-2 shortstop, Perkin sees him going 31st to the Atlanta Braves, who sit at the end of the first round with a compensatory pick. Crawford is “a lithe, athletic and versatile player”, according to Perkin.

Shotgun Spratling spoke to both Smith and Crawford last summer at the All-American Classic in San Diego and both were mum about their decision of playing college ball or going to directly into professional baseball.

Crawford did acknowledge the ‘dream’ recruiting class that USC is putting together, however.

“If we all go to USC, it’s a college ring, no doubut,” said Crawford.

Perhaps that’s just a little bit premature, but for a program whose glory days are long behind them, getting that itch and landing big commits is at least a step in the right direction, even without a long-term manager on staff.

H/T: @iampangean

Feb 24, 2012; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Plaque honoring Southern California Trojans former coach Rod Deadeaux (not pictured) at Dedeaux Field. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-USA TODAY Sports

Freshmen Kyle Twomey came back to the bump after allowing 5 ER on Sunday to finish off the Lions, starting the eight-game road trip with some pop on the mound and also at the plate.

The Trojans pitching staff has struggled for the season, posting the Pac-12 worst ERA through the first two months of the season (4.78) and now must depart from the pitcher-friendly confines of Rod Dedeaux Field.

Junior catcher Jake Hernandez drove a two-strike pitch over the left field wall, just to the right of the 37-foot-blue wall at Paige Stadium, giving the Trojans their first lead in the contest.

Freshmen outfielder Vahn Bozoian got a rare start for the Trojans, after only playing in one of three against ASU last weekend but certainly made his presence felt. Bozoian belted a first-pitch fastball nearly 400 feet to left center, cementing the Trojans victory.

The Trojans scored five runs on 15 hits in the Tuesday afternoon affair. This effort propels the club forward for their weekend tilt in cold Utah. The Utes (15-17, 4-11) have struggled to get going in conference play with crippling problems across the board.

The offense has plenty of pop in the lineup, with 13 homeruns on the season, but that can not overcome a sluggish .240 team batting average on the year. This Utah squad has been compared to USC in the fact that neither is supremely talented, both but play hard and have shown flashes of greatness.

After three games against the Pac-12 dwellers, the Trojans stay up north and prepare for a series against a top-ten foe in Oregon State. The Beavers are 10-2 in conference and have the pitching depth to match any team in the nation with a team-ERA of 1.87, including two starters at the top of the rotation in Matt Boyd and Andrew Moore who have a combined record of 14-2.

Luckily for the Trojans, the bats are starting to come alive after posting double-digit hits in five of the last six games. This young team has some pop, with Timmy Robinson and Blake Lacey riding eight and seven game hitting streaks respectively; and will need to carry those hot bats on the long road trip.

The biggest challenge for USC on this road trip will be finishing series strong, a facet of their game that has allowed this young squad, with 16 true freshmen, to drop crucial Sunday affairs on the road. The Trojans have yet to win a Sunday road game this season, a recipe for disaster given the nation’s most difficult schedule according to BPI.

Following the three-game tilt in Corvallis, the Trojans return to California to face West Coast Conference foe Pepperdine (20-15, 8-4). The Waves crushed USC 9-4 in their first meeting on March 12th as the Trojans allowed 6 runs in the final four innings. Freshmen Blake Lacey had the quite game, going 2-4 while scoring half of the teams runs.

This next stretch of games will ultimately decide the Trojans postseason fate to enter the discussion for regional play. The Trojans return home to Dedeaux Field on May 2nd to square with Texas Christian University in a three-game series.