The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos baseball team represents the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

in the sport of

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

. The Gauchos compete in Division I of the

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

(NCAA) through the

Big West Conference The Big West Conference (BWC) is an American collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions participate in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's NCAA Division I, Division I. The conference was origina ...

. They are currently led by head coach

Andrew Checketts Andrew Checketts (born October 8, 1975) is an American college baseball coach and former player. He currently is the head coach of the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos baseball, UC Santa Barbara Gauchos. Playing career Checketts graduated from West Li ...

, who led his fifth season with the Gauchos in 2016.

History

Emergence of a team

Few records exist from the start of Santa Barbara's baseball program. Through its different incarnations, Santa Barbara has fielded a team as early as 1922. The first known head coach is Kenneth Bolton, who coached in only the 1922 season before handing the reins to O. J. Gilliland in 1923. C.J. Anderson, Ralph DeBolt, Henry Minetti, Lewis Peters, Arthur Peterson, Harold Sanford, Fred Seegert, Louis Sherril, William Thrasher, Linn Unkefer, and John Vince are the first known players and were listed on the 1923 team. Santa Barbara State Teachers College, as one of the precursors to the present day UC Santa Barbara, played in the

Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference The Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) is an intercollegiate athletic conference that operates in NCAA Division III. The conference was founded in 1915 and it consists of twelve small private schools that are locat ...

as far back as the 1932–33 season. It is likely to have had even earlier teams in the SCIAC as records show Santa Barbara joined the conference in 1931. Santa Barbara's first reliable team of record can be traced back to 1947, then led by Spud Harder. Wearing multiple hats, Harder served as Santa Barbara's

athletic director An athletic director (commonly "athletics director" or "AD") is an administrator at many American clubs or institutions, such as colleges and universities, as well as in larger high schools and middle schools, who oversees the work of coaches a ...

, head football coach, and head baseball coach. The team played in the

California Collegiate Athletic Association The California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) is a List of NCAA conferences, college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the NCAA Division II, Division II level. All of its current m ...

from at least 1947 until 1958 when it left to compete in the

California Intercollegiate Baseball Association The California Intercollegiate Baseball Association was a college baseball association that competed under the Pacific Coast Conference, much like a 'division' in modern-day college athletic conferences. The association was formed in 1927 by Southe ...

. Roy Engle, a dual sport head coach in football and baseball in the mold of Spud Harder, took over the program in 1952 and led the Gauchos to their first ever post-season berth. The Gauchos lost both games they played against the

Fresno State Bulldogs baseball The Fresno State Bulldogs baseball team represents Fresno State in NCAA Division I college baseball. Along with most other Fresno State athletic teams, the baseball team participates in the Mountain West Conference. The Bulldogs play their home ...

team by a combined score of 28-6.

Conference volatility

Rene Rochelle took over the program in 1954 and coached the team through the CCAA to CIBA transition. He spent 6 seasons as head coach before Dave Gorrie took the lead for the 1960 season. Gorrie was at the helm for over 700 games in Gaucho blue and gold, and provided a bit of stability to the team as it bounced from conference to conference in the 1960s and 1970s. Throughout his 18 seasons as head coach, saw six league status changes. He endured through a rough start to his tenure, with the team compiling a 32–95 record in conference play his first seven seasons – the worst such stretch in Gaucho baseball history. A change in for the 1967, going from CIBA competition to becoming an independent, marked the end of the slide. Independent ball lasted just one season with the Gauchos joining the

West Coast Athletic Conference The West Coast Conference (WCC) — known as the California Basketball Association from 1952 to 1956 and then as the West Coast Athletic Conference until 1989 — is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference affiliated with NCA ...

in 1968. The stay was short – just two seasons – before the Gauchos were on the move again. Beginning with the 1970 season, the Gauchos competed in the

through 1974. This period contained Gorrie's best season with the Gauchos - a 31–16 season which saw the Gauchos go 14–4 in Big West play, resulting in their second-ever NCAA post season berth. In the

1972 NCAA University Division baseball tournament The 1972 NCAA University Division baseball tournament was played at the end of the 1972 NCAA University Division baseball season to determine the national champion of college baseball. The tournament concluded with eight teams competing in the C ...

, the Gauchos recorded their first-ever postseason wins against

Santa Clara Broncos The Santa Clara Broncos are athletic teams that represent Santa Clara University. The school colors are red and white. The nicknames for teams is The Broncos and the student fans are referred to as the "Ruff Riders". The Broncos compete in the ...

, before losing to eventual National Champions

USC Trojans The USC Trojans (also Southern California Trojans) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ...

. It also marked the first time in UC Santa Barbara history that their baseball team was nationally ranked at the end of the season after being ranked 17th at the conclusion of the year.

Andrew Checketts era

In the

2015 NCAA Division I baseball season The 2015 NCAA Division I baseball season, play of college baseball in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level, began in February 2015. The season progressed through the regular ...

, the Gauchos set a program record for wins en route to hosting their first ever NCAA Regional in the

2015 NCAA Division I baseball tournament The 2015 NCAA Division I baseball tournament began on Friday, May 29, 2015, as part of the 2015 NCAA Division I baseball season. The 64-team double-elimination tournament concluded with the 2015 College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska, which be ...

. Star pitcher

Dillon Tate Dillon Michael Tate (born May 1, 1994) is an American professional baseball pitcher in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Baltimore Orioles. Tate played college baseball at the Uni ...

was drafted 4th overall in the

2015 Major League Baseball draft The 2015 Major League Baseball draft was held from June 8 through June 10, 2015, to assign amateur baseball players to MLB teams. The draft order is the reverse order of the 2014 MLB season standings. As the Diamondbacks finished the 2014 season ...

. The

2016 NCAA Division I baseball season The 2016 NCAA Division I baseball season, play of college baseball in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level, began in February 2016. The season progressed through the regular ...

saw the Gauchos build on their success. They were thought to be too young to compete at a high level for 2016 and placed 4th in the

's preseason coaches' poll. UCSB advanced to the

2016 NCAA Division I baseball tournament The 2016 NCAA Division I baseball tournament began on Friday, June 3, 2016, as part of the 2016 NCAA Division I baseball season. The 64-team, double-elimination tournament concluded with the 2016 College World Series (CWS) in Omaha, Nebraska, ...

with an at-large bid, then subsequently made NCAA Super Regional and NCAA College World Series appearances for the first time in the school's history. Gaucho fans adopted a soccer chant commonly used at

UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's soccer The UC Santa Barbara Gauchos men's soccer team is an NCAA Division I college soccer team composed of student-athletes attending the University of California, Santa Barbara. The Gauchos play their home matches at Harder Stadium. Like most of th ...

games while in Omaha. The Gauchos returned to the NCAA tournament in 2019 by winning their first outright Big West regular season title with a record of 45-9, 19–5 in conference. The Gauchos won 13 series over the entire season, only dropping 2 series all year. The team was drawn into the Stanford regional, and lost the opener 9–2 to Fresno State, and again lost 6–4 to Sacramento State, ending their season.

UC Santa Barbara in the NCAA Tournament

Head coaching history

Notable former players

''This list of notable former players comprises players who went on to play professional baseball after playing for the team. Players denoted in bold represent MLB All-Stars. Players denoted in italics represent World Series Champions.'' *

Shane Bieber Shane Robert Bieber (born May 31, 1995) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Cleveland Guardians of Major League Baseball (MLB). As a walk-on, Bieber played college baseball for the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos, and was selected by ...

* Matt Clark * Noah Davis * Bruce Egloff *

Tom Gamboa Thomas Harold Gamboa (born February 28, 1948) is an American professional baseball coach and manager. Gamboa has managed in the minor leagues as high as AAA (the Toledo Mud Hens in the International League and the Albuquerque Dukes in the P ...

* Bill Geivett *

Mario Hollands Mario Eduardo Lemus Hollands (born August 26, 1988) is an American former professional baseball left-handed relief pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Philadelphia Phillies in . Hollands played college baseball for the UC ...

Erik Johnson Erik Robert Johnson (born March 21, 1988) is an American ice hockey defenseman for the Colorado Avalanche of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed the "Condor", Johnson previously played for the St. Louis Blues, who selected him with the ...

* Brian Kingman *

Joe Kmak Joseph Robert Kmak (born May 3, 1963) is an American former professional baseball player who played catcher in Major League Baseball from 1993 to 1995. He played for the Milwaukee Brewers and Chicago Cubs. He stands tall and weighs . He bats an ...

Justin Lehr Charles Larry "Justin" Lehr (born August 3, 1977) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Oakland Athletics, Milwaukee Brewers, and Cincinnati Reds of Major League Baseball (MLB), as well as the Doosan Bears of the ...

* Mark Leonard *

Quinn Mack Quinn David Mack (born September 11, 1965) is an American former professional baseball outfielder. He spent part of one season in Major League Baseball, appearing in five games for the Seattle Mariners in 1994. Mack's five major league games ca ...

* Greg Mahle * Joe Martin *

Michael McGreevy Michael Steven McGreevy (born July 8, 2000) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his MLB debut in 2024. Early life and education McGreevy grew up in San Clemente, Cali ...

* Ed Pierce * Joe Redfield * ''

Skip Schumaker Jared Michael "Skip" Schumaker ( ; born February 3, 1980) is an American former professional baseball outfielder and second baseman, coach, and manager who recently managed the Miami Marlins of Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2023 to 2024. H ...

'' * Greg Shanahan *

Chris Speier Christopher Edward Speier (born June 28, 1950) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a shortstop, most notably for the San Francisco Giants and the Montreal Expos. He is known by the nickname ...

Ryan Spilborghs Ryan Adam Rene Jean Spilborghs (born September 5, 1979) is an American baseball broadcaster for ROCKIES.TV & SiriusXM's MLB Network Radio, and a former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Colorado R ...

* Chris Valaika * Virgil Vasquez * Dave Walsh *

Stefan Wever Stefan Matthew Wever (April 22, 1958 – December 27, 2022) was a German-born American professional baseball pitcher, who played a single Major League Baseball game with the New York Yankees in 1982, recording the loss, a 27.00 earned run avera ...

Michael Young Michael Young may refer to: Academics * Michael Young, Baron Young of Dartington (1915–2002), British life peer, sociologist and social activist * Michael Young (educationalist), British educational theorist and sociologist * Michael K. Youn ...

* ''

Barry Zito Barry William Zito (born May 13, 1978) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played 15 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics and San Francisco Giants. His pitching repertoire consisted of a curveball ...

The Blue-Green Rivalry

The main rival of the UC Santa Barbara Gauchos baseball team is the

Cal Poly Mustangs baseball The Cal Poly Mustangs baseball team represents California Polytechnic State University, which is located in San Luis Obispo, California. The Mustangs are an NCAA Division I college baseball program, and along with the other Cal Poly athletic t ...

team. The rivalry is a part of the larger Blue–Green Rivalry, which encompasses all sports from the two schools.

References

External links

* {{authority control