LOS ANGELES — The UCLA baseball team maintained the No. 1 rank in the NCAA for the entire 2026 regular season. The Bruins set a program record with 48 regular-season wins. They swept through the Big Ten Tournament in Omaha, winning each game in walk-off fashion to claim the conference title.
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But the journey hasn’t come without its obstacles, each of which UCLA has overcome because of its authentic, tight-knit approach.
“We don’t have a magic carpet ride to Omaha,” head coach John Savage said at Thursday’s press conference. “We have to earn it.”
Now, as UCLA enters the Los Angeles Regional as the No. 1 overall seed, where it hosts Saint Mary’s at noon Friday at Jackie Robinson Stadium, the Bruins must continue to patch problems on the fly. Friday pitcher Logan Reddeman remains “unavailable,” Savage said, center fielder Will Gasparino was suspended for one game, and the Bruins are facing a pressure that simply didn’t exist when they hosted a regional in 2025.
To advance to Omaha in 2026, UCLA (51-6) has to win a trio of games in a double-elimination style tournament, which includes Virginia Tech (30-24) and Cal Poly (36-22), on top of the Gaels (34-25).
“We have a ton of respect for our opponents. That’s never wavered,” Savage said. “It’s more about us and how we go about our business.”
With Reddeman, who hasn’t pitched since April 17 because of arm fatigue, still “a week away,” according to Savage, Wylan Moss will remain in the Friday spot. He owns a 5-1 record and a 2.40 earned run average.
“He’s done a good job,” Savage said of the sophomore right-hander.
Before Reddeman sustained the injury, Moss was mainly in a bulk relief role behind Saturday starter Michael Barnett. Savage felt Moss was always a “legitimate starter” but he didn’t want to “rock the boat.” Forced to make a change, Moss has stepped up.
The same can be said for freshman RHP Angel Cervantes, who gradually developed from UCLA’s Tuesday pitcher, with a pitch limit of “around 40 to 50,” to the trusted Sunday starter.
“Angel needed all those Tuesday, two-inning stints to really get to where he is today,” Savage said. “He was not ready three, four months ago to be a weekend starter … It’s really, I think, the epitome of development.”
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Savage explained that Cervantes “wasn’t ready for the fight” with his fastball, his breaking ball or his changeup when he came to UCLA after the Pittsburgh Pirates drafted him 50th overall in the 2025 MLB draft. He had to learn to manage games and pitch out of problems.
For Cervantes, he said that came after Reddeman got hurt and the rotation shifted.
“That’s when that switch turned on, obviously trying to do more for the team,” Cervantes said Thursday. “It was too late to have small mistakes at this point in the season. So, I would say he’s helped me get to this point of where I am right now.”
Cervantes got the call Sunday against Oregon (40-16, 20-10) with the Big Ten title on the line, and delivered five scoreless innings, striking out five batters with three walks and four hits.
Away from the mound, UCLA expects Phoenix Call to play center field in place of Gasparino on Friday, Savage said. Call, the Bruins’ primary second baseman, started two games in center field as a freshman and spent time there while at Calabasas High.
“He’s an elite center fielder,” Savage said.
Call’s defense keeps him on the field, despite a .198 batting average this season. It put him in position to take a game-winning hit by pitch in Sunday’s Big Ten Tournament final.
Decisions like that come from knowing a team, which is simple for Savage as this Bruins roster has stuck together over the past three seasons.
Right fielder Payton Brennan said winning the Los Angeles Regional “could be harder” this year compared to last because of the target on UCLA’s back. But the Bruins will take their mindset of togetherness, apply it to the obstacles this weekend, and approach the four-team tournament as it has the entire season.
“You have to play free, you have to play with confidence, you have to believe in yourself,” Savage said. “We’ve been in this boat before, and it’s a trust, it’s a … loyalty factor. We’re a together group.”
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NCAA LOS ANGELES REGIONAL
Who: UCLA (51-6) vs. Saint Mary’s (34-25)
When: Noon Friday
Where: Jackie Robinson Stadium, Los Angeles
How to watch: ESPN2