The Vanderbilt Commodores will head to the West Coast for three big games toward the beginning of their season. From Feb. 28 to Mar. 2, they will play in Los Angeles and Irvine, Calif., for the Southern California College Baseball Classic.
The three-game slate in California begins on Feb. 28 against the UCLA Bruins at Jackie Robinson Stadium. The Bruins were a sub-par team a season ago, finishing 19-33 overall.
However, they were significantly better at home in Los Angeles. At Jackie Robinson Stadium, they finished 15-11. The Commodores will need to win here early, as the competition only gets tougher during their Southern California road trip.
The next game will take Vanderbilt to Irvine, about 40 minutes south of Los Angeles. There, they will play the USC Trojans at their temporary home of Orange County Great Park. This game is scheduled for Mar. 1.
The Trojans had a decent season last year, finishing 31-28 overall and 17-12 in Pac-12 play. They finished fourth in the conference and came up just short of winning the Pac-12 Tournament. They lost to the Arizona Wildcats in the championship game, 4-3.
This team is looking to be a threat in the Big 10 after transitioning out of the Pac-12. Historically, USC is a great program. They were on the opposite end of a walk-off hit and squandered a chance at an auto-bid to the 2024 NCAA Tournament.
They see Vanderbilt as an opportunity to get a big win early in the 2025 season. Head coach Tim Corbin and the Commodores will have to be ready.
Vanderbilt’s final game on this trip is against the on March 2 at Jackie Robinson Stadium.
UConn was an NCAA Tournament team that made a deep run last season. They won the Norman regional and advanced to face the Florida State Seminoles in the super regional in Tallahassee. They were also the regular-season champions in the Big East.
The Huskies have a winning culture in baseball. Aside from their spectacular 2024 season, they also won the Big East tournament and the College Park regional during the 2022 season.
They have won 35+ games in each of the last three seasons.
This is perhaps Vanderbilt’s toughest opponent during the trip. However, it is not a Southern California team. Therefore, this is, in all due respect, a neutral-site matchup that would be a good win for both the Commodores and Huskies.
Vanderbilt’s early slate of California games will be a good way for Corbin to test his team. It is unfamiliar ground far from Nashville. If the Commodores can scrape together some wins during this trip, they will be in a good place at the start of their 2025 season.
CLICK HERE for Vanderbilt’s Full 2025 Schedule
WBN NCAA: https://worldbaseball.com/league/ncaa/
