Long Beach State baseball was picked to finish fourth in the Big West preseason coaches’ poll, released by the conference office today. The Dirtbags return seven starters from 2009 and two starting pitchers in Andrew Gagnon and Jake Thompson.

Long Beach State received 50 points in the poll, which tallies votes from all nine conference head coaches. The 49ers were behind Cal State Fullerton, UC Irvine, and Cal Poly, while just edging UC Riverside for the fourth spot, as the Highlanders had 48 points.

The Titans received seven first place votes, while UC Irvine picked up two, finishing with 79 and 71 points respectively. Cal Poly’s 60-point total was good for 60 points.

UC Santa Barbara was picked sixth, while Pacific, Cal State Northridge, and UC Davis rounded out the bottom of the poll.

2010 Big West Coaches Poll Results 
1. CS Fullerton (7) – 79 
2. UC Irvine (2) – 71 
3. Cal Poly – 60 
4. Long Beach State – 50 
5. UC Riverside – 48 
6. UC Santa Barbara – 36 
7. Pacific – 30 
8. CS Northridge – 19 
9. UC Davis – 12 

Reports From LBSU