In Episode 56 we're talking with Sam Favata, the first Titan Alumni from the 1979 National Championship team to come on the show. Favata scored the winning run in the 1979 championship game, a 2-to-1 victory over Arkansas. Favata was a two-time all conference selection in 1979 and 1980 and still holds numerous records in the Titan Baseball history books. Favata's 66 stolen bases in 1979 season still ranks No. 1 today for the most stolen bases by a Titan in a single season. His 116 hits in 1979 i...
Mar 01, 2022•1 hr 2 min
Welcome into Episode 55 of the 1544 Miles to Omaha podcast. This is Part 4 of our conversation with legendary Cal State Fullerton coaches Rick Vanderhook and George Horton. Continuing our conversation talking about some of the greatest Titan Baseball players to ever put on a uniform, we cover the intangible aspects of Titan Baseball that helped propel it to be one of the most iconic and most successful programs in college baseball. We delve into who was a great clutch performer, great performanc...
Feb 23, 2022•40 min
Welcome into Episode 54 of the 1544 Miles to Omaha podcast. This is Part 3 of our conversation with legendary Cal State Fullerton coaches Rick Vanderhook and George Horton. Continuing our conversation talking about some of the greatest Titan Baseball players to ever put on a uniform, we tackle the off the field aspects of Titan Baseball that helped propel it to be one of the most iconic and sucessful programs in college baseball. We delve into who was a great clubhouse guy, great recruiting visi...
Feb 09, 2022•48 min
Welcome into Episode 53 of the 1544 Miles to Omaha podcast. This is Part 2 of our conversation with legendary Cal State Fullerton coaches Rick Vanderhook and George Horton. Continuing our conversation talking about some of the greatest Titan Baseball players to ever put on a uniform, we tackle the defensive sides of things while also touching on intangible items like work ethic. We highly suggest listening to Episode 52, the Part 1 of this series to gain context on the intent and spirit of these...
Feb 01, 2022•58 min
Welcome into Episode 52 of the 1544 Miles to Omaha podcast. Today's episode is a podcast unlike any other podcast we have ever done. It features not one, but two guests at the same time. On top of that, those guests are two legends of Titan Baseball, George Horton and Rick Vanderhook. Dave had a chance to sit down in the backyard of George Horton's Yorba Linda home and ask both Horton and Hooky to recall some of the greatest players they played with and coached while with Titan Baseball. We want...
Jan 26, 2022•1 hr 15 min
In Episode 51 we're speaking with Brett Kay who played Titan Baseball from the 1999 to 2001 season, playing primarily catcher. In those three years at Fullerton, Titan teams went to Omaha twice in years 1999 and 2001. Kay was behind the plate and caught the third Titan no-hitter when Kirk Saarloos no-hit the UoP Tigers. He also earned All-Big West First team honors in 2001, had a Titan career batting average above .300, was selected in the 8th round by the New York Mets in the 2001 MLB draft and...
Dec 30, 2021•1 hr 26 min
Episode 50 we're speaking with Titan Baseball Assistant Coach and Recruiting Coordinator Josh Belovsky who along with Head Coach Jason Dietrich and Assistant Coach Neil Walton recently signed 10 student-athletes to national letters of intent to play for the Titans. The inaugural class includes five pitchers, two catchers, two outfielders and one infielder. Dave was able to catch up with Coach Belovsky to ask some questions about the 2021 signing class and what Titan Baseball fans can expect to f...
Dec 17, 2021•25 min
Episode 49 we're speaking with Titan Baseball Head Coach Jason Dietrich to discuss his first fall practices, scrimmages against UNLV and Grand Canyon University and the Navy vs. Orange instrasquad World Series. We also talk a bit at the end about the upcoming Dinner with the Titans Highlights include: 🎙️ Advantages of coaching a warm weather college baseball team in the fall (2:20) 🎙️ Overall impressions after 1st Fall Ball as head coach (4:31) 🎙️ To the victors (of the Navy/Blue scrimmage) g...
Dec 09, 2021•36 min
We are wrapping up our round of interviews with the new faces that have joined the Titan Baseball coaching staff and front office. Today's conversation is with Danny Benedetti who will serve as the Volunteer Assistant on the Titans staff in 2022. Benedetti returns to Orange County where he grew up in Los Alamitos and also played under Jason Dietrich while at Irvine Valley College. He then went on to play at St. John's University where he earned back-to-back All Big East honors and played in the ...
Nov 02, 2021•28 min
Today's guest is Jake Paveltich who has joined the Titan Baseball staff in the role of Director of Player Development. Titan Baseball fans are familiar with Pav after seeing him play for the Titans for four years after redshirting his freshman year. After the heartbreaking loss to Washington in extra innings of Game 3 of the 2018 Super Regional, Pav returned to play his final year of eligibility in 2019 where he wrapped up a career at Goodwin Field batting .276. Pav led the 2019 team in home run...
Oct 21, 2021•57 min
This episode of the 1544 Miles to Omaha Podcast features a one-on-one sit down interview with the sixth head baseball coach in Cal State Fullerton's Division 1 history, Jason Dietrich. We spoke to Coach Dietrich briefly after his introductory press conference in July and you can hear his comments by going back to Episode 40 that was published on July 1st. Coach Dietrich was also a guest on the "Fram and Friends" podcast hosted by Cal State Fullerton President Fram Virjee in September. We would h...
Oct 06, 2021•43 min
Guest is assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Josh Belovsky who most recently served as the West Coast Regional Supervisor for the Milwaukee Brewers. As a college baseball player, Belovsky started at Cypress College and eventually would go to Texas Tech and the University of Kansas. He played professionally mainly within the Boston Red Sox organization and advanced to play for the Trenton Thunder, the Red Sox Double-A affiliate. Belovsky got his coaching start at Cypress College in 2001 wh...
Sep 21, 2021•27 min
Neil Walton joins the show as an assistant coach for Cal State Fullerton Baseball after being the first coach announced to join Jason Dietrich's staff. This is Walton's third stint on campus starting his coaching career at Fullerton as a Graduate Manager for the 2013 Titans before joining Andrew Checkett's staff at UC Santa Barbara in 2014. Walton was in Santa Barbara for four years before returning to Cal State Fullerton in the volunteer assistant role in 2018 and 2019. He most recently served ...
Sep 14, 2021•38 min
Justin Garza became the 70th Cal State Fullerton Titan Baseball alumnus to make his debut in Major League Baseball. As a freshman, Garza was named the Big West Pitcher of the Year in 2013, a year he would go 12-0 and record a team high 95 strikeouts. For his career, Garza ranks tied with Jason Windsor at 7th all time for fewest walks per 9 innings (1.60). Most notably, Garza is best remembered for his May 23, 2014 pitching performance vs. Cal State Northridge where he threw the fourth no-hitter ...
Sep 07, 2021•49 min
Blake Workman, is a right handed pitcher that played for Cal State Fullerton from 2016 through the 2018 seasons. While playing for Titan Baseball, he played in three Regionals, two Super Regionals and one College World Series. Workman ranks fourth in Titan history for his 10.74 Strikeouts per 9 innings pitched in the 2018 season, a year he was named to the Big West First Team All-Conference list. Workman was drafted in the 22nd round of the 2018 MLB draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was rece...
Sep 01, 2021•1 hr 4 min
Although he only coached for the Cal State Fullerton Baseball program for one season, Blake Hawksworth's impact on the program goes beyond the 2017 year, a year the Titans would reach Omaha for the 18th time in program history. Now a pitching coach at the high school level, Blake Hawksworth coached at the Division 1 college level in 2020, coaching at Grand Canyon University before COVID-19 shut-down the season. In this conversation, Hawksworth speaks candidly about the one year he coached the Ti...
Jul 26, 2021•1 hr 12 min
Titan Baseball's 6th Head Coach in D1 program history, Jason Dietrich, was introduced to the media and fans on June 30, 2021. Following the official statements made at the podium, we conducted one-on-one interviews with CSUF President Fram Virjee, CSUF Athletic Director Jim Donovan, Titan Baseball Play-by-Play broadcaster Mike Martinez and of course, the newest head coach, Jason Dietrich. Highlights include: ▶️ 2:20 - CSUF President Fram Virjee on Jason Dietrich's hiring ▶️ 6:15 - CSUF Athletic ...
Jul 01, 2021•29 min
We caught up with Mike Rooney, ESPN studio analyst and color commentator and writer and contributor to D1Baseball.com, before the start of the 2021 college baseball season. You probably most recognize Roons from his work during the College World Series in Omaha, normally wearing his trademark bucket hat while reporting from the field. Mike was a player at Notre Dame from 1989 to 1992 and has coached in high school and was on the Arizona State coaching staff under legendary coach Pat Murphy. Plea...
Feb 03, 2021•1 hr 2 min
Cal State Fullerton Athletic Director Jim Donovan took time out of his very busy schedule to talk about Titan Athletics getting the green light from the Big West Conference to start sporing sports. That means after getting the season canceled 20 games into the 2020 season, Titan Baseball will be back on the field in 2021. What a Titan Baseball season will look like and how the Athletic Department will navigate COVID-19 restrictions and protocols? Jim Donovan shares his thoughts in this episode. ...
Jan 29, 2021•47 min
Right handed pitcher Mike Parisi played for the Titans for three years during the 1992 through the 1994 seasons, playing for the legendary Augie Garrido all three years. Parisi arrived at Cal State Fullerton by way of Arcadia High School in the San Gabriel Valley. Drafted in the sixth round by the Florida Marlins in 1994, Parisi was named to two different All-American teams in 1994. Parisi's four shutouts in 1994 is tied with Kirk Saarloos for the most shutouts in a season along with leading the...
Jan 10, 2021•58 min
We tracked down Cal State Fullerton Head Baseball Coach Rick Vanderhook to get his thoughts on how the position players and hitters are shaping up coming out of fall practice. In Episode 35, we spoke to Pitching Coach Dan Ricabal about the arms and in this episode, Hook reveals who Titan Baseball fans can expect to see out in the field and at the plate. Vanderhook had high praise for outfielders Jackson Lyon and Jason Brandow along with catcher Kameron Guangorena for maximizing their time during...
Dec 18, 2020•45 min
Fall practices have come to a close and although this year's fall ball was quite different due to COVID-19 protocols, Cal State Fullerton pitching coach believes it was more beneficial for the development of the 2021 pitching staff. We caught up with Cal State Fullerton Titan Baseball Pitching Coach Dan Ricabal to discuss the prospects of Tanner Bibee returning to his normal Friday night role, which pitchers will fill the weekend starting rotation and who will eventually emerge and the closer fo...
Dec 09, 2020•52 min
We caught up with Cal State Fullerton Titan Baseball Associate Head Coach and Recruiting Coordinator Sergio Brown to discuss a number of topics. The two main topics included Titan Baseball getting back on the field and practicing in a limited capacity to stay within COVID-19 safety protocols and National Signing Day. Coach Brown was able to reveal that all 11 high school players that had verbally committed to the Titans, all signed their National Letters of Intent this past week. Coach Brown was...
Nov 16, 2020•43 min
Earlier this month, Easton Diamond Sports released a video featuring the return of the "Green Easton", one of the most iconic aluminum bats in college baseball, and used Cal State Fullerton's Titan Baseball program amid the backdrop of the iconic Rosenblatt Stadium. We talk with Austin Hurwitz, Vice President of Marketing and Ecommerce with Easton Diamond Sports about the return of the Green Easton and the choice to use Cal State Fullerton and Rosenblatt prominently in the video. View the video ...
Oct 28, 2020•27 min
Matt Brown has been the Cal State Fullerton Athletics photographer for over 20 years and has captured some of the biggest moments in Titan Baseball history. A photographer from a very early age, Brown has shot for some of the biggest publications including Sports Illustrated and ESPN the Magazine and has captured some of the biggest sports moments including Super Bowls, The World Series, The NBA Finals, AVP, Stanley Cups Finals, NCAA Bowls, The FIFA World Cup and of course, the College World Ser...
Oct 20, 2020•1 hr 32 min
Nate Nankil is the next guest in our series of podcast episodes featuring incoming players to join Titan Baseball for the 2021 season. Nankil will arrive on campus by way of San Diego playing at Bonita Vista High School in Chula Vista. An outfielder by trade, Nate is a 6'3" and around 200 pounds and is projected to compete for an outfield position in the lineup for the upcoming 2021 season. Perfect Game ranked Nankil the 40th best player in the State of California and ranked him the ninth best o...
Aug 12, 2020•25 min
Deylan Pigford is the next guest in our series of podcast episodes featuring incoming players to join Titan Baseball for the 2021 season. Pigford is an incoming transfer by way of Midland College in Texas. Originally from a small town of Farmington in the four corners area of New Mexico, Pigford is a speedy, switch hitting outfielder expected to compete for a major role in the 2021 season. In this episode, we talk with Deylan about the recruiting process in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, h...
Jul 23, 2020•39 min
Tristan Gomes is the next guest in our series of podcast episodes featuring incoming players to join Titan Baseball for the 2021 season. Gomes, a three sport athlete from Millard West High School in Omaha, Nebraska, chose to attend Cal State Fullerton despite his mom and dad being alumni and his older brother currently playing for the Cornhuskers. A middle infielder in high school, due to his height and size, Gomes could move to a corner infield spot eventually. Gomes had the opportunity to play...
Jul 16, 2020•20 min
Christian Rodriquez is the next guest in our series of podcast episodes featuring incoming players to join Titan Baseball for the 2021 season. A tall, right handed pitcher from Orange Lutheran High School, Rodriguez is another Titan legacy to follow his father to the Cal State Fullerton campus. Rodriguez's dad, Josh Weller, played for the Titans in the early 2000's. Rodriguez will arrive on campus with a legitimate shot at competing for a regular starting role and could sneak into the weekend ro...
Jul 09, 2020•44 min
Brendan Bobo is an incoming freshman into the Titan Baseball program by way of Harbor High School in Santa Cruz, California. Bobo committed to Cal State Fullerton last summer and made it official by signing a national letter of intent in the fall. A three sport athlete at Harbor High in football, basketball and of course baseball, Bobo played middle infield spot in high school and expects to stay on the infield once he arrives on Fullerton's campus. In our conversation, Brendan talks about the r...
Jul 06, 2020•28 min
