The Titans have whittled down their roster to the NCAA mandated 36 players for the 2023 season. (Zach Lew does not count towards the NCAA maximum number of 35 due to 2020 season Pandemic exemptions.) In comparing that roster to the fall roster, three names are missing.
Jackson Lapiner, OF/RHP from LA Valley JC, will not be a part of Titans plans in 2023 and is no longer listed on the spring roster. Lapiner arrived on campus with high expectations as a two-way threat and the Titans Baseball Twitter even tweeted out a photo of Lapiner in late November in the weight room.
It’s about the work, always about the work ⚡️#TusksUp pic.twitter.com/JTFqRLuv2o
— Titans Baseball (@FullertonBSB) November 30, 2022
Another player not on the spring roster is Jake Vargas. Vargas, a two-year letter winner with the Titans, played on the 2021 and the 2022 Titan squads. In 2021, Vargas made 14 appearances and pitched 19.1 innings and finished with an 11.17 ERA and a 0-1 record in his freshman season. Last season as a sophomore, Vargas appeared in only four games before his season was cut short due to injury. After fall ball completed, Vargas’ name appeared in the transfer portal and based on his Instagram profile, will be pitching for Azusa Pacific in 2023.
Photo courtesy of Don Hudson
The third name missing is Connor Freire, a RHP from Golden West College. In the scrimmages vs. Washington State and UNLV plus the practices and Navy/Orange Series, we never saw Freire pitch at all. Granted we did not attend every practice but it’s unclear if he was injured or his stuff was not up to snuff for Titan Baseball standards. Regardless, he will not be a part of the 2023 Titan Baseball team.
In the above rosters from Fall and the recently published spring roster, the fall roster had 41 players listed. The spring roster has 38 listed. So how do the Titans get to the NCAA Maximum of 36 with two still above that number?
Two players, Christian Rodriguez and Jackson Giacone, remain on the roster but will not play in 2023 due to injury.
Photo courtesy of Hank Tran
Most fans knew that C-Rod was going to miss the 2023 campaign after undergoing Tommy John Surgery this past summer. The last game Rodriguez pitched for the Titans came vs. CSU Bakersfield on April 2, 2022 where he threw 6.1 inning, gave up four hits, three earned runs, walked five and struck out one. It is unclear if the injury occurred in that game or during a practice bullpen following that game. Never the less, C-Rod did not pitch the remainder of 2022 and finished the season notching seven starts, 38.2 innings and a 4.19 ERA. Due to the estimated recovery period for TJ surgery being roughly a year combined with Rodriguez getting the procedure after the 2022 season completed, we don’t expect to see Christian pitching in 2023 for the Titans.
With C-Rod out for the year, that leaves one more player listed on the roster but unable to play. That player appears to be Freshman Outfielder, Jackson Giacone.
Giacone, from Eureka, Calif., looked to add outfield depth to the Titans in 2023 prior to his injury. We’re unsure if the injury occurred while practicing or came off the field but it appears to be a neck injury of sorts. This has the looks of a sure-fire redshirt year for Giacone with an injury this serious. We wish Jackson a speedy and safe recovery and look forward to seeing him in the outfield for the Titans in 2024.
With both Rodriguez and Giacone out for the season, the listed roster of 38 is now down to the maximum of 36 that can compete in games in 2023. Examining the roster closer, three players are listed with multiple position designations, most notably pitching and fielding designations. With a roster of 36 and a travel roster even smaller than that, having more players that can pitch will help with arm fatigue later on in the season when the bullpen is stretched. Those players that can play two-ways are:
JT Navyac – INF/RHP
Luke Mistone – RHP/1B
Moises Guzman – OF/RHP
Including those three that have pitching designations, the Titans will have a total of 21 arms at their disposal. 15 pitchers are right handed while six are south paws.
Following the Alumni game and prior to the season opener vs. Stanford on February 17th, we will offer up our predictions of who will likely start regularly on both the mound and at the plate. Look for that coming in early February.