Gouldsmith sees signs of progress

By the end of the baseball season, UNLV coach Buddy Gouldsmith might be ready to run a marathon. He seemed to be training for one Tuesday night, repeatedly trotting from the dugout to the mound to change pitchers.

Gouldsmith obviously could do without some of the exercise. The work required to rebuild the Rebels is exhausting enough.

Gouldsmith is in his sixth season, and after three consecutive losing seasons, his future at UNLV remains as uncertain as it was last year at this time.

He said it's not something he worries about on a daily basis. Gouldsmith is working on a one-year contract, and it will be up to athletic director Mike Hamrick to decide if the program is going in the right direction.

"I think the future is bright," Gouldsmith said. "You do see progress."

The Rebels are 25-24 after getting blasted 22-5 by UC Riverside in a nonconference game Tuesday at Wilson Stadium. Gouldsmith used six pitchers, and the Highlanders hit four home runs.

UNLV's top pitchers will take the mound Thursday through Saturday in a three-game Mountain West Conference series at Brigham Young.

Recruiting quality starting pitchers has been a priority for Gouldsmith, and he has two freshmen, Tanner Peters (5-4, 3.84 ERA) and Andrew Beresford (3-2, 4.99), who appear capable of anchoring the rotation for the next two years.

"I like where we're at on the mound on the weekend. Obviously, we need some depth," Gouldsmith said. "Hopefully, Tanner and Andy are a sign of what we can do and what we can home grow.

"We're certainly capable. We can play with anybody on the weekend."

Gouldsmith has a career record of 172-180, giving him the second-most wins in program history. But he's fighting a perception that the Rebels are in decline.

In Gouldsmith's first two years, UNLV won 72 games and two Mountain West titles. The Rebels slipped to 29-30 in 2006, 24-36 in 2007 and 22-37 last year.

Gouldsmith softened the schedule this season, partly because of his inexperienced pitching staff, and 15 of the Rebels' wins have come against Butler, Maine, Northern Colorado and Saint Peter's College.

UNLV is 9-9 and fifth in the Mountain West, picking up quality wins against New Mexico, Utah and San Diego State.

"I thought this team, with the schedule we played, could have 29 wins now," Gouldsmith said. "The future looks good, but that's the future, and right now we're trying to compete and elevate ourselves within the league."

Senior center fielder J.J. Sferra, leading the team with a .399 batting average, said the Rebels are improved over the past two seasons.

"This loss tonight was tough, but we've just got to flush it and focus on winning a series at BYU," Sferra said. "We had a big series win at New Mexico last weekend, and we're gaining momentum.

"We've brought in a lot of good freshmen this year. It's getting better and will keep getting better eventually."

Contact reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907.