UCLA will miss outfielder Will Gasparino in the NCAA regional opener

· Yahoo Sports

The UCLA Bruins will begin their NCAA Super Regional at home against Saint Mary’s on Friday but UCLA will be without one of their top sluggers in the game. Will Gasparino was ejected in Sunday’s Big Ten Conference championship game against Oregon, earning a one-game suspension.

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Gasparino certainly didn’t avoid contact in a rundown between third base and home in the win over Oregon last weekend but it won’t just cost Gasparino the ending of the conference tournament, but also the start of the NCAA regionals.

UCLA has the talent to overcome Gasparino’s absence but the Bruins will miss the 6’6” outfielder on Friday. For the season, Gasparino is batting .316 with 19 home runs and 62 runs batted in.

There’s no arguing that Gasparino lowered his shoulder to brace for contact against the shorter Ducks infielder but the Texas transfer will miss 14 high-leverage innings due to his "malicious" contact. The ejection on Sunday automatically earned Gasparino a one-game suspension but not everyone agrees with that decision.

Oregon head coach Mark Wasikowski spoke up for Gasparino, voicing that he hoped that the UCLA outfielder wouldn’t be suspended to begin the NCAA regionals. The Ducks faced a similar situation last season when Oregon’s Anson Aroz was in a similar predicament but still got served the one-game suspension. 

If the Bruins are a threat to win the College World Series like many believe, then they should be able to hold court without Gasparino for a game. Even still, Saint Mary’s will have one less UCLA slugger to worry about during Friday’s regional opener.

This article originally appeared on UCLA Wire: Will Gasparino's ejection on Sunday will make him miss Friday's game

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