The Dirtbags
| Long Beach State 49ers | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Founded | 1954 |
| University | California State University, Long Beach |
| Conference | Big West |
| Location | Long Beach, CA |
| Head coach | Troy Buckley (6th year) |
| Home stadium |
Blair Field (Capacity: 3,342) |
| Nickname | Dirtbags |
| Colors | Black and Gold |
| College World Series appearances | |
| 1989, 1991, 1993, 1998 | |
| NCAA Tournament appearances | |
| 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2008, 2014, 2016 | |
| Conference champions | |
| 1964, 1969, 1970, 1989, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1996, 1997, 2003, 2008 | |
The Long Beach State 49ers baseball team is the college baseball program that represents California State University, Long Beach. Although all Long Beach State sports teams are officially known as the 49ers, the baseball team is generally referred to as the "Dirtbags". Their colors are black and gold.
Long Beach State (LBSU) has competed in the NCAA Division I Big West Conference (BWC) – originally known as the Pacific Coast Athletic Association (PCAA, from 1969 to 1988) – since the 1969–1970 academic year. Before becoming a founding member of the PCAA (now BWC), LBSU participated in the NCAA Division II California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) from 1957 to 1969, and before that spent three years as an independent team.
The Long Beach State baseball team gained national prominence in 1989, with the hiring of Dave Snow as head coach. Since then The Dirtbags have been, historically, one of the strongest teams on the West Coast, being consistently ranked in the national top 25 and appearing in 17 of 20 NCAA tournaments through 2008.
The Dirtbags currently play their home games at Blair Field, a semi-professional baseball facility located less than 2 miles from campus and operated by the city of Long Beach.
When John McConnell agreed to coach the first ever baseball team at the new Long Beach State College in 1954, he faced adversity almost from the start. For one thing McConnell was a cross country runner by trade, not a baseball player, and he was already splitting his time by also serving as an assistant coach for the basketball team. For another, the school had yet to build a baseball field of its own, so the team was forced to survive by holding practices on the public field at Whaley Park adjacent to campus. All of the team's first 11 games were played on the road; only towards the very end of the season, when the school's field was finally completed, could the 49ers host their first home game. On top of it all, the fledgling program faced by a severe lack of players: the entire roster consisted of just 14 players at the start of the year. In the end the team's unfortunate circumstances resulted in a lackluster performance, and a modest 3–13 record for the 1954 season.
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