UC Santa Barbara junior right-handed pitcher Shane Bieber – a 2013 Laguna Hills High graduate – has been named to the NCAA Division I West All-Region First Team, the American Baseball Coaches Association announced June 15.
One of three starting pitchers on the first team, Bieber was joined by Big West rival Darren McCaughan of Long Beach State, as well as Pepperdine ace A.J. Puckett.
On the season, Bieber has an impressive 12-3 record to go along with a 2.84 ERA. His 12 wins are fourth-most among NCAA pitchers and rank second all-time in UCSB single-season history, while his 103 strikeouts are the seventh-most by a Gaucho pitcher in one year.
In three postseason starts this year, Bieber was 2-1, with his one loss coming in a heartbreaking 1-0 loss to Oklahoma State in the College World Series June 18.
A fourth round pick by the Cleveland Indians in the 2016 MLB First Year Player Draft, Bieber was also selected to the All-Big West First Team.
He was named the conference Pitcher of the Week on April 18 after posting a four-hit shutout of Cal State Northridge, one of his league-leading four complete games on the year.
One of the premier control pitchers in college baseball, Bieber has issued just 16 walks in 1262/3 innings for a rate of 1.14 per nine innings that ranks 14th in the country. He finished the 2015 in the top-10 for walks per nine at 1.08.
A three-year member of the weekend rotation, Bieber has had one of the most productive careers in school history, accruing 23 wins (third-most), 231 strikeouts (second-most), and 292 innings (eighth-most). He has allowed just 38 free passes in his entire career, a rate of 1.17 per game.
