FULLERTON, Calif. — James Roberts went 2-for-3, reaching base three times and played a flawless game in his first start at shortstop since April 5, but it wasn’t enough for USC. The Trojans fell 4-2 to Cal State Fullerton Tuesday night on the road at Goodwin Field.
With Adam Landecker out of the lineup, and subsequently found to be out for the year, Roberts moved back to his normal shortstop position, where he started all 56 games as a freshman and the first 26 games this season.
Roberts had played eight games at second base and four games at third base since Landecker had taken over the shortstop position on April 6. Roberts was moved after struggling to consistently make the throw across the diamond to first base.
Roberts’ defensive confidence seems to have slowly grown as his offense has come around. In the midst of an 18-game hitting streak, Roberts has raised his batting average nearly 100 points to .319, third best on the team.
After Tuesday’s loss, I talked to Roberts about the tough loss and the turnaround of his season.
Roberts said the biggest thing for him has been getting healthy after starting the season with some nicks and dings. He also discussed the big series the Trojans have this weekend against Washington, another team that is on the bubble for NCAA selection consideration:
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