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There are plenty of reasons why Jered Weaver and his No. 36 are the first and only Long Beach State Dirtbags player jersey to be retired on the wall at Bohl Diamond and Blair Field.
Obviously the biggest reason is that Weaver is the only Dirtbags’ Golden Spikes Award winner after his historic season on the mound in 2004 while leading the Long Beach State to the NCAA Super Regional.
But why the number 36? It’s because the date of his parent’s birthdays 23 and 13 add up to 36.
That dedication to his team, his family and his home defined a legendary career that never left his native Southern California.
“To say this is an honor is an understatement,” Weaver said after the pregame ceremony on Friday night. “To be labeled a Dirtbag is an honor. It’s my style of baseball… I never thought I’d have my name on the wall. Twenty years removed to look out there and see my name (on the outfield wall) is kind of a trip, it’s a very humbling experience.”
This jersey retirement was a longtime coming for Weaver, who already has the visitors bullpen named after him. The lanky righty earned eight All-American nods during his three years as a Dirtbag while setting records throughout his 37 wins over 55 starts. His 370 innings pitched and 441 strikeouts are also career program records.
The 2004 season was the hallmark as Weaver struck out 214 batters, which is the sixth most by any NCAA D1 pitcher in a season. In classic Weaver fashion, the Friday Knight laughed off any reference to his greatness like when he struck out the first 10 USC batters he faced early in the 2004 season.
“I think the first 10 batters went blind for a second and I got really lucky,” Weaver said with a smile. “You don’t go out trying to do anything like that, you just set the tone for your team, get your teammates back into the dugout as quickly as possible, then you start to rack up a couple strikeouts then you get the crowd going and then you realize what you’re doing… but you never go out there to try to do anything like that. It’s just one of those things that falls into place.”
Weaver was drafted 12th overall by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim in 2004 and played 12 seasons with the local team while winning 150 games and going to three All-Star Games. He led the league in strikeouts in 2010, and had a chance to take a big free agent contract that offseason, but openly took less money to stay local with the Angels. He punctuated that choice with a no-hitter at home in 2012 with his parents in attendance.
“I’m truly blessed (to stay local) because there’s so many different places you can go to play,” Weaver said. “I grew up a Dodgers fan but Anaheim was the next best thing. To be able to be there for 12 years was honestly a tremendous honor and then to move down to San Diego (where I finished my career with the Padres)… that’s why I took the hometown discount with the Angels is because I love having my friends and family there. For them to be able to come to the stadium and share those moments with me, you can’t put a price on that stuff. I’m very blessed and very honored to stay here in Southern California.”
The pregame ceremony before the Dirtbags took on UC Irvine was highlighted by Weaver’s 10 minute speech of telling stories and thanking everyone. He was flanked by former Dirtbags coaches John McConnell, Mike Weathers and Dave Snow sitting on his left, and immediate family members sitting on the right side. Current Dirtbags coach Bryan Peters was included and the moment wasn’t lost on him.
“That was a really beautiful moment,” Peters said. “I felt so honored to be there. It’s really a special thing, I got emotional and I know Jered got emotional. It was hard to understand how awesome that moment was going to be. I know that he personally has sparked a lot of the Dirtbags fanbase, like I’ve heard several stories, ‘When I came to watch Jered Weaver throw, I became a Dirtbags fan.’ His legacy is so powerful and so strong. He deserved that to the fullest extent. I’m so happy for him.”
The ceremony was organized and MC’d by LBSU athletic director Bobby Smitheran, who also championed the return of the LBSU Hall Of Fame ceremony earlier this year.
“When you have a history like we have at Long Beach State, why wouldn’t you celebrate?” he said. “We are littered with some of the best in sports. It’s a prideful thing for this institution, this community and to be able to bring those people back and see the reaction he’s getting… It’s a prideful moment for all of us and I think we need to do more of them. Coming out of the pandemic, we’re starting to hit our stride with our ability to have events, bring people back and really celebrate the history of our program.”
Weaver also took time to speak with the current Dirtbags players, reminding them that this college baseball experience is something very special. Asked if he would ever consider coming back to coach the Dirtbags after he’s done coaching his own kids, Weaver once again answered with a smile.
“Yeah, I gotta get the kids out of the house first. If I’m going to commit to that I’m going to commit to it 100 percent. I would love to when the time comes, but right now I’m knee deep in travel baseball and soccer and all of that stuff.”
