The Monday morning bus rides started early\u2014too early. Then-sophomore infielder Dean Carpentier and his teammates would pile onto the charter at dawn for the 45-minute trek to East Los Angeles College, where they\u2019d practice on a junior college field for four hours before returning to campus to squeeze in classes, homework and repeat the cycle. <\/p>\n
Thursdays meant packing bags for weekend road trips that felt more like exile than away games. Hotels became their second home. Unfamiliar beds. Friends and routine left behind until Sunday.<\/p>\n
For two years, USC\u2019s baseball team lived on the road. An extensive renovation of Dedeaux Field forced the Trojans to play their home games at Great Park in Irvine\u2014another 45-minute bus ride that became a weekly pilgrimage to somewhere that never quite felt like home. They practiced wherever they could find space. They learned to sleep in strange places. They learned, most importantly, to endure.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was a mental and physical toll,\u201d Carpentier says. \u201cBeing away from school, a lot of stuff online. But it made us better people and better baseball players.\u201d<\/p>\n
On Feb. 13, 2026, that odyssey will end. USC opens its season against Pepperdine at a reborn Dedeaux Field, the legendary baseball cathedral that first opened in 1974 where 12 national championship banners once flew and Rod Dedeaux built an empire. After years of wandering, the Trojans are finally coming home.<\/p>\n
As USC\u2019s director of baseball operations, Rock Hudgens has been instrumental in not just the physical reconstruction of Dedeaux Field, but the cultural reconstruction of a program that had fallen from its pedestal. <\/p>\n
In 2021, the team finished with a 22-28 record (13-17 Pac-12). In 2022, they continued to struggle in conference play winning just eight Pac-12 games. <\/p>\n
\u201cBefore we got [here], SC was in last place,\u201d Hudgens says, referring to when he arrived with head coach Andy Stankiewicz in July 2022. \u201cThe biggest thing is getting back to where USC should be.\u201d<\/p>\n
The new Dedeaux Field is a marvel\u2014force plates, a state-of-the-art pitching lab, a weight room that rivals professional facilities, portable Trackmans, sprawling batting cages, hot and cold tubs and a deck designed to wow both recruits and VIPs. But Hudgens knows that bells and whistles alone won\u2019t restore glory. USC\u2019s revival required something deeper, something that starts in the locker room and manifests in the grind of daily practice.<\/p>\n
\u201cGuys weren\u2019t having fun. They didn\u2019t know how to win,\u201d Hudgens explains. \u201cWe had to instill that winning culture. It started in practice\u2014we\u2019re very focused on development, individualized. The guys aren\u2019t robots.\u201d<\/p>\n
The transformation wasn\u2019t immediate. There were hiccups. The team didn\u2019t make it into NCAA regionals during the first two years of the new regime. But slowly, systematically, the Trojans climbed from the conference basement. The culture shift was deliberate: bring in the right guys, use the transfer portal wisely and recruit graduate students who excel both on the field and in the classroom. Build something that wouldn\u2019t quiver.<\/p>\n
That distinction became the program\u2019s lifeline during the displacement years. While other programs hemorrhaged players to the portal, USC retained its core. \u201cOnly had two guys transfer that we would\u2019ve kept,\u201d Hudgens notes with pride. \u201cThat says a lot. Guys stay for the degree.\u201d<\/p>\n
And they stayed for each other. Practicing on borrowed fields, enduring the bus rides and the distance from normal college life\u2014it forged something that no amount of facility upgrades could manufacture alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cI credit the guys that stayed,\u201d Hudgens says. \u201cYou know why you\u2019re playing for it. The culture at SC means a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sergio Brown, an assistant coach and director of player development, has spent four years alongside Stankiewicz watching the program\u2019s resurgence take shape. His favorite movie is Field of Dreams, which feels fitting given USC\u2019s own journey back to its roots, chasing the dream of baseball greatness and building a stadium worthy of the glory.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis program and the alumni deserve this,\u201d Brown says. \u201cThey deserve the best facility.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brown played baseball at Cal State Fullerton during its 1995 College World Series run and actually defeated the Trojans 11-5 in the championship game. He knows that facilities alone doesn\u2019t create champions. The Great Park years, difficult as they were, served a purpose.<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing together every weekend of the season, battling through obstacles\u2014it was a building process,\u201d Brown reflects. \u201cThe mental toll of all those bus rides just to go practice. But now they get to benefit from what they\u2019ve earned.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brown sees the return to Dedeaux as both a homecoming and a statement of intent. USC is trying to resurrect something sacred, to reclaim its place among college baseball\u2019s elite. Last season, the Trojans made their first playoff appearance in 10 years\u2014a milestone that proved the rebuild was gaining traction. But Brown isn\u2019t satisfied with just making the postseason.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need a national championship culture,\u201d he says. \u201cThat means having the right people, talented people, working hard to acquire talent. Players should want to be part of it\u2014academically, the alumni network, everything USC represents.\u201d<\/p>\n
The challenge is formidable. UCLA, its crosstown rival, made it to Omaha last year. The Bruins are a benchmark and a reminder of how far USC still needs to climb. But Brown doesn\u2019t approach the rivalry with fear or obsession.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe don\u2019t do anything differently just because they\u2019re our rival,\u201d he says. \u201cThe proof is in the pudding, no matter who you play. We show a style of play\u2014hard-nosed, gritty baseball. That\u2019s what gets people back in the stands.\u201d<\/p>\n
Brown envisions Dedeaux Field as both a circus and a stage\u2014entertainment married to excellence. The new stadium features grass berms in the outfield where families can bring lawn chairs, creating a fun and accessible atmosphere. The setting itself is spectacular: downtown Los Angeles at sunset, something different about the air, a beautiful backdrop for America\u2019s pastime.<\/p>\n
Hudgens knows that winning isn\u2019t enough in a city with infinite distractions, ranging from sunny beaches to the back-to-back World Series champion Dodgers. \u201cIt comes down to marketing, making sure people have fun at our games,\u201d he says. \u201cBut mostly, if we win, more will come.\u201d<\/p>\n
The roster turnover from last season presents both challenge and opportunity. USC lost its shortstop (Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek), third baseman (Ethan Hedges) and center fielder (Brayden Dowd). Most positions are wide open, which Brown loves. \u201cI love seeing the competition among the guys,\u201d he says. \u201cBattle to earn it, battle to keep it.\u201d<\/p>\n
One player who embodies that competitive spirit is Carpentier, who played extensively as a freshman before tailing off as a sophomore. Brown has watched Carpentier evolve, particularly in recent weeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s beginning to separate as a player and person,\u201d Brown said. \u201c[In the] last three weeks, he\u2019s starting to establish more respect. It\u2019s about pushing guys to grow and develop.\u201d<\/p>\n
Carpentier chose USC for the coaching staff, proximity to home, and education. But when he arrived, the team wasn\u2019t great. His recruiting class was supposed to be the foundation of a rebuild, the group that would endure the displacement years and emerge stronger on the other side.<\/p>\n
\u201cLiving in hotels, being uncomfortable, long bus rides\u2014it was personal growth,\u201d Carpentier says. \u201cLearning about hard work and living with intent and purpose.\u201d<\/p>\n
There was a moment when he considered the portal, when the difficulty of the situation made leaving seem logical. But it was never truly a reality.<\/p>\n
\u201cI understood this is what I want to do in life,\u201d says Carpentier, the oldest of 10 children raised in a Catholic household. \u201cI want to help others, to fulfill God\u2019s promise. This is where I\u2019m supposed to be.\u201d<\/p>\n
His favorite movie is The Sandlot, which he sees as capturing something essential about baseball\u2014enjoying the moment, living it through the game, helping others along the way. It\u2019s that spirit he wants to bring to the Dedeaux Field reopening.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy favorite thing is that the field itself is in perfect condition,\u201d Carpentier says, his excitement palpable. \u201cI envision February 13th against Pepperdine, a packed-out stadium, a fun-filled family atmosphere. And I know we\u2019re going to win that game.\u201d<\/p>\n
The return to Dedeaux Field represents more than just coming home. It\u2019s the culmination of a cultural overhaul that began in last place and resulted in a playoff appearance. It\u2019s the reward for players who stayed when they could have left, who endured hotel rooms and borrowed fields because they believed in something larger than immediate comfort.<\/p>\n
Hudgens sees it clearly: \u201cWhen USC comes knocking, you answer. We have proof that people win here\u2014the network in the baseball world, Mark Prior, the McGwires, the Boone brothers, Randy Johnson. We\u2019re around winners for life.\u201d<\/p>\n
The challenge now is to translate that pedigree into present success. UCLA and its elite head coach John Savage isn\u2019t going away. The transfer portal continues to reshape college baseball\u2019s landscape. Los Angeles remains a difficult market to dominate, even for a historic program with a gleaming new facility.<\/p>\n
The leadership in this year\u2019s group, Brown observes, is already filtering down to the younger players. \u201cIt\u2019s not an ego thing\u2014it\u2019s mature, wisdom-filled dudes mentoring super-talented young guys. I\u2019m excited to see them as draft-eligible sophomores and juniors. I\u2019m excited about the future.\u201d<\/p>\n
Carpentier is looking forward to simpler pleasures, \u201cBeing home, going to Rock & Reilly\u2019s on a Sunday, sleeping in my own bed, experiencing that on-campus feeling with other student-athletes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re capable of playing with anyone,\u201d Brown says. \u201cWe want to make it to Omaha consistently. We want to build something that lasts.\u201d<\/p>\n
USC baseball is finally home and will soon begin the next chapter of its storied history\u2014forged in displacement and playing with the boys they love at a field worthy of the dream.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Monday morning bus rides started early\u2014too early. Then-sophomore infielder Dean Carpentier and his teammates would pile onto…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":547508,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2290],"tags":[5,72256,5213,8989,10157,6225],"class_list":["post-547507","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-baseball","tag-baseball","tag-dedeaux-field","tag-field","tag-usc","tag-usc-baseball","tag-usc-trojans"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/115989456124722599","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=547507"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/547507\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/547508"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=547507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=547507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=547507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}