What a way to open the baseball season.

Hawai'i will face No. 9 UC Irvine tonight in the 2009 season opener at Les Murakami Stadium.

The Rainbows are looking to rebound from an injury-riddled 29-31 season, while the Anteaters are aiming for the College World Series. Hawai'i's 2008 season ended in the Western Athletic Conference tournament; Irvine's ended in the Super Regionals.

"Their lineup is very experienced," UH coach Mike Trapasso said of UCI. "Most of their guys played in Omaha two years ago and were three outs away from going to Omaha last year. It's an experienced crew with high expectations coming into this year."

The Anteaters (42-18 in 2008) bring a talented cast with four preseason All-Americans in starting pitchers Daniel Bibona and Christian Bergman, closer Eric Pettis and shortstop Ben Orloff.

Second-year UCI coach Mike Gillespie likes his offense because of its experience, but except for the three aforementioned pitchers, his other hurlers have yet to be tested.

"Everybody else, literally, has hardly pitched in college," Gillespie said. "It's not that they're not capable. We have some guys who are capable, but until we see them out there when it counts, we're going to have to see it."

The Anteaters will start the left-handed Bibona (9-3, 3.08 ERA in 2008) tonight and right-handers Bergman (5-2, 1.94) and Crosby Slaught (1-1, 4.37) in tomorrow's doubleheader.

Gillespie has yet to determine Sunday's starter. He said if the right-handed Pettis (4-2, 2.62, 17 saves) isn't used in the first three games, he could start Sunday.

"That's a crazy way to do it, but that's a reflection of how concerned we are about the depth of our pitching," Gillespie said.

Gillespie is familiar with Hawai'i, having been here as recently as 2006, when he was the head coach at Southern California. He's aware of the distractions, adding four players were late for the bus to last night's workout. The four, three of them freshmen, were unlikely to start, but their playing status for the series will be affected, Gillespie said.

Last year, UH went 1-8 against teams nationally ranked at the time it played them. The lone win came at Stanford.

With the loss of shortstop Jon Hee and center fielder Brandon Haislet to graduation and the draft, the Rainbows return starters at six other positions and designated hitter.

CATCHING

Landon Hernandez has been durable and reliable behind the plate. He enters his final season with a .283 career batting average and nine home runs. He has been especially hot late in the season. He was 12 for 27 with four home runs in the past two WAC tournaments. Trapasso is looking for more consistency this season.

"We hope he can pick up where he left off last season," Trapasso said.

Hernandez, picked in the 50th round by the Detroit Tigers in June, is ranked 47th among the top 50 seniors by Baseball America.

INFIELD

Three-fourths of the infield is established with returning starters. There are veterans at the corners in juniors Vinnie Catricala at third and Kevin Macdonald at first. Both are run-producers, with 66 and 57 career RBIs, respectively. Both also are solid fielders.

Greg Garcia, an All-WAC second-team selection as a freshman, returns to shortstop after switching to second following an ankle injury last season. He has good bat control (24 walks to 17 strikeouts) and some speed (6 of 6 in steals).

Second base will be a swing spot with freshman Kolten Wong and seniors Shane Hoey and Ryan Morford sharing time. Wong provides flexibility because he can also play center field and catcher. He was a 16th-round pick of the Minnesota Twins out of Kamehameha-Hawai'i last June, but opted for school.

"He'll be fun to watch because of his versatility," Trapasso said. "But we have to remember he's still a freshman."

OUTFIELD

Matt Roquemore finished last season with an 11-game hitting streak and will play either center or left field. The alternative in center is Wong, who is pegged to bat leadoff, at least for tonight.

Returning right fielder Jeff Van Doornum is nursing a tender right (throwing) shoulder and will open the season at DH. He also had a hot finish, batting 8 for 22 with two doubles and two homers with 11 RBIs to make the WAC all-tournament team last spring. His 44 RBIs were second only to Haislet last season. Because of the outfield depth, there is no rush to get him on the field.

Newcomer Christian Johnson has some pop and leather. He won the JC-level Gold Glove last year at Central Arizona. The 'Iolani School grad is pegged for right field.

Also figuring in the mix is Sean Montplaisir, who made 33 starts last year.

PITCHING

The preseason WAC Pitcher of the Year, Jared Alexander, won't be available for this series. He would have been the opening night starter, but he is still nursing a tender right (throwing) elbow. Alexander's season debut will likely come in relief before he gets extended in a start.

This weekend's rotation — right-handers Jayson Kramer, Nate Klein, Alex Capaul and Matt Sisto — has a combined four career Division I starts, all by Capaul. Kramer pitched exclusively in relief his first three seasons, Klein is a JC transfer whose career started at USC when Gillespie was the coach, and Sisto is a freshman.

Sophomore right-hander Josh Slaats, who made eight starts last season, will utilize his low-90 mph fastball as the closer. He pitched out of the bullpen for Wareham of the Cape Cod League over the summer, earning two saves.