May 6, 2007
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WASHINGTON STATE COUGARS (21-21, 4-12 Pac-10)
2007 SERIES
Saturday, May 5 - Stanford 6, at Washington State 4
Sunday, May 6 (2 pm, PT) - LHP Jeremy Bleich (1-8, 5.88) vs. RHP Nick Ison (4-6, 5.37)
Sunday's Live Game Coverage: Gametracker
Monday, May 7 (12 pm, PT) - TBA vs. TBA
Saturday's Live Game Coverage: Gametracker
STANFORD-WASHINGTON STATE SERIES HISTORY
All-Time Series: Stanford 31-15
2006 Results: Series - Washington State 2-1 (at Stanford, March 25-27) - Washington State 7-1, Washington State 8-5, Stanford 5-3
Current Game Win Streak: Stanford - 2 (March 27, 2006 - May 5, 2007)
Current Series Win Streak: Washington State - 1 (March 25-27, 2006)
Current Season Series Win Streak: Washington State - 1 (2006)
Series Notes: Stanford had won an amazing 23 consecutive games over Washington State dating back to March 23, 1978, before the Cougars ended the streak with 7-1 and 8-5 wins in the first two games of the 2006 series between the clubs at Stanford, Stanford has now won two straight again after salvaging a 5-3 victory in the 2006 series finale and winning again in the 2007 series opener on Saturday, 6-4. Last season's Washington State series victory over the Cardinal also ended a run of seven straight Stanford series wins and sweeps since the Pac-10 added Washington State to its baseball teams in 1999. Stanford still has a 13-game win streak in Pullman intact with sweeps over the Cougars on their home turf in 2000, 2001, 2003 and 2005. The last WSU win over Stanford in Pullman came way back on May 8, 1970, when the Cougars swept a doubleheader between the clubs.
FIRST WIN IN PAC-10 SERIES-OPENER
Stanford's 6-4 win in Saturday's series opener against Washington State on May 5 marked the first time the Cardinal has won the opening game of a Pac-10 series this season in six tries. Stanford had actually lost seven straight series-openers dating back to its last series-opening win over California on March 2.
GOING FOR BACK-TO-BACK WINS
Stanford will be looking for back-to-back wins for the first time since the Cardinal won at Sacramento State and at San Jose State on March 25 and 27 when the Cardinal faces Washington State in the second game of their current Pac-10 series on May 6.
PLAYING WELL ON CAMERA
Stanford has won each of its last two TV games over Oregon State (April 28) and at Washington State (May 5) after losing its first two TV games of the campaign at Arizona State (April 7) and versus Oregon State (April 27).
FINAL MONTH OF REGULAR SEASON STARTS
Stanford has began its final month of the regular season with a 16-8 loss to Santa Clara on May 1 and a 6-4 win at Washington State on May 5. The Cardinal has 13 more games scheduled in the May with the remainder of its current series at Washington State (May 6-7), as well as contests versus Washington (May 11-13), at Santa Clara (May 15), versus Pacific (May 18, 20), at Pacific (May 19), versus UC Davis (May 22) and at USC (May 25-27).
TRYING TO STOP SERIES LOSING STREAKS
Stanford needs just one victory in the final two games of its current series versus Washington State to end a pair of long series losing streaks. Stanford has dropped six straight series overall as well as six consecutive Pac-10 series dating back to the final conference series of 2006. The current overall series losing streak includes each of the team's first five 2007 Pac-10 series versus UCLA (sweep), at Arizona State (sweep), against Arizona (2-of-3), at California (2-of-3) and versus Oregon State (2-of-3) as well as a non-conference home set to USC (2-of-3). Stanford hasn't won a series since sweeping California at Sunken Diamond in a three-game non-conference series March 2-4. Stanford's six-series Pac-10 losing skid includes the same five 2007 conference series as well as the final league series of 2006 at UCLA with the team's last Pac-10 series win coming in a road sweep at Washington (May 12-14, 2006). Both streaks are the program's longest since Stanford lost six straight overall series by dropping its final five series of 1993 (all Pac-10) as well as its first non-conference series of 1994 and eight straight overall series from April 13, 1978 - March 31, 1979.
SECOND HALF OF PAC-10 PLAY
Stanford has improved to 4-12 in the Pac-10 with a 2-2 record in its first four games of the second half of league after going 2-10 in the first half of the 24-game conference schedule. Stanford has moved into an eighth-place tie with Washington State after being in last at the halfway mark.
ADAM SORGI NAMED PAC-10 PLAYER OF WEEK
Adam Sorgi was named the Pac-10 Player of the Week on May 1 for the week of April 24-30. Sorgi hit .550 (11-20) with a double, triple and seven RBI to go along with four runs scored, a .700 slugging percentage and a .625 on-base mark.
TOUGH STARTS
Stanford started 2007 Pac-10 play with an 0-8 league mark that was the worst in recorded school history before winning its first conference game against Arizona on April 15. Stanford also started the season with an 0-3 record to mark the first time since 1989 the Cardinal had lost its first three games of the season. In addition, the sweep at Cal State Fullerton was also the first time Stanford had been swept in a three-game season-opening series in the school's recorded history.
WINNING/POSTSEASON STREAKS IN JEOPARDY
Stanford is battling to extend its current strings of 13 straight winning seasons and the same number of consecutive appearances in the NCAA Division I Baseball Championships from 1994-2006. The Cardinal has a current 19-24 overall record that is five games under .500 and needs to go 9-4 over its final 13 regular season games to avoid only its second losing season in the past 43 years. The last time Stanford did not have a winning season and did not qualify for the postseason was in 1993 when the club missed the postseason with a 27-28 overall mark.
FIFTH ALL-TIME WINNINGEST PROGRAM
Stanford is the fifth all-time winningest program in college baseball history with a record of 2509-1574-32 (.614) in 4115 games over 114 seasons including 2007. Fordham, Texas, USC and Michigan are the top four.
TEAM STATS
OFFENSE - Stanford is seventh in the Pac-10 in batting average (.289) and hits (436), as well as tied for seventh in home runs (28), eighth in runs scored (242), and last (9th) in stolen bases (20).
PITCHING - Stanford has struggled tremendously on the mound with an uncharacteristically high 6.29 ERA that is last in the Pac-10 by 108 points over eighth-place Washington State (5.21 ERA) and 97 points higher than the highest ERA in the school's recorded history when the 1979 pitching staff posted a 5.36 mark. The team's .315 opponents' batting average is also last in the Pac-10.
FIELDING - Stanford also ranks last in the Pac-10 in fielding percentage (.958) despite six errorless games in its last 14 contests. Stanford's errors of late have come in bunches with 11 multiple-error contests in the last 19 games, including four in its most recent contest at Washington State on May 5. Stanford's best defensive stretch came during a four-game errorless streak from March 10-25.
TEAM LEADERS
OFFENSE - Sean Ratliff is having a big season and has arguably been the team's most consistent hitter in 2007. Ratliff is leading the Cardinal in nearly every offensive category, including home runs (9, #10T Pac-10), stolen bases (9), triples (3, co-leader, #6T Pac-10), runs scored (46), hits (56), total bases (98), slugging percentage (.557), at bats (176, #7T Pac-10), games played (43) and games started (43). Joey August has the team's top batting average (.323) and on-base percentage (.392) among those with the minumum 2.5 at bats per team game needed to qualify, while also leading the club with three sacrifice bunts. Other offensive team leaders or co-leaders include Michael Taylor (38 RBI; 5 HBP, co-leader), Cord Phelps (13 2B, #8T Pac-10; 3 3B, co-leader, #6T Pac-10; 18 BB), Brian Juhl (5 HBP, co-leader; 3 SF, co-leader and Brent Milleville (3 SF, co-leader). Reigning Pac-10 Player of the Week Adam Sorgi is notably hitting .394 (41-104) and has a .466 on-base percentage but is still currently 3.5 at bats shy of reaching the 2.5 minimum number of at bats per game to qualify for the team lead in both categories.
PITCHING - Jeffrey Inman (4-2, 5.10, 65.1 IP, 56 SO) leads the club in wins and strikeouts, co-leads the club with one complete game and has also posted the lowest ERA among any pitcher with at least one inning pitched per team game played. Jeremy Bleich (1-8, 5.88, 72.0 IP, 42 SO) has the team lead in innings pitched and starts (12, #7T Pac-10). Nolan Gallagher (3-5, 7.27, 52.0 IP, 39 SO) has the club's only other complete game and the team's only shutout. Gallagher had been in the team's rotation along with Inman and Bleich for most of the season before coming out of the bullpen in each of his last three appearances and going 1-0 with a save in those three outings. David Stringer (0-2, 6.30, 7 SV, 40.0 IP, 28 SO) paces the club with 25 appearances and seven saves, ranking second and tied for sixth in the Pac-10 in those two categories.
HOT BATS
Stanford is currently on its best offensive run of the season. The Cardinal has posted a season-high nine consecutive double-digit hit games and is hitting .350 (121-346) over the stretch. Adam Sorgi (.543, 19-35, 3 2B, 1 3B, 10 RBI) has been the club's top hitter during the period.
DAY AND NIGHT
Stanford is a respectable 15-13 during day games but just 4-11 at night.
LAST SERIES STATS (OREGON STATE)
OFFENSE - Stanford scored 22 runs to average 7.3 runs per contest in one of its most productive offensive series of the season. Stanford hit .336 as a team as Randy Molina (.667, 4-6, 2 RBI), Jeff Whitlow (.667, 2-3, HR, RBI), Joey August (.625, 5-8, RBI), Adam Sorgi (.615, 8-13, 3B, 5 RBI), Michael Taylor (.375, 6-16, 2 2B, HR, 4 RBI) and Toby Gerhart (.357, 5-14, 2 2B, RBI) all hit .357 or better in three-game set.
PITCHING - Stanford's excellent offensive series was derailed by a pitching staff that posted an ERA of 8.07 and walked 22 batters while allowing 28 runs (26 earned) as well as a .291 opponents' batting average. Blake Hancock (0-0, 0.00, 1 APP, 0.1 IP, 1 H, 1 SO) was the only one of nine Stanford pitchers to not allow a run in the series, while the three Stanford starters (Jeffrey Inman, 6.00; Erik Davis, 12.46; Jeremy Bleich, 14.54) combined for a 10.43 ERA.
FIELDING - Stanford committed five errors in the series for a .960 fielding percentage with three in the series opener on Friday and two more Saturday before going errorless Sunday.
SEVERAL PLAYERS WITH HIT STREAKS
Stanford has several players currently with significant hit streaks. Sean Ratliff (9 games) and Toby Gerhart (8 games) are both currently on career-best runs, while Adam Sorgi (9 games) and Michael Taylor (6 straight multiple-hit contests) both have significant runs as well.
SEAN RATLIFF'S OFFENSIVE FOCUS PAYS OFF
Ratliff is leading the Cardinal in nearly every offensive category, including home runs (9, #10T Pac-10), stolen bases (9), triples (3, co-leader, #6T Pac-10), runs scored (46), hits (56), total bases (98), slugging percentage (.557), at bats (176, #7T Pac-10), games played (43) and games started (43). He has also contributed a .318 batting average, nine doubles and 26 RBI. Ratliff was 0-for-14 with 10 strikeouts in limited offensive action last season and has still struggled with his strikeouts in 2007 with a Pac-10-high 54.
CORD PHELPS DOING SOMETHING EXTRA
Cord Phelps ranks third on the club with 16 extra base hits, leading the team in doubles (13, #8T Pac-10) and tied for the club lead along with Sean Ratliff in triples (3, #6T Pac-10). Last year, all 18 of Phelps' hits were singles.
ADAM SORGI BACK IN ACTION
Adam Sorgi has returned from a shoulder injury that caused him to miss the entire 2006 season and limited him early in 2007. Sorgi played his first game in the field since 2005 against California on March 4 and has started 26 of the 28 games at the position since, including all 24 since the Cardinal returned from a 12-day break on March 24. He is hitting .394 (41-104) with seven doubles, a triple, 19 RBI and 19 runs scored overall. He also had the team's longest hitting streak of the season when he hit safely in 12 straight contests from March 4 - April 10 and has a current nine-game run in which he is hitting .543 (19-35) and has multiple hits in seven of the nine games.
WINNING THE CLOSE ONES
Stanford has 6-3 record in one-run games this season and has also won both of its extra-inning contests this season at San Jose State (March 27) and versus Oregon State (April 28).
LONG GAMES
Stanford has clocked in at 3:00 or over in 26 of its first 43 games this season, gone 3:40 or longer 13 times and more than 4:00 on three occasions, including a season-long 4:12 against UCLA on March 31. Stanford played 11:36 over three games for an average game time of 3:52 in its most recent series against Oregon State (April 27-29).
COMEBACK KIDS
Stanford has come from behind in 13 of its 19 wins this season. Stanford's biggest comeback of the year came versus USC (March 11) when the Cardinal was down 8-4 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning before scoring four times to the game at 8-8 and six more in the eighth in an eventual 14-9 win.
EARLIER LOSING SKIDS
Stanford dropped six straight home games (March 24 - April 14) earlier this season and nine consecutive Pac-10 contests (May 21, 2006 - April 14, 2007) that dated back to the final conference contest of last year that were both the longest in recorded school history.
POWER PLUGGED BACK IN
Stanford hit a season-high three homers in its most recent game at Washington State (May 5) to increase its season total to 28 in its first 43 games this season. Stanford still needs 12 more long balls in 13 remaining regular season games to extend the team's string of 20 consecutive 40-homer seasons.
PLAYING THE BEST
Stanford has already played some of the best teams both in the nation and the Pac-10. The Cardinal played seven of its first 10 three-game series and has played 21 of its first 43 games against teams ranked in at least one national poll at some point in the season.
SUNKEN DIAMOND
Sunken Diamond has served as a host site for 13 NCAA Regionals, as well as NCAA Regionals on five occasions. Stanford has clinched 10 of its 15 trips to the College World Series at Sunken Diamond. Stanford has also made Sunken Diamond a tough place for opponents in recent years, winning at least 17 games at home in each of the last 11 seasons prior to 2007 with an amazing 305-97 (.759) record during the stretch. However, Stanford is just an even .500 (13-13) at home this season and will need three victories in its remaining six regular season home games to avoid the first home losing season in recorded school history. Stanford's worst home record ever came in 1964 when the Cardinal was 13-13 at Sunken Diamond.
STANFORD CAREER STATS VERSUS WASHINGTON STATE
Joey August (.250, 4 GP, 4 GS, 4-16, 2 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 2 SO, 1 SB)
Jeremy Bleich (0.00, 0-0, 1 APP, 1 SV, 2.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 SO)
Jason Castro (.333, 3 GP, 3 GS, 3-9, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 GDP, 1 SAC)
Erik Davis (0.00, 0-0, 1 APP, 0.1 IP, 1 H, 1 BB)
Brendan Domaracki (.000, 4 GP, 0-11, 1 BB, 1 SO)
Max Fearnow (0.00, 0-0, 1 APP, 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 2 SO)
Nolan Gallagher (3.52, 0-1, 2 APP, 7.2 IP, 13 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 SO)
Adam Gaylord (.000, 1 GP, 1 GS, 0-3, 1 SAC)
Toby Gerhart (.200, 1 GP, 1 GS, 1-5, 1 R, 2 SO)
Jeffrey Inman (1.00, 1-0, 1 APP, 1 GS, 1 CG, 9.0 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 SO)
J.J. Jelmini (.000, 1 GP, 1 GS, 0-2, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 2 SO)
Brian Juhl (.250, 1 GP, 1 GS, 1-4, 1 RBI, 1 SO)
Brent Milleville (.000, 2 GP, 0-1, 1 BB, 1 SO)
Randy Molina (.300, 4 GP, 2 GS, 3-10, 2 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 4 BB, 1 HBP, 1 SO, 1 GDP)
Cord Phelps (.250, 3 GP, 3 GS, 2-8, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 SO, 1 SAC)
Sean Ratliff (Hitting: .600, 1 GP, 1 GS, 3-5, 2 R, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 2 SO Pitching: 0.00, 0-0, 1 APP, 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 SO)
Adam Sorgi (.346, 6 GP, 6 GS, 9-26, 6 R, 3 2B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB, 2 SO, 1 SAC, 1 SB)
David Stringer (27.00, 0-0, 1 APP, 1 GS, 1.1 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB)
Michael Taylor (.393, 7 GP, 7 GS, 11-28, 5 R, 4 2B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 4 BB, 3 SO, 3 GDP, 1 SB)
Ryan Seawell (.000, 3 GP, 0-5, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 HBP, 2 SO)
Austin Yount (99.00, 0-0, 1 APP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB)
2007 STANFORD-WASHINGTON STATE GAMES
May 5, 2007 - Stanford 6, at Washington State 4
Stanford started a three-game Pac-10 series at Washington State with a 6-4 victory over the Cougars in a game televised live by Fox Sports Net Northwest. Jeffrey Inman pitched the first complete game of his collegiate career to earn the victory, giving up just five hits and one earned run while striking out three and walking two. Stanford's victory was the first time this season the Cardinal has won the opener of a Pac-10 series with the Cardinal now needing just one win in the final two games of the series to snap six-game Pac-10 and overall series losing skids. Sean Ratliff (3-5, 2 HR, 4 RBI) homered twice and drove in four runs, while Michael Taylor (2-5, HR, RBI) also went deep for the Cardinal, and Cord Phelps (2-3) and Adam Sorgi (2-4, 2B) added two-hit games. Travis Coulter (2-5) had two of Washington State's five hits. Washington State starter Wayne Daman, Jr. (3-4) took the loss, allowing six runs on 11 hits and two walks with three strikeouts over 6.2 innings.
Quote of the Day ... "I really didn't have all my pitches going today, but I just let them get themselves out. I saw they were swinging at everything, so I was just trying to get my fastball over and trying to be more efficient than I've been in my last couple of outings." - Jeffrey Inman
2006 STANFORD-WASHINGTON STATE GAMES
March 25, 2006 - Washington State 7, at Stanford 1
Washington State scored six unanswered runs in the final two innings on the way to a 7-1 victory over No. 17 Stanford in the Pac-10 opener for both clubs. The Cougars snapped a 23-game losing streak to the Cardinal that dated back to 1978 with their victory and also won for the first time in their last 11 contests at Sunken Diamond going back to 1971. Stanford's Greg Reynolds and Washington State's Mike Wagner were locked in a 1-1 pitching duel through the first seven innings before the Cougars scored three runs in the top of the eighth off Reynolds. Jason Castro (3-3) had the first three-hit day of his career for Stanford.
Quote of the Day ... "This was not one of our best efforts today." - Mark Marquess
March 26, 2006 - Washington State 8, Stanford 5
No. 17 Stanford dropped its second straight game to Washington State to open Pac-10 play and its fourth in a row overall with an 8-5 defeat. The Cardinal took an early 4-1 lead with four runs in the bottom of the first but could manage only one more score the rest of the way off five Washington State relievers. Stanford made things exciting in the bottom of the ninth by getting the tying run to the plate before Ryan Webb retired Chris Minaker and Michael Taylor back-to-back to end the threat and earn his second save of the season. Jay Miller (3-5, 2 2B, 2 RBI), Jeff Miller (3-5, RBI) and Ryan Krauser (3-5, 2B) had three hits each to pace a Cougar offense that outhit the Cardinal, 17-6.
Quote of the Day ... "They've really played much better than we have in first two games of this series in every phase of the game." - Mark Marquess
March 27, 2006 - at Stanford 5, Washington State 3
Stanford salvaged the finale of a three-game series with a 5-3 victory over Washington State. The victory allowed the Cardinal to avoid being swept in a regular season three-game home series for the first time since 1997. Stanford led 3-0 before Washington State scored single runs in the sixth and seventh innings to cut the Cardinal lead to 3-2 but Randy Molina came through with a key two-run double in the bottom of the seventh inning that proved to be the winning margin. Washington State got the tying run to the plate in the top of the ninth but Jeremy Bleich got Jared Prince to hit into a fielders' choice to end the game. Stanford starter Matt Manship earned his first victory of the season, allowing just two runs and spreading out nine hits over 6.1 innings.
Quote of the Day ... "I knew what was at stake today, and I wanted to deliver the best performance I could." - Matt Manship
STANFORD HEAD COACH MARK MARQUESS
One of the nation's premier collegiate coaches and the winningest coach in Stanford Baseball history, Mark Marquess is in his 31st season at the helm of the Cardinal and his 39th associated with the program in 2007. Marquess has won more games than any coach in any sport ever at Stanford with the amazing numbers he has posted during his long tenure on The Farm. Marquess has a 1276-641-5 (.665) all-time record in 1922 career games, as well as equally impressive marks in postseason (112-52, .683), NCAA Regional (68-25, .731), NCAA Super Regional (10-4, .714), CWS (34-23, .596) and Pac-10 (505-339, .598) action. He is currently ranked sixth among all active NCAA Division I coaches in victories and 11th on the all-time list among Division I coaches. Marquess became the 23rd coach in the history of NCAA Division I baseball to reach the 1000-win mark with a victory over Florida State on February 9, 2001. Just over two years later, he picked up win No. 1100 versus Nevada on February 17, 2003. He became the 16th NCAA Division I head baseball coach to win 1200 collegiate games just over another two years after that when the Cardinal defeated California at Sunken Diamond on March 5, 2005. He also won his 100th career postseason game in Stanford's NCAA Super Regional clinching victory over Long Beach State (June 7, 2003). The 1969 Stanford graduate has led the Cardinal to two CWS titles and three runner-up showings in five CWS championship appearances, as well as 13 College World Series trips, five NCAA Super Regional titles, 14 NCAA Regional championships and 12 Pac-10 crowns (includes Southern Division and shared titles). Stanford's two CWS championships under Marquess came in back-to-back fashion in 1987 and 1988 as the Cardinal is just one of four teams to have ever won back-to-back Division I College World Series titles. The three runner-up showings have all come this decade with the Cardinal taking second in Omaha in 2000, 2001 and 2003. Maybe even more amazing, all 13 teams that Marquess has taken to the College World Series have won at least one game. Stanford has qualified for the NCAA Championships 24 times in the first 30 seasons under Marquess with a current school record run of 13 straight appearances in postseason play. He has been named NCAA Coach of the Year three times and has received Pac-10 or Pac-10 Southern Division Coach of the Year honors on nine occasions, most recently with his Pac-10 selection in 2003. The Cardinal has also recorded 29 winning seasons in the first 30 campaigns under his leadership. His clubs have finished either first or second in the prestigious Pacific-10 (formerly Pac-10 Southern Division) 22 times in the last 26 seasons including 2006. Stanford has had 134 players drafted by professional baseball in the past 22 campaigns, including 18 in the last 20 years that were drafted either in the first round or as a Compensation A pick. Stanford has had more first round picks (6) since 2000 than any other school in the nation, most recently with the selection of Greg Reynolds as the No. 2 overall pick in 2006. A member of the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, Marquess was the head coach of the 1988 United States Olympic baseball team that captured the gold medal. He was also an accomplished football and baseball standout on The Farm, and is a member of the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame. He is one of only 10 people to have ever both played and coached in the College World Series. Marquess was the starting first baseman and a First Team All-American on Stanford's 1967 CWS squad and played four seasons in the minor leagues with the Chicago White Sox organization.
STANFORD COACHING STAFF
Dean Stotz is in his 31st season with Stanford Baseball and his eighth as the team's associate head coach after he was promoted to the position prior to the 2000 season following 23 years of service as an assistant. Stotz currently coaches third base while also handling various offensive and defensive aspects of the game. Tom Kunis is in his eighth season as Stanford's pitching coach, while Dave Nakama is also in his eighth campaign over two stints as an assistant.