April 6, 2008
Complete Game Notes In PDF Format 
STANFORD BASEBALL GAME NOTES (April 6, 2008)
No. 1 ARIZONA STATE SUNDEVILS (28-2, 4-1 Pac-10)
at
NO. 13 STANFORD CARDINAL (14-9, 3-2 Pac-10)
SUNDAY'S PROBABLE STARTING PITCHERS (1 pm, PT)
RHP Stephen Sauer (3-0, 2.57) vs. RHP Jeffrey Inman (3-0, 1.44)
LIVE GAME COVERAGE:
TV: None | 
Gametracker | 
Webcast
STANFORD-ARIZONA STATE SERIES HISTORY
All-Time Series: Arizona State 86-83
2008 Results: (at Stanford, April 4-5) Arizona State 6-4 (10), Stanford 12-2
Arizona State scored a pair of runs in the top of the 10th inning to win the series opener over Stanford, 6-4. Ike Davis got the win for the Sun Devils and also was 2-for-3 with a HR and two RBI. Sean Ratliff homered for Stanford. The Cardinal rebounded with a 12-2 victory on Saturday as Erik Davis tossed his second straight complete game, while Jason Castro, Sean Ratliff and Randy Molina all homered.
2007 Results: (at Arizona State, April 5-7) Arizona State 5-4, Arizona State 12-8, Arizona State 14-1
Arizona State rolled to a three-game sweep of the Cardinal in Tempe, coming from behind 4-0 in the opener by scoring the game's final five runs. The Sun Devils used a six-run seventh to key Saturday's 12-8 win and then won easily on Sunday, 14-1.
Previous Meeting At Stanford: (April 28-30, 2006) Stanford 7-1, Arizona State 11-7, Stanford 11-4
Stanford clicked on all cylinders in the series-opening win on a nationally-televised CSTV broadcast as Greg Reynolds pitched his first complete game of the season and Chris Lewis had four hits. After dropping the middle game, 11-7, Stanford won 11-4 in Sunday's rubber game as Jim Rapoport's inside-the-park grand slam highlighted an eight-run fifth inning.Current Game Win Streak: Stanford - 1 (April 5, 2008)
Current Series Win Streak: Arizona State - 1 (April 5-7, 2007)
Current Season Series Win Streak: Arizona State - 1 (2007)
Series Notes: Stanford snapped a four-game losing skid against Arizona State with Saturday's 12-2 win. The Sun Devils had swept the Cardinal in Tempe last season and won Friday night's series-opener. Although the Cardinal has had a difficult time winning games at Arizona State by being swept the last two times the Cardinal has traveled to Tempe, Stanford has played very well against the Sun Devils at home with five straight series wins over Arizona State at Klein Field at Sunken Diamond with the last Arizona State series win at Stanford coming when the 1997 Sun Devils swept the Cardinal.
NOTES
Marquess Going For 1300th Win Today - Mark Marquess now has 1299 career wins and is just one victory from cracking into the Top 10 on the all-time win list for NCAA Division I coaches. Marquess' current total (all at Stanford) ranks him 11th on the all-time list and sixth among active coaches. His accomplishments were featured in an Associated Press article that ran on March 26. Stanford Looking For Ninth Straight Series Win - Stanford is looking to extend its current string of regular season three-game series victories to nine win a win today. The current streak is Stanford's longest regular season three-game series win streak since the Cardinal won 15 straight regular season three-game series from May 3, 2003 - May 4, 2004. Stanford Moves Up To No. 13 In Baseball America's Poll - Stanford shot up four spots to No. 13 in the latest Baseball America poll released on Monday, March 31. Stanford has now been ranked by at least one poll for each of the past five weeks after starting the campaign unranked. Stanford is also ranked No. 13 by Rivals.com. USA Today/ESPN has Stanford at No. 21, while Stanford comes in at No. 28 in Collegiate Baseball's poll. Stanford is among those receiving votes in the current NCBWA rankings. Avoiding Big Losing Streaks - Stanford has not lost more than two consecutive games all season. Stanford Snaps Pac-10 Series-Opener And Washington State Series Skids - Stanford's two-of-three series victory March 28-30 over Washington State snapped two-game series skids both in Pac-10 opening series and to Washington State. Stanford had won nine consecutive Pac-10 series-openers before losing two-of-three at home to Washington State in 2006 and being swept in its first Pac-10 series of 2007 at UCLA. Stanford had also won all seven series against Washington State since the teams began playing on a regular basis again in 1999 when the Pac-10 North and South merged into one league before the Cougars took two-of-three in both 2006 and 2007. Stanford Perfect On Several Accounts - Stanford has yet to suffer a loss on the weekend with a perfect 9-0 mark as the Cardinal is 6-0 on Saturdays and 3-0 on Sundays. Stanford has also not lost in a rubber game (4-0), a three-game series finale (5-0), when ahead after eight frames (13-0) or in a one-run game (3-0). Home Advantage - Stanford has had a nice home field advantage at Klein Field at Sunken Diamond throughout the years. The facility has served as a host site for 13 NCAA Regionals, as well as NCAA Super Regionals on five occasions. Stanford has clinched 10 of its 15 trips to the CWS at Sunken Diamond. Stanford has had 43 consecutive winning seasons at home and recorded at least 17 home wins in each of its last 12 campaigns with an amazing 319-106 (.751) home mark over the last 12-plus seasons. Stanford has never had a losing season at Klein Field At Sunken Diamond in the school's recorded history. The Cardinal is off to a 10-6 start in its first 15 home games of 2008. Road Win Streak Snapped - Stanford had won four in a row away from Klein Field at Sunken Diamond before falling at Sacramento State, 5-3, in its most recent road game on March 25. Busy Schedule - Stanford is 11 games into a stretch where the Cardinal will play 29 contests over a 37-day period from March 21 - April 30 that includes five consecutive five-game weeks. Starting Rotation Pitching Well - Stanford's three primary starters have pitched well in 2008. Jeremy Bleich (2-2, 1.38) equaled his win total in all of 2007 with victories in each of his first two outings of 2008. Although Bleich has suffered losses and a no decision in his last three starts, his ERA has actually gone down 81 points in those three starts as only one of the 12 runs scored against him was earned. Erik Davis (4-1, 4.46) struggled early but has been excellent in his last three starts, combining for a 3-0 record and a 2.52 ERA with two complete games and 23 strikeouts in 25.0 innings. Jeffrey Inman (3-0, 1.44, 25.0 IP, 18 SO) has arguably been Stanford's best pitcher in his last two starts with 13.1 scoreless frames, scattering 11 hits and walking just one with 13 strikeouts over the stretch. Freshmen Making Their Mark - Stanford has had a total of 12 freshmen play over the first 20 games. Zach Jones (.256, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 3 SB) and Jake Schlander (.211, 10 RBI, 2 SB) have made the biggest impact among position players with Jones starting 20 of the last 21 games and Schlander starting all 23. Although Schlander has struggled offensively, he has made just two errors in the field in 93 defensive chances for a .978 fielding percentage as the team's shortstop. Drew Storen (1-2, 3.72, 2 SV) has arguably been the team's top reliever and co-leads the team with two saves and nine appearances. Alex Pracher (0-1, 8.71, 1 SV) has eqauled Storen's nine appearances, while Ben Clowe (.333) has had success in limited action with six hits in 17 at bats. Fifth All-Time Winningest Program - Stanford is the fifth all-time winningest program in college baseball history with a record of 2532-1587-32 (.614) in 4151 games over 115-plus seasons. Stanford has won two College World Series titles in its 15 trips to Omaha and finished second on three other occasions. The Cardinal has added five NCAA Super Regional titles, 14 NCAA Regional crowns and 20 conference championships. Stringer Nearing All-Time Save List - David Stringer has 10 career saves and is now just one shy of tying Aaron Dorlarque (1989-92) for 10th place. Starting Strong - Stanford has outscored its opponents in the first inning this season, 32-6. Significantly Better Pitching And Fielding In 2008 - Stanford has had much better pitching and fielding numbers in 2008. The biggest improvement has come on the mound, where Stanford has recorded a 4.19 ERA after posting the worst mark in school history in 2007 with a 6.01 final mark. The Cardinal's .973 fielding mark is .010 points ahead of last year's .963 and only .001 point shy of the school record .974, while the team's .304 batting average is just .001 points behind last year's .305. Huge Roster And Pitching Staff - Stanford has 45 players on its 2008 roster with 23 of those listed as either a pitcher or a two-way player. Stanford may need a lot of depth, especially on the mound, in the first year of college baseball's condensed season as the Cardinal is still scheduled to play 56 regular season games in approximately three weeks less time than the club has in the past. Ratliff And Molina With Long Current Hit Streaks - Sean Ratliff and Randy Molina both have long current hit streaks. Ratliff has a run of 13 consecutive games that has equaled a career-high, while Molina's nine-gamer is already a career best. Five Two-Way Players On The Roster - Stanford has five two-way players listed on the roster in Brendan Domaracki (OF/RHP), Michael Marshall (1B/RHP), Sean Ratliff (OF/LHP), Drew Storen (RHP/3B) and Austin Yount (3B/RHP). Ratliff and Yount have both already contributed on the mound and at the plate. Domaracki has played but yet to pitch, while Storen and Marshall have both pitched but yet to play a position or hit. Sean Ratliff On Wallace Award Watch List - Sean Ratliff is currently on the Wallace Award Watch List for the honor given annually by the College Baseball Foundation to the top college player in the nation. Ratliff was a First Team All-Pac-10 choice in 2007 when he hit .339 with 12 HR and 45 RBI. He is on pace to produce even better numbers this season as he is hitting .357 with eight homers, 26 RBI and three stolen bases in his first 23 contests of 2008. Day And Night - Stanford has been much better this season in day games (11-3) than in night contests (3-6). Better Against The Best - Stanford has played better against the best teams in the country, going 7-3 against ranked squads (according to Baseball America at the time of the game) than unranked clubs as the Cardinal has posted just a 7-6 record against teams not in the Baseball America poll at the time of the game. Upcoming Games - After completing its current eight-game homestand with Sunday's series finale against Arizona State, Stanford will play eight of its next 10 games and its next two Pac-10 series on the road. Stanford starts the stretch with a single game at California on Monday, April 7 (2:30 pm, PT), before hosting UC Davis on Wednesday, April 9 (6 pm, PT). Stanford then has back-to-back Pac-10 road series at Oregon State (Friday-Sunday, April 11-13, 5 pm, 1 pm, 1 pm, PT) and UCLA (Friday-Sunday, April 18-20, 6 pm, 2 pm, 1 pm, PT) sandwiched around a pair of non-conference home games against Santa Clara (Monday, April 14, 6 pm, PT) and San Francisco (Wednesday, April 16, 6 pm, PT). Stanford ends the current road run with a game at Santa Clara (Monday, April 21, 5 pm, PT) that will be televised live nationally by CSTV.