March 21, 2013

No. 17 Stanford Cardinal (10-5 • 0-0 Pac-12)
Utah Utes (9-9 • 0-3 Pac-12)
March 22 - 7 p.m. (PT) • March 23 - 2 p.m. • March 24 - 1 p.m.
Sunken Diamond (4,000) • Stanford, Calif.
Game Notes | Rankings | Pac-12 Standings

Radio • Live coverage on KZSU 90.1 FM • KZSUlive.stanford.edu

Live Stats • Live in-game statistics will be provided through GameTracker via GoStanford.com

Video • Live video and audio will be available free of charge via GoStanford.com

Tickets • 1.800.STANFORD • GoStanford.com

Polls • Stanford (17th - NCBWA, NR - BA, 17th - CB, 19th - USA Today)
Utah (NR - NCBWA, NR - BA, NR - CB, NR - USA Today)

On the Web • GoStanford.com • UtahUtes.com • Pac-12.com

Social Hour • facebook.com/StanfordBaseball • @StanfordBSB • #goStanford • #farmBall

Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday • RHP Mark Appel (2-2, 1.20) vs. RHP Mitch Watrous (1-0, 3.80)
Saturday • LHP John Hochstatter (0-1, 3.31) vs. RHP Joe Pond (2-2, 5.81)
Sunday • RHP Bobby Zarubin (1-1, 1.08) vs. RHP Dalton Carroll (1-1, 5.40)

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The Farm Report
• No. 17 Stanford looks to get back in the win column when it opens Pac-12 Conference play against Utah at Sunken Diamond. The three-game series (March 22-24) will be streamed live on GoStanford.com.

• Stanford leads the all-time series with Utah, 4-0 (1.000). The two programs first met in 1965 and most recently faced off for a 2012 series.

• The Cardinal won nine straight before being swept two weeks ago at Sunken Diamond by UNLV. Heading into the series with the Rebels, Stanford was 7-0 at Sunken Diamond in 2013 and had won 11 straight on its home turf dating back to last season.

• Currently in the midst of a six-game homestand, Stanford will play 13 of its first 18 contest this season at Sunken Diamond. Following the Utah series, Stanford is set to play its next four games on the road.

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Inside the Lines

Last Time vs. Utah - May 20, 2012
• Stephen Piscotty worked his way through 6.1 innings and No. 12 Stanford swept host Utah following a 4-1 win in game three.

• Danny Diekroeger went 3-for-5 with a solo homer and Alex Blandino added a two-run shot in support of Piscotty, who also went 1-for-4 at the plate.

• Piscotty went a career-best 6.1 innings for the second straight weekend, giving up one run on seven hits with two walks and four strikeouts.

• It was the fifth three-game sweep on the season for the Cardinal.

Rebels Leave Town With Cardinal Loot
• John Richy limited Stanford to a pair of hits as the UNLV starter led the visiting Rebels to a three-game sweep of the Cardinal with a game-three 5-1 win. Richy used 98 pitches to go the distance and fanned four without a walk.

• Stanford fell to 10-5 after entering the series on a nine-game winning streak. UNLV improved to 13-3 and took home a nine-game winning streak from Sunken Diamond.

• Freshman RHP Bobby Zarubin suffered his first loss by giving up five runs - one earned - in 6.1 innings in the series finale. UNLV managed five hits off Zarubin, who had five punchouts and one walk.

• Stanford committed three errors in game three to bring its series total to nine. Each of the UNLV's four unearned runs came in the decisive seventh.

• UNLV clinched its three-game series against Stanford with a 12-2 win in game two. The Rebels posted four multi-run innings and out-hit Stanford, 15-9, during the non-conference matchup. UNLV improved its winning streak to eight games for its longest winning streak since 2009, the same season in which Stanford dropped its last non-conference home series.

• Entering the series with the Rebels, Stanford had been out-hit in seven contests but was victorious in each of those outings.

• Aiming for its first 10-game winning streak since 2003, Stanford was upended by UNLV in the series opener, 3-2. Senior All-American Mark Appel fanned a career-high 15 and walked one in 7.0 innings, leaving the game after allowing only four hits and one earned run while shouldering the tough loss.

• Astoundingly, three of Appel's strikeouts came in the second inning when UNLV scored its first two runs. The Cardinal committed three errors in the frame which led to the unearned tallies to snap Appel's streak of 18.2 innings without yielding a run.

Save the Best for Last
• Stanford has played its best with the game on the line, with four of its first 12 games decided on the final pitch of the contest:

Feb. 16 - at Rice - Bottom 9th - Hughes registers final two outs with winning run at bat - W, 3-2
Feb. 23 - vs. Fresno State - Bottom 10th - Doran with three-run walk-off homer - W, 7-4
March 3 - vs. Texas - Bottom 9th - Kauppila with walk-off RBI double - W, 2-1
March 5 - at Santa Clara - Bottom 9th - Lindquist registers final out with winning run at bat - W, 6-4

National Nods for Appel
• Senior RHP Mark Appel was named the Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week, as announced March 4 by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper. Appel also was named the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) National Pitcher of the Week and the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week on March 5.

• The Pac-12 citation was his third such conference honor and Stanford's league-best 78th all-time.

•The honors rolled in after Appel tossed a three-hitter against No. 22 Texas (March 1) while the Cardinal posted a 2-0 shutout win. Appel matched a career-high 14 strikeouts and walked one. The first-inning walk was followed by the retiring of the next 13 batters. Appel took a no-hitter into the sixth against the Longhorns and set the tone for Stanford's series sweep.

Bullpen On Parade
• Stanford's bullpen has been brilliant in 2013 and went 21.2 innings over six games to start the season without allowing an earned run (Feb. 15-23).

• Through eight games, Stanford's four starting pitchers combined to throw 36.1 innings while allowing 17 runs (12 earned). By comparison, the bullpen threw 34.2 innings and surrendered four runs (three earned).

• During the series with Texas (March 1-3), the bullpen gave up only two earned runs in 7.0 innings. The pair of scores came in the bottom of the ninth during game two when Stanford was sitting on a 7-0 lead.

• The Longhorn runs were the first scored by Texas in the series' opening 17.2 innings and snapped a streak of 22.2 frames of shutout ball produced by the Cardinal pitching corps.

• Stanford limited the Longhorns to 13 hits and three earned runs during the weekend's three-game slate.

• No bullpen pitcher has given up more than three earned runs this season.

• Freshman RHP Bobby Zarubin, who replaced freshman LHP Logan James in a Feb. 23 matchup against Fresno State, posted 11 strikeouts in 6.2 innings of relief for the win. Zarubin was effective with his splitter and surrendered one earned run on five hits before giving way to junior RHP Sam Lindquist in the ninth. Lindquist induced the final Fresno State out for the save.

• In the season-opening series against Rice, the bullpen combined to toss 11.0 innings of seven-hit ball without a run during the three-game series at Rice. The Cardinal starting pitchers went 14.0 innings and allowed seven earned runs on 14 hits.

Cardinal Hooks Longhorns
• Stanford's two first-inning runs provided enough support for All-American Mark Appel to work with as the senior pitcher matched a career-high with 14 strikeouts in a 2-0 win to open the Texas series.

• Stanford nearly handed Texas its second straight shutout but settled for a 7-2 win in game two. Texas seemed ready to redeem its 2-0 game-one setback by loading the bases in the top half of the first. Sophomore LHP John Hochstatter put two on with eight straight balls and allowed an Erich Weiss single before cleanup hitter Mark Payton promptly lined into a 4-6-3 triple play.

• "It wasn't my first triple play, but it was a nice one," said junior 2B Danny Diekroeger, who gloved Payton's laser to start the defensive gem.

• Diekroeger was one of five Stanford players to notch two hits with sophomore OF Austin Slater driving in a game-high two scores.

• Junior SS Lonnie Kauppila doubled off the right-center wall in the bottom of the ninth to score sophomore 3B Alex Blandino from first for a 2-1 walk-off win as Stanford swept its three-game series with No. 22 Texas (March 3) for the second straight season.

• In his first career start, freshman RHP Bobby Zarubin limited the Longhorns to a pair of hits on 99 pitches in 8.0 innings for the game-three win.

Home, Sweet Home Opener
• Senior RHP Dean McArdle threw 2.0 innings of shutout ball in a starting effort and paved the way for the Cardinal bullpen to secure a 5-0 win over visiting California (Feb. 19). Sophomore RHP David Schmidt stepped in for McArdle in the third and got the win after fanning a pair and permitting three hits in 3.2 innings of work.

• No. 11 Stanford evened its record to 2-2 with the win as Cal was handed its first loss on the season after sweeping Michigan in its campaign-opening series.

• Freshman OF Drew Jackson and sophomore OF Austin Slater had two hits apiece for Stanford with junior 2B Danny Diekroeger adding a team-high two RBI.

Houston, We Have a Cardinal
• The Cardinal had won each of its last five season-opening games - and series - before dropping both at Rice.

• In a battle of preseason All-America pitchers, Rice's Austin Kubitza got the better end of the season-opener as the hurler led Rice to a 5-1 win over Stanford. Kubitza fanned a career-high 12 as his counterpart, senior RHP Mark Appel, shouldered the loss after giving up five runs - two earned - with three strikeouts in 5.0 frames. Both teams managed seven hits but Rice scratched across a trio of unearned runs in a three-score third frame to put the game out of the Cardinal's reach. Stanford left 12 on base, stranding runners on first and second in the opening three stanzas.

• Senior DH Justin Ringo resumed his role as the thorn in Rice's side. Ringo has saved some of the best performances of his Stanford baseball career for matchups against Rice. During his sophomore campaign, Ringo's first career home run - a two-run shot - was the deciding swing in a Cardinal win. In 2012, Ringo delivered another two-run homer in the bottom of the 10th to secure a Stanford victory. Ringo came through yet again in game two of the 2013 series by poking a one-out double in the top of the eighth to plate the go-ahead run in Stanford's 3-2 win. The knock was one of his two hits on the day.

• Rice's John Simms took a no-hitter into the eighth inning of game three, helping propel the Owls to a 3-0 win to take the series.

First CLASS
• Senior RHP Mark Appel was named one of 30 college baseball candidates for the 2013 Senior CLASS Award, as announced Feb. 27 by the award committee. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition.

• The candidate class will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans.

• The Senior CLASS Award winner will be announced during the 2013 NCAA College World Series in Omaha, Neb. (June 15-26).

Golden Standard
• Preseason All-Americans Brian Ragira, Austin Wilson and Mark Appel were named to the Golden Spikes Award Watch List, as announced Feb. 14 by USA Baseball. Sponsored by Major League Baseball, the award goes to the top amateur baseball player in the country.

• Stanford and LSU led all schools with three players named to the Watch List. The Watch List features 50 of the nation's top amateur players. The Golden Spikes Award trophy will be awarded live July 19 on MLB Network

• Appel, the 2012 NCBWA Pitcher of the Year, was a finalist for last year's Golden Spikes Award.

Preseason Favorite
• According to the league's preseason coaches' poll released Feb. 8, Stanford was picked to win the Pac 12 title. The Cardinal has not won a Pac-12 title since copping back-to-back crowns in 2003 (College World Series runner-up) and 2004 (NCAA Regional).

Consensus Preseason Top-10 Choice
• Stanford earned high praise from the pollsters and entered the 2013 season as a consensus preseason top-10 team. Here's how the Cardinal fared among the major polls:

No. 4 - Perfect Game
No. 7 - USA Today/ESPN
No. 7 - National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association
No. 9 - Collegiate Baseball
No. 9 - Baseball America

Return of the Mark
• Speaking publicly for the first time since announcing his return to The Farm for his senior season, Appel, the only unsigned player among 31 first-round picks last year, handled the barrage of questions with the same poise and composure he shows on the mound during the Bay Area Baseball Media Day on Feb. 7.

• On not signing with the Pittsburgh Pirates crossing paths with the team's fans down the road: "If they're going to boo me, then so be it. I'd love to sit down and have a meal with them after the game."

• On prepping for the 2013 draft: "Everybody said, `If you don't sign, you're pushing your major league career back a year.' I don't see it that way. I don't understand how people can say that I can't keep working and keep getting better at Stanford. It might be a different situation and scenario than a minor league team, but I still have the opportunities to improve my game, get better, to just grow as a baseball player and a teammate and prepare myself for the next level."

• On what he's learned about himself throughout the process: "It's not all about money for me. There are a lot of things I value greater than money. Money means a lot to a lot of people. It seems like a social status. I'm not defined by how much I earn or will earn."

A Look Back at 2012
• Stanford tallied a 41-18 record and finished the regular season 12th in the USA Today poll, 13th by Baseball America and 14th by Collegiate Baseball. It was the 25th time since 1981 the Cardinal finished the season ranked in top 15.

• Stanford ended its season in the NCAA Super Regional for the second straight season and ninth time since 1999.

• The Cardinal roster featured six players who were selected in the MLB Draft, headlined by first round picks RHP Mark Appel and 3B/LF Stephen Piscotty. Players who signed professional contracts included SS Kenny Diekroeger, CF Jake Stewart, C Eric Smith, LHP Brett Mooneyham and LF Tyler Gaffney.

Major League Style
• Since the turn of the century, Stanford has had 88 players go on to the Majors. Head coach Mark Marquess has coached 56 Major Leaguers since 1977.

Two-Sport Tradition
• The Cardinal has had a number of great two-sport stars. One of the first was Ernie Nevers, who starred for the Cardinal in the early part of the 20th century.

• This list is quite impressive: NFL Hall of Fame quarterback John Elway, current head coach Mark Marquess (punter, wide receiver and quarterback with Jim Plunkett in the late 1960s) and NFL Executive Ray Anderson. Major League pitcher Joe Borchard (also a Cardinal quarterback), NFL and MLB player Chad Hutchinson (RHP and quarterback), 1940s Major Leaguer and Korea War pilot Lloyd Merriman, Brian Johnson (quarterback), Toi Cook (NFL veteran and member of the 1987 College World Series team) and John Lynch (quarterback and RHP).

• Orange Bowl Champion and running back Tyler Gaffney played baseball on The Farm and helped pave the way for the most recent addition to the fraternity, freshman OF Zach Hoffpauir. Hoffpauir was a backup strong safety for the 2013 Rose Bowl champions.

Stanford Over Pittsburgh, Football Over Baseball
• Tyler Gaffney is still a former Stanford outfielder, but he's no longer a former Stanford running back.

• Gaffney announced Feb. 11 that he is returning to The Farm after spending last season playing baseball for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. Gaffney will be completing work toward his degree and will play with the Cardinal football program next season.

• Selected in the 24th round of the 2012 MLB Draft, Gaffney hit .297 in 38 games for the Pirates' Class-A affiliate State College Spikes.

This Is Stanford Baseball
• Stanford's baseball program has been setting the nation's standard for 119 years. Just some of the achievements of the historic college baseball program include two College World Series titles, nine NCAA Super Regional victories (since 1999), 28 NCAA Regional crowns, 17 conference titles and over 2,500 wins - a total which ranks fifth all-time in the history of Division I college baseball.

• Stanford student-athletes are not only leading the way on field, but also in the classroom. Stanford provides the most unique experience in college baseball, providing an environment to achieve success through the challenge of both academics and baseball at the highest level. Our players take enormous pride in their unending work ethic and competitive spirit in all phases of their lives. Stanford provides the ultimate challenge to these special student-athletes and leads them on the way to success.

-- #farmBall --