March 31, 1999

STANFORD OFF TO BEST CONFERENCE START SINCE 1985: Third-ranked Stanford University is off to a 6-0 start in Pacific-10 Conference play, marking its best start in conference competition in 14 years. The Cardinal jumped out to a 5-0 start in the Six-Pac in both 1997 and 1998, but has not gone 6-0 since the 1985 team went 6-0 en route to a 23-7 finish and Six-Pac title. This weekend, Stanford gets its first look at an opponent from the former Pac-10 Northern Division when Washington State comes to town for a three-game set at Sunken Diamond on Thursday-Saturday. The teams have not met head-to-head in conference competition since May 9, 1969, when the Cardinal defeated the Cougars 5-4 in Pullman. Stanford's first baseman in that game was a senior from Stockton named Mark Marquess, who is now in his 23rd season as the Cardinal's head coach. Stanford's pitching coach that season was Tom Dunton, who is handling the same duties on The Farm 30 years later. Here's a look at this weekend's probable starting pitching matchups:

Thursday - Wade Parrish  (WSU; 4-2, 2.61) vs. Jason Young  (STAN; 5-1, 2.71)
Friday   - Jamaal Gaines (WSU; 2-2, 6.08) vs. Justin Wayne (STAN; 3-1, 5.69)
Saturday - Todd Meldahl  (WSU; 3-1, 4.86) vs. Brian Sager  (STAN; 2-0, 4.00)

CARDINAL NOTES: Stanford's three-game sweep in Arizona gives the Cardinal 15 wins in its last 18 games in Tucson, including sweeps in '96 and '99 ... The Cardinal is exactly halfway through its '99 schedule, and played 12 of its first 28 games against opponents ranked in Baseball America's top 25. Amazingly, the Cardinal plays none of its last 28 contests against teams currently ranked in the nation's top 25 ... The Cardinal raised its team batting average from .271 to .290 during its seven-game, 10-day Spring Break trip from Mar. 19-28. Stanford hit an impressive .340 (89-for-262) in going 5-2 against traditional national powers Texas, Oklahoma and Arizona ... Stanford pitchers have struck out 257 batters this season, putting them on a pace for 514, which would rank as the fourth highest total in school history.

MARQUESS RECORDS 900TH CAREER VICTORY: Stanford's 6-2 win at Santa Clara on Saturday, February 13th was the 900th of Stanford head coach Mark Marquess's collegiate coaching career. Marquess, a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame, is in his 23rd year at the helm of the Stanford Baseball program. Marquess now has a career record of 915-475-5 (.658), and is averaging 40.7 wins per season entering the '99 campaign. The Stanford graduate (1969) has led the Cardinal to two NCAA titles (1987, '88), eight College World Series appearances (1982, '83, '85, '87, '88, '90, '95, '97), eight Pac-10 Southern Division titles (1983, '84, '85, '87, '90, 94, '97, '98) and 16 NCAA Tournament appearances. He is a seven-time Six-Pac Coach of the Year and three-time NCAA Coach of the Year. Marquess has also made a name for himself on the international level, most notably leading the United States to the gold medal at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. Marquess was also an accomplished football and baseball star on The Farm, and is a member of the Stanford Athletic Hall of Fame. He is also one of only six head coaches who have both played and coached in the College World Series. Marquess was the starting first baseman on the Cardinal's 1967 College World Series squad, and has coached the Cardinal to Omaha on eight occasions. He is assisted by Tom Dunton (25th season), Dean Stotz (23rd season) and Mark O'Brien (1st season). Washington State's Steve Farrington is 108-140 (.435) in his fifth season in Pullman.

THIS WEEKEND: After playing just four games at home in March, Stanford will play 10 games at Sunken Diamond in April. Washington State comes to the Farm this weekend for a three-game set, with the teams meeting on Thursday at 6 p.m., Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m. There are no game promotions on Thursday or Friday. Saturday is Amdahl Read to Succeed Day, with all children who have completed a pre-determined amount of reading assignments being admitted free.

THE RANKINGS: Stanford is No. 3 in all three national polls this week. The Cardinal moved up two spots from No. 5 in Baseball America, and one spot in both USA Today Baseball Weekly/ESPN and Collegiate Baseball. Stanford became the all-time king of the polls in 1998 when it held the No. 1 spot in Baseball America's top 25 for a collegiate baseball record 14 weeks. Washington State is not ranked.

THE RECORDS: After a 1-3 start, Stanford has won 19 of its last 24 to go 20-8 overall and 6-0 in the Pacific-10 Conference. The Cardinal currently leads USC by one-half game in the Pac-10, and are two up on the Trojans in the loss column. Stanford wrapped up a seven-game, 10-day Spring Break trip with a 5-2 record. The Cardinal opened the trip by losing two of three at Texas (L 9-8, W 11-8, L 4-3) on Mar. 20-22 before rebounding to defeat Oklahoma in Oklahoma City 5-1 on Mar. 24. Stanford wrapped up the trip by sweeping Pac-10 rival Arizona on Mar. 26-28, winning 8-4, 12-4 and 12-11. The sweep was the Cardinal's third of the season, along with Santa Clara (Feb. 13-15) and Arizona State (Mar. 5-7). Last season, the Cardinal went 42-14-1, marking its fourth straight 40-win season. The Cardinal's .765 winning percentage was its highest since the 1990 squad went 59-12 (.831). Stanford also captured its eighth Six-Pac title in what would be the 20th and final year of the division's existence. The Cardinal finished 22-8, one game ahead of eventual national champion USC. Stanford then went 1-2 at the NCAA West Regional at Sunken Diamond to finish tied for fourth. The top-seeded Cardinal opened with a 6-2 loss to Loyola Marymount, and rebounded with a 19-1 win over Minnesota before being eliminated by eventual regional champion Long Beach State 5-1. Washington State is 16-9 overall and 1-2 in the Pacific-10 Conference. The Cougars were scheduled to host Gonzaga on Tuesday, Mar. 30, but the game was postponed because of bad weather. Last weekend, Washington State dropped two of three at home to USC. The teams split a doubleheader on Saturday (USC 6-5, WSU 14-12), and the Trojans won 10-4 on Sunday.

MEDIA INFORMATION: Stanford student radio station KZSU 90.1 FM is once again the exclusive radio home of the Cardinal nine. Bay Area air times for this weekend, beginning with the Mark Marquess Show 15 minutes prior to game time, are Thursday at 5:45 p.m., Friday at 6:45 p.m. and Saturday at 12:45 p.m. Stanford Baseball can also be heard via the internet at www.gostanford.com. Saturday's Stanford-Washington State game will also be televised live locally (Menlo Park, Palo Alto and Stanford campus) by the Stanford Channel (channel 51).

THE SERIES: Washington State leads the all-time series with Stanford 13-8. Thursday's meeting will be the first between the two teams since May 24, 1987 at the NCAA West I Regional at Sunken Diamond. The Cardinal beat the Cougars 12-11 in a regional semifinal game, and later went on to win both the regional and the first national championship in school history. The last time the Cougars were on Stanford's schedule was February 19, 1996 at Sunken Diamond, but the game was cancelled because of rain.

LAST WEEK IN REVIEW:

Game #26 - #5 Stanford 8,  Arizona 4 (March 26 @ Frank Sancet Field): Stanford scored six runs in the top of the eighth inning to erase a 3-2 deficit and improve to 4-0 in the Pac-10. The Cardinal took a 2-0 lead in the second on a two-run single by sophomore Billy Jacobson (Spring, TX/St. Thomas HS), but the Wildcats came back to take the lead with single runs in the second, sixth and seventh. After Nick Day's (Las Vegas, NV/Green Valley HS) sacrifice fly tied the game at 3-3, the Cardinal had five consecutive runners reach base with two outs to break the game open. The big blow in the six-run rally was pinch-hitter Joe Savig's (Lodi, CA/St. Mary's HS) three-run double to right-center field. Senior left-hander Tony Cogan (Highland Park, IL/Highland Park HS) allowed just an unearned run in 3.0 hitless innings of relief to improve to 2-1. 

Game #27 - #5 Stanford 12, Arizona 4 (March 27 @ Frank Sancet Field): Junior shortstop Eric Bruntlett (North Lafayette, IN/Harrison HS) had a career-high four hits to lead Stanford to the easy win. The Cardinal erupted for five runs in the top of the second  inning, highlighted by an RBI double by Nick Day and a run-scoring single by Bruntlett. The Cardinal shortstop finished 4-for-5 with three runs scored and two RBI, while Day was 3-for-5 with three runs scored and junior Jeff Rizzo (San Diego, CA/La Jolla HS) went 3-for-5 with two RBI. Sophomore right-hander Justin Wayne (Honolulu, HI/Punahou HS) improved to 3-1, after allowing six hits and two earned runs over 6.0 innings. Stanford also stole seven bases in the contest, the most since the Cardinal swiped eight at Santa Clara on Feb. 24, 1997.

Game #28 - #5 Stanford 12, Arizona 11 (March 28 @ Frank Sancet Field): Stanford completed the Pac-10 sweep with a three-run eighth inning rally that erased an 11-9 deficit. The Cardinal jumped out to an 8-0 lead after two-and-a-half innings with two in the first and six in the third. The big blows in the third were three-run home runs by senior Josh Hochgesang (Fullerton, CA/Sunny Hills HS) and junior Stephen Chan (Moraga, CA/Campolindo HS). Chan's home run was the first of his collegiate career. But Arizona came all the way back to take an 11-9 lead with two in the third, six in the fourth and three in the sixth. An RBI single by Hochgesang and a run-scoring double by junior Damien Alvarado (Sacramento, CA/Jesuit HS) tied the score at 11-11, and pinch-hitter Craig Thompson (Dallas, TX/Lake Highlands HS) drove home the game-winner with a sacrifice fly to center. Sophomore right-hander Austin Coose (Kokomo, IN/Kokomo HS) worked 3.2 innings out of the pen to earn the win, and improve to 2-0. Tony Cogan then worked 1.2 scoreless innings to earn his fifth save of the season. The save was also the 12th of Cogan's career, which ties him for fifth with former major leaguer Jeff Ballard (1982-85) on Stanford's all-time list. Sophomore Joe Borchard (Camarillo, CA/Camarillo HS) led the Cardinal with a career-high tying four hits, as Stanford banged out a season-high 19 hits for the second straight day. 

YOUNG CONTINUES DOMINATION: Sophomore right-hander Jason Young is off to one of the hottest starts in the nation this season. Young, a three-time Pac- 10 Pitcher of the Week and one-time Collegiate Baseball/Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week in '99, is 5-1 with a 2.71 ERA in nine starts, including four complete games and two combined shutouts. He has allowed just 45 hits in 63.0 innings, while walking 29, striking out 75 and holding opponents to a .204 batting average. Young needs just 39 strikeouts in the second half of the season to break into Stanford's all-time top 10. He has also went the distance in four of his last six starts (at Santa Clara, California, at USC, Arizona State). Against Arizona State on Mar. 5, Young struck out 16 en route to a complete game six-hitter in an 11-1 victory over then-No. 8 Arizona State. The 16 strikeouts left Young just two shy of Steve Dunning's school record of 18 established in 1970.  He has been especially dominating at Sunken Diamond, going 3-0 with a 1.20 ERA, and allowing just 16 hits in 30.0 innings, while walking 10 and striking out 42. Here's a look at Young's last five starts:
Date   Opponent            IP  H   R  ER  BB   K
2/20   California (W)     9.0  6   3   3   3  10
2/27   at USC (W)         9.0  4   2   2   2  10
3/5    Arizona State (W)  9.0  6   1   1   3  16
3/20   at Texas (ND)      4.0  7   6   5   5   5
3/26   at Arizona (ND)    6.0  7   3   2   5   6
Totals 3-0, 3.16 ERA     37.0 30  15  13  18  47

GALL GUNS FOR HISTORY: Junior first baseman and 1999 Baseball America First Team Preseason All-American John Gall (Portola Valley, CA/St. Francis HS) currently owns a  .357 career batting average - the third best in Stanford Baseball history. He trails only Jack Shepard (.362, 1951-53) and David McCarty (.359; 1989-91) in the chase for the best batting average in Cardinal history. He also needs just 32 hits to break into Stanford's all-time top 10 and tie Jeffrey Hammonds' (1990-92) three-year record of 250. Gall raised his season average to .263 after hitting .355 (11-for-31) on the Cardinal's recent seven-game road trip. Gall burst onto the scene in '97 by hitting .376 with eight homers and 58 RBI en route to Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American honors. And he got even better in '98. Gall hit .381 with 15 homers and 63 RBI, and struck out just 17 times in 239 at-bats en route to First Team All-West Region and First Team All-Six-Pac honors. The Bay Area product also enjoyed an outstanding summer as the starting left fielder for Team USA. Gall hit .371 for the national team with team-highs of 52 hits, 37 RBI and 15 doubles. Here's a look at Gall's career statistics: 
Year       G/GS    .BA   AB   R   H   HR  RBI  BB   K
1997      63/60   .376  258  49  97    8   59  16  23
1998      57/57   .381  239  52  91   15   63  22  17
1999      28/28   .263  114  21  30    1   20  12   9
Totals  148/145   .357  611 122 218   24  142  50  49

STANFORD ALL-TIME BATTING AVERAGE LEADERS
1. .362  Jack Shepard     (1951-53)       6. .351 A.J. Hinch     (1993-96)
2. .359  David McCarty    (1989-91)       6. .351 Rick Lundblade (1982-85)
3. .357  John Gall        (1997-present)  8. .349 Tom Williams   (1970-72)
4. .356  Mike Aldrete     (1980-83)       9. .344 Nate Olmstead  (1991-94)
5. .353  Jeffrey Hammonds (1990-92)      10. .341 Rod Boone      (1971-73)

HOCHGESANG CLIMBS HOME RUN CHART: Senior Josh Hochgesang (Fullerton, CA/Sunny Hills HS) - a 1999 Baseball America Second Team Preseason All-American - ranks among the top 10 home run hitters in Stanford history. The Cardinal third baseman has six in '99, and 35 for his collegiate career. He is currently eighth on the school list, and is one behind seventh place Mark Davis's (1983-86) 36. He also has 46 career doubles to rank him ninth on Stanford's all-time list, and put him just one behind eight place Dusty Allen's (1992-95) 47. His solo homer in the seventh inning of the Jan. 29 season opener was the game-winner in the 1-0 Cardinal victory over Fresno State. Hochgesang had a breakthrough year in '97 by hitting .365 with 17 homers and 77 RBI, and also earning NCAA West Regional Most Outstanding Player honors. Hochgesang was drafted in the 15th round by the New York Yankees in 1995, and again last summer by the Florida Marlins in the 17th round.

                 PAC-10    STANDINGS
Team              Conf.     Overall
Stanford           6-0        20-8
USC                7-2       16-16  
Washington         3-2        14-8
Arizona State      3-3       27-11 
Washington State   1-2        16-9
Arizona            3-6       20-14 
California         2-4       13-21
UCLA               1-4       15-19 
Oregon State       0-3       10-19 


Baseball America (March 29)
 1. Florida State           (29-3)
 2. Auburn                  (27-4)
 3. STANFORD                (20-8)
 4. Rice                    (28-7)
 5. Pepperdine              (27-3)
 6. Texas A&M               (25-7)
 7. Cal State Fullerton     (25-5)
 8. Miami                   (22-6)
 9. North Carolina          (22-5)
10. Wichita State           (21-6)
11. Georgia Tech            (23-6)
12. Baylor                  (24-6)
13. Texas                   (22-11)
14. Florida                 (21-8)
15. LSU                     (20-9)
16. Texas Tech              (24-8)
17. Mississippi State       (22-4)
18. Nebraska                (20-6)
19. Wake Forest             (19-6)
20. Arizona State           (27-11)
21. Florida Atlantic        (31-1)
22. Alabama                 (22-7)
23. East Carolina           (24-5)
24. Oral Roberts            (22-4)
25. South Carolina          (21-7)

Baseball Weekly/ESPN (March 29)
 1. Florida State          (29-3)
 2. Auburn                 (27-4)
 3. STANFORD               (20-8)
 4. Rice                   (28-7)
 5. Pepperdine             (27-3)
 6. Miami                  (22-6)
 7. Cal State Fullerton    (25-5)
 8. Texas A&M              (25-7)
 9. Mississippi State      (22-4)
10. LSU                    (20-9)
11. North Carolina         (22-5)
12. Florida                (21-8)
13. Wichita State          (21-6)
14. Texas                  (22-11)
15. Georgia Tech           (23-6)
16. Arizona State          (27-11)
17. Baylor                 (24-6)
18. Florida Atlantic       (31-1)
19. Alabama                (22-7)
20. Texas Tech             (24-8)
21. Florida International  (27-6)
22. Nebraska               (20-6)
23. North Carolina State   (23-7)
24. South Carolina         (21-7)
25. Wake Forest            (19-6)