OSU Set For Key Series Against California
April 3, 2001
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FRIDAY, APRIL 6
California at Oregon State, 2 p.m.
SATURDAY, APRIL 7
California at Oregon State, 1 p.m.
RADIO: KLOO-AM (1340)
SUNDAY, APRIL 8
California at Oregon State, 1 p.m.
RADIO: KLOO-AM (1340)
GOOD SAMARITAN HOSPITAL WEEKEND: For all three games, Good Samaritan employees receive a free general admission ticket when they show their employee identification card, up to four family members can purchase general admission tickets for $1 each.
Oregon State (19-12 overall, 3-3 Pacific-10) returns home this weekend for what promises to be a key series in a wild scramble for position in the Pacific-10 standings. The Beavers meet California (18-14, 5-4) at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field with both teams in a tight fight for a spot in the upper division of the conference standings.
OSU is tied with UCLA and Washington State for fourth place, just one-half game behind the Golden Bears. Just one-half game out of the fourth-place logjam are Arizona State and Arizona.
"A lot of teams in this conference are postseason-caliber, and you look at the standings and it backs that up," OSU coach Pat Casey said. "You've got an awful lot of teams that could make it into an NCAA Regional and do well in one. But you're never sure how many teams are going to be selected (from the Pac-10), so you'd better be near the top of that group.
"That's our job right now - getting as far up in the standings as we can, and staying there. You look at how teams have knocked each other off, and already every series has become a big series."
That calls for consistency from week to week and game to game.
"We've got to be ready to go every time we step on the field," Casey said. "We have the potential to beat every team we play, but every team has the potential to beat us if we don't play our best. That's something to continue to shoot for - playing your best every day you go out there. If we can do that consistently, we can make a lot of good things happen for us this season."
One Beaver who has been at the top of is game week-in and week-out is senior lefthander Scott Nicholson (Longview, Wash./Lower Columbia CC). Nicholson was named the Pacific-10 Pitcher of the Week for his 5-hit shutout in an 8-0 win at Arizona on March 31, it was his third straight complete-game victory and his second shutout in that stretch.
"Scott is as tough a competitor as you'll ever find," Casey said. "He's not going to throw the ball up there 95 miles an hour, but he's going to do whatever he's got to do to beat you. He's having an outstanding season."
The Beavers also saw senior righthander Thad Johnson show signs of returning to top form at Arizona. He took a 5-2 defeat on March 30 but pitched 7 2/3 strong innings.
"That was as good as Thad has looked in a while - he pitched well enough to win," Casey said. "If we get starts like that from Thad and Scott each weekend, we've got a great chance to win a series.
"We just have to make the plays behind them and get them some runs to work with. We can do that, we just have to work at doing it more consistently. We're still right there to be playing in the postseason, but we've got to keep getting better in order for us to get there."
California plays a non-league game at home against San Francisco on Tuesday before coming to Corvallis. Last week, the Golden Bears lost a home non-leaguer against Pacific (Calif.) 9-8 before sweeping Washington 8-6, 5-2 and 16-7 in Seattle.
"They just swept a series at Washington, and that's mighty tough to do," Casey said. "They've won four straight in the conference, and that's going to be tough for any team this season. They're a quality ballclub, and we're going to have our hands full."
The Golden Bears are led by freshman outfielder Brian Horwitz, who is batting .349 with one home run and 15 runs batted in, and freshman infielder Jeff Dragicevich, who is batting .341 with two homers and 11 RBIs. Sophomore catcher John Baker is batting .321 with two homers and 16 RBIs and freshman infielder Conor Jackson is batting .311 with one homer and 20 RBIs. Cal is batting .279 as a team while its opponents are batting .255.
California's tentative rotation for the weekend includes junior righthander Trevor Hutchinson, with a 2-5 record and 4.07 earned run average, junior lefthander Jason Dennis, 3-1 and 3.38, and junior righthander Ryan Atkinson, 0-3 and 4.50. As a team, Cal's ERA is 3.52 and its opponents are at 4.76.
OREGON STATE LINEUP:
C - Bryan Ingram, jr., Everett, Wash. (Cascade HS),
.342, 1 HR, 15 RBIs
1B - Andy Jarvis, so., Renton, Wash. (Liberty HS),
.282, 9 HRs, 35 RBIs
2B - Zach Gordon, sr., Simi Valley, Calif. (Moorpark JC),
.250, 1 HR, 7 RBIs
or - Kerisi Reynolds, fr., Renton, Wash. (Liberty HS),
.306, 0 HRs, 0 RBIs
or - Stephen Copeland, so., Keizer, Ore. (McNary HS),
.222, 0 HRs, 4 RBIs
3B - Brian Barden, so., Bonita, Calif. (St. Augustine HS),
.323, 5 HRs, 31 RBIs
SS - Will Hudson, so., Fountain Valley, Calif. (Fountain Valley HS),
.287, 2 HRs, 13 RBIs
LF - Chris Biles, so., Tigard, Ore. (Tigard HS),
.392, 6 HRs, 26 RBIs
or - Seth Pietsch, fr., Wilderville, Ore. (Hidden Valley HS),
.261, 2 HRs, 3 RBIs
CF - Eric Stark, sr., Sumner, Wash. (Sumner HS),
.300, 1 HR, 13 RBIs
RF - Josh Carter, jr., Fallbrook, Calif. (Fallbrook HS),
.368, 6 HRs, 36 RBIs
DH - Curtis Davis, sr., Corvallis, Ore. (Corvallis HS),
.429, 0 HRs, 15 RBIs
or-Jason McBride, jr., Bellingham, Wash. (Lower Columbia CC),
.405, 3 HRs, 11 RBIs
or-Pat Stevens, jr., Eugene, Ore. (Chapman U.),
.400, 0 HRs, 2 RBIs
(Rotation to be determined, possible starting pitchers)
RHP - Thad Johnson, sr., Santa Rosa, Calif. (Santa Rosa JC),
3-4, 4.66 ERA
LHP-Scott Nicholson, sr., Longview, Wash. (Lower Columbia CC),
6-1, 2.90 ERA
LHP-Mark McLemore, so., Granite Bay, Calif. (Del Oro HS),
0-2, 8.42 ERA
ALL-TIME VS. THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT: Oregon State has an all-time record of 9-25 against California in a series dating back to 1916, and the Beavers are on a 1-game winning streak against the Golden Bears. Last year in Berkeley, OSU took 2 of 3 games from Cal, winning 12-4, losing 15-9, and then winning 8-5 in 10 innings. The last time the teams met in Corvallis was 1999, when Cal took 2 of 3 games, OSU lost 13-3, won 11-5 following the formal dedication of Goss Stadium, and then lost 7-6.
LAST WEEK: Oregon State suffered a rainout at Portland, then made its first road trip of the Pacific-10 season had to settle for 1 win in 3 games at Arizona.
On March 28, Oregon State's game at Portland was rained out. The game will be rescheduled, but no makeup date has been set.
On March 30, OSU's Thad Johnson struck out a season-high 7 hitters but the Beavers squandered scoring opportunities in a 5-2 loss. Johnson had one of his better outings in recent weeks but took the loss as OSU couldn't come up with a hit at key moments. The Beavers left 10 runners on base, 7 in scoring position. Chris Biles was 3-for-4 for the Beavers and Bryan Ingram was 2-for-5.
On March 31, Scott Nicholson pitched a 5-hitter to lead Oregon State to an 8-0 win. Nicholson did not walk a hitter and struck out 4 as he needed just 82 pitches to dispose of Arizona. It was his third straight complete game and second shutout of the season. Nicholson averaged just 9.1 pitches per inning and 2.6 pitches per hitter. Of the 31 plate appearances against him, 9 were over in 1 pitch and 8 more were over in 2 pitches. Eric Stark was 3-for-6 and delivered a run-scoring triple in OSU's 3-run second inning that gave the Beavers a 4-0 lead. Chris Biles went 4-for-5 on the day and Jason McBride was 3-for-5 with a triple.
On April 1, Brian Barden homered for the fifth time this season but the Beavers lost 13-6. Barden finished 2-for-4 and drove in 3 runs, and his 3-run homer in the eighth inning closed OSU within 10-6. Arizona responded with 3 runs in the bottom of the inning, though. The Beavers missed early opportunities to take the lead when they put their first 2 hitters on base in both the first and second innings but failed to score each time.
OREGON STATE NOTES: Oregon State has won 8 of its last 11 games, 11 of its last 15, and 19 of its last 28 ... lefthander Scott Nicholson pitched his second shutout of the season in beating Arizona 8-0 on March 31. That ties Nicholson with many players for eighth place on OSU's all-time list of single-season leaders ... Nicholson also has 2 career shutouts, that ties him with many players for 10th place among OSU's all-time career leaders ... centerfielder Eric Stark tripled in back-to-back games March 31-April 1, giving him 8 triples in his OSU career. That ties Stark for fourth place on OSU's list of all-time leaders with Dave Backen (1979-81), Dave Schoppe (1988-91) and Abino Vazquez (1996-97) ... rightfielder Josh Carter doubled on March 31 at Arizona, giving him 34 career doubles. That moved him into a tie for fifth place on OSU's all-time leader list with Tim Lambert (1995-98) ... reliever Stephen Copeland has 5 saves already this season, that ties him for second on OSU's all-time list of single-season leaders with Jim Grove (1982). Copeland also has 5 career saves, and that ties him for fourth place on OSU's list of career leaders with Ron Daulton (1984-86) and Tim Lambert (1985-88) ... OSU has pitched 3 shutouts this season, that's the most for the Beavers since they tossed 3 shutouts in 1998. The last time OSU pitched more shutouts in a season was 1994, when the Beavers had 5 ... OSU has 12 triples as a team, the Beavers had 13 all of last season ... when third baseman Brian Barden homered in the eighth inning at Arizona on April 1, it ended a streak of 6 straight games in which OSU had not hit a home run ... in the last 15 games, OSU has put together some impressive numbers. During that time, the Beavers are batting .327 as a team and their opponents are batting .281, OSU's team ERA is 3.42, their opponents' is 6.91, OSU has outhomered its opponents 22-5 and outtripled them 9-3 in that stretch, and during the last 15 games, OSU is batting .354 with runners on base, .345 with runners in scoring position and .333 with the bases loaded ... the Beavers are 3 games ahead of their pace from a season ago, when OSU was 16-15 after 31 games, the Beavers are 2 games ahead of their 2000 pace in Pac-10 play, when they were 1-5 after 6 games ... this spring, Oregon State is 10-3 in games decided by 1 or 2 runs, including a 7-3 mark in 1-run games ... OSU is 2-0 in extra-inning games this season ... OSU has had 10 or more hits in 21 of its 31 games ... in the first 4 games in which OSU didn't have at least 10 hits, the Beavers were 0-4, in their last 6 games without 10 hits, the Beavers are 4-2 ... OSU has 15 or more hits in 8 games this season ... Oregon State is 10-4 at home this season ... as a team, OSU's pinch-hitters are batting .489 (22-for-45) and opponents' pinch-hitters are batting .231 (6-for-26) ... throw out the 3-game, 52-run explosion by Cal State-Northridge to start the season, and OSU's team ERA drops from 5.77 to 4.71 ... with a runner at third and less than 2 out, OSU has managed to bring home the run 70 percent of the time this season ... the Beavers began the season being outhomered 15-1 in a series at Cal State-Northridge. Since then, OSU has outhomered its opponents 36-19 ... 11 different Beavers have homered this season. When OSU tied a school record with 7 home runs against Washington on March 7, 7 different Beavers homered ... catcher Bryan Ingram currently has a 9-game hitting streak, during the streak, Ingram is batting .457 (16-for-35) with 3 doubles, 1 triple and 5 RBIs ... Carter and Barden lead the Beavers with 14 multi-hit games each this spring, while leftfielder Chris Biles has 13, Ingram 12, designated hitter Curtis Davis 11 and shortstop Will Hudson 10 ... Barden and Carter have 9 multi-RBI games, Jarvis 8 and Biles 6 ... OSU's recent 15-game surge has produced some strong individual statistics. In that time, designated hitter Jason McBride is batting .433 (13-for-30) with 3 homers, 2 triples and 7 RBIs, Biles is batting .415 (17-for-41) with 3 homers, 4 doubles and 14 RBIs, Davis is batting .406 (13-for-32) with 1 double and 5 RBIs, Ingram is batting .404 (21-for-52) with 1 homer, 1 triple, 4 double and 7 RBIs, Barden is batting .400 (24-for-60) with 3 homers, 1 triple, 3 doubles and 13 RBIs, and Hudson is batting .319 (15-for-47) with 1 homer, 2 doubles and 6 RBIs. On the pitching side in the last 15 games, Nicholson is 4-0 with a 1.96 ERA in 41.1 innings, reliever Craig Hays is 2-2 with a 3.77 ERA in 14.1 innings, reliever Chris Wilkins is 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA in 7.0 innings, reliever Ben Rowe is 0-0 with a 1.17 ERA in 7.2 innings, and Copeland is 1-0 with 3 saves and a 1.29 ERA in 7.0 innings ... in the Pacific-10, Oregon State is first in home runs (37) and slugging percentage (.494), second in batting average (.323), total bases (548) and on-base percentage (.394), and third in runs (237), hits (358), RBIs (219) and triples (12) ... among the Pacific-10 individual leaders, Davis is second in batting average (.429) and on-base percentage (.550), Carter is third in slugging percentage (.649), fourth in RBIs (36), tied for fourth in home runs (6), tied for sixth in doubles (10), seventh in total bases (74) and eighth in hits (42), Biles is fourth in slugging percentage (.647), tied for fourth in home runs (6), seventh in batting average (.392) and tied for 10th in hits (40), Jarvis is third in home runs (9), tied for fifth in RBIs (35), and ninth in total bases (68), Barden is seventh in hits (43), tied for eighth in home runs (5) and 10th in RBIs (31), Nicholson is first in innings pitched (68.1), tied for fourth in wins (6) and sixth in ERA (2.90), Copeland is second in saves (5), Thad Johnson is fourth in innings pitched (65.2), and Hays is tied for ninth in wins (4).
HEAD COACH PAT CASEY: Pat Casey is in his seventh season as Oregon State's head baseball coach. Casey has a record of 196-140-4 with the Beavers for a winning percentage of .582. His career record is 367-253-5, which includes 7 years at George Fox University in Newberg, for a winning percentage of .591.
Casey was named the Pacific-10 Northern Division Coach of the Year in 1997 after leading the Beavers to a 38-12-1 mark, a school record for wins in a regular season. During Casey's time at OSU, the Beavers have had 13 players drafted by Major League Baseball teams and had 3 more players sign as free agents.
Casey came to OSU from his alma mater, George Fox, after leading the Bruins to a 171-113-1 record and winning 3 NAIA District 2 titles at the school in Newberg, Ore.
OREGON STATE IN NATIONAL POLLS: Oregon State began earning national notice on March 12, when the Beavers broke into the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association top 35. On March 19, the Beavers began earning votes in the Baseball Weekly/ESPN coaches poll. A summary of OSU's national rankings this season:
Baseball Weekly/ Natl. Coll. Baseball Collegiate Date ESPN coaches Bsbll. Writers America Baseball March 12 NR 33rd NR NR March 19 NR (votes, 44th) 32nd NR NR March 26 NR (votes, 44th) 34th NR NR April 2 NR (votes, 38th) 31st NR NR
OREGON STATE RECORD BOOK ENTRIES IN 2001: Oregon State has made several new entries in its record book this spring. Here are the records OSU has set, and where the Beavers rank on career and single-season leaders lists through April 1:
INDIVIDUAL HOME RUNS Game: (tied) 3, Andy Jarvis vs. Washington State, 2001. TEAM HOME RUNS Game: (tied) 7, vs. Washington, 2001. CAREER DOUBLES LEADERS 5. (tie) Josh Carter, 1999-2001 34 CAREER TRIPLES LEADERS 4. (tie) Eric Stark, 1998-2001 8 CAREER SAVE LEADERS 4. (tie) Stephen Copeland, 2000-01 5 SEASON SAVE LEADERS 2. (tie) Stephen Copeland, 2001 5 CAREER SHUTOUT LEADERS 10. (tie) Scott Nicholson, 2000-01 2 SEASON SHUTOUT LEADERS 8. (tie) Scott Nicholson, 2001 2
OREGON STATE AMONG PACIFIC-10 LEADERS: Here is where Oregon State ranks among the Pacific-10 leaders through April 1:
TEAM BATTING AVERAGE 2. Oregon State .323 TEAM RUNS SCORED 3. Oregon State 237 TEAM HITS 3. Oregon State 358 TEAM RUNS BATTED IN 3. Oregon State 219 TEAM HOME RUNS 1. Oregon State 37 TEAM TRIPLES 3. Oregon State 12 TEAM DOUBLES 4. Oregon State 55 TEAM TOTAL BASES 2. Oregon State 548 TEAM SLUGGING PERCENTAGE 1. Oregon State .494 TEAM WALKS (BATTING) 8. Oregon State 108 TEAM HIT BY PITCH 3. Oregon State 34 TEAM ON-BASE PERCENTAGE 2. Oregon State .394 TEAM STOLEN BASES 6. (tie) Oregon State 25 TEAM EARNED RUN AVERAGE 8. Oregon State 5.77 TEAM OPPONENTS BATTING AVG. 8. Oregon State .301 TEAM INNINGS PITCHED 6. Oregon State 271.1 TEAM STRIKEOUTS (PITCHING) 7. Oregon State 175 TEAM WINS 5. (tie) Oregon State 19 TEAM SAVES 6. (tie) Oregon State 5 TEAM FIELDING PERCENTAGE 9. Oregon State .955 TEAM DOUBLE PLAYS 2. Oregon State 35 INDIVIDUAL BATTING AVERAGE 2. Curtis Davis .429 7. Chris Biles .392 INDIVIDUAL HITS 7. Brian Barden 43 8. Josh Carter 42 10. (tie) Chris Biles 40 INDIVIDUAL RUNS BATTED IN 4. Josh Carter 36 5. (tie) Andy Jarvis 35 10. Brian Barden 31 INDIVIDUAL HOME RUNS 3. Andy Jarvis 9 4. (tie) Josh Carter 6 4. (tie) Chris Biles 6 8. (tie) Brian Barden 5 INDIVIDUAL DOUBLES 6. (tie) Josh Carter 10 INDIVIDUAL TOTAL BASES 7. Josh Carter 74 9. Andy Jarvis 68 INDIVIDUAL SLUGGING PERCENTAGE 3. Josh Carter .649 4. Chris Biles .647 INDIVIDUAL HIT BY PITCH 3. Curtis Davis 10 INDIVIDUAL ON-BASE PERCENTAGE 2. Curtis Davis .550 INDIVIDUAL EARNED RUN AVERAGE 6. Scott Nicholson 2.90 INDIVIDUAL INNINGS PITCHED 1. Scott Nicholson 68.1 4. Thad Johnson 65.2 INDIVIDUAL WINS 4. (tie) Scott Nicholson 6 9. (tie) Craig Hays 4 INDIVIDUAL SAVES 2. Stephen Copeland 5
PACIFIC-10 COACHES POLL: When the Pacific-10's baseball coaches voted on a predicted order of finish for the 2001 conference race, Oregon State was tabbed for seventh place. However, only 4 points separated the fourth- through seventh-place selections. Results of the balloting:
Place/School (1st-place votes) Pts. 1. Southern California (6) 52 2. Arizona State (1) 49 3. Stanford (1) 37 4. Arizona 31 5. California 30 6. UCLA 29 7. Oregon State 27 8. Washington 15 9. Washington State 8
RETURNING DRAFT PICK SCOTT NICHOLSON: Lefthander Scott Nicholson opeted to return to Oregon State after being selected by the Texas Rangers in the 15th round of the 2000 Major League Baseball draft, and Nicholson has shown this spring why he attracted the pros' interest.
Nicholson is 6-1 with a 2.90 earned run average, he's thrown 5 complete games and has pitched at least 7.0 innings in all 8 of his starts. In 68.1 innings, he's allowed just 58 hits and 13 walks while striking out 45 and opponents are batting just .230 against him.
Nicholson owns wins over nationally-ranked Clemson and Arizona State this season, and his only loss was a 2-1 defeat by San Francisco. He also shut out Arizona and defending Big Ten champ Minnesota, his pair of shutouts tie him for eighth place on OSU's list of single-season leaders and they also tie him for 10th place on OSU's list of career leaders.
PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA BRIAN BARDEN: Third baseman Brian Barden was named a third team preseason All-America in selections made by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, and Barden is living up to expectations.
Barden is batting .323 with 5 homers and 31 RBIs, he also has 5 doubles and 1 triple. He's 3-for-4 on stolen bases and has walked 11 times while striking out just 13.
In the past 15 games, Barden is batting .400 (24-for-60) with 13 RBIs, 3 homers, 1 triple and 3 doubles. He's the only Beaver to have started every game this season, and he has a hit in 24 of 31 games this spring.
JARVIS NAMED NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK: First baseman Andy Jarvis was named one of four Louisville Slugger National Players of the Week for March 5-11, and was the only non-pitcher among the group. He was also named the Pacific-10 Player of the Week for that week. In 5 games against Washington and Washington State, Jarvis batted .478 (11-for-23) with 5 homers, 2 doubles, 13 RBIs and 8 runs scored. On March 11, he tied a school record with 3 homers in a game against WSU.
The last OSU player to earn Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week honors was pitcher B.R. Cook for his 1-hitter in a 1-0 win over Oklahoma State on Feb. 18, 1999 in the San Diego Classic.
PACIFIC-10 PLAYERS/PITCHERS OF THE WEEK: Oregon State has had 3 selections as the Pacific-10 Player of the Week or Pitcher of the Week this season: first baseman Andy Jarvis, catcher Brian Ingram and pitcher Scott Nicholson.
Jarvis was named for March 5-11, he was also named a Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week. In 5 games against Washington and Washington State, Jarvis batted .478 (11-for-23) with 5 homers, 2 doubles, 13 RBIs and 8 runs scored.
Ingram was named for March 19-26. In a 3-game series against Arizona State, Ingram batted .636 (7-for-11) with 3 RBIs and threw out 5 Sun Devils attempting to steal.
Nicholson was named for March 27-April 1. At Arizona, he pitched a 5-hit shutout and needed just 82 pitches in an 8-0 victory. He walked 0 and struck out 4 in his third straight complete game.
BASEBALL AMERICA PICKS: Baseball America magazine tabbed Oregon State for a seventh-place finish in the Pacific-10, and ranked the Beavers at No. 75 on its list of the top teams among the 281 Division I programs.
In its "Best Tools" listings, Baseball America rated OSU's Bryan Ingram as the conference's Best Defensive Catcher and Brian Barden as the Pac-10's Best Defensive Third Baseman.
COLLEGIATE BASEBALL PICKS: Collegiate Baseball newspaper picked Oregon State to finish seventh in the Pacific-10. Collegiate Baseball's list of Players to Watch in the conference included OSU pitcher Scott Nicholson, first baseman Andy Jarvis and third baseman Brian Barden.
BEAVERS FACE TOP-FLIGHT SCHEDULE: Oregon State again faces one of the nation's most challenging schedules. The Beavers have 12 games against teams ranked in the top 25 of the Baseball Weekly/ESPN coaches poll of April 2, facing No. 2 Stanford (3 games), No. 6 Arizona State (3 games), No. 11 Southern California (3 games) and No. 12 Clemson (3 games). OSU has 7 more games against teams that received votes in the poll but didn't make the top 25: Texas Tech (1 game), UCLA (3 games) and Arizona (3 games).
