Beavers Greet Washington For Big Series
May 14, 2002
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MAY 17, FRIDAY Washington at Oregon State, 5 p.m.
RADIO: Live on KLOO-AM (1340)MAY 18, SATURDAY Washington at Oregon State, 1 p.m.
RADIO: Live on KLOO-AM (1340) 1952 COLLEGE WORLD SERIES CELEBRATION: Oregon State will honor its 1952 College World Series team on the 50th anniversary of its trip to Omaha. The first 500 fans through the gates will receive a replica of the 1952 College World Series program. POSTGAME BARBECUE: The Oregon State Dugout Club is putting on a postgame barbecue at the ballpark. The general public is welcome; cost is $5 per person.MAY 19, SUNDAY Washington at Oregon State, 1 p.m.
RADIO: Live on KLOO-AM (1340) SENIOR DAY: Oregon State will honor the 2002 team's seniors.
CH2M HILL WEEKEND: For any or all of the games against Washington, all CH2M Hill employees can purchase up to five general admission tickets for $1 per ticket by presenting their employee identification at the ticket window.
ONE PRICE, TWO GAMES, AND A CHANCE AT 2003 SEASON TICKETS: Buy a ticket for Saturday's game and receive a free ticket for Sunday's game; you'll also be entered in a drawing for a pair of 2003 Oregon State baseball season tickets. The drawing for the tickets will be held Sunday, and you have to be at the game to claim the tickets.
Oregon State (30-18 overall, 9-9 Pacific-10) takes its drive toward a berth in the NCAA Regionals into the final two weeks of the season as longtime rival Washington (25-22-1, 11-7) comes to Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. OSU will wrap up its home schedule with the series, which includes games Friday at 5 p.m., Saturday at 1 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.
"It'll be good to be back at home," said Oregon State head coach Pat Casey, whose team spent the past two weekends on the road. "We've played well at home this year, and we need to play well this wekeend. It's a good time for us to get back in our own ballpark."
The Beavers are 17-7 at home this season and have won 12 of their last 16 at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. OSU is also averaging just under 750 fans per home date, and has drawn crowds of at least 1,000 eight times this season.
"That's one reason it's so good to be back home for this series," Casey said. "The fans have been tremendous this year, and they're a big reason for our success at home; I know our guys have really appreciated having the big, loud crowds we've had this spring. We could really use their help this weekend."
OSU, which remained 35th in this week's National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association national poll, enters the weekend in fifth place in the Pacific-10, just one game behind fourth-place Arizona State and two games behind the teams tied for second, Washington and Stanford. The Beavers trail Pac-10 leader Southern California by four games.
"We've got a great opportunity," Casey said. "We've got six games left, and they're all against teams ahead of us in the standings (Washington and Arizona State). It means they're going to be tough games, but it also means we probably don't need anybody's help to reach our goals."
"If we play hard, play smart and play well, these are games we're capable of winning. And if we win down the stretch, then we reach the goal we set at the start of the year - making it to the postseason."
OSU will honor the most successful postseason team in its baseball history this weekend - the 1952 squad that reached the College World Series by beating Southern California in the Pacific Coast Conference championship series and then knocking off Fresno State in the Far West Regional championship series. Over a dozen members of that team are expected to commemorate the 50th anniversary of that season.
"It's great to have those men coming back to the place where they won a lot of big games," Casey said. "They're a tremendous example in terms of showing what has been accomplished in this baseball program through the years, and of what we're striving toward now. And the fact that so many of them will be in town this weekend shows how much Oregon State baseball means to so many people - it's a great thing to be a part of."
Then, on Sunday, Oregon State will honor its 2002 seniors. Tom Creighton, Craig Hays, Jason McBride, Ben McGrew, Pat Stevens and Don Stykel will all be playing their final home game.
"That's always kind of a special day," Casey said. "Hopefully, we can make it a memorable one."
Washington, which played a doubleheader at home against Gonzaga on Tuesday, took 1 of 3 games at No. 20 Southern California last weekend, losing 4-1, winning 9-3 and losing 8-6.
At the plate, the Huskies have been led by freshman first baseman Kyle Larsen (.349 batting average, 5 homers, 30 RBIs), freshman catcher Aaron Hathaway (.339, 2, 23), junior shortstop Tila Reynolds (.335, 1, 26), junior outfielder Tyler Davidson (.321, 10, 35) and junior outfielder Jay Garthwaite (.311, 13, 55). Washington's tentative rotation includes senior righthander Shawn Kohn (9-4 record, 3.10 earned run average), junior righthander Sean White (4-2, 5.01) and sophomore righthander Clay Johnson (2-1, 7.06).
OREGON STATE LINEUP:
C - Paul Richie, so.; Kelso, Wash. (Kelso HS); .225, 1 HR, 18 RBIs or - Wick Udy, jr.; Brigham City, Utah (Dixie JC); .344, 1 HR, 17 RBIs 1B - Andy Jarvis, jr., Renton, Wash. (Liberty HS); .333, 10 HRs, 42 RBIs or - Levi Webber, so.; Glide, Ore. (Glide HS); .308, 2 HRs, 6 RBIs 2B - Tom Creighton, sr.; Weldon, Calif. (Fresno State U.); .301 3 HRs, 34 RBIs or - J.R. Runyon, jr.; The Dalles, Ore. (Chemeketa CC); .217, 2 HRs, 7 RBIs or - Kerisi Reynolds, so., Renton, Wash. (Liberty HS); .255, 1 HR, 22 RBIs 3B - Brian Barden, jr., Bonita, Calif. (St. Augustine HS); .361, 9 HRs, 46 RBIs SS - Will Hudson, jr.; Fountain Valley, Calif. (Fountain Valley HS); .327, 2 HRs, 21 RBIs LF - Seth Pietsch, so.; Wilderville, Ore. (Hidden Valley HS); .318, 7 HRs, 30 RBIs CF - Aaron Mathews, fr.; John Day, Ore. (Grant Union HS); .353, 2 HRs, 25 RBIs RF - Chris Biles, so.; Tigard, Ore. (Tigard HS); .277, 6 HRs, 27 RBIs or - Aaron Fausett, jr.; Beaverton, Ore. (U. of Southern California); .216, 0 HRs, 4 RBIs DH - Jason McBride, sr.; Bellingham, Wash. (Lower Columbia CC); .275, 1 HR, 9 RBIs or - Pat Stevens, sr.; Eugene, Ore. (Chapman U.); .300, 1 HR, 6 RBIs (Tentative pitching rotation) Fri. RHP - Ben Rowe, so.; Perth, Australia (Greenwood HS); 7-4 record, 5.15 ERA Sat. RHP - Stephen Copeland, jr.; Keizer, Ore. (McNary HS); 5-2 record, 5.02 ERA Sun. LHP - Mark McLemore, jr.; Granite Bay, Calif. (Del Oro HS); 2-4 record, 5.40 ERA
ALL-TIME VS. THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT: Oregon State has an all-time record of 207-170-2 against Washington in a series dating back to 1911. Last season, the teams first played a non-league series in Corvallis with OSU losing 10-7 and winning 17-3; in a later Pacific-10 series in Seattle, Washington won 11-4, OSU won 9-1 and Washington won the finale 3-1.
OREGON STATE NOTES: OSU has set a team school record and tied another this season. The Beavers' 26 triples breaks the school record of 20 set in 1983 and tied in 1997; OSU's 13 saves ties the mark set by the 1990 team. The Beavers lead the Pacific-10 in both categories ... Brian Barden has set 2 OSU career records, with the possibility of more to follow. Barden became OSU's all-time hits leader on April 15 when he lined a single to centerfield in the bottom of the fourth inning against Hawai'i-Hilo; that gave him 207 hits and moved him past Ken Bowen, who had 206 from 1984-87. Barden has extended his record to 220 hits. Barden added the total bases record on May 11 when he had 2 singles and 1 double at California; that gave him 348 total bases, just ahead of the 347 accumulated by Joe Gerber from 1997-2000 ... Jared Sanders has 9 saves this season, breaking the school record of 8 set by Mike Boire in 1997. The 9 saves also gives Sanders a tie for second place on OSU's all-time list of career leaders ... Seth Pietsch set the school record for doubles in a season when he hit 2 at California on May 10; that moved him ahead of the 19 hit by A.J. Marquardt in 1993 and Joe Gerber in 2000. Pietsch now has 22 doubles for the season ...
Through May 12, Jared Sanders leads the Pacific-10 in saves (9) and the Beavers have the team lead in saves (13) ... Seth Pietsch leads the Pac-10 in doubles (22) and triples (6) ... OSU also has the team lead in triples (26) ... among the NCAA Division I national leaders, Pietsch is tied for 12th in doubles per game (0.47) and tied for 19th in triples per game (0.13); and Sanders is tied for 12th in saves (9) ...
OSU has drawn home crowds of 1,000 or more 8 times this season, including 5 of the last 6 home games ... the Beavers are 17-7 at home this season ... the Beavers' 7-game home winning streak from March 29-April 19 was OSU's longest on the home diamond since taking 13 in a row at the end of 1997 (2 games) and the start of 1998 (11 games) ... OSU has had a losing record in just 3 of the season's first 15 weeks ... OSU is 3-2 in series sweeps this season. The Beavers swept 2 games at Nevada on March 8-March 9 (a third game was cancelled on account of cold weather); 3 games over Washington State on March 15-March 17; and 3 games at Washington State on May 3-5; OSU was swept in 3 games at San Diego on Feb. 8-10 and in 3 games at California on May 10-12 ... after a series win over Stanford on April 26-28, Oregon State has won a Pac-10 series from every conference school except Southern California since the conference went to its current format in 1999 ...
OSU is 8-3 in games decided by 1 run this season ... OSU is 3-1 in extra-inning games this season ... 4 times this season, the Beavers have come from behind in the ninth inning to force extra innings or win games. They have a 4-0 record in those games, and in 3 of those games they came back from deficits of at least 3 runs ... the Beavers have outscored their opponents 37-29 in the first inning and 33-14 in the ninth inning ... the Beavers are 23-4 when they have 10 or more hits in a game; OSU's opponents are 13-7 when they have 10 or more hits in a game ... when leading after 6 innings, OSU is 22-2; when leading after 7 innings, OSU is 22-2; and when leading after 8 innings, OSU is 22-0 ... when either ahead or tied after 6 innings, the Beavers are 27-3 ... not surprisingly, OSU is 25-1 this season when it has more hits than its opponent. On the other hand, OSU has also managed a 12-7 record when it commits more errors than its opponent ... OSU is 17-5 when it scores first this season ...
OSU has committed 3 or more errors in a game 12 times this season, but 9 of those were in the season's first 20 games ... a look at the Pac-10 statistics through May 12 shows OSU eighth in stolen bases with 47; however, OSU has stolen 7 more bases than its opponents ... OSU is batting .303 as a team, but that improves to .325 with runners on base and .334 with runners in scoring position. Meanwhile, Beaver pitchers have limited opponents to a .277 batting average and that rises to just .296 with runners on and drops to .272 with runners in scoring position ... as a team, OSU is batting .429 with the bases loaded, opponents are hitting .333 ... with 2 out, OSU is batting .296, opponents .250 ...
OSU has won 17 of its last 26 games ... during that time, OSU is batting .313 as a team and opponents are hitting .272 ... in those 23 games, Brian Barden is batting .404 with 12 doubles, 5 homers and 26 RBIs; Aaron Mathews is batting .388 with 4 doubles, 3 triples, 2 homers, 25 RBIs and 8 stolen bases; Andy Jarvis is batting .357 with 5 doubles, 2 triples, 8 homers and 29 RBIs; Will Hudson is batting .341 with 6 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homers, 14 RBIs and 20 walks; and Seth Pietsch is batting .320 with 10 doubles, 3 triples, 5 homers and 18 RBIs ... in those 26 games with runners on base, OSU is hitting .328 as a team and that includes marks of .407 by Aaron Mathews, .389 by Paul Richie, .385 by Andy Jarvis, .351 by Brian Barden and .343 by Will Hudson ... in those 26 games with runners in scoring position, OSU is hitting .347 as a team and that includes .484 by Brian Barden, .455 by Aaron Mathews and .371 by Andy Jarvis ... on the mound in that time, OSU has a team ERA of 4.99 and its opponents are at 7.73 ... in those 26 games, Joshua Garcia is 3-0 with a 3.00 ERA; Stephen Copeland is 3-1 with a 3.75 ERA; Ty Kline is 5-0 with a 3.86 ERA and Jared Sanders has 4 saves.
Brian Barden leads OSU in multi-hit games this season with 23. Tom Creighton and Seth Pietsch both have 19 multi-hit games each; Chris Biles 14 and Andy Jarvis 14 each; Will Hudson and Aaron Mathews 13 each; and Wick Udy 10 ... Brian Barden leads OSU in multi-RBI games this season with 16; Andy Jarvis and Seth Pietsch have 9 each; Aaron Mathews has 8; Kerisi Reynolds 7; Tom Creighton 6; and Chris Biles and Will Hudson 5 each ... OSU's longest current hitting streak is Seth Pietsch's 9-gamer, and Aaron Mathews has hit in 7 straight. The Beavers' longest streak this season was Chris Biles' 16-gamer that included the final 5 games of 2001; Tom Creighton has had a 15-game streak; Aaron Mathews has had a 12-game streak; and Brian Barden, Andy Jarvis and Paul Richie have all had 10-game streaks.
LAST WEEK: Oregon State's drive toward the postseason hit a bump in the road as the Beavers were swept in a 3-game series at California from May 10-May 12. OSU lost 13-7, 2-1 in 15 innings and 8-3.
On May 10, Seth Pietsch set Oregon State's record for doubles in a season but the Beavers fell to California 13-7. Pietsch doubled twice to give him 21 doubles this season, eclipsing the 19 hit by A.J. Marquardt in 1993 and Joe Gerber in 2000. Pietsch had 2 doubles, 1 home run and 3 runs batted in; the sophomore outfielder set the record with a run-scoring double down the leftfield line in the fifth inning. "I realized it when I was on second base," Pietsch said of setting the record. "I kind of gave myself a little fist-pump out there." Pietsch's homer, a two-run drive in the second inning onto the roof of a student recreation center beyond the leftfield fence, brought OSU back within 4-2. After Pietsch's homer, the Beavers loaded the bases with 2 out but couldn't push across another run against Bear starter Joe Todoroff. OSU cut the gap to 4-3 on Tom Creighton's sacrifice fly in the top of the fourth. That was as close as the Beavers would get, though, as the Golden Bears picked up 2 runs - 1 unearned - in the bottom of the fourth to make it 6-3. Cal had taken a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first, keyed by David Weiner's 2-out, 3-run homer off Beaver starter Rowe. Rowe had allowed just 2 runs and in his previous 20 innings. Will Hudson was 3-for-5 for Oregon State and Aaron Mathews was 2-for-5, and Brian Barden and Pat Stevens also homered for OSU.
On May 11, Oregon State and California stretched a pitchers' duel to 15 innings before the Beavers fell 2-1. The tense 5-hour, 10-minute game matched Oregon State starter Stephen Copeland and reliever Jared Sanders in a battle with Golden Bear starter Trevor Hutchinson and reliever Jesse Ingram. Cal picked up an unearned run in bottom of the fifth and OSU evened the game in the top of the seventh. After that, the teams turned away scoring chances for the next 7 innings until Justin Nelson's infield single plated the winning run for Cal with none out in the bottom of the 15th. The game was one of the longest in OSU history, but was 5 innings short of the school-record and Pac-10 record 20-inning contest that saw the Beavers lose to Washington 2-1 in 1972. Oregon State put the go-ahead run in scoring position in the eighth, ninth, 10th, 11th and 14th innings; Cal put the winning run in scoring position in the ninth, 10th and 12th innings. OSU left 14 runners on base during the game; Cal stranded 17. Copeland and Hutchinson both worked into the ninth inning, then it was up to Sanders and Ingram to squirm out of trouble. That's just what they did. At the plate, OSU was just 2-for-24 with runners on base, 1-for-22 with runners in scoring position (stopping a runner at third base on the 1 hit) and 1-for-17 with 2 out; California was 6-for-29 with runners on base, 1-for-18 with runners in scoring position (the only hit being the game-winner), and 1-for-15 with 2 out. California nearly ended the game in the bottom of the 12th inning, but OSU first baseman Andy Jarvis and catcher Wick Udy combined to deny the Golden Bears. Cal put runners at first and third with 1 out and Brian Horwitz tried to squeeze the runner home; Jarvis barehanded his bunt, though, and flipped the ball to Udy in time to tag out Conor Jackson at the plate. The Beavers had a chance of their own in the top of the 11th when Pat Stevens led off with a walk and stole second with none out. However, Ingram got flyouts from Udy, Will Hudson and Aaron Mathews to retire the side. Brian Barden was 3-for-7 with a double for the Beavers and Andy Jarvis was 2-for-5 with a triple.
On May 12, Oregon State fell 8-3 to California, completing the first sweep of the Beavers in Pac-10 play this season. Andy Jarvis gave Oregon State a quick 1-0 lead in the first inning when he singled home Brian Barden. Chris Biles' sacrifice fly scored Pat Stevens in the third inning, and Aaron Mathews solo homer in the fourth gave the Beavers a 3-1 lead. California rallied in the fifth inning with an RBI groundout and then a trio of 2-out RBI singles to take a 5-3 lead. Noah Jackson hit a 2-run homer in the sixth inning and the Bears added 1 run in the seventh. Pat Stevens was 2-for-3 and Aaron Mathews was 2-for-5 for OSU.
BEAVERS AMONG 2002 NCAA LEADERS: Where Oregon State ranks among the NCAA Division I national leaders through May 12:
DOUBLES PER GAME (Minimum 13 doubles) 12. (tie) Seth Pietsch, Oregon State 0.47 TRIPLES PER GAME (Minimum 6 triples) 27. (tie) Seth Pietsch, Oregon State 0.13 INDIVIDUAL SAVES 12. (tie) Jared Sanders, Oregon State 9
BEAVERS AMONG 2002 PACIFIC-10 LEADERS: Where Oregon State ranks among the Pacific-10 leaders through May 12:
TEAM BATTING AVERAGE 5. Oregon State .303 TEAM RUNS 5. Oregon State 352 TEAM HITS 7. Oregon State 511 TEAM RUNS BATTED IN 5. Oregon State 320 TEAM DOUBLES 3. (tie) Oregon State 102 TEAM TRIPLES 1. Oregon State 26 TEAM HOME RUNS 7. Oregon State 48 TEAM TOTAL BASES 6. Oregon State 809 TEAM AT-BATS 8. Oregon State 1,684 TEAM SLUGGING PERCENTAGE 3. Oregon State .480 TEAM ON-BASE PERCENTAGE 5. Oregon State .390 TEAM STOLEN BASES 8. Oregon State 47 TEAM EARNED RUN AVERAGE 5. Oregon State 5.39 TEAM OPPONENT BATTING AVERAGE 3. Oregon State .277 TEAM INNINGS PITCHED 7. Oregon State 426.0 TEAM STRIKEOUTS (PITCHING) 9. Oregon State 226 TEAM WINS 2. (tie) Oregon State 30 TEAM SAVES 1. Oregon State 13 TEAM FIELDING PERCENTAGE 6. Oregon State .962 TEAM DOUBLE PLAYS TURNED 5. Oregon State 48 (For Individual Categories, Hitting Minimums of 75 Percent Of Games, 2.0 At-Bats Per Game; Pitching Minimums Of 1.0 Inning Per Game) INDIVIDUAL RUNS 8. (tie) Seth Pietsch, Oregon State 47 INDIVIDUAL HITS 4. Brian Barden, Oregon State 74 INDIVIDUAL RUNS BATTED IN 8. Brian Barden, Oregon State 46 INDIVIDUAL DOUBLES 1. Seth Pietsch, Oregon State 22 INDIVIDUAL TRIPLES 1. Seth Pietsch, Oregon State 6 3. (tie) Tom Creighton, Oregon State 4 8. (tie) Chris Biles, Oregon State 3 8. (tie) Aaron Mathews, Oregon State 3 INDIVIDUAL HOME RUNS 9. (tie) Andy Jarvis, Oregon State 10 INDIVIDUAL TOTAL BASES 4. (tie) Brian Barden, Oregon State 118 7. (tie) Seth Pietsch 112 INDIVIDUAL SLUGGING PERCENTAGE 8. Seth Pietsch, Oregon State .626 INDIVIDUAL ON-BASE PERCENTAGE 6. Will Hudson, Oregon State .459 INDIVIDUAL WALKS 3. Will Hudson, Oregon State 33 INDIVIDUAL SACRIFICE BUNTS 8. (tie) Kerisi Reynolds, Oregon State 5 8. (tie) Will Hudson, Oregon State 5 INDIVIDUAL SACRIFICE FLIES 7. (tie) Tom Creighton 5 INDIVIDUAL AT-BATS 6. Brian Barden, Oregon State 205 INDIVIDUAL OPP. BATTING AVERAGE 8. Mark McLemore, Oregon State .251 INDIVIDUAL WINS 5. (tie) Ben Rowe, Oregon State 7 INDIVIDUAL SAVES 1. Jared Sanders, Oregon State 9 INDIVIDUAL APPEARANCES 2. Jake Postlewait, Oregon State 27 3. (tie) Jared Sanders, Oregon State 24 6. Mike Ekstrom, Oregon State 23 7. (tie) Ty Kline, Oregon State 22 7. (tie) Don Stykel, Oregon State 22 INDIVIDUAL STARTS 1. Ben Rowe, Oregon State 16 2. (tie) Stephen Copeland, Oregon State 15
2002 BEAVERS ON OREGON STATE'S LEADER LISTS: Where Oregon State players rank among or near the school's all-time leaders through May 12:
CAREER AT-BATS 1. Jon Yonemitsu, 1990-93 648 2. Ken Bowen, 1984-87 643 3. Aaron Anderson, 1989-92 613 > 4. Brian Barden, 2000-present 612 < career="" hits=""> 1. Brian Barden, 2000-present 224 < 2.="" ken="" bowen,="" 1984-87="" 206="" career="" runs="" 1.="" ken="" bowen,="" 1984-87="" 150="" 2.="" todd="" thomas,="" 1980-83="" 148=""> 3. Brian Barden, 2000-present 145 < 4.="" drew="" hedges,="" 1997-2000="" 139="" 5.="" ryan="" lipe,="" 1995-98="" 134="" (tie)="" joe="" gerber,="" 1997-2000="" 134="" 7.="" matt="" bailie,="" 1995-98="" 132="" 8.="" bryan="" ganter,="" 1984-87="" 130="" 9.="" kevin="" hooker,="" 1991-95="" 128="" 10.="" jon="" yonemitsu,="" 1990-93="" 126=""> Will Hudson, 2000-present 125 < career="" doubles="" 1.="" joe="" gerber,="" 1997-2000="" 44="" 2.="" josh="" carter,="" 1999-2001="" 42=""> 3. Brian Barden, 2000-present 39 < 4.="" drew="" hedges,="" 1997-2000="" 37="" 5.="" ken="" bowen,="" 1984-87="" 36="" 6.="" troy="" schader,="" 1997-99="" 35="" 7.="" tim="" lambert,="" 1985-88="" 34="" 8.="" bob="" mcnair,="" 1978-80="" 32="" 9.="" mickey="" riley,="" 1981-83="" 31="" (tie)="" jeff="" brauning,="" 1988-89="" 31=""> Andy Jarvis, 2000-present 30 <> Chris Biles, 2000-present 26 < career="" triples="" 8.="" lute="" barnes,="" 1967-69="" 7="" (tie)="" bob="" beall,="" 1968-70="" 7="" (tie)="" bob="" mcnair,="" 1978-80="" 7="" (tie)="" r.a.="" neitzel,="" 1988-90="" 7=""> Seth Pietsch, 2001-present 6 <> Brian Barden, 2000-present 5 <> Chris Biles, 2000-present 4 < career="" home="" runs="" 1.="" joe="" gerber,="" 1997-2000="" 34="" 2.="" al="" hunsinger,="" 1980-81="" 28="" 3.="" bob="" mcnair,="" 1978-80="" 27="" (tie)="" jim="" wilson,="" 1979-81="" 27=""> 5. Andy Jarvis, 2000-present 26 < 6.="" matt="" bailie,="" 1995-98="" 25=""> 7. Brian Barden, 2000-present 25 < 8.="" steve="" smith,="" 1981-83="" 21="" (tie)="" david="" schmidt,="" 1994-96="" 21="" (tie)="" ben="" bertrand,="" 1996-98="" 21="" (tie)="" troy="" schader,="" 1997-99="" 21=""> Chris Biles, 2000-present 17 < career="" runs="" batted="" in="" 1.="" joe="" gerber,="" 1997-2000="" 169=""> 2. Brian Barden, 2000-present 150 < 3.="" matt="" bailie,="" 1995-98="" 144="" 4.="" ken="" bowen,="" 1984-87="" 131="" 5.="" bob="" mcnair,="" 1978-80="" 130="" 6.="" ryan="" lipe,="" 1995-98="" 126=""> 7. Andy Jarvis, 2000-present 122 < 8.="" josh="" carter,="" 1999-2001="" 120="" 9.="" troy="" schader,="" 1997-99="" 118="" 10.="" drew="" hedges,="" 1997-2000="" 115=""> Chris Biles, 2000-present 92 < career="" walks="" 10.="" tim="" lambert,="" 1985-88="" 98=""> Will Hudson, 2000-present 93 < career="" total="" bases=""> 1. Brian Barden, 2000-present 348 < 2.="" joe="" gerber,="" 1997-2000="" 347="" 3.="" ken="" bowen,="" 1984-87="" 303="" 4.="" bob="" mcnair,="" 1978-80="" 285="" 5.="" drew="" hedges,="" 1997-2000="" 283="" 6.="" matt="" bailie,="" 1995-98="" 269=""> 7. Andy Jarvis, 2000-present 265 < 8.="" josh="" carter,="" 1999-2001="" 262="" 9.="" ryan="" lipe,="" 1995-98="" 255="" 10.="" troy="" schader,="" 1997-99="" 254=""> Chris Biles, 2000-present 224 < career="" saves="" 1.="" mike="" boire,="" 1996-98="" 10="" 2.="" jim="" grove,="" 1979-82="" 9=""> (tie) Jared Sanders, present 9 < 4.="" dave="" schoppe,="" 1989-91="" 6="" 5.="" ron="" daulton,="" 1984-86="" 5="" (tie)="" tim="" lambert,="" 1985-88="" 5=""> (tie) Stephen Copeland, 2000-present 5 < season="" hits="" 1.="">Brian Barden, 2001 83 2. Josh Carter, 2001 78 3. R.A. Neitzel, 1990 75 4. Dave Brundage, 1986 74 (tie) Joe Gerber, 1999 74 (tie) Joe Gerber, 2000 74 > (tie) Brian Barden, 2002 74 < 8.="" a.j.="" marquardt,="" 1993="" 73="" 9.="" ryan="" mcdonald,="" 1996="" 71="" 10.="" jeff="" brauning,="" 1989="" 70="" (tie)="">Chris Biles, 2001 70 > Tom Creighton, 2002 58 <> Seth Pietsch, 2002 57 < season="" runs="" 1.="" jason="" stranberg,="" 1997="" 67="" 2.="" dave="" brundage,="" 1986="" 55="" 3.="" ben="" bertrand,="" 1997="" 52="" 4.="" chris="" wakeland,="" 1996="" 51="" (tie)="">Brian Barden, 2001 51 6. Ken Bowen, 1987 50 (tie) Brian Barden, 2000 50 8. Jeff Doyle, 1977 49 (tie) Al Hunsinger, 1981 49 (tie) Jim Wilson, 1982 49 (tie) Jeff Brauning, 1988 49 (tie) R.A. Neitzel, 1990 49 (tie) Ben Bertrand, 1998 49 (tie) Drew Hedges, 2000 49 > Seth Pietsch, 2002 47 <> Brian Barden, 2002 44 <> Will Hudson, 2002 42 <> Chris Biles, 2002 41 < season="" doubles=""> 1. Seth Pietsch, 2002 22 < 2.="" a.j.="" marquardt,="" 1993="" 19="" (tie)="" joe="" gerber,="" 2000="" 19="" 4.="" jeff="" brauning,="" 1989="" 18="" (tie)="" troy="" schader,="" 1999="" 18="" (tie)="" josh="" carter,="" 2001="" 18="" 7.="" marc="" malloy,="" 1994="" 17="" (tie)="" brent="" watts,="" 1994="" 17="" (tie)="" chris="" wakeland,="" 1996="" 17="" 10.="" ken="" bowen,="" 1986="" 16="" (tie)="" randy="" duke,="" 1987="" 16=""> Brian Barden, 2002 15 < season="" triples="" 1.="" abino="" vazquez,="" 1997="" 7="" 2.="" jeff="" doyle,="" 1977="" 6="" (tie)="" todd="" thomas,="" 1983="" 6=""> (tie) Seth Pietsch, 2002 6 < 5.="" twink="" pederson,="" 1956="" 5="" (tie)="" lute="" barnes,="" 1968="" 5="" (tie)="" dave="" backen,="" 1980="" 5="" (tie)="" david="" anderson,="" 1992="" 5="" 9.="" many="" players="" 4=""> (tie) Tom Creighton, 2002 4 <> Chris Biles, 2002 3 <> Aaron Mathews, 2002 3 < season="" home="" runs="" 6.="" steve="" smith,="" 1983="" 12="" (tie)="" david="" schmidt,="" 1996="" 12="" (tie)="">Andy Jarvis, 2001 12 9. Chris Newman, 1983 11 (tie) Joe Gerber, 1998 11 (tie) Zach Gordon, 2000 11 > Andy Jarvis, 2002 10 <> Brian Barden, 2002 9 < season="" runs="" batted="" in="" 7.="" al="" hunsinger,="" 1981="" 54="" (tie)="" ryan="" lipe,="" 1997="" 54="" (tie)="" ben="" bertrand,="" 1998="" 54="" (tie)="" josh="" carter,="" 2001="" 54=""> Brian Barden, 2002 46 <> Andy Jarvis, 2002 42 < season="" total="" bases="" 1.="" joe="" gerber,="" 1999="" 128="" 2.="" jim="" wilson,="" 1982="" 126="" 3.="" bob="" mcnair,="" 1980="" 124="" 4.="">Brian Barden, 2001 122 5. Joe Gerber, 2000 120 6. Josh Carter, 2001 118 > (tie) Brian Barden, 2002 118 < 7.="" chris="" wakeland,="" 1996="" 117="" 8.="" dave="" brundage,="" 1986="" 116="" 9.="" ben="" bertrand,="" 1998="" 115="" 10.="" al="" hunsinger,="" 1981="" 114="" (tie)="" ken="" bowen,="" 1987="" 114=""> Seth Pietsch, 2002 112 < season="" saves=""> 1. Jared Sanders, 2002 9 < 2.="" mike="" boire,="" 1997="" 8="" 3.="" jim="" grove,="" 1982="" 5="" (tie)="">Stephen Copeland, 2001 5 5. Tim Lambert, 1986 4 (tie) Jeff Post, 1990 4 7. Many players 3 > Mike Ekstrom 2 <>
OREGON STATE HEAD COACH PAT CASEY: Pat Casey, now in his eighth season at OSU, celebrated the 400th victory of his head coaching career on April 14 when the Beavers completed an 11-9 win over Hawai'i-Hilo. Casey's career record is 409-283-5, which includes 7 years at George Fox in Newberg, for a winning percentage of .590.
Casey has a record of 238-170-4 with the Beavers for a winning percentage of .583. Of the 19 head coaches in OSU baseball history, only Ralph Coleman (1923-28, 1930-31, 1938-66) and Jack Riley (1973-94) have coached more wins for the Beavers.
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, 16 Beavers have been drafted by Major League Baseball teams and 4 more players have signed 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.
ALL-AMERICA CANDIDATE BRIAN BARDEN: Oregon State junior third baseman Brian Barden (Bonita, Calif./St. Augustine HS) has been putting up some of the best numbers in the nation in the past month. In OSU's last 26 games, Barden is batting .404 (44-for-109) with 12 doubles, 5 homers, 26 RBIs and 25 runs. For the season, Barden is hitting .361 with 15 doubles, 1 triple, 9 homers, 46 RBIs and 44 runs.
Barden set the first of what could be several OSU career records on April 15, when he delivered his 206th and 207th hits to move past Ken Bowen, who had 206 hits from 1984-87; Barden's record now stands at 224. On May 11, he added OSU's career total base record when he hit 2 singles and a double to push his total to 348; that surpassed the 347 by Joe Gerber from 1997-2000. On the Beavers' lists of career leaders, Barden is also second in RBIs (150); third in runs (145) and doubles (39); fourth in at-bats (612); and tied for sixth in homers (25). He homered in both OSU's season-opener and home-opener.
Barden entered the spring having proven himself one of the Pacific-10's top players over the past 2 seasons, and he continues to improve as an all-around player.
Baseball America magazine's 2002 preseason picks rated Barden as the best defensive third baseman in the Pacific-10 Conference, and Barden was an all-conference selection in both his freshman and sophomore years. Last season, the 5-foot-11, 195-pounder set the OSU school record for hits (83) while batting .367 with 8 homers, 2 triples, 11 doubles and 55 runs batted in.
PIETSCH'S POWER: Sophomore leftfielder Seth Pietsch (Wilderville, Ore./Hidden Valley HS) is seeing double and triple this spring. Pietsch has 57 hits this season, and 35 of those have gone for extra bases - 22 doubles, 6 triples and 7 homers. Through May 12, Pietsch leads the Pac-10 in doubles and triples; the last conference leader in doubles and triples was California's Matt Luke, who tied for the Southern Division title in both categories in 1992. Pietsch is tied for 12th in the nation in doubles per game (0.47) and tied for 27th in the nation in triples per game (0.13).
With a pair of doubles on May 11 at California, Pietsch broke the OSU single-season doubles record and he now has 22; the old mark of 19 was set by A.J. Marquardt in 1993 and tied by Joe Gerber in 2000. Pietsch's next triple will tie the OSU single-season record of 7 set by Abino Vazquez in 1997. Three times this season, Pietsch has doubled and tripled in the same game.
In Pietsch's career, he has 66 hits and 40 of them have gone for extra bases - 25 doubles, 6 triples and 9 homers.
OREGON STATE TRIPLES: The triple has been called the most exciting play in baseball, and this spring OSU is hitting 3-baggers like never before. The Beavers have already set a school record with 26 triples this season; that broke the mark of 20 set in 1983 and tied in 1997. OSU leads the Pac-10 in triples, and is on pace to hit 32 triples this season.
The Beavers broke the school record in a series with Hawai'i-Hilo from April 13-April 15, in which OSU hit 7 triples in 4 games; that included 3 by Aaron Mathews. Seth Pietsch leads the Pac-10 with 6 triples, and his next triple will tie the OSU single-season record of 7 set by Abino Vazquez in 1997. OSU has had 11 different players triple, with Tom Creighton delivering 4 and Chris Biles having 3 along with Mathews.
OREGON STATE BULLPEN: One of Oregon State's strengths this season has been its bullpen. The Beavers are 22-2 this season in games they've led after 6 innings, and they're 27-3 in games in which they've led or been tied after 6 innings. Through May 12, OSU's relievers have combined to go 14-6 with 13 saves and a 5.45 ERA and were averaging 4.0 innings, 4.8 hits, 1.8 walks and 2.3 strikeouts per game. Throw out a single inning - a 14-run torching by California-Riverside in the eighth inning on Feb. 23 - and the bullpen's ERA drops to 4.81. OSU's relievers have allowed more than 2 earned runs in just 9 of the last 31 games. OSU's 13 saves have tied the school record set in 1990, and the Beavers lead the Pac-10 in that category.
RELIEVERS KLINE, SANDERS AMONG LEADERS: While the work of Oregon State's bullpen has been a team effort, 2 Beaver relievers in particular have worked their way up the list of conference and national leaders. Sophomore righthander Jared Sanders (Bend, Ore./Mt. Hood CC) is the Pacific-10 leader in saves (9) and junior righthander Ty Kline (West Linn, Ore./Mt. Hood CC) has a 6-0 record and has been among the the Pac-10 leaders in earned run average and opponents' batting average much of the season. Among the national leaders, Sanders is tied for 12th in saves and Kline was among the ERA leaders in April.
OREGON STATE IN THE NATIONAL POLLS: Oregon State began receiving votes in the Baseball Weekly/ESPN coaches poll on April 29, after the Beavers had beaten then-No. 4 Stanford in a Pacific-10 series. The Beavers reached the rankings for the first time this season on May 6, taking 35th in the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association poll. OSU in the national rankings this season:
Bsbll. Weekly/ Baseball Collegiate Natl. Coll. ESPN America Baseball Bsbll. Writers April 29NR, votes (40th) NR NR NR May 6 NR, votes (39th) NR NR 35th May 13 NR NR NR 35th
OREGON STATE SCHEDULE: Oregon State's 2002 schedule includes 13 games against teams in the USA Today/Baseball Weekly Top 25 coaches poll of May 13: No. 7 Stanford (3 games), No. 20 Arizona State (4 games), No. 21 Southern California (3 games) and No. 22 Cal State-Northridge (3 games). The Beavers' schedule includes another 10 games against teams receiving votes in the poll - California (3 games), San Diego (3 games), San Diego State (1 game, rained out) and Washington (3 games).
PACIFIC-10 PITCHER/PLAYER OF THE WEEK HONORS: Oregon State has had a selection as both the Pacific-10 Player of the Week and Pitcher of the Week this season.
The most recent was junior first baseman Andy Jarvis (Renton, Wash./Liberty HS) as the Player of the Week for April 29-May 5. During a 3-game series sweep at Washington State, Jarvis batted .563 (9-for-16) with 3 home runs, 2 doubles, 11 runs batted in and 6 runs scored; he walked once, was hit by a pitch once and did not strike out during the series. In the first game of the weekend, he homered twice and drove in 8 runs; that was 1 shy of the school single-game record of 9 RBIs by Ken Bowen against Chico State in 1985.
OSU's first Pac-10 honor of the season was the Pitcher of the Week award for sophomore righthander Ben Rowe (Perth, Australia/Greenwood HS) for April 22-April 28. Rowe pitched a 4-hitter to beat No. 4 Stanford 3-1 on April 26; he outdueled Stanford ace Jeremy Guthrie, who is expected to be one of the top picks in this year's Major League Baseball draft. Rowe struck out 4 and walked none as he won the first night game in the 96-year history of OSU's Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. Rowe had also pitched 2 scoreless innings in an 11-4 win at Portland on April 23.
RAIN ON THE ROAD: When Oregon State's game at Nevada was called on account of cold, windy conditions on March 10, it continued a weather role reversal that's been going on for the past 5-plus seasons.
Since the start of the 1997 season, the Beavers have had 26 games either canceled or rescheduled due to rain. Of those, only 6 have been games at OSU's Goss Stadium at Coleman Field; 14 were at ballparks in California, Nevada, Hawai'i, Texas or Florida. Another 6 were at ballparks elsewhere in the Pacific Northwest.
OSU has lost just 2 home games to rain during that time, while having 11 games canceled at sites outside the region and 3 called off at other Pacific Northwest ballparks. The Beavers have had to postpone 4 home games, 3 games at sites outside the region and 3 at other Pacific Northwest ballparks.
BEAVERS, BEARS TAKE 15 INNINGS TO DECIDE GAME: Oregon State played one of the longest games in school history May 11 when the Beavers lost at California 2-1 in 15 innings. It was OSU's longest game since 1972, when the longest game in both school and Pacific-10 history saw the Beavers lose to Washington 2-1.
Since then, OSU had played 14 innings on 3 occasions - a 5-4 win over Western Oregon later in the 1972 season; a 1-0 loss to Cal State-Los Angeles in 1978; and a 1-0 win over Portland State in 1979.
The game took 5 hours, 10 minutes to play and saw both teams miss out on chances to win. Oregon State put the go-ahead run in scoring position in the eighth, ninth, 10th, 11th and 14th innings; Cal put the winning run in scoring position in the ninth, 10th and 12th innings. OSU left 14 runners on base during the game; Cal stranded 17.
At the plate, OSU was 2-for-24 with runners on base, 1-for-22 with runners in scoring position (stopping a runner at third base on the 1 hit) and 1-for-17 with 2 out; California was 6-for-29 with runners on base, 1-for-18 with runners in scoring position (the only hit being the game-winner), and 1-for-15 with 2 out.
BEAVERS MAKE THEIR MARK IN SWEEP AT WASHINGTON STATE: Oregon State managed a number of "first time since ..." entries when it swept Washington State in a 3-game series May 3-May 5. The Beavers won by scores of 18-1, 10-6 and 22-21.
OSU scored 50 runs; that was the Beavers' highest-scoring 3-game series ever, topping the 49 runs scored in a 3-game set at Chico State in 1985 with a 10-4 loss and wins of 9-8 and 36-12.
The last time OSU had scored that many runs in any series was when it put up 55 runs in a 4-game sweep of Portland State in 1998; the last time the Beavers had scored more runs in any 3-game sequence was when they plated 71 in a 33-3 win over Portland and victories of 18-8 and 20-4 at Washington State in 1997.
It was the Beavers' first Pacific-10 road sweep since the conference went to its current format in 1999. The last time the Beavers had swept a conference series on the road came in a 4-game Northern Division sweep at Washington State to end the 1997 season.
BEAVERS OUTLAST COUGARS IN 22-21 SURVIVAL TEST: When the final out came - at long last - on May 5, OSU radio announcer Mike Parker declared: "It's over. There are no flags on the field."
Oregon State 22, Washington State 21. In nine innings. In 4 hours, 27 minutes.
The totals for the ballgame - 43 runs on 41 hits and 10 errors. It was the highest-scoring contest in the 93-year, 389-game series between the Pacific Northwest rivals. The start of the game was delayed 35 minutes due to rain, then was played with the temperature around 50 degrees and a 15-20 mph wind swirling dust and the occasional rain shower.
Oregon State rallied from a 7-run deficit, then found itself clinging to the remnants of what had been an 8-run lead. WSU scored 4 unearned runs in the ninth inning and had the tying and winning runs on base when the game ended.
"That's one of the most grueling days I've ever spent as a player or coach," OSU head coach Pat Casey said. "Those were some of the most challenging conditions I've ever seen ... it wasn't always perfect baseball, but it was a great game between two teams that just wouldn't give in. We had chances to roll over when we got down early; they had chances to roll over after we got a pretty good-sized lead later on. But that was an absolute scrap to the finish by everybody out there, and we got what we needed - a win."
Things started normally enough; WSU led just 3-2 in the middle of the fourth inning. But from then on, there was just 1 scoreless half-inning. A total of 20 players had hits in the game - 10 on each side. Every OSU player had a hit except reserve catcher Ian McMullen, and his only plate appearance saw him hit by a pitch and eventually score. All 12 pitchers - 5 for Oregon State and 7 for Washington State - were touched for at least 1 run.
The teams combined for 14 doubles and 8 home runs. It was the second-highest scoring game in OSU history, trailing only a 36-12 win over Chico State in 1985; it was the first time ever that both teams in a Beaver game reached 20 runs.
ANOTHER TOP-FIVE TRIUMPH: OSU's series win over then-No. 4 Stanford from April 26-28 at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field gave the Beavers series wins over top-5 teams in back-to-back seasons. OSU had taken a series from No. 3 Arizona State in 2001 in Corvallis.
ROWE SHINES IN FIRST HOME NIGHT GAME: Oregon State started the age of night baseball at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field in style, beating No. 4 Stanford 3-1 on April 26 in the first night game in the ballpark's 96-year history. Ben Rowe pitched a 4-hitter against the Cardinal, walking 0 and striking out 4 in his first career complete game and OSU's first complete game of the season; he earned Pacific-10 Pitcher of the Week honors for the effort. He surrendered the only run on a homer by Stanford's Ryan Garko to start the fourth inning, then retired the next 13 hitters and 15 of the next 16. Meanwhile, the Beavers got to Cardinal ace Jeremy Guthrie for 3 runs with 2 out in the bottom of the fourth inning. Seth Pietsch made a key play to start the ninth, diving to snag a ball in the leftfield corner; the Cardinal eventually came up with 2 hits in the inning but were denied any runs.
FIRST FOUR-GAME SWEEP IN FOUR YEARS: OSU's sweep of Hawai'i-Hilo from April 13-April 15 was the Beavers' first 4-game sweep since taking 4 straight from Portland State from April 17-April 19, 1998. OSU did go 4-0 on a weekend since then, though - from Feb. 15-18, 2001 in the San Diego Classic as the Beavers beat San Diego State, Texas Tech, California-Riverside and Oklahoma.
McMULLEN DRIVES 'EM IN - SORT OF: Through April 13, OSU reserve catcher Ian McMullen made the most of his scarce trips to the plate. The first 3 times McMullen batted this season, he drove in a run - all without ever receiving an official at-bat. He was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded vs. Oral Roberts on Feb. 1, then delivered sacrifice flies vs. Portland on April 2 and vs. Hawai'i-Hilo on April 13. McMullen's run of perhaps the best RBI-to-at-bat ratio in Beaver baseball history ended on April 20 when he struck out against UCLA.
BEAVERS GIVE, GET 14 RUNS IN AN INNING: Oregon State's highest-scoring inning of the season came in the sixth inning of a 21-3 win over Hawai'i-Hilo on April 14 at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. The Beavers broke the game open by using 8 hits - including a grand slam by Tom Creighton and a solo homer by Brian Barden - and 7 walks. But, as OSU head coach Pat Casey noted at game's end, "We know what that's like - we were on the other end of one of those at Riverside, where we gave up 2 touchdowns (in California-Riverside's 14-run eighth inning during a 21-4 OSU loss on Feb. 23)."
ONE HIT, SIX RUNS BATTED IN: Tom Creighton got a lot of mileage out of a solitary hit on April 14 in a 21-3 win over Hawai'i-Hilo - in more ways than one. The senior utility player drove in a career-high 6 runs with just 1 hit. His hit was a grand slam driven high over the rightfield fence during the Beavers' 14-run sixth inning. Earlier, Creighton had hit a pair of sacrifice flies.
THREE-GAME PITCHING POWER: When Oregon State won 3 straight games against Arizona and Portland from March 29-April 2, pitching was the big reason. In 27 innings, Beaver pitchers allowed just 2 runs (1 earned) on 16 hits, walking 9 and striking out 21. Throw in the final 6 innings of a 13-9 loss to Arizona on March 28, and in a 33-inning span OSU pitchers allowed just 5 runs (3 earned) on 22 hits, walking 11 and striking out 23.
BEAVERS ENJOY LENGTHY HOMESTAND: When Oregon State stayed home from March 15-April 2, the 11-game homestand was the Beavers' longest since playing 12 in a row at home early in the 1958 season. Oregon State went 8-3 during this year's lengthy homestand.
THE BRONZE BEAVER RETURNS: Balki wasn't the answer. The Bronze Beaver might be.
Midway through the 2001 season, Oregon State shortstop Will Hudson was given a beaver skull mounted on a base. He named the skull Balki and, hoping for luck, he brought it into the OSU dugout for a series at Stanford. The result was bad luck, as the Beavers were swept in a 3-game series.
"Balki didn't cut it," Hudson said. "I figured we had to get a bigger statue. I was thinking about getting a stuffed beaver or something and putting it on the top step of our dugout near the on-deck circle."
Hudson mentioned his search to an OSU athletic staff member after a win over Portland on March 25, and he was told there was such an object - The Bronze Beaver, which had been obtained by former football coach Jerry Pettibone during his stay in Corvallis from 1991-96. It had been mounted at the player's entrance to the football field, but was removed when Pettibone resigned.
For several years, it had been stored in the athletic department maintenance office; it surfaced briefly to make an appearance on the cover of OSU's 2000 baseball guide. Hudson and first baseman Andy Jarvis got permission to take the statue to Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.
The Bronze Beaver is on a base about 3 feet square and stands about 2˝ feet high, so it was a little too large to put near the bat rack. Instead, it was placed on the center of OSU's dugout roof for the first game of a series against Arizona on March 28; the Beavers were beaten 13-9.
The next day, Hudson and pitcher Joshua Garcia moved The Bronze Beaver to the end of the roof over the bat rack. On March 29, Tom Creighton's homer leading off the bottom of the ninth gave OSU a 2-1 win; on March 30, 4 Beaver pitchers teamed on a 3-hitter for a 5-0 win.
The Bronze Beaver is apparently not nocturnal, as he didn't appear for OSU's first-ever night game against Stanford on April 26; the Beavers still managed a 3-1 win. However, he was back in position the next day - now sporting an OSU baseball cap and a glove on his right paw - for a 4-3 win over the Cardinal.
Since The Bronze Beaver took up his position over the bat rack, OSU is 10-3 at home.
"We found the perfect spot for it," Hudson said of The Bronze Beaver. "He's here for good."
SAINT PAT: A St. Patrick's Day win has become something of an annual present for Oregon State head coach Pat Casey, whose birthday is March 17. When OSU beat Washington State 6-5 in 10 innings earlier this season, it was OSU's fourth March 17 win in the last 4 years; last season, the Beavers swept a doubleheader from Minnesota 2-0 and 8-4 while in 1999, OSU beat Portland 8-7.
CREIGHTON VS. THE ABOMINABLE SNOWBANK: Just proving the old adage, "Keep going to the ballpark, and you'll see something you've never seen ..."
When Oregon State visited Nevada from March 8-10, the start of the 3-game series was threatened by a March 7 snowstorm. The field was cleared for the start of the series, but snow was still piled 12 to 18 inches high around the base of the outfield fence. That set the stage for a bizarre play in the bottom of the fifth inning on March 9.
Nevada's Chris Dickerson lofted a flyball to the wall in centerfield, where ice still covered a good portion of the warning track, and OSU centerfielder Tom Creighton got himself under the ball but couldn't make the catch. The ball plopped into the snow and, after a quick look around without discovering the ball, Creighton put his arms up to signal it had gone out of play.
Dickerson rounded the bases, but third base umpire Dave Fry ran to centerfield to assess the situation. Finding that the ball had plugged in the snow, Fry conferred with his fellow umpires and they ruled that Dickerson must return to second base; the ground rules for the day had declared any ball going into the snow was worth 2 bases. Creighton was charged with a 2-base error.
NINTH-INNING COMEBACKS: Three times this season, Oregon State has gone into the ninth inning trailing by at least 3 runs and rallied to win the game. The Beavers did it on back-to-back days March 8-9 at Nevada. On March 8, OSU trailed 5-2 going into the ninth inning but scored 3 runs in the ninth and 2 in the 10th for a 7-5 win; on March 9, OSU was down 8-4 going into the ninth but scored seven runs in the inning for an 11-8 win. The Beavers also came from 3 runs down in the ninth to beat Oral Roberts 10-9 in 10 innings on Feb. 1.
Oregon State also scored 1 run in the bottom of the ninth to tie Washington State on March 17, then won the game 6-5 in 10 innings. And on March 29, the Beavers picked up another ninth-inning win when Tom Creighton's solo homer gave OSU a 2-1 win over Arizona.
McBRIDE FINDS OLDER BAT IS BETTER: Oregon State designated hitter Jason McBride was forced to change bats in the Beavers' series at Nevada on March 8, and it turned out for the best. McBride took a swing at a ninth-inning pitch and missed; he heard something break loose and rattle around inside the bat. He sprinted to OSU's dugout and returned with his old bat, then promptly delivered a double down the rightfield line to spur the Beavers' 3-run rally that turned into a 7-5, 10-inning win. The next day, McBride used the same bat to deliver a single that drove in the tying and go-ahead runs as OSU scored 7 runs in the ninth inning for an 11-8 win.
STYKEL GOES FROM GROUNDSKEEPER TO MOUNDSMAN: In 2001, Don Stykel's pitching career appeared over due to arm problems and he was working on the grounds crew at OSU's Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. But on Feb. 1, he was credited with the pitching win as OSU earned its first win of 2002, a 10-9, 10-inning victory over Oral Roberts.
It was Stykel's first win since beating Portland on April 6, 1999 and his first appearance since going 1/3 of an inning against Washington on April 29, 2000.
"It was great to get back out here, even though I vultured the win from Postlewait - he deserved it, the way he threw," said Stykel (Portland, Ore./Centennial HS), who spent last spring grooming the Beavers' home diamond while still going to school on a baseball scholarship. Starting late in the spring of 2000, he went a year without throwing a baseball.
"I missed the game so much - that was probably the longest year of my life," Stykel said. "But I just kept believing in myself, believing that I could do it."
Last summer, after his workdays were done, Stykel would step onto a Coleman Field mound with a bag of baseballs and throw about 50 pitches into a net. OSU's coaches saw him and knew he wanted to come back; after doing some pitching in the fall, Stykel was invited to return to the roster this spring. He has since run his record in 2002 to 3-0 with wins in relief over Gonzaga and Nevada.
OREGON STATE'S ALL-TIME RECORD: Oregon State's all-time record in varsity baseball is now 1,721-1,183-15, a winning percentage of .592. OSU's all-time record in conference games is now 769-555, a winning percentage of .581.
To break the numbers down a step further, since starting varsity baseball in 1907, the Beavers have scored 19,092 runs and allowed 14,702 runs. That's an average score of 6.54-5.04.
GOSS STADIUM AT COLEMAN FIELD: Oregon State has been playing on the same site since starting varsity baseball in 1907, making Goss Stadium at Coleman Field the oldest diamond in the Pacific-10 and one of the oldest in the country. So far this season, OSU is 17-7 in its own ballpark and is averaging 748 fans per home date.
OSU's series against fourth-ranked Stanford from April 26-April 28 drew 4,226 fans, the most for a series since the ballpark was renovated in 1999. A crowd of 1,838 on April 27 was the largest single-game throng since the renovation; after OSU's 4-3 win, the Beaver players went outside their clubhouse behind the third-base side of the ballpark and thanked exiting fans for being part of the victory.
Now in their 93rd season at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field, the Beavers are 900-385-1 at home for a winning percentage of .700. Since the start of the 1993 season, OSU is 150-56 at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field for a winning percentage of .728.
Goss Stadium was added to Coleman Field over the winter of 1998-99. The ballpark holds 2,000 fans, with the main grandstand seating 1,500 of those. The structure includes a press box, concession/lobby area, dugouts, locker rooms, restrooms and storage areas.
The playing surface has been completely rebuilt recently, with the infield undergoing renovation in 1996 and the outfield in 1998.
A reminder to fans that the expansion of OSU's Dixon Recreation Center and Stevens Natatorium has closed the walkway between Dixon and Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. The ballpark's main gates must now be reached by walking down Waldo Place, either from central campus to the north or the Benton Place parking lot to the east (behind leftfield).
1952 COLLEGE WORLD SERIES TEAM: This spring, Oregon State is celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Beavers' 1952 College World Series team. That season, Oregon State won the Northern Division title, defeated Southern California for the Pacific Coast Conference title, and beat Fresno State for the West Regional title and a trip to Omaha.
Incidentally, it was in 1952 that Bernard Malamud - then an instructor in Oregon State's English Department - published his first novel, The Natural, dealing with baseball star Roy Hobbs' return to the game.
To commemorate the start of the 50th anniversary season, 1952 Oregon State team captain Pete Goodbrod threw out the first pitch of OSU's home-opener against Gonzaga on March 1. On March 28 (50 years to the day after the 1952 season-opener), the first pitch of the Pacific-10 season was thrown out by Paul Valenti, an assistant coach on the 1952 team who still works as an administrator in the OSU athletic department.
The 1952 Beavers will hold a reunion and be honored during the final home series of the season, May 17-May 19 against Washington.
OREGON STATE DUGOUT CLUB: The Oregon State Dugout Club is an organization devoted to supporting Beaver Baseball. The group is open to the general public; dues are $75 per year.
Also, anyone entering the OSU Dugout Club Golf Tournament automatically gains membership. This year's tournament will be held June 24 at Tokatee Golf Club in Blue River.
For more information on the OSU Dugout Club, call (541) 737-2825.
OREGON STATE BASEBALL TICKETS: For OSU home games, single-game reserved tickets are $6. General admission is $5 for adults and $3 for seniors and students; OSU students are admitted free with their OSU identification.
For groups of 10 or more wanting to spend a day at the ballpark, there is a group rate of $2 per person for general admission tickets; those wishing to take advantage of this offer must make arrangements in advance with the OSU athletic ticket office.
For more information, call the OSU athletic ticket office at 1-800-GO BEAVS.
OREGON STATE RADIO BROADCASTS: Oregon State baseball will again be broadcast, with most of the Beaver schedule on KLOO-AM (1340). This week, all 3 games against Washington will be broadcast and can also be heard on the internet at www.osubeavers.com. Mike Parker, the voice of the Beavers, will handle play-by-play duties.
TELEVISION BRINGS OUT BEST IN BEAVERS: Oregon State's 2-1, 15-inning loss at California on May 11 was be televised nationally on Fox Sports Net cable. Oregon State has played on national cable television each of the last 4 seasons, and the Beavers were 3-2 in those games - including a 3-0 mark at home. Since Fox Sports Net (formerly Prime Sports) began televising games in 1990, Oregon State has a 29-15 record in televised games, including 8-3 in national TV games. OSU's 18-1 win at Washington State on May 3 was also televised on a tape-delay basis by Fox Sports Net.
