On Sunday, Stanford baseball defeated Washington 9-5 to take a 3-0 series lead, improving to 7-0 on the season overall while Washington falls to 2-5. Stanford right-handed pitcher Trevor Moore (1-0) was the winning pitcher for the Cardinal in a relief role while right-handed pitcher Ty Uber (2) picked up the save. Washington right-handed pitcher Jase Evangelista (0-1) was the losing pitcher for the Huskies in a relief role. Stanford 3rd baseman Trevor Haskins hit a grand-slam for the Cardinal while short stop Temo Becerra also had four RBIs hitting 3-4.
BOX SCORE: Washington at Stanford-Sunday, February 23rd
“You know what, hey, we’ve done it. We’ve done it pretty routinely where we kind of hang in there and we have that inning and we don’t just let loose and happen to us,” Stanford head coach David Esquer said after the game. “We’re gonna make them fight for it and so a great job. Temo Becerra with that bases loaded at-bat to get us back into the game and then obviously Trevor Haskins with the big swing there to give us a lead. But then those tacked on runs were important, right? Becerra scrambles for contact with the infield in and then Bates comes in right behind with the fly ball. So those were huge. Those were huge. That team is making us work, which I give them a lot of credit. They’re not just letting us win and our guys have been up to the challenge.”
Stanford righty Joey Volchko got the start on the mound for the Cardinal, giving up one run in the top of the 1st inning as Sam DeCarlo hit a single and then advanced to second base thanks to a wild pitch before getting to third base via a fly out. Thanks to another wild pitch, DeCarlo came home to score. Washington nearly scored a second run in the inning as Casen Taggart was out at home as he was caught stealing. That ended the top of the inning. 1-0 lead for the Huskies.
In the bottom of the 1st inning, Stanford didn’t score, but freshman 1st baseman Rintaro Sasaki got his first hit of the series, hitting a single and then advancing to second base thanks to a wild pitch from Washington starter Tommy Brandenburg, also a righty.
Neither team scored in the 2nd or 3rd inning, keeping it a 1-0 game at the end of the 3rd. In the top of the 4th inning, Joey Volchko walked back-to-back batters, ending his day on the mound as Trevor Moore came in for relief. Washington would add one run in the top of the 4th as Moore gave up a ground out that brought home a run. Washington would lead 2-0 entering the bottom of the 4th inning. Stanford did not score in the inning, keeping it 2-0.
In the top of the 5th inning, Colton Bower hit a solo home run to left field off Moore with two outs. It was now a 3-0 lead for the Huskies. Stanford would not answer in the bottom of the 5th, keeping it at 3-0.
In the top of the 6th inning, Moore got three straight batters out, keeping it at 3-0 entering the bottom of the inning. In the bottom of the 6th, Stanford exploded for seven runs as Temo Becerra hit a 3-RBI double to bring home Brady Reynolds, Jimmy Nati, and Rintaro Sasaki. Reynolds, Nati, and Sasaki were all walked, resulting in a pitching change as Bradenburg was replaced by Evangelista. Evangelista gave up the double to Becerra. Later on, Evangelista was replaced by Josh Emanuels. That didn’t work out well for the Huskies as Haskins hit a a grand slam to left field to bring home Tatum Marsh, Charlie Bates, and Temo Becerra. It was now a 7-3 lead for the Cardinal.
“He’s been seeing the ball well,” Esquer said of Haskins. “Throughout the fall and even in January, willing to make some small adjustments and he’s got a lot more hits in that swing and it’s fun to watch him because I think he’s up there really confident. He’s playing a great third base for us as well and so he’s off to a great start.”
“Honestly, I was just trying to go up there and hit the ball hard,” Becerra said. “I didn’t care where it was hit. During that at-bat I was seeing the ball well, I was trying to stay in the moment, and it just happened. So yeah…Trevor, he’s killing it this weekend. That’s the Trevor we kind of expected ever since he stepped on campus. But he’s doing really well and I’m glad that he’s hitting the ball really hard so far. So yeah.”
Washington would add a run in the top of the 7th inning to make it 7-4, but Stanford added two runs in the bottom of the inning to make it 9-4 as Becerra hit an RBI-single to bring home Charlie Saum while Bates hit an RBI fly out to bring home Jimmy Nati.
In the top of the 8th inning, Ty Uber pitched for the Cardinal after closing out the 7th inning. Uber gave up a solo homer in the top of the 8th inning to Trevor Kole to make it 9-5. From there, Uber settled in getting the next three batters out. After Stanford failed to score in the bottom of the 8th, Uber came back out to pitch the top of the 9th to complete the save. 9-5 was the final score as Stanford took the third game of the series.
“Well, obviously, Volchko, if we can get him more consistent, he had a couple really good innings, but you know, we just need to get on a roll and find a rhythm with once he goes out there,” Esquer said of the pitching. “He’s got the stuff to hold anybody down. But you know, obviously, one of our strengths is we have some options once the game gets started. Trevor Moore and Ty Uber were excellent again out of the pen and that’s gonna be something that we’re gonna count on is the game may not start off right, but we’ve got guys to stem the tide when we need to.”
For Stanford, this was another strong win. They had a good mix of runs with the bullpen doing its job. Trevor Moore and Ty Uber in particular were great. And then Trevor Haskins with a grand slam and Temo Becerra with his four RBIs were both fantastic. And then while he didn’t get an RBI, Rintaro Sasaki had a nice day for the Cardinal, going 2-3 while also getting walked a couple of times. He seems to be settling in.
“I think I’m getting better,” Sasaki said. “Yesterday’s action was not good. But today’s focus was on simple. Keeping everything simple at the plate…If it’s a walk, I’m still thinking how I’m approaching at the plate. Same thing with hitting a single…He [Coach Esquer] is a good guy. Every time he focuses on how to approach for a team win and how to approach getting better. Like every single player. He’s a great coach. I like him.”
“He’s getting more and more comfortable,” Esquer said of Sasaki. “And you know, having a game where you’re not doing it, you know, hitting all cylinders offensively, that’s okay. He’s a hard worker. He’s putting in the time and the effort behind the scenes and to watch him have a really productive day and he’s still a couple walks and you know, a base hit as well and the same has to be said for Tatum Marsh. Even Tatum Marsh, I almost feel like the guy can’t have a bad game because even if he doesn’t get a hit, he’s gonna get hit by a pitch, he’s gonna draw a walk, he’s gonna, he’ll make some contact. He’ll find a way to stay positive and be positive in the game and those guys have done a great job that way. And his defense. Sasaki played great defense, picks a ball out of the dirt, those things, they don’t show up on the scoreboard as a hit, but man they help us win.”
Up next for Stanford is a a home game on Monday at 1:05 PM PT to compete the four game series against Washington. That will air on ACCNX. Stanford freshman righty Parker Warner is the projected starter.
“Yeah, Parker Warner is going to start,” Esquer affirmed. “We’ve got some other options, too. Dugan will be back up and O’Harran will be able to pitch and Sam Garewal hasn’t been out there yet. That’s someone he can help us win and so we feel pretty good we should get a good outing from Parker, but we got some other guys behind him.”
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