Redwood City, Calif. - Newly ranked #7 Stanford Club Baseball hosted University of California - Berkeley (D1) in a three-game, non-conference series over March 28/29. Graduate IF/RHP Donnie Raymond's Game 2 shutout secured a win for the Cardinal but they faltered in the other two contests. Cal took the first and third games 9-4 and 14-5, respectively, while Stanford triumphed in the second bout, 1-0.
The elder members of the squad came to play in Game 1 at Sequoia High School. Jamie Baum and Donnie Raymond both collected three hits and Caden Denning drove in three to power the top of the lineup, but the Card lost 9-4. Despite the strong showing from the wisened vets, Stanford ultimately couldn't provide enough offense over the course of the full nine-inning game to keep up with the Golden Bears. Cal jumped on the board first with an RBI double in the first inning. The home Card responded with two in the bottom half courtesy of a Denning single to take a 2-1 lead. Cal scratched across one in the second, one in the third, and another two in the fifth to surge back in front, 5-2. Though Stanford threatened, the Bears never relinquished the lead. Pitching-wise, Joseph Seddon was saddled with his first loss of the season after allowing five runs on nine hits through five innings. NCBANow Pacific Region Player to Watch Tommy Kaufman provided some depth out of the bullpen with a 3 IP, 2 R, 3 H, BB, 2 K performance, and Jamie Baum worked the final inning to the tune of two runs on two hits, punching out two. Offensively, Stanford's graduate students led the way with strong performances. Baum was 3-5 with two runs and an RBI, Raymond reached base four times with a 3-4, BB, 2B performance, and Denning singled, was hit by a pitch, and cashed in a run with a sac fly over his five plate appearances.
Graduate Donnie Raymond took up the yoke to lead Stanford to victory in Game 2. Raymond tossed a two-hitter and allowed Gregory Block and Will Ogden Director of Baseball Evan Schieber rest his bullpen in the first game of the Sunday 7-inning doubleheader. On the back of the spectacular pitching performance, Stanford beat Cal by the finest of margins, 1-0, and leveled the series at a game apiece. The lone tally of the conflict came in the bottom of the fourth inning. With two outs, Cooper Tenney and Caden Denning executed a double steal to place two runners in scoring position for Jed Kassoy. The freshman outfielder delivered a clutch line-drive single to center field to break the deadlock and give the Card a 1-0 advantage, which proved to be decisive. On the mound, Raymond was virtually untouchable. The graduate IF/RHP struck out six over seven clean innings. His streak of 22 straight innings without a walk ended in the sixth, when he surrendered his first free pass of the year. The right-hander, who moved to 4-0 on the year, only allowed two hits and the one walk. When asked about his big game, Raymond offered, "Pitches were working, [Denning] called a great game and the defense made some great plays behind me…it was fun to see the fans get into it. Just happy to give them a reason to celebrate."
With the series in the balance, Cal bested Stanford 14-5 in the weekend's "rubber match". After going silent in Game 2, the Golden Bears' offense exploded in the first inning. They welcomed freshmen starter Danny Gass to the bump with eight hits and eight runs, all with one out in that very first frame, before Gass was able to induce an inning-ending double play. After settling in, the freshman cruised through four scoreless innings, but the damage was done. He finished with a 5 IP, 9 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 2 BB, 2 K line. Cooper Tenney took the ball in the sixth but ran into trouble in the seventh. He carried the game to its conclusion but allowed six runs in that seventh frame. Offensively, Stanford battled back with a four-run third inning to halve the deficit and tacked on another in the sixth to make things 8-5, but the six-run seventh pushed things out of reach, not that it turned out to matter anyway.
The series loss snaps Stanford's nine-game winning streak to start the season. The Cardinal fall to 10-2 (9-0), while the Bears push ahead to 9-8 (6-6). Stanford will play Menlo College (8-2) next to resume in-conference play, a clash with significant postseason implications. The weekend confrontation, which will be featured as the NCBA Series Showcase for Week 19, kicks off on Friday, April 3, at 2:00 PM at Cartan Field.
**Update** Raymond was named NCBA National Pitcher of the Week and NCBA Pacific North Region Pitcher of the Week for his complete game shutout, his second National Pitcher of the Week selection and his third Pacific North Pitcher of the Week honor on the year.
