It is ‘Do or Die’ for Arizona Baseball as they face Stanford

OMAHA, NE – After dropping their first game to Vanderbilt, Arizona Baseball (45-17, 21-9) faces Stanford (38-16, 17-10) in a win or go home scenario. 

It was a hard-fought game for Arizona Baseball to start the College World Series, but ultimately the Wildcats just didn’t have enough as they fell 7-6 to Vanderbilt in extra innings to open up the Tournament.

For their Monday matchup, their opponent Stanford finds themselves in the same boat as the Wildcats. The Cardinal are coming off a loss to NC State, and the stakes get even higher for both teams as this game becomes a ‘win-or-go-home’ scenario.

Arizona Wildcats

Coming in, Stanford is a familiar foe to Arizona, and despite their loss to NC State, the Cardinal should be a confident group as they won two of three the last time these two faced.

With Arizona Baseball facing a ‘win-or-go-home’ matchup, we break down the Stanford Cardinal for Monday afternoon.

From top-to-bottom, Stanford is a solid team, and there’s a reason why they are here. They get it done both on the mound and from the plate.

Overall, they are an above-average hitting team with decent pitching, and once again the Cardinal should pose a tough challenge for Arizona.

Conference: Pac-12
Head Coach: David Esquer
Head Coaching Record: 659–520–2 (134-53 at Stanford)
Current Record: 38-16 (17-10)

Pitching:

Overall, this is a solid staff that isn’t quite as dominant as Vanderbilt. Collectively, they have a combined 4.60 ERA and are holding opponents to a .243 batting average with 466 strikeouts.

• Largely led by their ace Brenden Beck, the senior hurler has been good this year, compiling an impressive 9-2 record with a 3.06 ERA, 138 strikeouts, all while holding batters a .200 batting average. Luckily for us, he pitched against NC State, so he will be unavailable.
• Behind him are Quinn Mathews and Alex Williams. Mathews pitched against NC State, so I have to think Alex gets the nod here. In 10 appearances, he has done well, sporting a 4-2 record with a 3.06 ERA, all while striking out 50 batters and holding them to a .191 average.
• Outside of the pitchers listed, Stanford has a solid bullpen, having five other pitchers with an ERA under 5.00. However, Stanford used five different pitchers against NC State, so we will see if they are tired coming into this one.

Hitting:

Overall, this is a good but not elite offensive group. The Cardinal have some nice power at the plate, combining for a .280 batting average with 82 home runs. They are an opportunistic group as well, batting 335 RBIs and scoring 361 runs.

• As a team, the Cardinal are averaging 6.69 runs per game with a combined .366 on-base percentage and a .461 slugging percentage.
• Brock Jones is arguably their best hitter in this line-up. The sophomore outfielder is batting .296 from the dish with 16 home runs and 54 RBI’s, a .607 slugging percentage, and a .445 on-base percentage.
• Outside of Brock, Stanford also has two other players with double-digit home runs in Tim Tawa (12) and Nick Brueser (11).

How to Watch or Follow Game Two vs Stanford: 

Date: Monday, June 21, 2021
Time: 11:00 AM MST
Location: TD Ameritrade Park (Omaha, NE)
TV: ESPNU
Radio: 1290 AM or TuneIn Radio
Live Stats: StatBroadcast