Todays Baseball Game Cancelled

It snowed a good amount last night and it continues to fall right now. Due to the snow, WSU and UCSB have decided to cancel their final game of the series today.

Donnie Marbut Post Game Interview

Going to leave the intro short here, the questions on this were asked by my fellow Evergreen baseball writer, Adam Lewis. Transcript after the jump!

4-1 Game Recap: Doubleheader Game 2, WSU-UCSB

Walking away with a doubleheader sweep is always nice; winning the second game today, 7-3 WSU was able to wrap up the day up 2-0 in the series against UCSB looking to sweep during tomorrows game. Get the brooms out Coug fans! UCSB got out to an early lead but Wise settled down and turned in a great performance riddled with zeros.

• Again, good pitching will almost always trump good hitting in cold weather, and boy was today the definition of cold weather. Wise struggled a little early, giving up 3 in the 2nd but got into a groove after that, putting three zeros on the board after that before being pulled for J.D. Leckenby. In his 5 IP, Wise strung up 6 Ks while only walking one on only 3 hits. Quite impressive, a good day for WSU starting pitching.
• When Leckenby came in he looked strong, for the first batter. He lost control quickly after that and only made it through the 6th before being replaced by Paris Shewey to close out the 7th.
• Shewey pitched a good 7th in a non-save situation, only giving up one hit and racking up a K in the process.
• Jason Monda had one stellar day on the diamond for WSU, at the plate and in the field. Batting, Monda went 3-6 (.500) while driving in two. He continued to show his ability to get extra base hits, smacking a double in the first game of the day. In the 6th during the second game, Monda made one incredible diving catch in left to save two runs. Sprinting to his right he laid out full extension to grab a smoked line drive, causing the crowd to erupt, well as much as 50 people can "erupt". 
• Cougars played a lot of small ball, stealing as often as possible, showing bunt and putting on the hit-and-run regularly. I'm a big fan of small ball, and it's hard to argue against it when a team is able to execute it so well anyways.
• On a side not I need to talk about Butch really quick. This is by far the best Butch I've seen in my nearly two years at WSU. It says even more that this great performance came in 14 degree weather DURING A BASEBALL GAME! Usually at baseball games, Butch stays for 1-2 innings and leaves, even during decent weather games. This Butch was all over the place, either handing out free coffee, playing with kids, singing into his tail as a microphone, and doing Angels in the Outfield and Titanic impressions. Huge props to Butch, very well done sir, we all appreciate it.

Tomorrow the final game goes off at Noon, assuming we don't get the 4-5 inches of snow we're predicted to get tonight. Even with snow, they may clear the field and play anyways. I'll listen to my post game interview with Coach Marbut in a few and post the transcript in another post. Go Cougs! 

3-1 Game Recap: Doubleheader Game 1, WSU-UCSB

It takes a lot to stand outside in 14 degree weather. It takes even more to run in it. It takes extreme dedication to play baseball in it. Despite the cold, WSU pulled off a 5-1 win in the first game of their Saturday doubleheader. In cold weather pitching will always dominate, combine the cold weather advantage with an already stellar pitcher and you have a scary combo.

• Adam Conley started for WSU in game one and threw a gem. 9 Ks for his second consecutive outing in 6 IP while issuing his first two walks of the season. He had great command of his pitches throughout, seeming to work away from right handed hitters nearly the whole time. Even the few times he went inside on a righty he blew it past them with inside heat. At least 4-5 of his strikeouts came on some sick changeups, totally fooling the hitters. By the time he left (after the 6th) he had 111 pitches and a great outing.
• This game was defined by small ball on the part of the Cougs. Stealing and taking advantage of their openings to jump out to a 5-0 lead. 
• Collin Slaybaugh hit an impressive triple early in the game. Impressive not because of the actual hit (a misplayed ball by the UCSB left fielder) but because of the speed Slaybaugh displayed to turn the hit into a triple. Most hitters, that is a double, Slaybaugh used his speed to help create a run, very impressive.
• Me and my fellow Evergreen writer noted that Taylor Ard could stand to practice some better pitch selection. Might be the pressure of being "that guy that hits" or transitioning into D1 pitching, but he was swinging at pitches that make a hitting coach want to pull his hair out. If he corrects that he's going to be a even more of a force at the plate than he already is.
• The UCSB team seemed to come out flat and only got more complacent as the game went on. Not a good sign for them, seeing as they still have 7 more innings to play.
• Near the end of the game there were a few scoreboard problems, but that's bound to happen with a new system. Apparently, inputting double plays breaks the scoreboard, who knew. 
• More fans than I anticipated would be out here in this weather. The paying section (with the seats, right in front) was cleared but the two student sections on the sides were not. The cleared section was probably about 50% filled.

That's it for the first game, second game scheduled to go off at 3:00.

Weekend Baseball Schedule Update

Just got the email from Sports Information on the weekend schedule, so here it is!

Todays postponed game is moved to Saturday, turning Saturday into a doubleheader. First game will start at Noon and go 9 innings. Second game will start soon after the first, and go 7 innings.

Sunday game scheduled for Noon is staying as scheduled.

Hey! Readers!

So if my "stats" are telling me the truth, I'm finally getting some steady readership. I'm so excited! Glad I can be providing a place for Cougar baseball fans, or even just baseball fans, to come and get some quality information.

I just thought it would be cool to get to know my audience a little before the first home series this weekend. Leave some comments on this post, I'd love to get to know the people that are visiting the site!

Also quick note: I said it in my last post, but once the weekend schedule is set up for the team, I'll let you know. I'm on the Sports Info email list, so I can actually get it out before anything usually goes up on wsucougars.com.

Friday Baseball Game Postponed

The last few days it's been snowing pretty good over here on the Palouse, add on the fact that the high tomorrow is predicted to be 16, and you have plenty of good reasons for the baseball team to do exactly what they've done. Deciding to postpone the Friday game against UCSB.

The teams still plan on playing all three games this weekend (most likely meaning a doubleheader on Saturday) but the schedule is not yet set. When it is decided upon I'll let you all know!

Small Site Change

Quick note for my awesome readers. I've added a new "page" to the blog titled Daily Evergreen Articles. Here you will find the baseball related articles I write for the Daily Evergreen, which will mostly consist of series recaps and individual player profiles. Nothing too exciting, but if you'd like to check it out I'd very much appreciate it! I won't post on the front page every time I update that page, just simply update it as new articles are published. Thanks, have a great night!

First Home Series: UCSB

On Friday the Cougs are kicking off their first home series of the 2011 season against UC Santa Barbara after winning the season opening series 2-1 against Cal St. Bakersfield.

I'm not sure how many know, but I also cover the baseball team for the Daily Evergreen, WSUs student run newspaper. Since I'm official press I'll get to sit in the press box for home games. Having access to internet (and most importantly, heat) should help me improve my in game coverage and being able to see the game in person will help me improve my post-game analysis.

If the internet is working (they tell me it is) then I will be Tweeting as often as possible before and during the game. So for the best WSU baseball coverage you can get pre/mid/post game, follow @brett_gleason on Twitter and check in here after the game for my post-game recaps.

After all home games I have the ability to interview my choice of players and coaches, normally these interviews will be composed of questions geared towards my Evergreen articles. But if you have something in particular you'd like me to ask, post a comment and I'll try my best to get it answered. Obviously not everything can be put in my articles, so I'll post my interview transcripts here for you all to read the entirety of the conversations.

If you're a student with a sports pass and you read this blog, you have no reason to not go out and support our boys! They don't get the attendance numbers they deserve and it would be nice to see larger crowds out there this season!

Quick Addition: I'm not going to have time write a series preview, so if you'd like to take a gander at some stats on UCSB, here you go.

2-1 Game Recap: Rubber Match at Cal St Bakersfield

FINAL SCORE: WSU 4 - Cal St. Bakersfield 3

2-1 is a much better way to start out a season than 1-2, that much is obvious. But if not for this teams incredible ability to rally, 1-2 is what we'd be staring at right now. Between last season and this, the series with Cal St Bakersfield is at 4-3 in favor of the Cougs. Spencer Jackson struggled mightily in game two (I'm going to pin that on first game jitters, Jackson has good stuff) and James Wise took the mound today to close out the series with a good performance.

I'll be doing a series preview, but it's running in the Evergreen on Tuesday, so instead of posting it here I'll link to the story when it runs. On to the game notes!

• Like I said, the first 6 innings were a grind for the Cougs, finding themselves down 3-1 going into the 7th, where things started to happen...
• Again it was the new kids that came up big in the 7th for the Cougs. Adam Nelubowich doubled to kick off the inning and was driven in by Trace Tam Sing on a single. I've talked a lot about Taylor Ard and he's done nothing but back up my big expectations so far. For the second time this weekend Ard dropped one over the fence to give the Cougs the lead.
• Wise pitched a good game today, giving up 5 hits, 3 runs (2 earned) and three walks over his 6 1/3 innings, while also fanning 6. It's hard to judge a pitchers performance when you can't actually see anything other than his little animated no-armed torso throwing an animated oversized baseball.
• Paris Shewey came in for the save and got himself in a little bit of trouble in the 9th, but nothing he couldn't get himself out of with a nice DP. 

Sorry todays is so short and maybe not as detailed as I'd like, but I'm a little crunched for time so I'll have to leave it here. 

1-0 Game Recap: Game 1 Cal St Bakersfield

Well a win is always a great way to start a season, pile onto that a highly impressive win by Adam Conley and one stellar debut from Jason Monda and you have the makings of a near perfect season opener.

Since this is the first game recap, I'll let you know how I plan on running these now and in the future. Instead of writing some lengthy post on each game I'll quickly recap the game in a paragraph or two, then after that I'll list interesting plays, performances, and facts/stats in bullet form afterwards. So, on to the bullets!

• First off, Jason Monda, the freshman out of Olympia, had an impressive collegiate debut today going 3-3 with an RBI, a 3B, 2 R and a HBP in his final at bat in the 9th. Coach Marbut has said that he loves what he sees in Monda and so far I can see why. 
• Interesting fact (via WSU Athletic Department): Greg Monda, father of Jason is the WSU career leader in AVG, at .369.
• Adam Conely came up big time for the Cougs, carrying a no hitter into the 6th before giving up consecutive hits and 2 runs in the inning. With 9 Ks in his 8 inning performance Conely pitched probably the best, and his longest, outing of his career. 
• Conely struggled twice but in both situations was able to get clutch Ks to help him get out of jams, showing the ability to pitch himself out of a corner.
• Obviously I couldn't actually see any of the game, but Ard seemed to show why he was such a big hitting prospect coming into the year, although he only went 1-4 his one hit was an important 2 out double in the 4th. He went on to score the first WSU run of the season on a Matt Argyropoulos single.
• Colin Slaybaugh, Taylor Ard, and Jason Monda (all making their collegiate debuts) went 6-9 with 2 RBIs and 4 runs for the Cougs.
• Richie Ochoa got the save, pitching a 1-2-3 9th with 2 Ks.

Overall a great performance today from the Cougs to get the win with huge performances from the new kids. Next game is tomorrow with a 1 p.m. first pitch.

GO COUGS!

Donnie Marbut Tuesday Teleconference

EDIT: Finally got the embedding tool to work on this video, here it is! 

Okay, the video embedding tool isn't working for this video, so I will just have to simply link to it. I'll add my thoughts on the teleconference after I get my classwork done tonight or tomorrow morning, I'll post it as an update to this story.

Season Almost Underway

Sunday the team ran it's final scrimmage leading up to their opening series this Friday at Cal State Bakersfield. The scrimmage was set up as five individual, two inning games. Running the 8th and 9th inning with various pre-determined gamestates to test the pitchers and defenses. To read a good recap, head here (the Daily Evergreen) to read the recap my fellow baseball writer Adam Lewis threw together.

Also, the great staff over at the WSU Athletic Department caught up with Coach Marbut and James Wise after the scrimmage. I'll post the video and a few quick thoughts after the jump, don't want to weigh down the front page with videos.

Another Random Video Dump

Thought this was pretty funny. It's also too bad these guys are gone after this year, it's always sad to lose a program.

Random Video Dump

Not much to say about this, other than this must be staged, it must be.

Hitter: Oh no you didn't!
Pitcher: Oh damnit, here we go, another fight.
Hitter: Imma come at you like a spider monkey!
Pitcher: ...
Pitcher: Oh he's serious.

Great Books For The Baseball Fan

So I know I said there would be a post up between now and Sunday on a counting statistic that just doesn't cut it, and that post is still in the works. For now though, during one study break, I thought it would be fun to give you some insight on good reading material.

Over the last few months I got back into reading for fun, a nice break from these text books. Over this time I got completely hooked on baseball books, and I read four. Might as well share these books with you guys maybe you'll like what you hear and go read them yourselves!

Maybe one of the best sports books
ever written.

I'm going to start with a book I'm sure many of you have heard of, Jim Bouton's Ball Four. A few months ago I posted on another blog called Lookout Landing asking the other readers for ideas on baseball books I could read and Ball Four was by far the most recommended one of the lot. I decided to give it a shot and bought my copy the first day of my Christmas break. I couldn't read it fast enough.

Ball Four is written as a daily diary of Bouton's 1969 season with the expansion Seattle Pilots and Houston Astros.

I couldn't believe how well written, hilarious, and eye opening this book was. I had read books before that offered some juicy insights as to what goes on in major league and minor league clubs, but this is the book that started the whole trend. Before Ball Four MLB was seen as a league composed of God-like people, who could do no wrong. Oh boy was the public wrong on that one. The biggest thing that Ball Four pushes for is that these players are just like anyone else you know, they are everyday people, who get to play a game for a living.

If you call yourself a baseball fan then Ball Four is absolutely a MUST READ. Also, just in case you enjoy hating the Yankees as much as I do, this book does nothing but give you plenty of more reasons to fuel your hatred. Screw the Yankees.

Short Review On Todays Short "Scrimmage"

Hey all. Yesterday the team held a short unofficial scrimmage during practice to simulate the 7th, 8th, and 9th innings. I'm assuming to let them get a look at their set-up men. I wasn't able to stay for the whole scrimmage as I had prior commitments, to my grades, but I was there long enough to get a little bit of handy info.

• For the seventh inning they put freshman Scott Simon of Central Valley HS in Spokane on the bump. Simon is the tallest kid we have on the roster at 6'7" (3 inches taller than the second tallest, Jason Monda and Chad Arnold) which of course instantly made me think of Doug Fister. Simon gave up solid contact to the first two batters, but still coming up with two outs. He ran the third batter of the inning to a 2-1 count (after starting the at-bat with a sick breaking curve first pitch) before giving up a single into left. No matter though, first pitch of the next at-bat Jay Ponciano threw out the runner by at least 3 feet. Simon pitched 2 innings giving up 3 hits and 1 ER.

• Bottom of the 7th and fellow freshman Kellen Camus was on the hill. Maybe the exact physical opposite of Simon, Camus stands at 5'9". He may be short, but Camus can pitch, and the team likes what he can bring to the pen this year. The most notable event while Camus was throwing was the massive hit he gave up to Matt Argyropoulos in the bottom of the 8th. Argy hit it deep into the gap in right-center and landed it on the track, trying to stretch the guaranteed double into a triple Argy was thrown out at third, bailing out Camus. Kellen pitched two innings and gave up 2 hits and 1 walk.

• So let's talk about JC transfer Taylor Ard for a minute. Ard comes in as a huge addition to the lineup as a kid who can flat out rake. I hadn't seen anything from him until last night, and although I only saw one at bat, I liked what I saw. Ard is a presence at the plate, at 6'0" and 229, he is a big kid. Great level swing and an eye for the strike zone as he knows how to draw a walk too. In the only at-bat I saw from Ard he roped a double into the right-center gap. Now he may not be the best runner but hey, when you can hit like this kid can it doesn't really matter all that much.

• Last thing I have to say is unfortunately the new scoreboard was not up and running, so I can't say what the video quality is like. It should be running on Sunday however, so I'll let you know how it looks then.

That's all I've got until the last scrimmage on Sunday, I'm planning a post about another counting stat I despise in between now and then, we'll see how my study schedule allows me free time.