Washington State University Athletics
WSU Travels To Texas For Arlington Morning News Invitational
Feb. 15, 2000
AROUND THE HORN WITH COUGAR BASEBALL
After dropping two of three games to the Gonzaga Bulldogs, the WSU Cougar baseball team will look to rebound as they travel to the southwest to play in the Arlington Morning News Invitational against Nebraska, Arkansas and Texas-Arlington. WSU will take on the Razorbacks Friday, Nebraska Saturday and then UTA Sunday and Monday.
The Cougs staggered through the first two games against the Bulldogs, losing games 7-3 and 5-3. WSU avoided the sweep in a big way by posting 18 runs on the board and 17 hits to demolish the Zags 18-2 in the series finale.
Steve Curran proved to be the sparkplug for the Cougs Sunday, going 3-for-5 with three RBI and three runs scored in his only start of the weekend. Starting pitcher Tyson Thompson rebounded from a rough first start to get the win, throwing five strong innings while allowing only one run. Shortstop Shawn Stevenson and utility player Ray Hattenburg also contributed three hits to the Cougar win.
Freshman catcher Jon Baeder provided the biggest blow for the Cougs with a grand slam home run. The hit was Baeder's first in a Cougar uniform. Redshirt freshman Stefan Bailie also went deep for the first time in a Cougar uniform.
Bailie has emerged as a leader for the Cougs at the plate, recording a hit in each of the team's first seven games. The first baseman/third baseman is hitting .400 (10x25) with a double and five RBI. Mike Knight is also swinging a hot bat with a .478 (11x23) average.
On the mound the bullpen has been the big story with a 2.97 ERA. Senior Matt O'Brien is 1-0 with a 1.93 ERA in 9.1 innings. WSU's starters of Todd Meldahl, Nick Kenyon and Tyson Thompson pitched well vs. Gonzaga, allowing eight earned runs in the three starts.
WSU is 2-0 all-time vs. Arkansas with the last meeting coming in 1992, and 2-1 vs. Nebraska. The Cougars will be meeting the Texas-Arlington Mavericks for the first time in school history.
LEWIS-CLARK STATE GAME MARKED SECOND EARLIEST START IN COUGAR BASEBALL HISTORY:
The Cougars opened their season in the month of January for the first time since 1996 (Jan. 19 @ Hawaii). The Jan. 29th game vs. LCSC (L, 1-10) marked the second earliest date the Cougar baseball team has ever opened a season. The 1996 opener against Hawaii was the first collegiate game of the year that season. WSU's second game vs. Texas A&M (W, 5-3) would have also been the second earliest start in history.
JASON GROVE EARNS PRESEASON ACCOLADES:
After two solid seasons during his freshman and sophomore campaigns, junior Jason Grove has earned national respect by being named to three preseason All-American teams. Grove was selected as a second-team pick by Collegiate Baseball and by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) and was given a third-team award from Baseball America. The Outfielder/Pitcher, who has connected on 30 home runs and hit at a .359 clip in his two seasons in a Cougar uniform, is also widely considered one of the top college prospects in the nation for the 2000 draft. Earlier this year he was name the No. 28 prospect for the draft by Baseball America. Grove is currently out with a broken bone in his right wrist.
INJURY UPDATE:
The Cougar outfield was without preseason All-American Jason Grove in the season opener and the New Mexico tournament because he had surgery on his right hand. Grove broke the Hamate bone before batting practice at LCSC and will be out of the Cougar lineup for 4-6 weeks. The injury is the same injury Ken Griffey Jr. had two seasons ago. Bookie Gates broke his right thumb vs. Texas A&M (2/6) and will be out 1-3 weeks. Gates is probable for this weekend's tournament in Texas. He jammed his thumb on a pickoff play. Justin Nakaishi is still out while recovering from arm surgery in the offseason.
CURRAN IS A BULLDOG KILLER:
Steve Curran only got one start vs. Gonzaga this weekend, but made the most of it as one of the sparkplugs leading the Cougars to a 18-2 bombing of the Bulldogs. Curran was 3-for-5 with a bases loaded double, three RBI and three runs scored. Curran is now a .469 (30x64) hitter vs. the Zags with 21 runs scored, 29 RBI and six doubles in 19 career games.
STEVENSON IS SIZZLING AT SHORT:
Senior shortstop Shawn Stevenson made a commitment to becoming a more all-around player in 2000, and thus far has done both with the bat and glove. Stevenson has only one error in 50 chances and has made several spectacular plays. The senior has 36 assists to his credit this season and 500 in his career making him third in that category in the record books. The switch-hitting shortstop is also getting the job done at the plate with a .308 (8x26) average while starting every game this year.
KEEPING IT IN THE YARD:
Just one pitch to LCSC's Kurt Koshelnik seperates the Cougar pitching staff from not allowing a home run in the 2000 campaign. In 247 at-bats Cougar opponents have hit only one home run, and that was in the first inning of the first game Jan. 29. As for the Cougar bats, their power has come around as of late after a dryspell of three games without a home run. Justin Williams, Jon Baeder and Stefan Bailie all went deep for WSU last weekend.
GETTING IT DONE ON THE MOUND, IN THE BULLPEN:
A surprise thus far in 2000 has been the Cougar pitching staff. The Cougar hurlers, which have posted an impressive 4.94 team ERA is led by ace Todd Meldahl (1-1, 3.07). The Cougar starters have been the most shaky with a 7.22 ERA, but the bullpen has been nearly dominating with a 1-0 record and 2.97 ERA. Sean Donlin (3.00), Reggie Rivard (3.38), and Lanakila Niles (4.50) have also been solid out of the bullpen. Senior Matt O'Brien has been the hottest pitcher in 2000, with a 1-0 record and a 1.93 ERA in 9.1 innings.
A NEW MILLENNIUM OF COUGAR BASEBALL:
The Cougar baseball team had a successful past millennium, ranking fourth in all-time NCAA Division I victories. The Cougars best decade in history was the 1980s when the Cougs posted a 391-186 record. Listed below is a breakdown by decade in the 20th century for the Cougar baseball program:
| Decade | Record | Decade | Record |
| 1900-09 | 89-53 | 1950-59 | 207-127 |
| 1910-19 | 99-54 | 1960-69 | 269-95 |
| 1920-29 | 147-75 | 1970-79 | 367-141 |
| 1930-39 | 154-93 | 1980-89 | 391-186 |
| 1940-49 | 181-98 | 1990-99 | 301-279 |
"KNIGHT" TIME IS THE RIGHT TIME:
Junior transfer Mike Knight made the most of his first action as a WSU Cougar by being named the co-MVP of the Spalding Fiesta Tournament. Knight, a transfer from Laney (CA) College, was 8-for-12 (.667) with two doubles, a triple, and three runs scored during the tournament. Knight started two games as the designated hitter and one game in centerfield.
COUGAR BATS GET HOT IN NEW MEXICO:
The Cougars stepped up to the competition in early February by taking a pair of games from 19th-ranked Texas A&M, as they finished 2-1 in the 3rd annual Spalding Baseball Fiesta in Albuquerque, N.M. As a team the Cougars hit .374 (40x107) with seven doubles, six triples and two home runs. Junior newcomer Mike Knight led the way with a .667 batting average to earn tournament co-MVP honors. Bookie Gates (.667), Stefan Bailie (.500), Zach Bode (.500), Jordan Nilsen (.429), Ray Hattenburg (.385), and Shawn Stevenson (.333) also had great tournaments. On the mound Todd Meldahl's start against A&M on Friday set the tone for the rest of the tournament. Meldahl threw 7.2 innings of two-run ball to get his first win of 2000. With the 2-1 record the Cougs tied for the tournament title with Kansas State.
TAKING ON THE TOUGH GUYS:
If the two wins by the Cougars over No. 19 Texas A&M seems like a big deal, that is because it is. The Cougars were 1-10 against ranked opponents in 1999, with a win over No. 22 USC breaking the losing streak. The Cougs will take on several other nationally ranked opponents in 2000, including No. 3 Stanford, No. 2 UCLA, No. 4 USC, and No. 17 Arizona State in this weeks Baseball America poll.
HOW THE COUGS STACKED UP LAST WEEKEND:
While WSU only pulled away with one win last weekend vs. Gonzaga, several positives came out of the series in Pasco. As a team the bats struggled in the first two games before exploding for 17 hits Sunday. WSU hit only .277, but the pitching kept the Zags to a .235 batting average. Stefan Bailie once again carried a hot bat, going 4-for-11 (.364) with a home run and a double. Ryan Smith (.400) and Steve Curran (.600) also swung the bat well in limited action. WSU outscored the Zags 24-14 and out-hit them 28-24. Here is how the Cougars faired at the plate vs. GU.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
Les McTavish made his 59th career appearance on the mound last weekend and now needs only 16 more to tie the school record of 75.
With his start last weekend, Todd Meldahl moved into a tie for eighth place with current Seattle Mariner Aaron Sele in the WSU record books with 37 in his career. Meldahl has still not missed a week of pitching in his Cougar career.
Mike Knight recorded a hit in his first WSU at-bat, joining Stefan Bailie, Justin Williams, and Wes Falkenborg who matched that feet this year.
Jason Grove needs just 10 more home runs to tie the school record of 40, but that record looks to be on hold with the broken bone in his hand.
The 1999 edition of Cougar baseball had only 10 triples? so far in 2000 WSU has seven.
The Cougar hitters have tamed left-handers going 28x90 (.311) this year. WSU is hitting .302 vs. righties.
WSU is hitting .329 (27x82) with runners in scoring position this year. WSU is 2x8 in pinch-hitting.
Shortstop Shawn Stevenson has 500 career assists, making him third in the WSU record books. Stevenson also tied for sixth this weekend with 167 runs scored.
LOOKING TO REPEAT THE FEBRUARY OF 1999:
The Cougs are hoping to repeat the month of February from last year in which they went 8-2 and hit .340 as a team. Bookie Gates had a solid first month of his WSU career with a .462 average, and Shawn Stevenson and Ray Hattenburg both hit well over .300 during the opening month of 1999. On the mound lefty Matt O'Brien was 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 5.1 innings. Todd Meldahl had 14 strikeouts in his three starts.
COUGAR FIRSTS:
The series vs. Gonzaga was a weekend of first for several Cougars. Garrett Alwert, Ryan Sullivan and Kurt Paskal all made their Cougar debuts. Alwert looked good on the mound throwing a perfect two-thirds of an inning. Other Cougar firsts were Justin Williams' first home run as a Coug, Jon Baeder's first hit and home run, and starting pitcher Nick Kenyon scored his first run as a pinch runner.
BAEDER MAKES MOST OF FIRST HIT:
Freshman catcher Jon Baeder admitted that even his grand slam home run vs. Gonzaga (2/13) surprised him, but he couldn't be happier that his first hit as a Cougar sailed out of Posse Stadium for a home run. Baeder has started two games and is 1-for-6 this year with five RBI.
THREE-HIT COUGS:
No Cougar has notched four hits in a game this year, but several have tallied three in a game. Most recently Ray Hattenburg, Shawn Stevenson and Steve Curran all had three-hit games vs. Gonzaga on 2/13. Mike Knight (2), Hattenburg (2), Stevenson, Bookie Gates, Curran and Stefan Bailie are the Cougs with three-hit games in 2000.
THE UTILITY MAN:
Yes, that was Ray Hattenburg at second base last weekend, as his utility role has been redefined with the injury to Gates. Hattenburg started 25 games at first, nine games at third, 17 in left field, and two in right in 1999. The only positions he has not played in his WSU career are catcher, shortstop and pitcher.
ROSTER CHANGES:
Quick get out your media guides, because there have been some changes since the beginning of the season. Infielder Kevin Harasimowicz and freshman outfielder Collin Henderson left the team prior to the Cougs season opener at LCSC. Harasimowicz was a backup infielder who saw action in three games in 1999. Henderson was a highly acclaimed prep star from Puyallup, Wash. Henderson was a top receiver on the gridiron for the Cougs in the fall and will lift weights this spring.
COUGARS AND THE COLLEGE WORLD SERIES:
The WSU Cougars have appeared in four College World Series finals. The first came in 1950 when the Cougars placed second under the coaching of Buck Bailey. WSU returned to Omaha in 1956, with Bailey's squad finishing seventh. Bobo Brayton's 1965 club earned a spot in the final eight and finished third. WSU returned to the CWS with Brayton in 1976 and placed fifth.
JAMAAL GAINES TO PLAY PRO BALL:
Jamaal Gaines, one of WSU's top pitchers in 1998 and 1999 has signed a contract to play professional baseball this summer with the independent league Dubois County Dragons. The Dragons are part of the Frontier League, with teams in Indiana, Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania. Gaines was 4-4 in 1999 with a 6.29 ERA and was named the Pac-10 Pitcher of the Week in May.
SCRAP IRON PHIL GARNER HAS PRAISE FOR COUGAR BASEBALL:
Detroit Tiger Manager Phil Garner was in attendance at last weekends Spalding Fiesta Tournament because his son, Ty, plays for the Texas A&M squad. Garner, who managed the Milwaukee Brewers in past years, was a guest during Sunday's radio broadcast of the WSU-A&M game. Garner had praise for the WSU Cougar baseball team saying: "they are an excellent hitting team who is a lot of fun to watch. They are going to surprise a lot of people in the Pac-10 this year."
COUGS RETURN TO TOURNAMENT DOMINANCE:
An integral part of the Cougars non-conference preseason schedule has always been playing in several tournaments every season. In past years Cougar squads were fixtures at the Johnny Quick/Pepsi Tournament in Fresno, Calif., the California Riverside Tournament and the Bannana Belt Tournament in Lewiston, Idaho. WSU already traveled to New Mexico where they were 2-1 in the Spalding Baseball Fiesta. WSU will travel to Arlington, Texas in mid-February to play against Texas-Arlington, Nebraska and Arkansas. Here is a breakdown of how WSU has done in recent tournaments.
| Year | Tournament | Record | Finish |
| 1994 | Pepsi/Johnny Quick | 6-0 | 1st |
| 1995 | Husky Classic | 1-2 | 3rd |
| 1996 | Husky Classic | 1-2 | 3rd |
| 1997 | Bannana Belt | 2-3 | 3rd |
| 1998 | Coors Desert Classic | 2-3 | 5th |
| 1999 | Hormel Foods Classic | 1-2 | 3rd |
| 2000 | Spalding Baseball Fiesta | 2-1 | T-1st |
FOLLOW SHAWN STEVENSON ON THE WEB:
Throughout the 2000 baseball season you can track the seaon and stories of senior shortstop Shawn Stevenson by viewing his weekly diary at www.wsucougars.com. A new diary will be posted each Wednesday, so keep posted on what is going on inside Cougar baseball from the world of Shawn Stevenson.
THE CAPE COD CONNECTION:
Over the past two years the Washington state Cougars Baseball team has been well-represented in the Cape Cod League with the Wareham Gatemen. Shawn Stevenson and Jason Grove have played in each of the last two years with the Gatmen. Stevenson had a banner year in the summer of 1998, earning team MVP honors and being named an all-star. Bookie Gates is being considered for the Gatemen roster in 2000.
CAREER RECORD WATCH:
A check of the WSU record book showed the following players moved into Cougar Top-10 career lists:
HITTING:
Home Runs: Jason Grove, 30, 6th Triples: Shawn Stevenson, 9, 11th Strikeouts: Steve Curran, 117, 5th Ray Hattenburg, 95, tie-9th Runs Scored Shawn Stevenson, 167, t-6th Hits: Shawn Stevenson, 222, 6th At-Bats: Shawn Stevenson, 675, 6th Batting Average Jason Grove, .359, 7th Ray Hattenburg, .352, tie-11th
FIELDING:
Assists: Shawn Stevenson, 500, 3rd Errors: Shawn Stevenson, 63, t-3rd
PITCHING:
Runs Allowed: Todd Meldahl, 222, 1st Earned Runs Allowed: Todd Meldahl, 185, 1st Losses: Todd Meldahl, 19, 1st Hits Allowed: Todd Meldahl, 310, 3rd Saves: Reggie Rivard, 9, tie-3rd Games Pitched: Les McTavish, 59, 7th
JASON GROVE IS CHASING HISTORY:
Junior Jason Grove was well on his way to setting the career home run record at Washington State before breaking a bone in his right hand, but still has a chance to break the record. In his freshman season he connected on 12 home runs and in his sophomore campaign he hit 18, despite missing more than a month with a broken thumb. Prior to the 2000 season Grove was named a preseason All-American by Collegiate Baseball, Baseball America, and NCBWA. The Top-10 list of career home run leaders is listed below:
WSU Career Home Run Leaders
1. Jeff Hooper, '84-87 40 2. Casey Kelley, '96-98 38 3. Jim Connor, '87-90 37 4. Beau Campbell, '89-92 34 5. John Olerud, '87-89 33 6. Jason Grove, '98-P 30 7. Phil Westendorf, '74-77 28 8. Dale Ford, '64-66 27 9. Glen Walker, '79-80 26 10. Rob Smith, '84-87 25 Mike Kinkade, '92-95 25
McTAVISH NEEDS 17 APPEARANCES FOR CAREER RECORD:
Senior pitcher Les McTavish has been a mainstay in the Cougar bullpen and is inching his way towards the WSU career record in games pitched. In three seasons McTavish has appeared in 59 games, ranking seventh in the record books. The senior right-hander needs to pitch in 18 games to tie the school record of 75 games set by Tom Pellerin from 1983-86. The complete list is below:
WSU Career Pitching Appearances
1. Tom Pellerin, '83-86 75 2. Reed Rainey, '83-85 74 3. Darin Nolan, '88-91 65 4. Brian Sajonia, '85-88 64 5. Guy Normand, '83-86 61 6. Tom McGraw, '97-90 60 7. Les McTavish, '97-P 59 8. Shawn Hathaway, '84-87 58 9. Joe McIntosh, '71-73 56
RIVARD CLIMBS TOWARDS SAVES RECORD:
At the mid-season point in 1999, Reggie Rivard almost seemed to be a lock to move into second place as the all-time saves leader in WSU history. With nine saves, he needed only four more to move into second place, but was then converted to a starting pitcher where he has enjoyed some success. The all-time leader in saves for the Cougars is Reed Rainey, who logged 24 from 1983-85.
MAKING A FASHION STATEMENT IN 2000:
The Cougs took a step up in the fashion world in 1999 by adding a white sleeveless jersey, but have increased their wardrobe tenfold in 2000 by adding two new uniforms. A gray sleevless jersey with "Cougars" in script has been added for a road uniform and a solid crimson button-up jersey can be used at home or on the road. The Cougars now have five sets of uniforms which include Sunday pinstripes, white home jersey, white sleeveless, home/road crimson and gray sleeveless. The Cougars will also be adding an alternate cap in 2000.
COUGAR BASEBALL IS TRADITION:
The Washington State baseball program is one filled with a history of success, pride, and achievements. Among the facts:
- 89 winning seasons
- Only 15 losing seasons in 104 years
- 41 conference championships
- Five College World Series appearances
- 22 NCAA appearances
- 24 no-hitters
- Four coaches over the last 67 years
- Nine first-team All-Americans
- One college baseball player of the year
- 132 first-team all-league selections since '47
THESE SENIORS HAVE BEEN THERE, DONE THAT:
If senior leadership counted for wins, then the Cougars would be off to a 13-0 start in 2000. Seven of those seniors, Zach Bode, Steve Curran, Ray Hattenburg, Todd Meldahl, Les McTavish, Ryan Smith and Shawn Stevenson are all in their fourth or fifth years with the WSU program.
2000 PAC-10 PRESEASON COACHES POLL
| 2000 | Overall | 1999 | OVERALL | |||
| W | L | Pct. | W | L | ||
| Stanford | 6 | 3 | .667 | 50 | 15 | |
| UCLA | 6 | 1 | .857 | 31 | 31 | |
| USC | 5 | 3 | .625 | 36 | 26 | |
| ARIZ | 8 | 6 | .571 | 33 | 23 | |
| CAL | 4 | 5 | .444 | 27 | 31 | |
| ASU | 11 | 2 | .846 | 39 | 21 | |
| UW | 0 | 0 | .000 | 33 | 23 | |
| WSU | 3 | 4 | .429 | 24 | 31 | |
| OSU | 1 | 2 | .333 | 19 | 35 |
THE CHAFFEY AND LANEY PIPELINE:
From a recruiting standpoint, the WSU Cougar coaches definitely know where to go when it comes to getting good players. In the past few years the Cougs have gathered several players from Rob Wilson's Laney (Calif.) College program, including current players Tony Dawson, Donny Davis and Mike Knight. From the prep baseball ranks, the Cougars have tapped into of the nation's premier summer baseball programs in Chaffey Construction. Several players on the WSU roster played for Chaffey in their prep careers, including Jon Baeder, Zach Bode, Steve Curran, Sean Donlin, Wes Falkenborg, Bookie Gates, Nick Kenyon, Ryan Smith and Tyson Thompson. WSU's links to Chaffey go even farther back as John Olerud played for the team during his prep days at Interlake High School.
ONE TOUGH SCHEDULE:
The NCAA doesn't compile a power ranking for college baseball until the end of the season, but if the 2000 WSU baseball schedule was put to a vote, it would be one of the toughest in the nation?in all WSU has games scheduled against six teams in Baseball America's and Collegiate Baseball's national polls. The Cougars' schedule includes unanimous No. 1 selection Stanford, UCLA, Texas A&M, USC, Arizona and Arizona State.
| Collegiate | Baseball | Baseball | |
| Team | Baseball | America | Weekly |
| Arizona State | 19 | 17 | 22 |
| Arizona | NR | NR | NR |
| Stanford | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| Texas A&M | 21* | NR | 19* |
| UCLA | 2 | 2 | 10 |
| USC | 17 | 9 | 11 |
*NR= Has Been Ranked in 2000 or ranking when WSU played them.
2000 HITTING LEADERS
Batting Average:
| 1. Mike Knight | .478 |
| 2. Bookie Gates | .4 62 |
| 3. Stefan Bailie | .400 |
| 4. Steve Curran | .364 |
| 5. Ray Hattenburg | .333 |
Hits
| 1. Mike Knight | 11 |
| 2. Ray Hattenburg | 10 |
| 3. Stefan Bailie | 10 |
Runs Scored
| 1. Shawn Stevenson | 7 |
| 2. Stefan Bailie | 6 |
| 3. Jordan Nilsen | 6 |
Doubles
| 1. Jordan Nilsen | 3 |
| 2. Ray Hattenburg | 3 |
| 3. Mike Knight | 2 |
Triples
| 1. Bookie Gates | 2 |
| 2. Several Players | 1 |
Home Runs
| 1. Steve Curran | 1 |
| 2. Zach Bode | 1 |
| 3. Stefan Bailie | 1 |
| 4. Baeder/Williams | 1 |
2000 PITCHING LEADERS
Earned Run Average (Min. 5 Inn.)
| 1. Matt O'Brien | 1.93 |
| 2. Sean Donlin | 3.00 |
| 3. Todd Meldahl | 3.07 |
Wins
| 1. Matt O'Brien | 1 |
| 2. Todd Meldahl | 1 |
| 3. Tyson Thompson | 1 |
Strikeouts
| 1. Todd Meldahl | 14 |
| 2. Sean Donlin | 6 |
| 3. Nick Kenyon | 5 |
| 4. Reggie Rivard | 4 |
Innings Pitched
| 1. Todd Meldahl | 14.2 |
| 2. Matt O'Brien | 9.1 |
| 3. Tyson Thompson | 8.0 |
| 4. Nick Kenyon | 8.0 |
2000 FIELDING LEADERS
Errors
| 1. Ray Hattenburg | 4 |
| 2. Bookie Gates | 2 |
| 3. Shawn Stevenson | 1 |
| 4. Stefan Bailie | 1 |
Assists
| 1. Shawn Stevenson | 36 |
| 2. Ray Hattenburg | 15 |
| 3. Bookie Gates | 10 |
Putouts
| 1. Stefan Bailie | 59 |
| 2. Ryan Smith | 26 |
COUGARS IN THE MINOR LEAGUES IN 1999:
During the 1999 professional baseball season, 19 former Cougars played at various levels of the minor league system. Robert Ramsay and Rob Ryan, both 1996 grads of WSU, received late-season call-ups with the Mariners and Diamondbacks respectfully. The following Cougars played at the minor league level in '99.
| Todd Belitz | P | Orlando | AA | Tampa Bay |
| Ken Cameron | OF | Reno | -- | Independent |
| Burdette Greeny | P | Beloit | A | Milwaukee |
| Terrel Hansen | 1B/DH | Chico | -- | Independent |
| Mark Hendrickson | LHP | Knoxville | AA | Toronto |
| Jim Horner | C | New Haven | AA | Seattle |
| Kyle Kawabata | P | Reading | AA | Philadelphia |
| Casey Kelley | 1B | Boise | A | Anaheim |
| Mike Kinkade | 3B | Norfolk | AAA | NY Mets |
| Chad Miles | P | Jacksonville | AA | Detroit |
| Greg Mitchell | 1B | Tri-City | -- | Independent |
| Wade Parrish | P | Yakima | R | Los Angeles |
| Robert Ramsay | P | Tacoma | AAA | Seattle |
| Rob Ryan | OF | Tucson | AAA | Arizona |
| Jeff Scherer | C | Tri-City | -- | Independent |
| Mark Small | P | Ottawa | AAA | Montreal |
| Ole Vigeland | P | Charlotte | A | Texas |
| Dave Wainhouse | P | Colo. Springs | AAA | Colorado |
| Dave Wheeler | P | Kingsport | R | NY Mets |
104 YEARS OF COUGAR BASEBALL:
The Cougar baseball team was the first competitive athletic team at Washington State when it debuted in 1892 with an 11-1 record. Since in 104 years of Cougar baseball tradition WSU has posted a career 2,226-1,201-17 record while notching 89 winning seasons. WSU has a career winning percentage of .649 and has won 41 conference championships, appeared in the NCAA playoffs 22 times and five College World Series appearances.
COUGARS IN THE MAJOR LEAGUES:
During the 1999 season seven former Cougar baseball players dotted the rosters of major league clubs. John Olerud (1987-89) had another great year at the plate hitting .298 with 173 hits, 19 HR and 96 RBI. In the offseason he signed a free-agent contract with the Seattle Mariners. Aaron Sele also had another great year with 18 wins and has 37 in the last two years and like Olerud signed a contract with the M's. Listed below are the statistics of the seven Cougars who played in MLB in 1999:
| 1999 Stats | Pos | Team | Avg. | HR | G | H |
| Scott Hatteberg | C | Boston | .275 | 1 | 30 | 22 |
| Mike Kinkade | 3B | New York (N) | .196 | 2 | 28 | 9 |
| John Olerud | 1B | New York (N) | .298 | 19 | 162 | 173 |
| 1999 Stats | Pos | Team | W-L | ERA | G | SO |
| Robert Ramsay | LHP | Seattle | 0-2 | 6.38 | 6 | 11 |
| Aaron Sele | RHP | Texas | 18-9 | 4.79 | 33 | 186 |
| David Wainhouse | RHP | Colorado | 0-0 | 6.91 | 19 | 18 |
ALL-ACADEMIC:
While the Cougars have proved they can compete with the best on the field, several players are maintaining outstanding marks in the classroom as well. Last season WSU placed five players (Boyd Robertson, Ray Hattenburg, Shawn Stevenson, Todd Meldahl and Les McTavish) on the Pac-10 All-Academic team.
HATTENBURG SWEEPS PAC-10 AWARDS IN 1999:
Senior Ray Hattenburg etched his name in the Cougar record books last season by hitting .398. His on-field accomplishments earned him first-team All-Pac-10 honors and his academic achievements as a construction management major earned him first-team all-academic recognition.
BASEBALL COMPLEX RENAMED BAILEY-BRAYTON FIELD:
Buck Bailey and Bobo Brayton have 1,765 victories and have coached 65 of the 104 years of Cougar baseball. It is only fitting that the Cougar baseball complex which they both helped build be renamed to honor both of their distinguished names. Bailey Field was renamed Bailey-Brayton Field Jan. 22 as part of a "Celebration for the Ages." Numerous former Cougars, including John Olerud Sr. and Jr., Scott Hatteberg, and Robert Ramsay helped celebrate the renaming of the Cougar baseball Field.
2000 NATIONAL POLLS
Baseball America Top-25
1. Florida State 2. UCLA 3. Stanford 4. Alabama 5. Cal State Fullerton 6. Lousiana State 7. Auburn 8. Georgia Tech 9. USC 10. Houston 11. Baylor 12. Texas 13. Miami 14. Wichita State 15. Tulane 16. Loyola Marymount 17. Arizona State 18. Central Florida 19. Clemson 20. North Carolina 21. South Carolina 22. Rice 23. Notre Dame 24. Florida 25. Texas Tech
Baseball Weekly Preseason
1. Stanford 2. Cal State Fullerton 3. Alabama 4. Miami 5. Florida State 6. LSU 7. Rice 8. Georgia Tech 9. Houston 10. UCLA 11. USC 12. Wichita State 13. Auburn 14. Baylor 15. Clemson 16. Tulane 17. Texas 18. Florida 19. Texas A&M 20. Texas Tech 21. Arizona 22. Arizona State 23. Long Beach State 24. Wake Forest 25. Oklahoma State
Collegiate Baseball Top-25
1. Florida State 2. UCLA 3. Stanford 4. Alabama 5. Lousiana State 6. Cal State Fullerton 7. Georgia Tech 8. Texas 9. North Carolina 10. Houston 11. Clemson 12. Miami, Fla. 13. Tulane 14. Wichita State 15. Auburn 16. Texas Tech 17. USC 18. Baylor 19. Arizona State 20. Florida 21. South Carolina 22. Rice 23. East Carolina 24. Long Beach State 25. Notre Dame
PAC-10 FORMAT:
The 1999 season marked a new era in Pacific-10 Conference baseball as the disbanded the former North and South divisions to form one unified league. Portland State dropped its program following the '98 season leaving only three teams in the Northern Division. The Pac-10 baseball conference is made up of nine schools (Oregon does not have a team) with each team playing a 24-game schedule, with the regular season champion earning the conference automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. WSU will play Oregon State and UW twice, but only one of the series will count towards the league standings.
COACH FARRINGTON:
In his five years at the helm of the Cougar baseball team Farrington has posted a 136-187 record?in his first year with WSU his squad won the Pac-10 North crown and he was named the league coach of the year?before coming to WSU in the summer of 1994 Coach Farrington spent 11 seasons as the coach of Lower Columbia College in Longview, Wash? at the JC level Farrington posted a 280-149 record, with three NWAACC titles?he was the National Junior College Coach of the Year in 1992.
THE COACHING STAFF:
Former Major Leaguer Russ Swan joined the coaching staff in 1998 and heads up the WSU pitching staff?Swan spent 11 seasons in the majors with Seattle, Cleveland, and San Francisco?he is joined by first-year assistant coach Ken Johnson?Johnson, who is in charge of recruiting, infielders and hitting, came to WSU after 10 successful seasons at Walla Walla Community College. Ray Walker is a volunteer assistant in 2000 and coaches the Cougar catchers.
COUGAR BASEBALL RANKS IN TOP FIVE IN ALL-TIME NCAA VICTORIES:
In a list compiled by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA), Washington State University ranked fourth in all-time NCAA Division I baseball victories with 2,226. A list of the Top 5 baseball programs is listed below with their respective records and number of seasons played:
| 1. Fordham | 3,088-1,423-39 | (140) |
| 2. Texas | 2,571-785-26 | (103) |
| 3. Michigan | 2,277-1,213-36 | (132) |
| 4. WSU | 2,226-1,201-17 | (104) |
| 5. Stanford | 2,178-1,414-32 | (107) |
WSU ON THE RADIO:
Most of the Washington State baseball games are broadcast by Broadcast Ink in Seattle, but a select few games will not be on air this year? games will be on the internet in the next month as designatd by Broadcast Ink?airtime is usually set for 20 minutes before the start of the game...all games are scheduled to air on KCLX (1450 AM).
OLERUD RANKS SEVENTH AS "PLAYER OF THE CENTURY"
Washington State baseball great John Olerud was recently ranked seventh as college baseball's "Player of the Century" by Baseball America. The top 10 players of the century were voted on by fans, coaches, and baseball writers and are listed below:
1. Pete Incaviglia (Oklahoma State) 2. Bob Horner (Arizona State) 3. Robin Ventura (Oklahoma State) 4. Burt Hooten (Texas) 5. Dave Winfield (Minnesota) 6. Phil Stephenson (Wichita State) 7. John Olerud (Washington State) 8. J.D. Drew (Florida State) 9. Eddie Bane (Arizona State) 10.Derek Tatsuno (Hawai'i)
