The Washington State and Oregon State baseball teams have a pair of commonalities neither wants.
Both squads were swept last weekend in Pac-10 play and hold 3-6 conference records, which puts the pair in a tie for second-to-last and ahead only of the University of Southern California. The Cougars (19-14) dropped three straight on the road to Arizona (26-9, 7-5), while the Beavers (20-11) were stunned and swept at home by Stanford (18-13, 7-5)
"It was a tough weekend for us, but I think it's a tough weekend for every club in the conference - nine straight weekends of Pac-10 play," WSU coach Donnie Marbut said. "If the guys didn't like the tough weekend or aren't used to it they better get used to it, because they've got another one coming up."
That tough weekend will be in Pullman against perennial Pac-10 power Oregon State. The Beavers' struggles last weekend in Corvallis caught Marbut off guard, but he's not expecting to welcome an OSU team hanging their heads into Pullman.
"I was a little surprised by that, not because Stanford is not a good club, just because Oregon State has always been a really good club at home," he said. "I don't think last weekend will affect Oregon State one bit. They will show up here ready to play like the quality, quality program they are."
Both squads are half way through the Pac-10 schedule, and while Marbut said the season doesn't hinge on this series, he also didn't downplay its importance as the Cougars look for a repeat trip to the NCAA tournament.
"It's two clubs going against each other that are probably not right where they want to be, they are not the top of the Pac-10 right now, so each team is going to try to separate themselves a little bit," he said. "It's not all ending, but every game counts."
The three-game series will pit weaknesses against each other, with a Beavers team that is scuffling at the plate and a Cougar squad that has been shelled on the mound of late.
Since the start of Pac-10 play, the Beavers' bats have gone silent. In nine games, OSU is hitting a meager .220 and has scored only 33 runs, both of which rank last in conference play.
On the flip side, the WSU pitching staff ranks at the bottom of the Pac-10 in conference play, with a 5.71 ERA.
The Cougars have gotten little in the way of consistency out of their starting pitchers, aside from Friday pitcher Chad Arnold, who has posted a 3.18 ERA in three conference starts. WSU has had a revolving door of starters after Arnold due to injuries and inconsistency, with David Stilley, Travis Cook and Spencer Jackson all getting shots in the rotation.
Marbut said Stilley will start on Saturday, despite is 9.31 ERA in three Pac-10 starts, but whether Cook or Jackson starts on Sunday is undetermined. Cook has struggled with his command, walking eight in just nine innings of Pac-10 work, while Jackson has been hammered for nine hits in four 1/3 innings.
"Right now we've got guys slated for the first two games, and we'll go from there," Marbut said.
The two teams open their series on Friday at 5:30 p.m. Devin Rokyta can be reached at (208) 882-5561, ext. 230, or by e-mail at drokyta@dnews.com.
