Stanford Cardinal
Overall Rank: #27
Conference Rank: #4 Pac-12
Stanford Team Page
Stanford was a consensus Top ten team before the start of last season, but they failed to live up to those expectations. After starting out 10-2, Stanford lost six of their next seven. The Cardinal finished 32-22 and missed the NCAA Tournament. Ace Mark Appel, the first overall pick in the 2013 MLB Draft, is gone, as are five other players who were drafted. Stanford still has a lot of talent left and will bring in a solid recruiting class and they hope that is enough to get them into an NCAA Regional this season.
2013: 32-22, 16-14
2013 Postseason: None
Coach: Mark Marquess
Field Players:
The Cardinal are expecting big things from Alex Blandino this season. He will be back at third base after hitting .268 with seven home runs and 32 RBI’s. Those numbers were down a bit from his stellar freshman season where he hit .294 with eight home runs and 40 RBI’s. He will look to return to that form this season. Danny Diekroeger also returns in the infield after hitting .299 with two home runs and 28 RBI’s. Austin Slater started 48 games last year and put up an impressive stat line. He hit .269 with three home runs and 32 RBI’s. Slater also led the team in walks with 24 and had a .361 on base percentage. A pair of players with catching experience, Wayne Taylor and Brant Whiting, will join them. Taylor started 40 games and hit .270 with three home runs and 21 RBI’s, while Whiting started 36 games and hit .344 with 19 RBI’s. Taylor could also see time in the outfield. Dominic Jose will be back in the outfield and will look to improve after a down sophomore season. Drew Jackson should also be a candidate for increased playing time after starting 24 games as a freshman. Also returning are catcher Austin Barr and outfielders Brett Michael Doran, Jonny Locher, and Zach Hoffpauir. Freshman Jack Klein could also see some playing time in the outfield.
Pitchers:
Stanford will look to replace Appel as a collective group. Two starters from last year’s rotation return in John Hochstatter and Bobby Zarubin. Zarubin started ten games and went 3-3 with a 2.16 ERA, while Hochstatter started 13 games and went 3-3 with a 3.88 ERA. Logan James is back after serving as a reliever and a spot starter as a freshman. He went 3-3 with a 4.56 ERA in 17 appearances. Stanford also has some key returnees back in the bullpen. Sam Lindquist appeared in 24 games and went 2-2 with a 3.46 ERA, holding batters to a .195 batting average. AJ Vanegas should be the closer for this team. He pitched just eight innings last season due to an injury, but posted a 3.12 ERA with four saves. He has been a starter and a long reliever during his time at Stanford and was picked by the Oakland Athletics in June’s draft but decided to return to school. The Cardinal bring in a pair of freshmen who figure to have a big impact in Cal Quantrill and Chris Viall. Quantrill is the son of former major leaguer Paul Quantrill and found himself on some Top 100 recruit lists. He should be an impact arm. Also returning in the bullpen from last year are Daniel Starwalt and Marcus Brackman.
Who to Watch:
Stanford is going to need Dominic Jose to play up to his talent this season. As a freshman, he hit .375 with 11 RBI’s and followed that up with a huge summer in the Cape Cod Baseball League. There, he hit .272 with six home runs and 27 runs scored. After the season, he was ranked the number 17 prospect by Perfect Game and a Top 40 prospect by Baseball America. Last season Jose struggled though, hitting just .237. With a lot of production gone, the Cardinal need Jose to produce the way that he is capable of to be an improved team.
Final Projection:
The Cardinal will enter this season with a lot less pressure than they had entering last season. Without all the pressure this team should perform a lot better. They will have some tough series early as they play Rice, Texas, and Vanderbilt, but they have the talent to compete with them. If Stanford can win some of those games, they should be in great shape this year. Replacing Appel is the big concern, but with the talent still on the pitching staff, it should be doable.
Projected Postseason: NCAA Baseball Tournament
Returning Leaders:
At Bats: Danny Diekroeger, IF, 224
Hits: Danny Diekroeger, IF, 67
Home Runs: Alex Blandino, IF, 7
RBIs: Alex Blandino, IF, 32; Austin Slater, IF/OF, 32
Runs: Austin Slater, IF/OF, 37
Stolen Bases: Danny Diekroeger, IF, 6
Wins: Bobby Zarubin, P, 3; John Hochstatter, P, 3; Logan James, P, 3
Innings Pitched: Bobby Zarubin, P, 58.1
Strikeouts: Bobby Zarubin, P, 37
Saves: Sam Lindquist, P, 4
Madness 2014 MLB Draft Rankings:
#46 Alex Blandino
#117 AL Vanegas
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