Stanford plays at Utah starting at 10:30 a.m. Friday. Tristan Beck will be on the mound and Erik Miller is keeping his spot as the Sunday starter. Utah is in last place in the Pac-12, but the Utes won series vs. Oregon State and Arizona this season.
David Esquer
How close is Duke Kinamon to coming back?
"He's close. He's participating fully in practice. He's waiting to feel like he can go full game speed. I'm looking to integrate him. If I could, I would DH him for a little while and then get him out there fully. He's antsy."
What about Brandon Wulff?
"He's probably a couple weeks away. For me, I envision it that Duke would be able to DH for a week or two and then get onto the field. And turn it (DH) over to Wulff, who would probably be DH the rest of the way."
Then what would you do with Branton?
"He's going to play. Duke has been working out at third. Wherever he best fits so that we stabilize and keep our same high level of defense. If it works out that the combination of Branton at second and Duke at third works, and it's probably on Branton. If he's proficient at third base that helps us, then maybe Tawa can go back out and play the outfield."
On Branton's rise this season after three mostly quiet years on The Farm: "As a senior -- he's a man after my own heart -- I know the feeling that, 'This is it.' You get a calm and a peace that you want to leave the game on your own terms. You relax and maybe don't worry about the outside stuff that may have been clouding your head in years past. He plays with a real quiet confidence and a peace about him that is infectious with the team. Guys like his attitude. He's not too stressed. There is no drama there."
Does it got lost in the record of this team that there are a lot of underclassmen playing every game?
"I think we're gaining some really valuable experience and maybe experience we didn't know we were going to be getting with some of the younger guys ... being contributors. And the emergence of Stowers and Daschbach, who after freshman years weren't big contributors. Handley has stabilized us behind the plate. And then sprinkled around there are the guys like Branton, the senior calm that's out there. Nico has been out there every day since he has been on campus. I think that has been a good mix of leadership and there is a calm about them."
Branton as a fielder: "He has just been a stabilizing force for the whole team and the defense is where we start. We are where we are at right now because of our pitching and defense. It has allowed us to develop offensively for some of the younger guys and some of the guys who needed to get their feet on the ground. That's where our decisions are always made: What gives us the best defense to support our pitching? I don't think I've made a decision all year that's based on this is the best offensive lineup we can put out there. It has always been that I cannot ignore the fact that it's defense first because of our pitching."
The best defenses make all the simple plays, but of late there have been a lot of highlight plays as well. Has that stood out to you?
"We talk a lot about how we can be a really frustrating team to play because if we play that really stable defense, our pitchers are hard to square up consistently. When the occasion arises that they do square our pitchers up and you make a nice play behind them, that team just throws their hands up. What can they do? We talk about suffocating the opponent with defense. We're going to make the routine play, but in the event that they do get the best of our pitcher ... we make a nice play even then. It's really frustrating."
Tommy Nicholson
During the weekend Andrew Daschbach said he was impressed that Tim Tawa has shortened his "bad stretches". What's your perspective on that and what that process looks like for a freshman?
"You hope that's what's happening. I think it's just a product of them putting in the work and understanding who they are. Get more and more experience every day, you get a chance to see how teams are working you. You get an idea of how teams view you. It's really important to know who you are as a hitter, but also who you're opponent thinks you are because they're going to attack you a certain way. If you keep getting beat the same way you better figure it out. I think learning those things and ... figuring out how to combat those weaknesses that might have caused him to have a longer bad stretch earlier in the season, they can make that adjustment in one day, one at-bat, one pitch. Hopefully it gets to the point you're adjusting on the fly."
There were six underclassmen on the field for the series opener against Cal. What's your take on how this young group of guys has been able to have such a successful season?
"I think it's really easy to forget. I think that's the first time I've heard someone bring it up. I've thought the exact same thing. We have a lot of freshman who are making major contributions and it's only going to help their development, help their future. We also want that future to be now. Sure, we want those guys to be great next year ... but we want to win as much as we can now. We have a chance to really make a run at this thing now. The fact that they've had a lot of opportunities early is great for their development. Even better that they have been able to make adjustments really quickly, get on the field and stay on the field. Sometimes those guys get on the field and they don't get to stay because they struggle. It's a big adjustment. It's one of the biggest adjustments you'll make going from the high school level to Division I. A lot of times guys have to sit and wait their turn. Guy have been ready for that situation."
Something that has been said a lot this season is, 'Work while you wait.' Christian Robinson is a recent example of someone who did a lot of waiting. Day to day, what have seen from these guys in the work they do while they wait?
"I have been really impressed with everyone as a whole. It's a good group of guys who have that work ethic instilled in them. Whether it was something they had before they came here, it's probably part of why they're here. I think it's a testament to the staff that was here before that instilled that work ethic in them. Guys are here all the time and they're working. They're putting in the time. There are a lot of guys who aren't satisfied and want to be better. Andrew Daschbach is in here wanting to be better than he is and he has been great. Nico is over here hitting extra. Nico has been great for us. He wants to be better. And obviously the work while you wait, the guys who didn't have a chance early on continue to come out here and work. It's easy to get discouraged if you're not playing and just start showing up right when practice starts to be here for the minimum. A lot of those guys they get done with practice and they work on their own. They're taking some of the things that we've given them and they start to work through them on their own. I think it's great for a guy to get in the cage and sometimes get away from a practice environment with a coach and have some time to figure it out on their own. A lot of guys are willing to do that. I'm learning, too, but I think it's a big part of why they're here. This place attracts really high achievers and I don't think you're a really high achiever without some sort of work ethic. I think a lot of them have grown up with that."
This might be the most difficult category to pick someone on the team, but who is the most improved from the start of the season?
"It's probably difficult to pinpoint to one person because there are a number of people I could rattle off. Beau Branton has been incredible for us filling in for Duke and how much he has improved from the fall to now. Alec Wilson, who had a chance early on and struggled a little bit. He continued to work and now he is back in there and he has been helping us win games, whether it's his glove or bat. Christian Robinson, from where he was at to where he is now -- the list goes on. I don't even know who most improved is, but there definitely are a lot of guys who have made improvements."
David Esquer
How close is Duke Kinamon to coming back?
"He's close. He's participating fully in practice. He's waiting to feel like he can go full game speed. I'm looking to integrate him. If I could, I would DH him for a little while and then get him out there fully. He's antsy."
What about Brandon Wulff?
"He's probably a couple weeks away. For me, I envision it that Duke would be able to DH for a week or two and then get onto the field. And turn it (DH) over to Wulff, who would probably be DH the rest of the way."
Then what would you do with Branton?
"He's going to play. Duke has been working out at third. Wherever he best fits so that we stabilize and keep our same high level of defense. If it works out that the combination of Branton at second and Duke at third works, and it's probably on Branton. If he's proficient at third base that helps us, then maybe Tawa can go back out and play the outfield."
On Branton's rise this season after three mostly quiet years on The Farm: "As a senior -- he's a man after my own heart -- I know the feeling that, 'This is it.' You get a calm and a peace that you want to leave the game on your own terms. You relax and maybe don't worry about the outside stuff that may have been clouding your head in years past. He plays with a real quiet confidence and a peace about him that is infectious with the team. Guys like his attitude. He's not too stressed. There is no drama there."
Does it got lost in the record of this team that there are a lot of underclassmen playing every game?
"I think we're gaining some really valuable experience and maybe experience we didn't know we were going to be getting with some of the younger guys ... being contributors. And the emergence of Stowers and Daschbach, who after freshman years weren't big contributors. Handley has stabilized us behind the plate. And then sprinkled around there are the guys like Branton, the senior calm that's out there. Nico has been out there every day since he has been on campus. I think that has been a good mix of leadership and there is a calm about them."
Branton as a fielder: "He has just been a stabilizing force for the whole team and the defense is where we start. We are where we are at right now because of our pitching and defense. It has allowed us to develop offensively for some of the younger guys and some of the guys who needed to get their feet on the ground. That's where our decisions are always made: What gives us the best defense to support our pitching? I don't think I've made a decision all year that's based on this is the best offensive lineup we can put out there. It has always been that I cannot ignore the fact that it's defense first because of our pitching."
The best defenses make all the simple plays, but of late there have been a lot of highlight plays as well. Has that stood out to you?
"We talk a lot about how we can be a really frustrating team to play because if we play that really stable defense, our pitchers are hard to square up consistently. When the occasion arises that they do square our pitchers up and you make a nice play behind them, that team just throws their hands up. What can they do? We talk about suffocating the opponent with defense. We're going to make the routine play, but in the event that they do get the best of our pitcher ... we make a nice play even then. It's really frustrating."
Tommy Nicholson
During the weekend Andrew Daschbach said he was impressed that Tim Tawa has shortened his "bad stretches". What's your perspective on that and what that process looks like for a freshman?
"You hope that's what's happening. I think it's just a product of them putting in the work and understanding who they are. Get more and more experience every day, you get a chance to see how teams are working you. You get an idea of how teams view you. It's really important to know who you are as a hitter, but also who you're opponent thinks you are because they're going to attack you a certain way. If you keep getting beat the same way you better figure it out. I think learning those things and ... figuring out how to combat those weaknesses that might have caused him to have a longer bad stretch earlier in the season, they can make that adjustment in one day, one at-bat, one pitch. Hopefully it gets to the point you're adjusting on the fly."
There were six underclassmen on the field for the series opener against Cal. What's your take on how this young group of guys has been able to have such a successful season?
"I think it's really easy to forget. I think that's the first time I've heard someone bring it up. I've thought the exact same thing. We have a lot of freshman who are making major contributions and it's only going to help their development, help their future. We also want that future to be now. Sure, we want those guys to be great next year ... but we want to win as much as we can now. We have a chance to really make a run at this thing now. The fact that they've had a lot of opportunities early is great for their development. Even better that they have been able to make adjustments really quickly, get on the field and stay on the field. Sometimes those guys get on the field and they don't get to stay because they struggle. It's a big adjustment. It's one of the biggest adjustments you'll make going from the high school level to Division I. A lot of times guys have to sit and wait their turn. Guy have been ready for that situation."
Something that has been said a lot this season is, 'Work while you wait.' Christian Robinson is a recent example of someone who did a lot of waiting. Day to day, what have seen from these guys in the work they do while they wait?
"I have been really impressed with everyone as a whole. It's a good group of guys who have that work ethic instilled in them. Whether it was something they had before they came here, it's probably part of why they're here. I think it's a testament to the staff that was here before that instilled that work ethic in them. Guys are here all the time and they're working. They're putting in the time. There are a lot of guys who aren't satisfied and want to be better. Andrew Daschbach is in here wanting to be better than he is and he has been great. Nico is over here hitting extra. Nico has been great for us. He wants to be better. And obviously the work while you wait, the guys who didn't have a chance early on continue to come out here and work. It's easy to get discouraged if you're not playing and just start showing up right when practice starts to be here for the minimum. A lot of those guys they get done with practice and they work on their own. They're taking some of the things that we've given them and they start to work through them on their own. I think it's great for a guy to get in the cage and sometimes get away from a practice environment with a coach and have some time to figure it out on their own. A lot of guys are willing to do that. I'm learning, too, but I think it's a big part of why they're here. This place attracts really high achievers and I don't think you're a really high achiever without some sort of work ethic. I think a lot of them have grown up with that."
This might be the most difficult category to pick someone on the team, but who is the most improved from the start of the season?
"It's probably difficult to pinpoint to one person because there are a number of people I could rattle off. Beau Branton has been incredible for us filling in for Duke and how much he has improved from the fall to now. Alec Wilson, who had a chance early on and struggled a little bit. He continued to work and now he is back in there and he has been helping us win games, whether it's his glove or bat. Christian Robinson, from where he was at to where he is now -- the list goes on. I don't even know who most improved is, but there definitely are a lot of guys who have made improvements."
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