Omaha bound: Washington earns first trip to College World Series

The Seattle Times – By Joseph D’Hippolito – June 10, 2017

FULLERTON, Calif. — When Washington coach Lindsay Meggs gathered his players early in the season, he made a statement that would become prophetic.

“We talked early on that this thing is going to come down to the last day, the last game, the last inning,” Meggs said. “That’s what we were preparing for.”

That preparation enabled the Huskies to survive two innings of late melodrama to earn their first trip to the College World Series.

Kaiser Weiss’ sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 10th inning culminated a two-run rally that gave Washington a 6-5 victory over Cal State Fullerton on Sunday night at Goodwin Field.

Alex Hardy (5-2) got the win in relief for the Huskies (35-24), who will travel to Omaha, Neb., with 15 wins in their past 20 games. UW will play Mississippi State. The day is yet to be determined, but the tournament starts Saturday.

“This weekend, we’ve been working this whole year for it,” said Weiss, wearing a “Destination Omaha” cap moments after the game. “We always say, ‘Omaha no matter what.’ We grind it and we just wanted the opportunity. We had the opportunity and we seized it. It’s a team effort, all around, everyone.”

The Titans, who trailed 3-0 after six innings, took a 5-4 lead in the top of the 10th on Hank LoForte’s sixth home run of the season, a solo drive just over Weiss’ glove in right field.

But UW combined two hits, two sacrifices and two errors into the necessary runs. Joe Wainhouse began the inning with a single off second baseman LoForte’s glove and was replaced by pinch-runner Jack Johnson.

Levi Jordan bunted down the first-base line. Pitcher Brett Conine fielded the bunt but threw wildly down the line, enabling Johnson to take third base and Jordan to reach second.

A.J. Graffanino followed with an infield single that brought Johnson home. Next, Willie MacIver hit a ground ball to shortstop Sahid Valenzuela, who misplayed the short hop for an error that loaded the bases. Weiss’ fly ball to left field sent Jordan to the plate and the Titans into next year.

Fullerton (36-25) nullified a 3-1 deficit by scoring three runs in the top of the ninth inning to move ahead, 4-3. The Titans combined four singles — including three in succession — with a hit batter against right-hander Joe DeMers, who had a perfect game for six innings.

DeMers began the inning by hitting pinch-hitter Jordan Hernandez with a pitch, forcing Hernandez out of the game. Pinch-runner Zach Weisz replaced Hernandez and moved to second on Mitchell Berryhill’s one-out single. But after Ruben Cardenas flied out, those three singles — beginning with Valenzuela’s hit off DeMers’ glove — put the Titans ahead and chased DeMers.

“That was my fault,” Meggs said. “I should have gotten him out of the game. He was probably running on fumes. But I believe in Joe so much that I wanted him to finish it.” Yet that collapse provided motivation from a reserve.

“Jordan Jones got us all together,” Weiss said. “He’s a guy of few words but a lot of emotions. He just told us, ‘We’ve been battling all year for us to come down to this, right now. We’ve got to pull together.’ We all did and we bought into the process.”

But after tying the score in the bottom of the ninth, UW put the potential winning run in scoring position.

Weiss doubled down the right-field line with one out and tied the score when Jonathan Schiffer hit a ground ball that barely eluded a diving Valenzuela for a single.

With K.J. Brady at the plate, Schiffer tried to reach second base on a hit-and-run. Brady swung and missed, and Schiffer was tagged out on a rundown. But the umpires ruled that Brady committed interference as he swung, so Schiffer remained at first base.

Brady had replaced Mason Cerrillo, who left the game after injuring his hand while sliding back to first base on a pickoff throw in the seventh.

Braiden Ward then struck out but the ball skipped past catcher Daniel Cope, so Ward reached first base and Schiffer took second. Nick Kahle watched a 95-mph fastball hit the outside corner for a third strike that ended the threat.

DeMers, who pitched one inning of relief and earned the save in Friday’s 8-5 win, induced 15 ground outs and collected three strikeouts while allowing four runs, five hits, a walk and a hit batter in 82/3 innings.

For Meggs, the victory vindicated his vision — one based on this weekend’s opponent.

“When I got hired, we talked about trying to play the type of game Cal State Fullerton plays,” he said. “We knew we were behind physically so we did our best to get guys who never quit, who like to play hard, who aren’t afraid to be at the plate or come out of the bullpen with the game on the line.”

Viral video from Arizona Diamondbacks’ Jake Lamb shows his love for Husky baseball … and his little brother

The Seattle Times – By Adam Jude – June 12, 2017

Crash, the frightened black lab, didn’t know what the heck was happening.

One moment, Crash and his roommates were lounging on the couch watching a baseball game. Probably nothing unusual about that scene, considering his roommates both play for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

But then the next moment, one of his roommates — a certain third baseman with a particular interest in this Washington Huskies baseball game — was jumping off the couch, hopping in the middle of the room as if he’d been stung by a wasp, shaking and screaming and laughing uncontrollably.

“Poor Crash — I scared the crap out of him,” Jake Lamb said.

A 45-second video of Lamb’s celebration — raw, emotional and, for him, nearly a decade in the making — shows the former Husky standout reacting as the UW baseball team scores the winning run in the 10th inning at Cal State Fullerton on Sunday night, sending the Huskies to the College World Series for the first time in program history.

The video has gone viral on Instagram, viewed more than 31,000 times as of Tuesday afternoon.

“People who know me and have played with me know I don’t like showing any type of emotion. I’m pretty level-headed all the time,” Lamb said. “Throughout a 162-game season, it gets exhausting acting like that every game. Some guys can do it. I definitely can’t.

“But,” he added, “I’m a completely different guy when it comes to being a fan, especially when it’s my alma mater. I turn into a different person.”

UW coach Lindsay Meggs said Lamb’s heartfelt reaction captured the feelings for so many in and around the program.

“I don’t think anybody can understand how much this means to people until you see something like that,” said Meggs, who coached Lamb from 2010-12. “I think that (video) is worth a thousand words, as they say. … That was maybe the best moment for our program in terms of what this means to be people, how excited they really are.”

Lamb, a National League All-Star last year, didn’t know his Diamondbacks teammate and roommate Archie Bradley was recording his celebration. And he didn’t care: The moment was particularly personal for Lamb, whose brother, Dylan, is a freshman pitcher for the Huskies.

Before he posted the video on Instagram, Jake called Dylan shortly after the game Sunday night. The brothers are separated by eight years, but Jake said they are “extremely close” — so close that Dylan says he models not only his approach to baseball after Jake’s but also his general approach to life.

“Me and him are the same exact person off the field — same sense of humor and everything,” Dylan said. In that initial call after the game, the brothers didn’t say much. There were a lot of “OH MY GOD!” screams, a few “HOLY CRAP!” exclamations. Mostly, they sobbed.

“It hit me pretty hard; it was really emotional,” Dylan said Tuesday, a day before the Huskies depart for Omaha and the College World Series. “He told me how proud he was to achieve his childhood dream and he’s just super happy for everyone involved.”

The brothers connected again later Sunday night, when they were able to put complete sentences together.

“I told him, ‘Dude, you’re forever going to be remembered in Washington athletic history. Forever. That’s insane, and that’s something I can’t say I did. … You’re writing your own story,’” Jake said.

The Lamb brothers both attended Bishop Blanchet High School, Jake still spends his winters in Seattle. In the offseason, he hits in the UW batting cages just about every day, refining a swing that helped him hit 30 homers and drive in 105 runs for the Diamondbacks last season.

Dylan always planned to follow his brother to UW. Initially, he planned to play third base and first base, just like Jake. But then last summer, he started to have some success as a submarine-style pitcher, and it stuck. In 17 relief appearances for the Huskies this season, he has a 3.95 ERA over 27.1 innings.

Dylan was a regular at Husky Ballpark back when Jake was playing for the Huskies — back when UW players had to trek some 500 yards from the meager field to their locker room in Hec Ed. The program turned a significant corner in 2014 when the new $19 million ballpark was completed, featuring a state-of-the-art clubhouse and indoor training facility.

“I was coming to every game when I was a little kid,” Dylan said. “I just know it means a lot to (Jake). He was here before the stadium, before the locker room — he was here really when this was nothing. To see how far it’s come in less than 10 years, and to have his little brother in it, that was just really special to him.” Top to bottom, left to right, UW athletic department keeps piling up the thrills

The Seattle Times – By Matt Calkins – June 12, 2017

This might not play well in Pullman. Sorry about that, Cougs. But one has to give credit when it’s deserved.

I’ve been in Seattle for nearly three years now, where the sports scene has been as surprising as it has been stirring. From unforeseen city council votes on arena projects, to out-of-nowhere drama between Seahawks, to a seemingly sunk Mariners squad surging in the standings — it’s been anything but predictable.

But if there has been one source of consistency over these past 34 months — if there’s anything involving athletes, coaches and officials that has been truly reliable, it’s this: Some team from Washington does something awesome.

I’m not ready to say UW has the most complete athletic program in the country, but the results of late put it in the discussion. Doesn’t matter if it’s a touchdown pass in front of 70,000 people or a birdie putt in front of 70, the Huskies elicit significantly more cheers than jeers.

Will it last? TBD. Sports success is a fickle thing.

What’s seems apparent, though, is shocking postseason runs and historic moments are lurking all around campus.

We can start with football — the lead singer of this band — which vaulted itself back into the national spotlight well ahead of schedule. Two years after Chris Petersen took over as coach, the Huskies stampeded their way to a Pac-12 title and College Football Playoff berth, then reached the Fiesta Bowl the next season. The No. 13 ranking 247sports.com assigned its most recent recruiting class is the best of Petersen’s career. The coach keeps on woofing on Twitter, and his players will likely keep winning on the field.

How about women’s basketball? Has there been a more unexpected run in this town than the one those Huskies made in 2016, when they reached the Final Four? Has there been a more a dominant athlete in this town than Kelsey Plum was in 2017, when she set the NCAA’s career and single-season scoring record?

That program struggled mightily last season, as Jody Wynn inherited a roster sans Plum, Chantel Osahor or any other prominent player from Mike Neighbors’ squad. But that doesn’t take away from the individual and team history made in prior seasons.

Speaking of history, how about UW baseball? The Huskies weren’t among the top 25 teams in the country when the NCAA regionals started at the beginning of the month, but after a ninth-and-10th-inning rally vs. Cal State Fullerton on Sunday, they made their first ever College World Series.

How about UW softball? The Huskies began this season with 28 straight wins, then won their first eight of the postseason before falling to Florida State in the national championship series. They also have their No. 1 and 1A pitchers — Gabbie Plain and Taran Alvelo — returning next year, not to mention a slew of their top hitters.

Prefer the the links to the field? Well, the Huskies women’s golf team won its first national championship in 2016, and qualified for the NCAA championships once again this year. Prefer the sea to the links? Well, the Huskies women’s rowing team swept the three grand events en route to the national championship last year and finished second this year. The men’s team — although not NCAA- sanctioned — won the overall points title in the national championships for the 11th time in 12 years.

The women’s volleyball team reached the Elite Eight two seasons ago. The gymnastics team finished No. 11 in the country this season. The men’s soccer team made it to the third round of the NCAA tournament in 2016, and last year, the men’s basketball team won 20 games for the first time since 2012.

Obviously, not every program on Montlake is shining. The once dominant men’s golf team hasn’t been a national threat in years, and former track coach Greg Metcalf resigned amid allegations of weight-shaming and other mistreatment last May.

Still, generally speaking, there hasn’t been a fall, winter or spring that has failed to produce something memorable at Washington in quite a while.

This kind of thing is never about one person, but Washington athletic director Jen Cohen can’t be deprived of credit. In addition to hiring men’s basketball coach Mike Hopkins, and being an integral piece in luring Petersen, she has overseen one of the nation’s most ascendant athletic departments. Not bad for her first two years on the job.

Once baseball season is over, we won’t see any Huskies in action until the fall. That’s OK.

Based on what we’ve seen from the lately, they’ll likely be worth the wait.

Matt Calkins: [email protected]; on Twitter: @matt_calkins. Matt Calkins joined The Seattle Times in August 2015 as a sports columnist after three years at the San Diego Union Tribune. Never afraid to take a stand or go off the beaten path, Matt enjoys writing about the human condition every bit as much as walk-offs or buzzer-beaters. His mom reads the comments so take it easy on him.

For Huskies’ K.J. Brady, baseball has been best therapy after losing mother in car accident

The Seattle Times – By Larry Stone – June 8, 2017

The past month, as the Huskies’ baseball program soared to unprecedented heights, has been the most fun K.J. Brady has had in his baseball career.

It has also been the most trying, grief-stricken time in his life.

That paradox has provided a poignant backdrop to Washington’s drive to its first Super Regional appearance. Brady, a reserve senior outfielder, was having a cup of coffee in his apartment April 17 when his father called with devastating news: K.J.’s mother, Michele Kadyk, had been killed in a car accident in Mount Vernon.

Nearly two months later, with the best-of-three Super Regionals beginning Friday at Cal State Fullerton, Brady has found baseball to be his best therapy. The team has embraced him in his time of need, and Brady has leaned on them, a symbiotic relationship that has helped ease the greatest pain in his life.

“I just try to stay distracted as much as I can,’’ he said. “I don’t try to think about it a whole lot. It’s definitely been the hardest thing I’ve had to go through, for sure, not having her here anymore.”

His mom was 48. Their relationship was complicated, K.J. said, but the void he feels is deep.

“She had some challenges throughout her life and it kind of brought us apart a little bit,’’ he said. “We would text and talk. It wasn’t necessarily the closest relationship, but it wasn’t that we weren’t talking or anything like that. She was still involved in my life.”

Every now and then, something out of the blue will remind Brady of his mom and evoke waves of emotion. Playing a game against UCLA on Mother’s Day was especially tough.

“I’ll hear a song or someone will say a certain saying, and it will just make me think of her,’’ he said. “That definitely does happen. But that’s just kind of part of it. Grief doesn’t always get better in a straight line. It’s kind of a rollercoaster. Things have happened, then it sets in again. That’s happened a lot.”

Brady took just one day off from baseball after receiving the news, to be with his family in the Everett area. The next day he was back at practice and made the road trip to play California a few days later.

“I felt that’s what I needed to do,’’ he said. “I think it would have weighed on me more if I had stayed and sulked. I tried to keep the most normality I could in my life.”

The tragedy has brought the family closer – “grief kind of does that,’’ Brady said.

K.J. talks with them virtually every day, including father Kevin Brady, sister Ali Brady, 28, and brother Carson St. John, 18.

“We’re trying to lean on each other during these times,’’ he said.

Brady said his girlfriend has also been a tremendous help, along with, of course, the Husky team. Virtually all of them attended Kadyk’s funeral in Marysville. As a senior leader, Brady said he prides himself on knowing each teammate personally so he knew how best to motivate them. Now the role is reversed. “I kind of ask a lot from them in that sense, and I guess I kind of leaned on them when this happened,’’ he said. “I put myself out there. The guys have been great. Every time something happens, or some of my emotions get going, they’re always there for me.”

And Brady, a graduate of Cascade High School in Everett, is there for them, though his senior season hasn’t gone the way he envisioned. Penciled in as the Huskies’ starting right fielder this year, Brady got off to a slow start at the plate. Just about the time he heated up, he suffered a hamstring injury that set him back a week. Now that the Huskies are driving toward a College World Series appearance, he is primarily a defensive replacement, pinch-runner and dugout motivator.

The last role is one he takes seriously.

“I feel like I’m more moral support for the guys,” he said. “I just try to keep the mood light in the dugout, try to have some fun. It’s just baseball at the end of the day. I try to get some laughs and keep it light.”

Fellow senior Levi Jordan said of Brady, “He’s gotten the short end of the stick as far as playing time. Of course, as a senior you want to go out and be playing. But instead of being down in the dumps about it, he’s completely turned our dugout around. It’s like a 12th man for us in terms of the Seahawks. It’s so awesome what he’s doing for our guys. He’s supporting all of us. He’s an absolute MVP in the dugout for us right now.”

Husky coach Lindsay Meggs highlighted Brady as a team leader Wednesday during a news conference before leaving for Fullerton.

“Just the fact he’s … not accepted, but dealt with the fact his role has not been what he wanted it to be,’’ Meggs said. “He could have had a negative vibe in the dugout, but he’s been unbelievable.

“Our older guys, playing or not, have embraced this opportunity, and K.J. has been as positive in the dugout and helpful to the coaching staff and kept everybody on task. If we’re down it’s, ‘We’re not out.’ If we’re up, ‘Hey, it’s not enough.’ ”

When Brady called the coach to tell of his mom’s passing, Meggs was at his apartment less than half an hour later to offer whatever solace he could.

“The only thing you can really do is be there, and you don’t know really what else to do,’’ Meggs said. “What can you say? K.J. is a strong kid. Nothing has ever been easy for him, in terms of not being the ideal size, and he had to fight through some depth in our program to have a role.

“I think he really felt good about the support he had from his teammates and his coaches. I think the beauty of team sports is, if you’re really a team, then you always have somebody to go to, and I think the guys were there for him. It meant a lot to him.”

Brady has already graduated with a degree in economics and envisions a career as a financial adviser. His baseball career is down to a few weeks, if not a few days. He’s going to savor every minute, even while coping with unbearable pain. K.J. says he’s ready for the next phase of his life – but not quite yet.

“This last month has honestly been the most fun I’ve ever had with a group of guys,’’ he said. “This team, we’ve really rallied around each other, and we’re playing our best baseball. It’s been so much fun. I just want it to keep going.” ‘It’s unbelievable how far the ball goes’: Joe Wainhouse’s power wows UW baseball coaches

Seattle Times – By Larry Stone – May 23, 2018

Washington’s Joe Wainhouse has turned into one of the elite sluggers in the Pac-12, a 6-foot-6, 255-pound, left- handed-hitting behemoth who is known to send balls soaring into Lake Washington.

But here’s the thing — as UW approaches the end of its regular season with a showdown series against Stanford beginning Thursday at Husky Stadium, and as the MLB draft nears next month, no one is still quite sure what Wainhouse is.

Oh, it’s clear he’s a force at the plate, for sure, hitting .311 with 13 homers and 49 RBI as the Huskies’ designated hitter. But as has been the case throughout Wainhouse’s well-traveled college career, he still considers himself a pitcher as well, despite the fact he has thrown in just two games this year for a total of 12/3 innings. He still takes his regular bullpen sessions, wanting to be ready just in case.

As Huskies coach Lindsay Meggs put it, “If Joe wasn’t having so much success at the plate, he’d be getting more opportunities on the mound. We’re certainly not saying he couldn’t help us there. We’re a little hesitant to rock the boat.”

It’s hard to argue, considering that Wainhouse has been torrid down the stretch, hitting .375 with seven homers, 21 RBI and a .875 slugging percentage in 11 May games. Not bad for a guy who entered this season thinking he was going to be primarily a pitcher. The night before the season opener at Sacramento State, Wainhouse said to his roommate, incredulously, “ ‘I might hit tomorrow.’ It just started hitting me — I might actually play, hitting- wise.”

I asked the amiable Wainhouse what he considers himself 50 games into the season: a hitter or a pitcher?

“Who knows, honestly?” he replied. “We’ll see where it goes. I’m fine either way. I like both of them.”

Certainly, pitching is in Wainhouse’s blood. His dad, Dave, had a seven-year major-league career hurling for five clubs, including the Mariners for three games in 1993. Dave, who attended Mercer Island High School and Washington State before settling in Kent after his career ended, never pushed his son into baseball, but the romance bloomed naturally.

“Growing up around the game, and around the top of the game, just ingrained me early,’’ Joe said. “I loved it from the start.”

Growing up, Wainhouse did virtually everything but pitch — including play catcher, which was not easy for someone his size. He always had a penchant for hitting the ball a long way. Husky assistant coach Donegal Fergus, who watched Wainhouse hit as a youngster, says, “He’s the only kid who ever scared me in a cage. I thought he might hit one through the net at me. You could tell he had incredible bat speed and leverage.”

Stepping on the mound was a natural lure, but Wainhouse’s dad knew from experience the stress of pitching and made sure to protect his son’s developing arm.

“I coached him at a young age to keep other people from pitching him,” Dave Wainhouse said. Joe was a hitting sensation at Kentridge High School, where he still holds several offensive records. But he pitched only minimally and was recruited by the University of Mississippi mainly as a first baseman. But after a year as a backup at Ole Miss, Wainhouse decided he wanted to become a two-way player and transferred to Bellevue College.

“I liked Oxford,” he said. “It’s a great spot, a fun school, with good people down there. It just didn’t fit right baseball wise.”

Wainhouse’s first call when he decided to transfer was to longtime Bellevue coach Mark Yoshino, who eagerly welcomed him. Shortly after he called Fergus, Washington’s hitting coach and recruiting coordinator who had coached with Dave Wainhouse at Seattle University and was close to the family.

“I told him I was going to Bellevue for that season, but UW is where I want to be after that,” Joe said.

And after Wainhouse’s strong season at Bellevue, in which he led the team with 11 homers, the feeling was mutual. Even though an arm injury had limited Wainhouse’s pitching opportunities, the Huskies were open to him as a two-way player.

“I remember saying to our pitching coach, ‘Why wouldn’t we try to get something out of Joe? He has arm strength on the mound, and I think I can help him offensively. He’s so big, with so much potential — why not give him a shot?’ ” Fergus recalled.

Arriving at UW last year, Wainhouse seemed to be heading toward more of a pitching focus, with a fastball in the mid-90s, until a lat injury curtailed his season. And this year, as he said, “The script completely flipped to just hitting.”

That’s partly because of mechanical changes necessitated by the lat injury that sapped some velocity, and partly because of team need. But mostly, it’s because Wainhouse never stopped bashing. Some of his homers have become legendary, such as an 11th-inning walkoff against UCLA that went over the Husky Ballpark batter’s eye in center and into the lake.

“When I played college at UCLA, Mark McGwire was at USC,” Meggs said. “I can remember back in the day him hitting some 500-footers against us. That was back when there were no bat restrictions. Joe’s hit the ball farther than any human being I’ve ever seen on a college baseball field, including Mark McGwire. It’s unbelievable how far the ball goes.’’

Wainhouse, who has already graduated with a degree in political science, has another year of UW eligibility because of the injury. But virtually everyone associated with the program expects him to sign with a team if he’s drafted. The question, of course, is whether scouts see him as a hitter or pitcher. He’s most likely to be a late-round selection.

“If you ask 30 pro scouts, you’d probably get 22 different answers of what they see in him,” Fergus said. “He’s really proving himself as not just a guy who can hit it a long way, but hit it a lot. Someone would be crazy not to give him a shot playing first base … and the mound is everyone’s backup plan.”

Dave Wainhouse says he just hopes his son gets an opportunity, one way or another. Joe says he’s not sweating it while the Huskies’ season hangs in the balance against third-ranked Stanford. Coming off a sweep of Utah last weekend, the Huskies are tied with UCLA for third in the Pac-12 at 18-9 (28-22 overall). That puts them in a favorable spot for an NCAA bid, considering no eligible 18-win Pac-12 team has been bypassed — but no team with their RPI of 71 has earned an at-large berth from the NCAA committee. The Huskies have a route to the Pac-12 title if they sweep Stanford, and UCLA wins at least one game at Oregon State. No matter what happens on Thursday through Saturday, Wainhouse is likely to be in the middle of the action with his bat.

For now, anyway.

MacIver and DeMers: Childhood Friends To College Teammates

GoHuskies.com – By Kimberlie Haner – May 21, 2018

Joe DeMers and Willie MacIver are lucky. Friends since the age of 7, the two juniors on the Washington baseball team have played together for the majority of their lives. They were on the same little league teams, school teams, travel ball teams and now they are wrapping up their third season as Huskies together.

The two were part of a group of four friends from the same area of California who all went on to play Division I baseball in the Pac-12. Trevor Larnach is currently playing at Oregon State and Jeffery Mitchell is on Cal’s team. And all four of them met playing little league baseball when they were 7 or 8 years old. Since that legendary team, they have been inseparable ever since. On the field or off the field, the four friends formed a bond that holds strong to this day.

“We always played some kind of sport, always competing,” MacIver said. “It’s like having more brothers. It’s a pretty cool relationship. It was us four, always doing everything together.”

It was hard to miss DeMers on the first day of little league practice. He was the biggest kid on the team, needing to wear MacIver’s dad’s t-shirt for the first few games because there was not a jersey that fit him. However, MacIver was not intimidated by DeMers’ size.

“We started playing catch together at the first practice,” MacIver said. “It was all history since then.”

Following that season, the four of them could not spend enough time together. After practice, they would go to one of their houses to play basketball, play football and ride bikes. When the sun went down, they went inside to play video games. It was always a competition for the future college athletes.

After attending different elementary schools, they all went to the same middle school and high school. Though they made new friends in high school, the four of them remained a core group of friends.

“It was still us four,” DeMers said. “We all knew each other and we all had the same goals.”

“Obviously we met new people and made new friends,” MacIver said. “But at the end of the day, we always stuck together.”

As the group continued playing baseball, they all caught the attention of college scouts. Of the four, DeMers was the first to get noticed. Partially because he started playing travel ball a year before the rest of the group. His coach introduced him to USA Baseball, which gave him more attention.

“I definitely got the exposure first, but the whole time I knew these guys could do it too,” DeMers said. “I knew it was just a matter of time.”

Because of their supportive and competitive friendship, DeMers hearing from college coaches only pushed the other three to work even harder. By the time they were all sophomores, they had all been recruited, though not all had made the decision by that point. They all pushed each other to be better.

“Seeing Joe and what he was doing made us want to work harder so we could get up to that level,” MacIver said. “I think it helped all of us get better and want to work and compete harder.”

Eventually, each of them started to make decisions. DeMers committed to UW as a sophomore and MacIver committed at the beginning of his junior year. Though they ended up in the same place, each of them had to get there on their own. DeMers has family connections to the Pacific Northwest. His dad’s family is from near Seattle and his mom is from the Portland area. Having a lot of family nearby was just part of what clinched his decision to pick the Huskies. In the end, it came down to a gut feeling.

“I visited almost every Pac-12 school and they were all cool,” DeMers said. “I didn’t have that gut feeling yet, and my mom told me to wait for that gut feeling. Sure enough, my last visit was to UW and after I met the coaches, I knew immediately I would go there. I couldn’t be more proud of my decision to come to UW.”

MacIver made his decision a year after DeMers, but his experience was similar. He came on an unofficial visit with Trevor and saw the construction on the new stadium, walked around campus and met the coaches and players. In the end, it came down to the people and a good feeling.

“The coaches made me feel really welcome and it was a really good atmosphere and culture,” MacIver said. “It made it that much easier that Joe was already going to UW. I was going to be able to go to school with Joe, who is like my brother. It was a pretty easy decision for me.”

DeMers was a little worried that MacIver was making a decision based on having a friend at the school, but that was not the case. That is a bonus, but ultimately, MacIver made the decision based on the best fit for him.

“He (Joe) was going through the process with me,” MacIver said. “There were a couple of other schools I was thinking about at the time. I realized UW was the best fit for me. I love the decision I made. I love to be a Husky.”

The two of them have fun being at Washington together. Despite being at different schools than the other half of their crew, the four of them are still close. They pick each other’s brains about baseball, catch up on life and maintain those powerful friendships.

“It’s really special to see everyone do their thing and succeed,” DeMers said.

MacIver has had a front row seat to all of the great pitching moments of DeMers’ career. Perhaps a sign of things to come, DeMers threw a perfect season on that first little league team. He was allowed to throw for just 4 innings in a game, but he never gave up a baserunner all season.

In high school, DeMers threw a no-hitter in one game, a perfect game in the next start and a no-hitter in the start after that. To MacIver, that is just Joe.

“He’s ridiculous,” MacIver said. “He could go and hit two homers in the same game. That’s just Joe.”

Of course, MacIver was in the dugout when DeMers threw the first perfect game in Washington baseball history this season. Thought MacIver was injured and unable to play at the time, he could not have been happier for his best friend.

“It was fun. I was rooting for him the whole time,” MacIver said. “Of course I wish I was playing behind him, but there’s not time to feel bad for yourself when you’re rooting on your buddy who’s throwing a perfect game. It’s such a cool experience to be there in the first place. I had a great time.”

Looking ahead, both of them are hoping to have the opportunity to play professionally following their college careers.

“We are thinking we will probably be drafted by the same team based on how it has gone so far,” MacIver said. “Just have to keep it going,” DeMers added.

No matter where they end up, the two of them along with the other half of their group will keep in touch. They will continue to compete. It’s nothing their friendship can’t handle.

DeMers, Plain recognized for perfection by Mariners

UW Daily – By Andy Yamashita – May 2, 2018

Baseball and softball are one of the few sports where perfection is an quantifiable idea. No hits, no runs, no errors, no runners on base. It is a feat so rare that only 23 have been thrown professionally in over a century of the sport. However, the 2018 season has seen two different Huskies, junior Joe DeMers and freshman Gabbie Plain, throw perfect games for their respective Washington teams. They are the first pair to achieve this feat in both baseball and softball for the same school in the same year.

On Wednesday, the two were recognized by the Seattle Mariners, throwing out the ceremonial first pitch to a certain pitcher who has his own experience with perfection.

DeMers threw his perfect game first. On Feb. 24, in the Huskies’ home opener against UC Riverside, the Californian was dominance personified. With just 84 pitches, he set down all 27 batters he faced in an 8-0 Huskies win. He struck out nine, only reached a three-ball count once, and 64 of his total pitches were strikes.

“I remember the last out for sure,” DeMers said. “My whole team mobbing me, and then going up and giving my parents and my girlfriend a big hug.”

It was the first Washington baseball perfect game, the fifth in Pac-12 history, and the 27th in collegiate history. It was the ninth no-hitter in UW history and the first since a combined no-no by Tim Lincecum and Nick Hagadone in 2009.

“I had tears in my eyes after that last pitch and the catch in right field,” DeMers’ father Tom said. “I had my fingers crossed when I saw that pop fly to right field, but it was amazing. I had to pace because I was so nervous for Joe, but I was so happy when it was all over.”

Exactly two weeks later, on April 7, Plain repeated the feat. Facing conference rival Utah, the Australian freshman retired all 15 batters she faced, striking out five, with the biggest challenge to her attempt at history being the weather, which caused a rain delay before the last inning.

“I mostly remember that it was very disjointed.” she said. “We had a rain delay right before that last inning so I was trying to just get back into it. Make sure I was ready to go by the time we got back on the field, and then at the end, everyone running out to me, it was incredible.”

The Huskies won 12-0 to run-rule the Utes in five innings. It was the seventh perfect game and only the second by a freshman at the UW. It was the first since Danielle Lawrie threw a perfect game in 2006, about 12 years ago.

That brings us to Wednesday, where both pitchers threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Seattle Mariners took on the Oakland Athletics on a beautiful night at Safeco Field. The player who caught the first pitches was none other than “King” Felix Hernandez.

Besides being a Seattle legend, Hernandez is the most recent player in the MLB to join the perfect game club after his performance against Tampa Bay on August 15, 2012.

“[It’s] pretty impressive man. I don’t think you can put into words how it feels to throw a perfect game,” Hernandez said. “It’s an amazing feeling. You just got to go out there and compete and just throw the pitches. You can’t think about the perfect game, you just have to go out and pitch.” Both players had their families come to Safeco Field, with both of DeMers’ parents attending, as well as childhood teammate and current Husky Willie MacIver. Plain’s father Jason flew all the way to Seattle from Sydney, Australia to be there on Wednesday. From door-to-door, it took him about 24 hours of travelling.

“We thought the first year, she’d come over and it’d be a learning year,” he said. “But she’s got a lot of game time, she’s had some success with them. They’re a great bunch of girls, and the coaching staff is just awesome, and the university itself.”

As for the actual pitches, Plain, throwing overhand instead of underhand, threw a perfect strike to the King. DeMers was a little high, due — he insisted afterwards — to his high velocity.

“[Plain]’s was better, 100 percent, mine was just a little more firm though,” he joked.

In His Father’s Footsteps: Joe Wainhouse’s long path through baseball

UW Daily – By Andy Yamashita – May 3, 2018

One of the best birthday presents Dave Wainhouse ever got his son was a foam baseball and bat, signed by his former St. Louis Cardinals teammate Mark McGwire. The big first baseman quickly became the boy’s favorite player. The gift didn’t survive long.

“I was a little kid so I used it and absolutely destroyed it,” Joe Wainhouse said. “Which is really frustrating now, but that was my favorite memory from back in the day.”

Now a senior, Wainhouse looks a little like his childhood idol. Standing one inch taller than the slugger with a blond beard and hair to match, one would be forgiven for doing a double take after seeing him at a glance. However, Wainhouse has his own relaxed demeanor, exuding a cool, composed, collected vibe that is infectious.

“[Joe’s] a really calm, chill dude,” sophomore pitcher Jordan Jones said. “When things get a little crazy in a game he really helps calm things down.”

Perhaps Wainhouse is so calm on the field because he has baseball in his blood.

His father, Dave, spent seven seasons in the MLB after he was drafted 19th overall by the Montreal Expos in 1988. A Mercer Island High School alum, the elder Wainhouse became Washington State University’s highest draft pick ever. He enjoyed quite a bit of collegiate success during his three years with the Cougars but was never able to establish himself at the pro level. However, it was his goal to have his son grow up around the game.

“I always wanted my kids to grow up in the clubhouse and around the game,” Dave said. “I couldn’t imagine a better memory for a baseball player to have than being on the field with their son, at a major league park.” One of Joe’s earliest memories is hitting soft-toss with his dad in the batting cages of the Memphis Redbirds, the Cardinals’ Triple-A affiliate. In fact, the family spent most of their son’s youngest years travelling around the country as his dad bounced back-and-forth between Triple-A and the MLB.

“We would go travel for a decent amount of time,” Joe said. “I always remember we’d drive down to Spring Training in Florida every year. We’d move around: Florida, Memphis, the Northeast, all over. It was really fun. I remember going out to clubhouses with him when he was with the Cardinals and the Mariners and being around the game early. I just fell in love with it.”

After the 2000 season, Dave hung up his spikes and the family settled in Kent. Joe grew up playing all kinds of sports including basketball, soccer, and of course, baseball.

“My parents never really forced me,” Joe said. “It was never a, ‘Hey, you’re going to play baseball.’ It was always a, ‘Do what you want, if you want to play, you want to play,’ and of course I did. They really did it right.”

The younger Wainhouse started playing organized baseball when he was around 7 years old, and when he was about 12, his dad became his coach. Even though Dave spent his whole career as a pitcher, he always let his son choose his own position in the game, letting him play first base, third base, and even letting him spend some time behind the plate, where he was taller than some of the kids who were at bat while he was in the crouch. “They’re both really funny people,” assistant coach Donegal Fergus said. “His dad is dry and sarcastic, and Joe’s the same way. They’re sort of like an old married couple when they get together because they’re rolling their eyes at each other all the time. When Joe would catch, his dad would stand behind the screen critiquing and making fun of how big he was. They would bicker and argue and make fun of each other all the time; it was non-stop laughter watching them.”

However, where Joe really excelled was at the plate, and the pair would frequently go hit at the local elementary school, or even in their own backyard.

“We had some property, a big pasture, and we would hit out back behind the house,” Dave recalled. “It was a couple acres, and I would throw batting practice to Joe all the time. We would hit for hours out in the yard, just having him smash balls down into the pasture. Those are some of my favorite memories of all time.”

Joe first caught the attention of scouts when he began playing at Kentridge High School. A four-year letter- winner in baseball, he still holds eight records at the school for home runs (season and career), RBIs, hits, runs, at-bats, walks, and doubles. He also played travel ball with scout teams, going to games and tournaments all across the state.

“We were playing in a tournament at Gonzaga, and their field has some netting that goes pretty high up, somewhere between 60-70 ft around their whole outfield,” Jones, who played summer ball with him, said. “This pitcher threw one pretty inside and almost hit Joe, kind of stared at him so Joe wasn’t too happy about that. The very next pitch, Joe hits one over the net in right field, watched it until it went out and then made sure to stare down the pitcher before he started trotting around the bases. It was one of the coolest things ever.”

After his senior year, Wainhouse was ranked as a top-20 recruit in the state of Washington. He committed to attend Ole Miss, a program that had just reached the semifinals of the College World Series. However, his playing time for the Rebels was extremely limited, and he made just 19 appearances and three starts. He picked up three hits and four walks in 24 at-bats for a .125 average.

“It was a cool spot, but it just wasn’t the right fit completely,” Wainhouse said. “In high school baseball, you’re playing every day and then I went to Ole Miss in the SEC and it’s like, ‘Oh, I’m not playing a lot now,’ and that was a kind of weird. It was a good experience, I just wanted to go somewhere else and find a new path.”

After deciding to transfer part way through his sophomore year, Wainhouse chose to return to the Pacific Northwest. He immediately knew he wanted to come to Washington, but per NCAA transfer rules, he would have had to sit out for a transition year. Instead, the Kent native went to Bellevue College to get regular playing time. +1 “My initial reaction was, ‘there is a Santa Claus,’ since word of Joe transferring here came in mid-December when he left Ole Miss,” Bellevue head coach Mark Yoshino said. “He’s the most intimidating guy with his huge 6’ 6” frame and the look of a guy you don’t want to have road rage against on I-5. But he is a great teammate and one of the nicest guys anyone will ever meet.”

After avoiding the mound for most of his career, Wainhouse began taking an interest in pitching as a senior in high school. A rough year at the plate in the SEC, led many to suspect that his MLB potential was on the mound.

“Joe transferred in with an opportunity to both pitch and hit here,” Yoshino said. “One of his frustrations in college was not being able to do both, which he has the ability to do. He’s one of those guys who I think plays better when he’s involved on both ends.”

At Bellevue, Wainhouse hit .280, and lead the team in home runs (11), RBIs (38), slugging percentage (.561), OPS (.962), and doubles (11) in 48 games played. Though Wainhouse had returned to pursue pitching, an arm injury suffered pre-season limited him to just three appearances and 6.2 innings.

Wainhouse always knew he wanted his next step to be the UW, despite both his parents being ex-Cougars. He already had an established relationship with student manager DJ Lidyard, who coached his summer league team, and Fergus, who had worked with Dave when the two of them helped restart the Seattle University baseball program.

“It was not the normal recruiting process,” Fergus said. “It was sort of late in his year back at Bellevue when he was really hitting well. He was pitching a little at the time too, and throwing really hard, and [the coaching staff] and I talked and we said, ‘Why not?’ It was sort of a conversation between people who already knew each other. It just sort of felt right at the time.”

By complete coincidence, Wainhouse was given No. 44 when he arrived, the same number that his father wore throughout the majority of his MLB career. However, a lat strain suffered early in the season limited him to just four appearances in 2017, all on the hill.

This season though, “Big House,” as he is known to the Huskies, has been a revelation. The big lefty is hitting .293 and leads the team in home runs (6), RBIs (29), total bases (67), and slugging percentage (.429), with all of his starts coming as the designated hitter. While he hasn’t had many opportunities on the mound, Wainhouse has also been a guiding influence in the clubhouse.

“I think he’s just got a calmness about him,” Washington head coach Lindsay Meggs said. “He does a really good job slowing the game down, and that helps our young guys.”

Now that Wainhouse is closer to home, his dad comes up to as many games as he can. He says he loves coming out to the ballpark and watching Joe play, although he admitted that while he completely trusts Joe’s approach at the plate, watching him pitch is terrifying.

“That’s the hardest part for me, watching him pitch, being a pitcher,” Dave said. “When he’s pitching, I get more nerve-wracked because I’ve been through those innings. I’ve been through the little things that can bother you; the dropped ball, the error, you leave a hanger and the guy runs one off the wall, but he’s always been pretty strong. He’s extremely confident in his abilities. He’s very accountable for his actions, and he’ll push through anything. I’ve always been pretty proud of that.”

As the end of the season approaches, all eyes will turn to the draft in early June as Joe continues to pursue his MLB dreams. And like always, he’ll go through the process with his mentor, his coach, his biggest fan: his father.

“There’s a lot that gets tough over the year, it’s a grind,” Joe said. “But when I talk to him about what he got to do, and how lucky he was to play at the highest level, it always keeps me going in the right direction. At the end of the day, that’s where I want to be.”

Reach reporter Andy Yamashita at [email protected]. Twitter: @ANYamashita

In a season of injuries, Levi Jordan steps up

UW Daily – By Andy Yamashita – April 27, 2018

For the last four years, the middle of the diamond at Husky Ballpark has belonged to one man: Levi Jordan. Now a senior, he has been one of the most consistent performers for the Washington baseball team during his time at the UW.

“He’s a plus defender, and he can play any position on the infield,” head coach Lindsay Meggs said. “He understands the nuances of the game. It’s almost like having another coach on the field.”

The Puyallup native made an impact early in his career. As a freshman, he started 43 games and established himself as one of the slickest gloves in the Pac-12, making just two errors for a fielding percentage of .990, the highest amongst middle infielders in the conference. He was also a solid hitter, picking up seven multi-hit games.

Jordan continued to improve over his next two seasons, earning All-Pac-12 honorable mentions in both. As a sophomore, he also lead the team in batting average for the season, hitting .316. His junior year started slowly which hurt his overall statistics, but he hit .500 in May before being sidelined for the last two series with a hamstring injury.

“Sometimes, we all make the game more complicated than it needs to be,” Jordan said. “I’m guilty of that too, where sometimes I think everything needs to be set by specific rules or it needs to be done a certain way, but it’s not. It’s a game and we’re all just kids playing it and having fun out here.”

However, this season has seen Jordan truly take over as the leader and the anchor on both sides of the game. In a team that has been riddled with injuries, No. 26 in purple has held the group together.

“He’s the guy most people go to to find out what to expect as a new player in this team and in this conference,” Meggs said. “He’s seen a lot of things, been through a lot, and he’s played at every ballpark in this conference, so if you have a question about the speed of the game, how to get through a tough moment on or off the field, that’s the guy to go to.”

Jordan started the year playing second base, but when junior shortstop AJ Graffanino went down with a hamstring injury, Coach Meggs chose to trust his senior to take over the job. Jordan has now started 20 games at shortstop after starting the first 142 in his career at second.

In the meantime, the injuries to Graffanino, juniors Willie MacIver and Mason Cerrillo, sophomore Ben Baird, and freshman Jordan Schiffer have meant that the infield has been chopped and changed all season. Against Oregon, center fielder Braiden Ward even came in and played some second base. This is especially challenging for a shortstop, who must lead the infield and know all the players tendencies and abilities, and Jordan hasn’t been without his own health problems either. After returning from a home run trot against Illinois State, he twisted his ankle walking into the dugout. Knowing that the team couldn’t afford more injuries, he only sat out one game, returning even though his ankle wasn’t completely recovered.

“I’ve learned there’s a lot of tough, defining moments in baseball,” Jordan said. “When things aren’t going your way, it’s hard to swallow your pride and just learn from your mistakes instead of just drowning in your sorrows. I think baseball teaches you a lot about life too. If you’re tough enough to handle the situations in baseball then later in life, when you’re in a difficult environment, the things you learned about being tough and grinding through can translate and help you out there too.”

Despite taking on the challenge of added defensive responsibilities, Jordan has improved at the plate as well. After starting the season hitting in the lower part of the order, Meggs decided to switch things up, moving the contact hitting Cerrillo to the leadoff position, putting the speedy Ward in the nine-hole, and bumping Jordan up to the two-spot. Since then, the senior has exploded with productivity. While his average is down due to a hitless streak after his return from injury, he is second on the team in RBIs (21) and steals (6) and is third in doubles (8) and slugging percentage (.402).

The biggest jump in his stats has been his power. After hitting just two home runs in his first three seasons, Jordan is sitting second with four on the team.

“Sometimes you get into counts where you know a fastball is coming,” Jordan said. “I know I’m capable of doing the damage that you’ve seen this year, so when I get into those type of counts, it’s fun for me to try and do a lot with the baseball. Sometimes that can be a problem, but when you’re on time and you hit the ball over the fence, it’s a great feeling.”

And as the Huskies get ready to take on the Cougars (13-21, 5-10 Pac-12) the homegrown Washingtonian can’t wait to get on the field.

“It’s exciting every time I get a chance to play Washington State,” Jordan said. “It’s a great rivalry. The state really embraces it, the fans in this area really like it too so one last ride with these guys, to get to play the Cougars is going to be very fun and I’m looking forward to it.”

Reach reporter Andy Yamashita at [email protected]. Twitter: @ANYamashita

TBT: Former ALL-USA pitcher Joe DeMers having standout season at Washington USA TODAY – By Jim Halley – April 26, 2018

Most of his perfect game is a vague memory to Joe DeMers, but not his 84th pitch.

DeMers, a junior right-hander, was on the mound for the University of Washington in his second start of the year on Feb. 24, facing UC Riverside hitter Anthony LePre for the final out.

“I was hoping to just have a quick at-bat,” DeMers said. “I threw a first pitch slider and he popped it up to right.”

DeMers was a 2015 first-team American Family Insurance ALL-USA pitcher his senior year at College Park (Pleasant Hill, Calif.), in the East Bay area. That year, he led the Falcons to a North Coast Section championship, going 13-1 with a 0.51 ERA and three no-hitters through 96 innings pitched and hitting .447 with 44 RBI and six homers through 110 at-bats.

He wasn’t drafted that June, but he had told pro baseball scouts that he intended on following through on his commitment to Washington.

“I was shocked to be honest with you,” Washington baseball coach Lindsay Meggs said. “The draft is funny that way. He told the scouting committee that he was adamant about coming to school. We were very excited about that, but many teams will still spend a pick on somebody like that.”

His freshman year, DeMers went 3-5 with a 6.91 ERA.

“There were a couple of things that factored into that,” Meggs said. “Joe had logged so many innings by the time he got here, I think he had a little bit of a dead arm. Then there was the fact hat he was so reliant on his fastball before he got here. He was a power arm with reasonable command. That’s why he was so successful. But he had lost a little (velocity) and he got knocked around.”

Somewhere during that season, he became more of a pitcher than a thrower. Last year, he was 6-3 with a 3.35 ERA. This season, he’s 3-2 with a 1.95 ERA and has struck out 53 batters in 64.2 innings with only 11 walks and no errors and has been named to USA Baseball’s Midseason Golden Spikes Watch List.

“(Freshman) year has taught me a lot,” DeMers said. “I had never failed on the ball field up until then. It taught me how to compete and get better every day. When I first got here, I tried to overpower hitters, but now I try to mess with their minds. The main thing was competing at a whole new level. (Pitching coach Jason Kelly) has taught me a lot, everything from pitch selection to deception.”

DeMers has a mid-90s fastball and he’s consistently been able to throw his off-speed pitches for strikes. “He’s got a four-seamer (fastball) that averages 91 to 94 (mph),” Meggs said. “Plus, he’s got a sinker that runs 89 to 91 that people pound into the ground. He knows how to pitch backward in that he never gives in, even on leveraged counts (when’s he’s behind in the count). The hitters never get a ball that looks like a mistake.”

Most of his starts this season have been on Saturdays, the middle of the Huskies’ typical three- game series against Pac-12 opponents.

“We use him on Saturdays because it’s the swing game,” Meggs said. “If you win on Friday and then on Saturday, you win the series. If you lose on Friday and win on Saturday, you can’t be swept. For us, I like the way our team performs when he’s on the field. Our guys feel like he’s going to win, even if he doesn’t have his best stuff.”

DeMers is listed as 6-2 and 230 pounds. He may be closer to 6-foot and 230, and while he may not look like an elite athlete, he was a starter for a couple of seasons on College Park’s basketball team.

“You’re going to look at him and not see the 6-5, 225-pound frame that most people want to see,” Meggs said. “There’s the temptation to tighten him up physically, but if he stays with what got him here, he’ll get outs at any level.”

He’ll be eligible for this year’s major league draft, but that’s not what DeMers is focused on, he said.

“I’ve loved my time here at Washington,” he said. “I recommend it to all high school guys. It’s been a blast playing great competition, making great friends and memories that will last forever.”

Nick Kahle: The last of an old breed The UW Daily – By Andy Yamashita – April 19, 2018

As the game of baseball continues to evolve, sophomore Nick Kahle is one amongst a dying breed. His position, catcher, is one of the most stressful positions on the mind and body, and most teams carry at least two quality backstops on the roster to split the innings and share the pressure. Since Willie MacIver’s hand injury though, the Washington baseball team has had to make do with one.

“There is an innate toughness to play that position,” head coach Lindsay Meggs said. “With all the challenges we’ve had keeping people healthy, he’s never once said to me, ‘I need a rest,’ or ‘Can someone else finish the game.’ He wants to be back there in practice, he wants to be back there in the games, and a lot of people think they love this game until they get thrown into a situation like that, but Nick Kahle truly loves the game.”

This season, the Southern Californian has caught 94.8 percent of the 291 innings Washington has played.

“My knees feel good,” Kahle said. “I’m getting my treatment done, doing whatever I can to have the body feel decent and playable. I just love being out there and playing the game, tiredness isn’t really a factor. I just want to go out there, play, and win.”

Kahle is also the only Husky to have started all 32 games, 30 of which have come from behind the plate. The two exceptions were second legs of doubleheaders, in which he started in left field before coming in to catch later in the game.

“Obviously because of the injuries we’ve suffered, we’ve had to lean on him probably more than we should,” Meggs said. “At the same time, he was the guy last year who I’m sure wished he would have caught more. I think it’s been both good for him and tough for him. It’s kind of worn him down a little bit like it would for anybody, but I think he’s gotten a quick education as to what he has to do to prepare each week. We definitely appreciate his consistency, and I admire his durability.”

The most impressive example of his stamina came last Sunday against Oregon in the doubleheader last weekend. He caught all 13 innings of Game 1 in a tough 6-4 loss. Then, to everyone’s surprise, he was behind the plate in Game 2 to catch all 22 innings on the day. He was no slouch at the plate that day either, going a combined 5-for-10 in both games with a double and an RBI over both games.

Indeed, Kahle is as important to the team for his batting as his stamina. The sophomore is hitting .288 with 36 hits and 13 RBIs, while establishing himself as a key part of the heart of the lineup. He has hit a team-leading 12 doubles, which puts him tied for fourth in the Pac-12 and just two behind the conference leader, DaShawn Keirsey Jr. of Utah.

Kahle is third on the UW in batting average, runs scored (15), RBIs, and total bases (48), second in walks (11), and is the joint leader on the team in hits. All this comes after a rather rough start to the season when he was hitting sub-.200.

“I didn’t feel like I was having bad at-bats at the beginning of the year,” Kahle said. “It felt like I was hitting balls hard, they were just going right at people. It’s definitely nice to see some of them fall, and just sticking with my approach has helped me stay successful.”

Defensively, he isn’t too bad either. Washington’s No. 16 made just two errors on 263 total chances for a fielding percentage of .992. Kahle has also thrown out seven runners attempting to steal on him, good for seventh in the Pac-12.

A year makes all the difference for Jordan Jones The UW Daily – By Andy Yamashita – April 11, 2018

As junior Joe DeMers and redshirt freshman Lucas Knowles continue to generate hype, one pitcher has flown under the radar.

With DeMers missing time this year due to an injury and Knowles only recently breaking onto the scene, the most consistent starter for Washington has actually been sophomore Jordan Jones. The Huskies’ No. 19 almost exemplifies his role as the third starter because while Friday and Saturday have the glitz and glamour like DeMers and Knowles, Sunday is about getting the job done.

“It’s just nice to have that consistent anchor in that Sunday role,” head coach Lindsay Meggs said. “Somebody who’s not going to be caught up in the drama of one-game apiece heading into Sunday which a lot of time is what you’re looking at in this conference. He’s almost a flatliner in terms of his heart rate doesn’t get too high. He just helps us stay consistent and plays the game one pitch at a time.”

The Kent native has been as reliable as any other pitcher on the staff, but upon entering the season, Jones seemed the most in danger of losing his starting spot after an up-and-down freshman year.

Last year, Jones went 5-8 with a 4.42 ERA in 18 appearances. He started 10 of the games he played in and pitched 77.1 innings, good enough for third on the team behind DeMers and the now-graduated Noah Bremer. He also struck out 47 in the season against 25 walks, but led the team in hit batters (9) and gave up more earned runs (37) than did either DeMers or Bremer, despite pitching more than 20 less innings. Additionally, opponents hit .290 against him, which is not a great return for a prospective Pac-12 starter.

His freshman year did have some good though. Jones only allowed two runs or fewer in 11 of his appearances and went at least six innings in five of his first nine starts. He was also voted Newcomer of the Year by the team.

This year, Jones is a different player.

“I think he’s in better shape,” Meggs said. “I think he’s stronger. I think he knew coming into this year what to expect. That year of experience is really valuable for guys, especially on the mound.”

Currently sitting at 3-3 with a 3.51 ERA, Jones has improved in almost every aspect of his game. With his team leading eight starts, he has already pitched 48.2 innings and has 36 strikeouts, good enough for second on the team in both categories. He has also only given up six walks all season, which is good enough for third on the team, behind two bullpen guys who haven’t thrown nearly half the innings that he has. The biggest improvement in his statistics though, has to be in opponents’ batting average, in which he is holding opposing hitters to just .237 against him. Jones also threw the first complete game of his career in a dominant win against Illinois State, where he recorded 11 K’s, no walks, and gave up just two unearned runs on four hits. A large part of his comeback has been the addition of another weapon to his arsenal.

“I’ve got a new pitch, a cutter,” Jones said. “That’s really helped me when I’m behind in the count or just really need to get ahead. It’s a pitch that not many people have seen from me or even really knew I had.” Jones is also embracing a more aggressive attitude on the mound.

“I’m way more confident,” he said. “I go in pretty much having the mindset that they’re not going to beat me every time. It’s hard enough to get a hit in baseball and you fail the majority of the time, so if I take that mindset and have that attack mentality, I should be good.”

In their games against Oregon this weekend, Washington will want Jones to continue pitching the way he has. The Huskies (14-14, 6-3 Pac-12) are tied for second with No. 2 Stanford and behind No. 17 UCLA. The Ducks (18-12, 5-7 Pac-12) are similar to the Huskies. They are built around their pitching, don’t hit for power, and are struggling in the field. Jones and the pitching staff should be licking their lips looking at this matchup. First pitch times for all three games during the weekend are undetermined due to weather.

He pitches, he golfs, he hoops: Lucas Knowles does everything The UW Daily – By Andy Yamashita – Apr. 5, 2018

Seven years ago, a 17-year-old won the 2011 U.S. Junior Amateur at Gold Mountain Golf Club in Bremerton. That kid is Jordan Spieth, and on Thursday, he will tee off at the Masters. At some point during that tournament, he played a young caddie in his pool in a game of ping pong.

That caddie was none other than the Washington baseball team’s own Lucas Knowles.

It has been a challenging stretch for the lefty pitcher. After tearing the UCL in his arm at the state championships during his junior year of high school, the Bremerton native missed almost two years on the diamond, as well as ending his basketball and golf recruiting.

However, after redshirting his freshman year, Knowles is back and has locked down a spot in the starting rotation.

“It’s just been nice to get back on the field and have fun with all my teammates,” he said. “It’s really hard to come back from an injury like that, not just the physical side, but the mental too. Once I got through that barrier though, it was just playing a game.”

Knowles’ versatility is as much a strength as his circle changeup. The Huskies’ No. 29 started out as the team’s lefty specialist and cleanup man before transitioning to become the long reliever. When junior ace Joe DeMers went down the Dawgs needed a pitcher to step up, and Knowles just kept doing what he does best, adapting and taking advantage of his opportunities.

“It’s a luxury for us to have a guy that can do so many things,” head coach Lindsay Meggs said. “We haven’t had a lefty like Lucas in a couple of years who can flip [batters] around, spin some balls and show other teams something different.”

Knowles isn’t just an adaptable pitcher, but an adaptable athlete. Growing up, he played basketball, and can still dunk. He is also a scratch golfer when he wants to be and can hit a ball 350 yards off a tee. The lefty feels like all his athletic experiences have made him into the baseball player he is today.

“Growing up, my favorite sport was basketball, and when I need an out, I just think that it’s like playing 1-on-1 with my brother,” Knowles said. “That’s what I go to when everything’s on the line, the only difference is the size of the ball.”

Golf has also done a lot for his game, especially when it comes to starting pitching.

“To start, you have to stay focused for an extended period of time, and golf is a game that really tests that. Also, the repetition of doing the same motion every time, if you can’t do that in golf, then you’re not going to be very good and the same goes for pitching. You have to find the right balance position and deliver every single time.” In his first Pac-12 start, against Arizona, Knowles pitched a gem. He threw 7.2 innings of shutout baseball, giving up just three hits and two walks while striking out four on a career-high 101 pitches. However, he was denied his first conference win as the Huskies walked the game off after he had already left.

His second start, Friday night against No. 1 Oregon State, didn’t go as well, but Meggs kept faith in him and started him again against USC, even though DeMers was available. Once again, Knowles repaid his manager by keeping the Trojans off the board for six innings while surrendering just four hits and striking out five.

Unfortunately for him, the Huskies were once again unable to get the lefty his first Pac-12 win as they lost the game 1-0 after the bullpen gave up a home run.

The Huskies will need Knowles and the rest of the staff in top gear when they take on No. 11 East Carolina this week at Husky Ballpark. The Pirates (21-6, 4-2 AAC) have won five of their past seven and scored 174 runs this season, hitting .280 as a team. They also have 22 home runs.

Due to weather, times for the series against ECU are undetermined, as well as the game times for the two-game set against Gonzaga on Tuesday and Wednesday. In the event of a rainout, you may not want to challenge Knowles to a game of ping pong. Just ask Jordan Spieth.

Reach reporter Andy Yamashita at [email protected]. Twitter: @ANYamashita

His name is Joe DeMers. But you can call him Mr. Perfect ... Game Tacoma News Tribune – By Ryan S. Clark – Feb. 26, 2018

SEATTLE - As a child, he threw a perfect season. In high school, he threw a perfect game sandwiched between no-hitters. Maybe it was only a matter of time before Joe DeMers threw a perfect game in college.

The Washington junior ace pitcher became the first player in school history to throw a perfect game. He did it Saturday in an 8-0 win over California-Riverside at Husky Ballpark. Demers became only the fifth Pac-12 pitcher and the 27th since 1959 to pull off such an accomplishment. It’s actually the earliest recorded perfect game in NCAA history.

His life and playing career are not defined by a single moment. Coming out of high school, he could have gone high in the draft and into a MLB team’s farm system. DeMers, the son of a UW graduate, chose college instead. Getting an education goes beyond having a fallback plan in case a professional career doesn’t work out. He chose to major in sociology to have a better understanding of the world. From that, he was inspired to pursue a minor in African-American studies because he said he seeks to have a better understanding of equality and what can be done to achieve it.

“I really just play baseball, hang with friends, workout. I don’t have much down time really,” DeMers said. “It’s baseball, school and hanging with friends. I play video games for sure.”

Huskies junior catcher/third baseman Willie MacIver, who has known DeMers since they were eight, joked his best friend is perfect at a lot of things. Video games is not one of them.

MacIver claims he has the upper hand in Madden and MLB The Show. But he did admit DeMers is better at NBA 2K.

“Oh really?,” DeMers asked with a big grin. “He’s lying. I’m better than him at 2K and The Show. He has me in Madden and that’s pretty much it.”

They can debate who’s the better gamer, but MacIver does not mess around when telling the larger-than-life backstory about the teammate he considers “a brother.”

MacIver said DeMers was bigger than everyone else. MacIver’s dad coached their Little League team and said DeMers was so big, that he had to wear his dad’s t-shirt because they couldn’t get a big enough jersey.

Even though DeMers was big, MacIver said he was so athletic and fast that he dominated every sport he played.

DeMers was also goofy. MacIver said when they were kids, DeMers’ brother, who they still refer to as “Big Jack”, poured a bowl of Frosted Flakes and didn’t like what followed.

“Joe walks into the kitchen, opens the fridge and chugs the rest of the milk. No more milk.” MacIver recalled. “Big Jack had a bowl of empty Frosted Flakes and he just lost it. Just beating him until he started crying on the floor. Me and my other buddy are sitting on the couch just laughing. Joe’s crying and Jack’s just pissed. It was a really funny story of just some classic brotherly love going on there.”

MacIver is good for more than telling a funny story. He said DeMers started getting noticed when he threw a perfect season when they were kids.

DeMers said he didn’t give up a hit until they were in the playoffs. But by that point, he started carrying his birth certificate because opposing parents asked if he really was the same age as their children. College coaches started noticing DeMers when he was a freshman at College Park (Calif.) High. From there, he would represent Team USA Baseball and won three gold medals at different youth tournaments in Nicaragua, Mexico and Taiwan.

His senior year was his strongest campaign. Aside from the no-hitter and two perfect games, he gobbled up nearly every award in sight. He was the California Gatorade Player of the Year, the Perfect Game Pitcher of the Year and First Team All-American and was named the Max Preps National Player of the Year.

“Joe was a huge commit for us. I think he had offers from every Pac-12 school,” Huskies pitching coach Jason Kelly said. “He was a Top 10 national recruit and had just tons of experience with Team USA. Him committing to us was a huge, huge get for us.”

DeMers said with his mother being a UW graduate, he grew up a massive Huskies fan. He wore UW clothes and hats as a child. So the idea of coming to Montlake was never out of the question.

Like Kelly said, getting DeMers was a boost for the program. DeMers, by his senior year, was throwing 95 mph and was projected to go in the second round. He let MLB teams know early he wanted to play college baseball, which is why he went undrafted.

D1Baseball.com recently wrote DeMers is the No. 43 collegiate prospect for the MLB Draft in June. Most college pitchers have two pitches. Three if they’re lucky.

Kelly said DeMers can throw a four-seam fastball, a two-seam fastball, a slider and a change-up. He said DeMers has a curveball but it’s rarely used.

“That’s why he was so successful (in the perfect game),” Kelly said. “Because he can do anything he wanted on any count. There was no pattern with what he was doing.”

Kelly recalled how DeMers needed time to adjust to the college game. He was 3-5 with a 6.91 earned run average as a freshman. The following year he was 6-3 with a 3.35 ERA.

DeMers, through two starts this season, is 1-0 with 16 strikeouts and three walks. He’s allowed three hits over 15.0 innings.

“His freshman year was not as successful as he wanted it to be,” Kelly said. “He gave up a lot of hits and the game is just different. As you would expect, it was a step above.”

Kelly said DeMers took ownership midway through his freshman year when it came to developing his pitches. He said DeMers approached him, wanting to know more about what he could do to be better.

Trying to get a greater understanding is an approach DeMers takes beyond baseball.

DeMers said he became a sociology major because he’s interested with what’s going on in the world. He said studying sociology has helped him “become a better human” when it comes to how he interacts with everyone he meets. He’s also minoring in African-American studies.

“I didn’t know how two-sided it was. How different it was for whites and blacks,” he said. “It’s given me a different perspective on the world, America and I just want to keep learning. I think I learn something new every day in those classes.” Beyond baseball: Pitcher Alex Hardy is guided by faith

UW Daily – By Alexis Mansanarez – April 27, 2017

Alex Hardy walked out to “Ships In The Night” numerous times during the 20-game season of his junior year in high school. One of the next times he would hear the popular 2011 track by Mat Kearney was on the operating table, where he was about to undergo the first surgery of his baseball career.

The Puyallup native attended Emerald Ridge High School, where he played three seasons for the Jaguars. There would have been a fourth, but after he tore his UCL he spent his time with one of the nation’s best surgeons instead of on the mound.

Hardy’s first of two season-ending injuries happened just over 30 miles from his hometown at Bannerwood Park in Bellevue. Coincidentally, that is the same ballpark where he would record his first collegiate start this season.

But before he could accomplish that feat, like “Ships In The Night” Hardy had to find a way down a road he didn’t know, and it started when he was wheeled into the operation room of Dr. James Andrews.

“We flew down to Pensacola, Fla., I got my surgery done by [the] leading orthopedic surgeon in the country, and that alone was a sign to me and my faith that, ‘Hey, this is all happening for a reason, you’re going to be okay,’” Hardy said. “I’m getting ready to go in the operating room. They roll me in, they’re about to put me to sleep … I’m almost in tears freaking out because it’s my first surgery. I don’t know what’s going to happen, and I kid you not in the hospital in that operating room “Ships In The Night” was playing. I still get chills talking about it.”

These signs are a testament to Hardy’s faith, something that has grown through his own adversity and that is rooted deeply in his personal life, and his life as a student-athlete.

You might not notice on first glance, but Hardy keeps reminders of his faith on him at all times. The first is a tattoo that runs along the scar on the inside of his arm from the Tommy John surgery. It reads “Psalms 18:32.”

The second is that same bible verse, this time written in black sharpie on the inside of his baseball cap. The sweat stain that extends to the brim of it smears the first two lines, but by now Hardy has it memorized. It reads: “It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect.”

“When I read that it stuck out to me just because of some of the things I have had to go through,” Hardy said. “Having that Bible verse to look at every time I take the mound gives me more of a relaxed and calm feeling — knowing that I’m okay and that everything happens for a reason, and that everything I have gone through has shaped me into who I am today.”

Hardy has always been a man of faith. Born into a Christian home, he routinely attended church services with his family, where his love and relationship with Christ only deepened.

While seemingly insignificant to some, signs like “Ships In The Night” playing as he was about to undergo surgery, or the career saving revelation during his second surgery with Dr. Andrews, have been reminders to Hardy that there is a greater power paving his way. The pitcher rehabbed back from Tommy John after sitting out his senior year of high school, which by no means was that of an average prospective graduate. In fact, he hadn’t stepped into a high school classroom since the end of his sophomore year.

Hardy took advantage of the Running Start program, only offered in Washington and Hawaii, which allows students to spend their junior and senior years of high school enrolled at a nearby community college. He took classes at the Puyallup campus of Pierce College, earning his associate of arts degree while simultaneously completing high school. When it was all said and done, Hardy already had 90 college credits on his transcript before taking a single class at the UW.

“I just wanted a head start on school, I didn’t really care for the high school scene and the cliques that went on,” he said. “I was focused on baseball and focused on getting my degree at the same time, so I didn’t really experience being a high school kid, but I don’t regret it.”

In his freshman year, he was ready to take the mound again, but this time in purple and gold. Hardy already had one appearance under his belt in a game against Michigan on February 16. After throwing 2.2 innings of relief six days earlier, Hardy was returning to the rubber, but this time to face Nebraska in the second-to-last game of the Big Ten versus Pac-12 tournament.

In his second outing after 0.2 innings pitched, fate intervened.

The Hardy family would once again travel south to see Dr. Andrews for what initially was thought to be a labral tear. When this rubbery tissue attached to the rim of the shoulder socket tears, it’s career ending.

The labrum is a piece of fibrocartilage that helps keep the ball of the joint in place, so Hardy had to prepare to put his glove down. However, there was a different plan in store for him.

In the middle of surgery, Dr. Andrews was forced to leave the operating room to ask Hardy’s parents if he could cut into the bicep tendon instead. Despite what the MRI had previously showed, Dr. Andrews stated the labrum was intact but that he discovered the bicep tendon was 75-percent torn.

This discovery saved Hardy’s career.

“It’s not something that just happens,” Hardy said. “That’s a sign for me that I’m going to be okay and that I’m in God’s hands.”

Hardy has certainly been tested over the years, not just in his sport but also in his relationship to Christ. Recovering from back-to-back injuries is never easy on anyone, but Hardy found solace away from home in a group of guys he would call teammates.

“My freshman year I had a Bible study group of about 15 guys,” Hardy said. “A lot of them were upperclassmen so it was good to have those type of guys to look up to, hang out with, share the same type of faith and talk about Jesus, and talk about things that we go through on a day-to-day basis.”

However, during any temptation faced entering college or any physical setback throughout his career, Hardy has not only had his family to rely on, but also a small group within the team that play and pray together. Now, as an upperclassman, he has stepped into the role he relied on three years ago.

“There is a good group of us,” he said. “It’s good to have that type of group, and when we pray we pray as a group and one person prays. If we win, that person continues to pray, but if we lose then the next person prays.” Through the ebbs and flows of Washington’s season, the prayers have jumped around the circle. The Huskies sit at 22-16 and 8-7 in the Pac-12 with a winning percentage of .579. While the offense has seen a payoff from having a handful of reliable batters, the defense’s foundation rests on an exclusive pitching cast with Hardy at the helm.

He currently holds the best record in the bullpen, sitting at a perfect 5-0 on the season. With the third most appearances (15) on the team, his ERA stands at 3.66 after 19.2 innings pitched.

Looking to the latter part of the season, the Huskies have surely had their shining moments, and for Hardy that’s just another sign of what’s to come.

“I think we have a lot of potential, I think we are learning how to win,” he said. “We are learning how to play with one another, and I think that at the beginning of the year we knew how talented we were, it was just a matter of using those pieces and playing as a group rather than playing for individual achievements.”

After all the of the trials and barriers placed in front of him, Hardy never lost sight of the end goal: to be healthy on the mound. Even after having to redshirt his freshman year to rehab back, his faith never faltered.

“I could have called it quits and moved on with my life but I was going to go through the round of rehab again, and I wanted to do that because I don’t want to look back one day and have any regrets,” Hardy said. “Since then I am now healed. I’ve got seven scars on my arm but I’m healed and playing the game I love again.”