Dawgs host 'Cats in three-game Pac-10 series

The Washington baseball team (28-15 overall, 6-6 Pac-10) hosts three games this weekend against Arizona (8-20, 5-7), and although the media throngs visiting tonight might confuse people, all three of them count.

The Dawgs merit extra media attention tonight because junior Tim Lincecum takes the mound. He enters the contest with a 9-2 record, a 1.59 ERA and 140 strikeouts -- the most in the nation. In his four Pac-10 starts, the righty is 4-0 and has allowed just two runs in 32 innings.

Following Lincecum on either Saturday or Sunday will be newly converted starter a sophomore Elliott Cribby. Cribby, who had been the team's closer and recorded eight saves, won a pair of starts last week and is looking to continue successfully in his new role. Cribby has yet to allow a home run this season.

Joining Lincecum and Cribby in the rotation will be either freshman Tyler Cheney or junior Kyle Parker. Both have bounced in and out of the rotation this season. Coach Ken Knutson said a decision would be made when the time came, and that they would decide when to start Cribby based on that decision.

"I feel very confident that we can win whenever Tim and Elliott are out there," Knutson said. "We just need to hit behind them."

Hitting behind them will be the most powerful offense in the conference. As a team, Washington has 67 deep flies, more than three times Arizona's combined total. Husky senior outfielder Zach Clem's 19 homers are just one short of the Wildcats' 20. Clem is batting .311 and also has 45 RBIs. He is three homers short of Washington's single-season record, and two of the career milestone.

Around him, the Husky offense has performed solidly as of late.

"We need to play well," Knutson said. "We played awfully well this past weekend outside of just two innings."

Historically, Washington has played just average baseball against Arizona. So average, in fact, that the two schools have split their past 22 contests. The Huskies last hosted the Wildcats in 2004 and swept the College World Series-bound squad.

The Huskies' are halfway through the conference schedule, and at .500, Washington is in the middle of the pack. Arizona presents a winnable series at home that can get the UW on the right foot for next weekend when it visits conference rival Oregon State, consistently a top-10 team this season.