Texas jumped all over Stanford starter Nolan Gallagher in the top of the first. After a leadoff fly out, Texas loaded the bases on three consecutive singles, then Carson Kainer cleared them with a double down the line past third base, and the huge crowd erupted. On the play, I saw an umpire have a brain-lock that gave me deja vu.

In last week’s Big 12 Tournament game between Missouri and Oklahoma State, an umpire inadvertently pointed to foul territory on an obviously fair chopper behind first base. The pitcher was slow to cover first and the runner beat the first baseman to the bag for an infield hit. OSU coach Frank Anderson went berserk.

The same play (different umpire) happened on the other side of the diamond on Kainer’s hit. The line drive obviously landed fair behind third, but the third base umpire pointed towards foul territory. The play continued, and I didn’t see any players even hesitate. Stanford coach Mark Marquess came out of the dugout and argued heatedly, though unsuccessfully.

Stanford took the lead in the bottom of the second, setting the table with three straight singles to load the bases with none out. Catcher John Hester cleared them with a grand slam to left, only his second homer of the season.

I've filled up on turkey sandwiches, potato chips, and cole slaw, so I'm in a great mood, although I am getting sick of hearing them play Chicago's "Saturday in the Park."

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Shortstop Chris Minaker is Stanford’s best player, leading the team in every Triple Crown stat -- .349 BA, 11 HR, 65 RBI. He’s the Cardinal’s most durable player, having played every inning of every game the past two years. He’s the most improved player –he got 12 at-bats his freshman year, started 43 games his sophomore year and batted .270 with three homers, raised his average to .291 as a junior, then really put it all together this season. With a 3.75 GPA and pursuing a graduate degree in Sociology, he might also be the team’s smartest player. He’s undoubtedly the most interesting to interview.

One of the memorable scenes in “Bull Durham” is when Crash takes Nuke aside and says, “You’ve got to learn your clichés.” Minaker hasn’t learned his clichés yet.

In yesterday’s post-game interview, Minaker talked like no athlete I’ve ever heard – he spoke intelligently and earnestly, and most surprisingly, completely cliché-free. Instead of telling robotically telling us that he just wanted to give 110% and take it one game at a time, he spoke in long sentences sprinkled with big words, frequently cocking his head and squinting his eyes in thought. It was amazing to see. I have a new favorite player.