Last night, Trevor Bauer pitched just like the Trevor Bauer we've gotten used to seeing. Simply dominating. The junior struck out 17 in his third consecutive complete game performance as the Bruins picked up a big 4-1 win over Stanford. Now, the series is locked up at a game apiece, setting the stage for today's rubber game up in Palo Alto.

With UCLA needing to get past Stanford if they want to make a run at hosting a Regional, taking this series is key. From a resume standpoint in general, getting a road series win against a RPI top 25 team is huge. More than anything, Oregon St. is on fire and trying their best to run away with the Pac-10 so the Bruins need wins to keep pace with the Beavers in the race for the conference title.

To get today's game, UCLA will turn to Adam Plutko. The stellar freshman is only 2-3  on the year, but it's not because he hasn't pitched well. He has a 1.87 ERA and his issues have come with run support, defense and bullpen. Dean McArdle was supposed to start for Stanford today, but instead they are going with the senior, Danny Sandbrink, who is 2-0 with a 2.49 ERA.

If you're looking to follow along, GameTracker will have it and you can get all the in-game updates, along with links and other information, especially weather and schedule updates, on my UCLA baseball twitter. John Ramey is up in Palo Alto this weekend and giving you the play by play online. This is your rubber match open thread so if you're following along, share your updates, thoughts and whatever else.