Stanford Baseball's Postseason Hopes in Trouble After Losing Notre Dame Series

Notre Dame has outscored Stanford baseball 16-9 in the first two games of the series, leaving their season hanging by a thread

Teddy Tokheim, Stanford | Sean Riordan/ISI Photos

Stanford baseball entered this weekend's series on a six-game win streak, but with long odds of making the postseason. Dropping the first two games against Notre Dame in South Bend makes that push significantly harder. The Cardinal are now facing an uphill battle to even have a shot at being considered for an at-large bid.

They entered the weekend needing to go 6-3 in ACC play the rest of the way, while also winning their remaining midweek games. Stanford basically needs to win out in order to even have a shot of making the tournament.

Here is the good and the bad for Stanford moving forward.

Rankings doing Stanford no favors

Mar 1, 2025; Stanford, CA, USA; Stanford Cardinal first baseman Rintaro Sasaki (3) flips a baseball into the air during the seventh inning against the Xavier Musketeers at Sunken Diamond. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

In the most recent RPI rankings, the Cardinal are all the way down at No. 95 as of April 29, and only 64 teams make the NCAA tournament. That leaves a decent bit of space for Stanford to make up in the span of the next two weeks.

The good news is that their midweek games are against San Francisco, ranked No. 253, and Saint Mary's, ranked No. 115, which will hopefully provide a pair of victories for the Cardinal. Then again, those are expected wins.

The tougher tests will begin on Sunday against Notre Dame, where they simply cannot afford to get swept. While losing the first two isn't ideal, it's not enough to kill their season — yet.

Upcoming challenges will ultimately determine Stanford's season

Teddy Tokheim of Stanford celebrates | Maddie Hinkley/ISI Photos

After a midweek game against San Francisco on Wednesday, May 6 at home, the Cardinal will play host to the NC State Wolfpack from Friday, May 8 to Sunday, May 10. As of right now, NC State is ranked No. 42.

For comparison, Notre Dame is ranked No. 75, and they have been giving Stanford a tough time, outscoring them 16-9 in the first two games of the series.

Then again, Stanford swept Florida State just last weekend, and they're now ranked No. 13. In baseball, expectations and outcomes rarely match. Perhaps Stanford has one more run in them.

The Cardinal's season will wrap up at Cal against the Golden Bears, in what could be a make-or-break series for both programs. Cal is currently ranked as the No. 65 team according to RPI, which would put them right on the cusp of either making it, or being left in the cold.

If Stanford goes on a run and ends up sweeping Cal on the road, that could effectively push the Cardinal into the postseason hunt, while knocking the Golden Bears out.

There are still a couple of weeks left in the season before the 64-team field is officially announced on Monday, May 25 at 9 a.m. PT on ESPN2. The hope for Stanford is that they will have built enough of a resume by then to make the cut.