The WSU baseball team starts a three-game weekend series against the University of Washington today in Pullman.

The weekend series will feature two opposite teams. The Cougars (16-18, 2-10) have a high-powered offense but struggle to prevent runs on defense. The Huskies (20-14, 7-5), on the other hand, have one of the best pitching staffs in the conference but often fail to produce runs.

The Huskies are now fourth in the Pac-12 after dropping two of three games to No.1 Oregon State.

Husky Head Coach Lindsay Meggs employs an abnormal pitching philosophy. He typically starts the game with a reliever for a few innings before bringing in the true starting pitcher later to attempt to finish out the game.

So far it has worked for UW, as they rank second in the conference in runs allowed with 118.

Washington’s defense has contributed in a major way to their success preventing runs, with a conference best 19 errors committed.

Though the Huskies are solid defensively, they often struggle to put up runs. The Huskies currently rank last in the conference with 165 runs scored and their .346 on-base percentage is third to last.

WSU Head Coach Marty Lees said that even though the Huskies may not have great numbers offensively, they are an efficient team that does not give away outs.

The Cougars beat Seattle University on Wednesday in Pullman 9-4 but have struggled as of late, losing 10 of their last 12 contests. At (2-10) in the Pac-12, the Cougars are last in the conference.

The team held a meeting earlier this week to discuss improvements. Lees said the coaching staff needs to remain positive, and the team needs to play more consistently.

“I feel like we have underachieved,” Lees said. “I feel like we’re a better team than what our record shows.”

The Cougars are one of the best offensive teams in the Pac-12. Their 190 runs and .377 on-base percentage both rank second in the conference.

However, WSU has struggled defensively. The Cougars’ 213 runs allowed are third most and the team’s 45 errors are the second most in the Pac-12.

Redshirt junior left-hander Damon Jones takes the mound tonight, returning to his role as the pitching staff anchor after coming out of the bullpen the last two weeks. Jones has struggled lately but held Arizona State to three and two-thirds scoreless innings last week.

Lees said he removed Jones from the starting rotation to mix things up but planned for Jones to continue getting big innings throughout the season.

Junior left-hander Cody Anderson is set to take the mound on Saturday. Anderson pitched seven strong innings against Arizona State last weekend, allowing one run on three hits and striking out four. He left with a 4-1 lead before the bullpen surrendered four runs in the ninth.

Lees did not announce Sunday’s starter, but said junior right-hander Ryan Walker could get the start if the team does not need him on Friday. Walker came out of the bullpen last season but has started in nine of his ten appearances this year.

Lees said the series will be a tough one and that his team will need to play more consistently if they want to win.

“We need to play better than we have the last few weekends for us to compete and do a good job against them,” he said.

The first pitch for game one of the three-game series is scheduled for 5 p.m. tonight at Bailey-Brayton Field.