Smooth Delivery by Bush

Stanford catcher Ryan Garko waited anxiously behind the plate as a pitcher with more power than anyone on the planet took the mound Friday at Rosenblatt Stadium.

Garko, a sophomore from Walnut, had only one thought in mind as President Bush prepared to deliver before Stanford’s College World Series opener against Tulane.

“I didn’t want to drop that pitch,” Garko said.

Garko handled a crisp fastball from Bush without incident and later delivered a seventh-inning single that drove in the go-ahead run in Stanford’s draining, 13-11 come-from-behind victory before an estimated crowd of 22,000.

Stanford (49-16) overcame an 8-0 deficit to win a game that lasted 4 hours 18 minutes--the longest nine-inning game in World Series history.

Jeff Bruksch, the last of Stanford’s seven pitchers, shut down Tulane’s final threat after entering the game in the ninth inning with no outs and runners at second and third. Bruksch got a ground-ball out to third and struck out the final two batters to earn his first save.

Bruksch, a junior who graduated from Beverly Hills High and transferred to Stanford from USC, has been the Cardinal’s No. 2 starter this season after tying a Stanford record with 13 saves in 2000.

“I didn’t expect to pitch today,” he said. “Once I got back out there, it felt pretty natural.”

Garko, an Anaheim Servite graduate, also singled and scored a run during the Cardinal’s seven-run fifth inning that pulled Stanford to within a run.

It all made for a memorable day for Garko.

“I told [President Bush] it was an honor to have him out there,” Garko said. “He said we worked well together as a battery.”

Bush had pondered his pitch selection earlier in the day.

“I haven’t decided whether or not I’m going to go with the fastball or slider today,” the president said during a stop in Iowa. “I just hope it’s not the same pitch I used in Milwaukee to open the stadium, where there was an actual bounce to it before it got to the plate.”

Garko said he was ready if the president had control problems.

“But it was right down the middle--and it had some velocity,” Garko said.

Team captains and head coaches of all World Series participants except Stanford and Tulane met with President Bush before the game. USC was represented by senior pitcher Rik Currier and senior shortstop Seth Davidson, Cal State Fullerton by senior second baseman David Bacani and senior pitcher Kirk Saarloos. Bush shook hands with Stanford and Tulane players after the ceremonial first pitch. . . Stanford players, who are still taking final exams, endured a 24-hour odyssey, including an eight-hour bus trip from Chicago to Omaha, after their connecting flight was canceled early Wednesday morning because of fog. They arrived in Omaha late Wednesday night and practiced briefly Thursday.

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Staff writer James Gerstenzang contributed to this report