The Wildcats are in need of wins.

It's simple and it's true. Coming off a demoralizing three-game sweep to Stanford, and with a 4-11 record in the Pacific 10 Conference Southern Division, Arizona is sitting all alone in the Six-Pac cellar.

The chances of Arizona (20-19 overall) getting a regional berth in the playoffs hinge directly on its performance in the last half of conference play, which just happens to begin today against Southern Cal. Here are notes for the Arizona baseball team.

The disabled list: In Saturday's game against Stanford, second baseman John Powers dislocated his right pinkie finger on a pick-off attempt. He did not play in Sunday's game and is questionable for the series against USC, but he has been cleared by team physicians to throw and swing. Powers, a senior co-captain, will likely be replaced by freshman Omar Moraga, who played in Sunday's game.

No changes here: The Wildcats may have finally found their starting-pitching rotation. For the second series in a row, the coaches are starting Tyler Haddix (4-3), Shawn Barrington (1-4) and Darrell Hussman (2-0).

"These pitchers are very capable," Arizona head coach Jerry Kindall said.

And the nominees are: The annual Smith Award € given to the college baseball player of the year - ballots are out and two Wildcats have been nominated at their respective positions. Sophomore center fielder Diego Rico and senior first baseman Jeff Gjerde were the only Arizona players on the ballot.

There's no place like home: The Wildcats are back home in the safe confines of Sancet Field. This could be called an advantage, but that would be an understatement. Arizona has only won two games on the road this season, and they have lost 10.

"We prefer to be at home," Kindall said. "We have a lot of familiarity with the field, and that gives the guys confidence."

Defense, defense, defense: The team started this year with one thing in mind € defense. This was because of the error-laden 1995 season. After a solid start, the defense is showing signs of weakness. In the series with Stanford, the Wildcats had a total of seven errors.

"We needed to play better defense," Kindall said. "That was one thing we have been emphasizing all year."