PHOENIX -- Sun Devil Baseball will wrap up the 2018 season this weekend at home against California in a three-game series beginning on Thursday, May 24. The series will get underway on Thursday at 7 p.m., followed by a Friday tilt at 7 p.m. and culminating in Saturday's 6:00 p.m. first pitch. All three games will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Network.
Follow the Action
- All games in the series will be broadcast through the Pac-12 Network and also available at pac-12.com/live. Daron Sutton and Andy Lopez will be on the call for the weekend.
- The Sun Devil Sports Radio Network is scheduled to broadcast all games this week on NBC Sports 1060 AM. All games will also be available through the TuneIn app on TheSunDevils.com. Broadcaster Tim Healey is set to serve his 20th season as the "Voice of the Sun Devils" on baseball broadcasts and will be joined for the second-straight season by color analyst Max Rossiter, who was an all-conference catcher for the Devils from 2012-13.
- Fans are encouraged to follow the Devils on Twitter @ASU_Baseball for updates throughout the week.
- Fans can also follow the stats live throughout the weekend at sundevilstats.com
Scouting the Golden Bears
- Cal is first in the Pac-12 in home runs. The Bears have hit 56 round-trippers, five more than second-place Oregon State entering the week. Cal also ranks third in the conference in batting average (.293) and hits (522).
- Jonah Davis enters the ASU sseries with a .331 average, 14 home runs and 57 RBIs while Tyrus Greene (.331, 19 RBIs, nine steals) and Tanner Dodson (.327, 12 doubles, 25 RBIs) have also been major factors at the plate. Cal enters the weekend with a .293 team average.
- ASU is 119-65 all-time in the series against the Golden Bears
Eli's Coming
- Eli Lingos leads the team this year with seven quality starts in his 14 starts. Of note on that, however, is that he went 5.2 innings in two other starts while allowing fewer than 3 runs, meaning he is just 2 outs away from having nine quality starts this season.
- Lingos led the Sun Devils with six quality starts last season. No other Sun Devil had more than one quality start on the year.
- Lingos has picked off a Pac-12-leading five runners thus far this season.
- Lingos is fourth in the Pac-12 with 85.2 innings pitched this season and is tied for sixth with seven victories.
The Book of Eli
- Lingos opened Pac-12 action with career bests in innings pitched in three straight games as he went 7.2 innings against Oregon, 8.0 innings against #16 UCLA and 9.0 innings in a complete game shutout of Washington State.
- Lingos went 22.2 innings without allowing a single run between the midway points of the Oregon and USC games, a period of four starts.
- Lingos has showed a veteran presence when he gets ahead in counts, striking out 40 batters on 0-2 or 1-2 counts with opponents batting just 14-of-93 in the process (.151).
- The senior has also shut the door on 2-2 counts, striking out 22 while throwing a strike 74.1 percent of the time and limiting opponents to just 7-of-45 hitting (.156) facing the count).
- Lingos is throwing a strike 66.8 percent of a the time, a total that leads all Sun Devil pitchers. He has only fallen behind 2-0 in the count 36 times on 380 batters faced this season and has faced just 14 3-0 counts (3.7 percent) in the process.
12-Gage
- Gage Canning was named to the Golden Spikes National Player of the Year Award's Midseason Watch List and is currently third in the Pac-12 and 25th nationally with a .392 average this season.
- Canning has reached base in 51 of 52 games this season and has a hit in 45 of those.
- Canning has 11 games this season with 3 or more hits - five more than any other player on the Sun Devil roster. Last season, he became the first player to reach double digits in the category (10) since Jason Kipnis had 13 in 2009.
- He became the first Sun Devil player to accomplish the feat in back-to-back seasons since Brett Wallace did it in 2007 and 2008.
- He has multiple hits in a team-leading 26 games to date - five more than any other player.
- The junior became the first Devil since before 1998 at least (as early as easily accessibly game-by-game records go) to start a season on a 16-game hitting streak and he currently leads the team with his active eight-game hitting streak.
- He is first in the Pac-12 (14th nationally) with 85 hits this season and leads the nation with 11 triples.
- Canning was a consensus National Player of the Week following ASU's sweep of Oregon and the Pac-12 Player of the Week as well. On the weekend, the junior went 10-for-13 from the plate (.769) with two home runs (one inside-the-park), two triples, eight runs scored, seven RBIs, three walks, a 1.615 slugging percentage and a .813 on-base percentage in the series.
- Canning leads the team with a .489 average with runners in scoring position on 23-of-47 chances - a batting average in the situation that is over 100 points better than any other Sun Devil.
- Canning has stranded just 19 runners on base this season, easily the lowest total of ASU's day-to-day starters.
- The junior is responsible for a team-best five game-winning RBIs thus far this season.
Gage Gets Triples...And Doubles...And Home Runs....
- Canning is the NCAA's active leader in career triples with 25 so far in his career and 11 this season - a total that currently leads the NCAA.
- The NCAA career record for triples is 32 (set by Indiana State's Bob Zeihen over a four-year career from 1985-88).
- The ASU career record for triples is 26 by Alan Bannister and Ed Irvine back in the 1970s, with Canning needing just one more to tie it.
- The junior also gets plenty of doubles - seventh in the Pac-12 with 16 so far this season and adding 9 home runs for a .670 slugging percentage that is 26th nationally and third in the Pac-12.
- With one more home run, Canning would become the first player in the BBCOR batting era (since 2011) to record double digit numbers in doubles, triples AND home runs.
- He would become just the 15th player since 1989 to accomplish that feat and the first player from a Power Five school to do so since Nomar Garciaparra did so for Georgia Tech in 1994.
#LINSANITY2018
- Lyle Lin had his 15 game-hitting streak to start the season come to an end in the finale against UNCW. He and Canning had become the only Sun Devils since at least 1998 to start a season on a 15-game hitting streak.
- Lin enters this weekend batting .315 on the season and is second on team and 11th in the Pac-12 with 15 doubles this season.
- Lin has multiple hits in 21 games this season, good for second on the team.
- The sophomore is third on the team with 24 hits this season with two outs and is batting .320 (24-of-75) in the process.
- His 16 hits with runners in scoring position are third on the team.
Fear the Tork
- Spencer Torkelson was named as both a Golden Spikes National Player of the Year Award and Dick Howser Trophy semifinalist for 2018, the only freshman in the country on either list.
- The freshman has 25 home runs this year, a total that leads the NCAA. In NCAA history, no freshman has ever led the country in home runs at the end of the season.
- Torkelson will have a shot at the NCAA freshman record of 26, currently held by Todd Greene of Georgia Southern back in 1990.
- The freshman is just the sixth player to reach 25 home runs since the BBCOR batting technology changes took effect in 2011 and the only freshman in the NCAA to reach the milestone in that time.
- Torkelson is tied with Bob Horner for second in ASU single-season history and needs two home runs to tie Mitch Jones (2000) for the ASU school record.
- Against Washington State, he surpassed the previous Sun Devil freshman record of 11 home runs set by Barry Bonds in 1983.
- Torkelson is slugging .769 this season, the highest slugging percentage for a freshman in the BBCOR era (since 2011) and the 11th-highest total by any player in that time.
- The freshman is on pace to post one of the highest slugging percentages for a freshman in the past DECADE, currently only sitting behind Rickie Weeks (.849/2001) and Jeremy Baltz (.771/2010).
- Torkelson is 6th in the Pac-12 with 53 RBIs - tied for 5th in ASU freshman history - as he became the first Sun Devil to reach 50 RBIs since Abe Ruiz had 53 in 2012.
- Torkelson leads the team in having reached base in 36 consecutive games - the 11th-longest active streak by any player in the nation.
#TorksUp
- Spencer Torkelson has advanced baserunners a team-best 53 times on 110 chances (.482) and has provided plenty of productive outs as well - leading the way with 19 runners advanced with an out.
- Torkelson's 23 two-out RBI also pace the squad and are seven more than any other player on the roster.
- Torkelson has 15 games this season with multiple RBIs, a total that leads the team.
- The freshman also leads the team with 37 walks this season (7th in the Pac-12) and has the third-highest walk total of any freshman in the country.
- Torkelson has scored 56 runs on the year, good for third in the Pac-12 and 37th nationally (second among all freshman) and passing Dustin Pedroia for third in ASU freshman history.
- Torkelson's 35 runs scored in Pac-12 only games are five more than any other player in the league.
- In Pac-12 only games, Torkelson leads the league in four offensive categories (slugging, home runs, runs, total bases). No other player leads the league in more than two.
A Swift Glove
- Drew Swift is second in the Pac-12 148 defensive assists this season.
- The frosh has helped to turn 30 double plays this season, good for sixth in the Pac-12 and helping the Sun Devils to sit second in the league with 44 double plays this year.
- Swift is fourth in the league with 11 sacrifice bunts this season (28th nationally) and second on the team with 18 runners advanced with an out.
A Lot to Alika
- Alika Williams posted just one hit in the first two weekends of action and was batting just .205 up until March 10 against UNCW.
- Since that UNCW game, Williams has a hit in 30 of the last 37 games and has brought his average up to .284 in the process.
- Williams has been ASU's top hitter with two outs, posting a team-best 25 hits on 66 chances (.379).
- Williams is the fifth-toughest player to strike out in the Pac-12, doing so just once every 10.4 at bats.
- Defensively, Williams is ninth in the league in helping to turn 28 double plays this season.
Dellan's Dealin'
- Dellan Raish has been ASU's most reliable player out of the bullpen this season and leads the team with his 3.00 ERA.
- Raish has struck out 47 batters in 42.0 innings pitched, easily the most among the team's relief pitchers and fourth on the team, overall.
- Opponents are batting just .214 against Raish this season, a total that would be good for fifth in the Pac-12 with just a seven more innings to his credit.
- Raish has allowed just 13 hits in 21.0 innings of Pac-12 action with a 4-0 record in league games - a win total tied for sixth in the league.
- He 2.57 ERA in Pac-12 games would be good for fourth in the Pac-12 with just a handful more innings.
Jump On It
- Hunter Jump has been ASU's hottest player in the last month since making his appearance as a regular in the starting lineup.
- In the last 15 games, Jump leads the team with a .438 average (over 60 points higher than any other player) with a team-best 19 RBIs,, two triples, three doubles and a home run.
- In that span he is 9-of-16 with runners in scoring position with six two-out RBI.
- He has five games with three or more hits in the last 15 games, already putting him in third on the SEASON for games with 3+ hits on the Sun Devil roster.
- He also has two games in that span with four RBI, putting him a tie with Canning for the season lead in the category.
Putting in the Work(man)
- A Gage of a different last name has also been racking up the triples this season as Gage Workman has 7 so far this season, good for second in the Pac-12 and fourth nationally.
- Workman and Canning have combined for 17 triples this season and ASU has 24 total - good for fourth in the country and first in the Pac-12.
- Workman, along with Torkelson and Williams, have three of the Top-Five batting averages among all freshman in the Pac-12 this season with Jump just missing the cut with not enough at bats.
All-Day Aldrete
- Carter Aldrete has a hit in six consecutive games and has recorded at least one RBI in each of those six games.
- The sophomore is second on the team in advancing runners, doing so 52 times on 103 chances (.505).
- Aldrete has a team-best 23 hits with runners in scoring position, batting .333 in the process (23-of-69).
Marshing to the Beat
- Alec Marsh has been exceptional in Pac-12 games this season and has posted four quality starts in five Pac-12 series since being moved to ASU's Friday-night starter.
- Sun Devil starters now have 17 quality starts this season after posting just nine total in all of last season.
- Marsh is 10th in the league in allowing opponents to only bat .237 against him this season.
- Marsh has allowed just 57 hits this season, the sixth-fewest in the league.
- The 12 doubles against him this year are tied for the eighth-fewest allowed in the Pac-12 this year.
- Marsh has been deadly when he gets ahead in the count this season, allowing opponents to hit just 4-of-58 (.068) against him on 0-2 or 1-2 counts with 36 of his 58 total strikeouts in that span.