June 23, 2005
What's on Tap -- The Arizona State Sun Devils (42-24, 8-2 NCAA Tournament) take on the University of Florida at the 2005 College World Series in an elimination game for both teams. The Sun Devils are coming off a 6-1 victory over the Gators on Wednesday and need one more victory to advance to the best-of-three championship series against Texas. ASU has stayed alive winning three consecutive elimination games (5-0 in elimination games in the NCAA Tournament), including a 4-2 victory over Tennessee on Sunday, a dramatic 8-7 win over Nebraska on Tuesday and Wednesday's 6-1 victory over Florida. The game is scheduled to start at 6:07 p.m. CT and will be televised live on ESPN (HD) with Mike Patrick and Harold Reynolds calling all the action from Rosenblatt Stadium. The winner of the game will advance to play Texas in the best-of-three Championship Series starting Saturday at 6 p.m. CT.
Probable Starting Pitchers:
Arizona State - Jason Urquidez, RHP (10-4, 3.84 ERA) or Zechry Zinicola (4-4, 5.69)
Florida - Alan Horne, RHP (10-2, 4.01 ERA)
Series History:
Arizona State leads the all-time series against Florida 3-0, with all three wins coming in the NCAA Tournament or the College World Series. ASU defeated UF in the 1988 CWS (10-1) and the 1997 regional in Miami, Fla. (3-2).
Tonight's Projected Pitcher(s) (Jason Urquidez or Zechry Zinicola) -- Senior right-handed pitcher Jason Urquidez or sophomore right-hander Zechry Zinicola will most likely start for the Sun Devils Thursday against Florida. Urquidez is 10-4 with a 3.84 ERA in 28 appearances this season, including 16 starts. He has already started two of ASU's four CWS games, going 0-0 with a 6.00 ERA giving up eight hits and four earned runs in six innings. In five postseason appearances, Urquidez is 2-0 with a 2.31 ERA with 22 strikeouts in 23.1 innings. In two seasons as a Sun Devil, Urquidez is 22-7 with a 3.64 ERA. If Zinicola gets the start, he will be making his third appearances of the CWS and 27th of the season. The hard-throwing right-hander is 4-4 with four saves and a 5.69 ERA. He has appeared in four games in the NCAA Tournament, going 1-1 with a 4.91 ERA.
Jason Urquidez Career Statistics:
| Year | ERA | W-L | App | GS | CG | SHO/CBO | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| 2004.... | 3.41 | 12-3 | 19 | 17 | 1 | 0/1 | 0 | 97.2 | 90 | 40 | 37 | 47 | 94 |
| 2005.... | 3.84 | 10-4 | 28 | 16 | 0 | 0/0 | 2 | 117.1 | 111 | 62 | 50 | 54 | 97 |
| TOTAL... | 3.64 | 22-7 | 47 | 33 | 1 | 0/1 | 2 | 215.0 | 201 | 102 | 87 | 101 | 191 |
Zechry Zinicola's Career Statistics:
| Year | ERA | W-L | App | GS | CG | SHO/CBO | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| 2004.... | 3.36 | 4-2 | 25 | 4 | 0 | 0/0 | 8 | 56.1 | 52 | 24 | 21 | 20 | 57 |
| 2005.... | 5.69 | 4-4 | 26 | 8 | 0 | 0/0 | 4 | 61.2 | 55 | 47 | 39 | 38 | 53 |
| TOTAL... | 4.58 | 8-6 | 51 | 12 | 0 | 0/0 | 12 | 118.0 | 107 | 71 | 60 | 58 | 110 |
ASU in Postseason Play -- Arizona State is making its 29th appearance in the NCAA Tournament and its 19th in the College World Series. The 19 appearances are tied for fourth with Oklahoma State for the most trips to Omaha. ASU's postseason run includes a string of six straight years in the Field of 64 and eight in the last nine years dating back to 1997. The Sun Devils have advanced to the postseason in eight of head coach Pat Murphy's 11 seasons in Tempe, including an appearance in the national championship game in 1998. ASU has an all-time 137-57 record in the NCAA Tournament and has won five national championships to rank second among all NCAA schools (1965, 67, 69, 77, 81). ASU also leads the NCAA with five runner-up finishes and ranks third with 58 CWS victories. ASU's regional championship was the 14th in school history and the first achieved at Packard Stadium since 1993.
Last Time Out -- Arizona State junior left-hander Erik Averill threw a complete-game, five hitter and the Sun Devils kept up their remarkable run in the College World Series, beating Florida 6-1 Wednesday at Rosenblatt Stadium to move within a win of the championship round. Averill, working on two days' rest, threw a five-hitter in 92-degree heat and retired the last eight batters he faced in his fifth complete game of the season. He struck out seven and did not walk a batter to improve to 11-4 on the season. The Sun Devils (42-24), who came into the CWS with the fewest wins of any team in the field, have won three straight after losing in the first round and are 5-0 in NCAA tournament elimination games. They have to beat the seventh-seeded Gators (47-21) again Thursday to advance to the best-of-three championship series that starts Saturday against Texas. Junior right fielder Travis Buck, the Oakland Athletics' first-round supplemental draft pick, homered deep into the right-field seats off Bryan Ball in the first inning for his sixth home run of the season.
42-Win Seasons -- The Sun Devils captured their 42nd win of the season Wednesday against Florida, marking the 27th time in school history that ASU has recorded at least 40 wins in a season. It also marks the third straight season with at least 40 wins and fifth during the 11-season Pat Murphy tenure (1995-P). ASU is now 2,400-1,178-6 in school history dating back to 1907.
Taking on the Tough Guys -- Wednesday's game against fifth-ranked Florida marked ASU's 40th game (out of 66) against a team that has been ranked at some point this season and the 24th game vs. a top-10 team. Of ASU's 24 losses this season, 20 have come against a team that has been ranked during the season.
Tuffy is Tough With RISP -- In 10 postseason games this season, senior catcher Tuffy Gosewisch is hitting .400 (16-for-40) with six doubles and 17 RBI. In the postseason, Gosewisch is also batting .579 (11-for-19) with runners in scoring position and is 3-for-3 with the bases loaded. For the season, Gosewisch is hitting .396 (40-for-101) with runners in scoring position and is a career .526 (20-for-38) hitter with the bases loaded. He ranks third on the team hitting .327 overall with 74 RBI. In the field, he has made only two errors in 533 total chances (.996 FLD%) and has thrown out 27 of 69 (39%) attempted base stealers.
No. 200 For Larish -- Senior first baseman Jeff Larish went 1-for-3 and drew his 200th career walk. He also moved up into ninth place in the ASU career record books with his 55th double. The school record for walks in a career is 207 set by former major leaguer Alvin Davis (Seattle Mariners) from 1979-82. Larish and Davis are the only players to record 200 walks in a career and each established a rarity with at least 70 walks and 90 RBI in a single season. Larish had 78 walks and 95 RBI during his record-breaking sophomore season in 2003.
Curtis Finds His Groove -- Sophomore left fielder Colin Curtis had an auspicious start to the CWS going just 1-for-8 (.125), but has since turned it around. After an extra-long hitting session with Coach Murphy at Monday's practice (at Millard South High School), Curtis has responded by going 6-for-8 (.750) over the last two games against Nebraska (3-for-5, 2 RBI) and Florida (3-for-3, RBI). Overall, Curtis is second on the team hitting .339 (87-for-257) with 14 doubles and 45 RBI. In 10 NCAA Tournament games he is hitting .378 (14-for-37) and is batting .438 (7-for-16) in the CWS. Curtis has also been invited to the USA Baseball National Team Trials that will be held next week at NC State University in Raleigh, N.C.
The Barry Bonds Factor -- Since several Sun Devil hitters met with former ASU All-American and seven-time National League MVP Barry Bonds, the team's offensive numbers have improved drastically. Bonds was on campus for a press conference honoring his former coach Dr. Jim Brock on Mar. 8, and stayed after to hang around the batting cage to offer his instruction. Since meeting with Bonds, who hit .347 as a Sun Devil with 45 career home runs from 1983-85, ASU is hitting .326 (519-for-1594) to raise the team batting average 33 points from .278 to .311 and is 31-14 during that stretch. The Devils have also hit 39 of the season total 50 home runs and combined for a .466 slugging percentage. Senior slugger Jeff Larish, who worked extensively with Bonds, is hitting .346 (56-for-162) with 18 of his Pac-10 leading 23 home runs. He also has four of his five multi-home run games this season during that stretch. Other hitters have also benefited since listening to arguably the greatest left-handed power hitter in MLB history, with Travis Buck (.415), Seth Dhaenens (.341), J.J. Sferra (.331), and Colin Curtis (.337) all hitting over .300 over the last 45 games. Here is a look at Larish before and after the meeting with Bonds:
| | AVG | GP-GS | | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR RBI | TB | SLG% | BB | HBP | SO | GDP | OB% | SF | SH | SB-ATT | PO | A | E | FLD% |
| Pre Bonds...... | .274 | 21-21 | | 84 | 16 | 23 | 6 | 1 | 5 | 19 | 46 | .548 | 10 | 1 | 22 | 1 | .358 | 0 | 1 | 1-1 | | 181 | 12 | 5 | .975 |
| Post Bonds..... | .346 | 45-45 | 162 | 55 | 56 | 11 | 0 | 18 | 47 | 121 | .747 | 48 | 5 | 38 | 2 | .500 | 3 | 2 | 10-14 | 303 | 18 | 4 | .988 |
NCAA Home Run Leaders (as of June 23, 2005):
| 1. | Matt LaPorta, Florida | 25 |
| | Kris Harvey, Clemson | 25 |
| | Adam Tucker, Birmingham Southern | 25 |
| 4. | Jason Maxey, Towson | 23 |
| | Jeff Larish, Arizona State | 23 |
Mr. Omaha, Joey Hooft -- Senior third baseman Joey Hooft entered the College World Series hitting only .125 (2-for-16) in the NCAA Tournament. But, Hooft has caught fire while making his third trip to the College World Series (2003 and 2004 with Miami, Fla.). In four CWS starts this season, Hooft is 6-for-15 (.400) and is 10-for-26 (.385) in career in Omaha. Hooft went 2-for-4 with a run scored Wednesday against Florida and was 1-for-5 in Tuesday's win come-from-behind win over Nebraska, including scoring the game-winning run on J.J. Sferra's single to right field.
The Elimination Boys -- In the Super Regional and College World Series, ASU has had a flare for the upset knocking off the a pair of national seeds (No. 2 Nebraska, No. 6 Cal State Fullerton) and sixth-ranked Tennessee. With Wednesday's 6-1 win over Florida, ASU is now 5-0 in elimination games this season. Since the NCAA changed its format in 1988 to include two four-team brackets, 36 teams have started the College World Series 2-0. With Florida's loss today, the 2-0 team is now 22-14 in its third game. Teams such as Arizona State, which has to beat the 2-0 team twice to win its bracket, have had a lot of success once it picks up the first win to stay alive. Of the previous 13 teams that have defeated the 2-0 club, 10 have gone on to defeat that opponent again to advance to the championship series.
ASU Plays Again Without Garrison -- Freshman right-handed pitcher Seth Garrison underwent emergency appendectomy surgery early Sunday morning at Bergan-Mercy Hospital in Omaha. Garrison was in ASU's dugout in street clothes and will most likely not be available to pitch the rest of the College World Series. ASU's players scribbled #17 into their hats with white-out. Head coach Pat Murphy started Garrison at designated hitter in Tuesday's game against Florida to honor the freshman right-hander and he was pinch-hit for by Rocky Laguna.
Winning at the CWS -- Arizona State is playing in its 19th College World Series (fourth most in NCAA history) and have won two or more games in all but three of those appearances. The exceptions are 1-2 in the first appearance in 1964, and 0-2 showings in 1987 and 1993. ASU now owns an all-time 57-31 record in CWS play, trailing only Texas (75) and USC (74) for most wins in Omaha. Wednesday's win over Florida also marked the 13th time (out of 19) that ASU has won at least three games on a trip to Omaha and the CWS. ASU owns an all-time 58-31 (.652) record in the College World Series.
Larish Goes Deep... Three Times -- Senior first baseman Jeff Larish tied an ASU and College World Series record with three home runs in Tuesday's dramatic 8-7 victory over Nebraska. It was Larish's fifth multi-homer game of the season and the seventh of his career. He now has six home runs in 10 postseason games this season and nine in his career in the NCAA Tournament. Larish is hitting .417 (5-for-12) with six runs scored in four CWS games and overall is hitting .400 (14-for-35) with 19 runs scored (of ASU's 67) and has hit six home runs in the 2005 NCAA Tournament. With his three home runs, he now has 51 in his career to rank second in the ASU career record books and 23 on the season to rank tied for third. He added a 1-for-3 performance Wednesday against Florida and with his 200th career walk became the first Pac-10 player to record 50 home runs and 200 walks in a career. He is hitting .321 (79-for-246) with 71 runs, 23 home runs, 66 RBI and a .679 slugging percentage. Here is a look at where Larish ranks in the ASU record books for career and single-season home runs and also his career statistics:
ASU Career Home Runs:
1. Bob Horner (1976-78) 56
2. Jeff Larish (2002-P) 51
3. Mike Kelly (1989-91) 46
4. Barry Bonds (1983-85) 45
5. Dan Rumsey (1986-89) 44
ASU Single-Season Home Runs:
1. Mitch Jones (2000) 27
2. Bob Horner (1978) 25
3. Jeff Larish (2005) 23
Barry Bonds (1985) 23
Oddibe McDowell (1984) 23
| Year | Avg | GP-GS | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | TB | SLG% | BB | HBP | SO | GDP | OB% | SF | SH | SB-ATT | PO | A | E | FLD% |
| 2002.... | .328 | 34-33 | 128 | 31 | 42 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 24 | 61 | .477 | 29 | 0 | 19 | 3 | .447 | 2 | 0 | 0-1 | 30 | 45 | 5 | .938 |
| 2003.... | .372 | 65-64 | 234 | 80 | 87 | 18 | 2 | 18 | 95 | 163 | .697 | 78 | 6 | 42 | 5 | .528 | 6 | 1 | 3-5 | 507 | 29 | 6 | .989 |
| 2004.... | .308 | 57-57 | 237 | 46 | 73 | 17 | 0 | 7 | 49 | 111 | .468 | 35 | 1 | 50 | 4 | .396 | 2 | 0 | 3-7 | 93 | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| 2005.... | .321 | 66-66 | 246 | 71 | 79 | 17 | 1 | 23 | 66 | 167 | .679 | 58 | 6 | 60 | 3 | .457 | 3 | 3 | 11-15 | 484 | 30 | 9 | .983 |
| TOTAL... | .333 | 222-220 | 845 | 228 | 281 | 56 | 6 | 51 | 234 | 502 | .594 | 200 | 13 | 171 | 15 | .461 | 13 | 4 | 17-28 | 1114 | 106 | 20 | .984 |
Eliminating the Big Boys -- Between the Super Regional and the College World Series, ASU has had a flare for the upset knocking off the a pair of national seeds (No. 3 Nebraska, No. 6 Cal State Fullerton) and sixth-ranked Tennessee. ASU is now 4-0 in elimination games this season.
The Comeback Kids -- ASU's come-from-behind win over Nebraska (6/21) was the latest installment of ASU's comeback heroics. ASU trailed 7-2 to Cal State Fullerton in the Super Regional final and rallied for 9-8 victory. ASU also came from behind in Sunday's 4-2 win over Tennessee, trailing 2-0 after six innings and 2-1 after seven innings. Four of ASU's eight NCAA Tournament wins have been come-from-behind affairs. Some other memorable ASU come-from-behind wins in the CWS are listed on page four of this release.
From Batboy To CWS Hero -- Freshman center fielder J.J. Sferra drove in the winning run with a bloop single in the bottom of the 11th inning in Tuesday's win over Nebraska and added a two-run single Wednesday against Florida. Sferra was ASU's batboy during its last trip to the College World Series in 1998 and is now hitting .313 (60-for-192) on the season with 22 RBI. In 10 NCAA Tournament contests, Sferra is hitting .324 (12-for-37) and is 4-for-13 (.308) in the CWS.
The Hitting Machine -- Junior right fielder Travis Buck has been a hitting machine for the Sun Devils all season long. He has recorded at least one hit in all but 11 games (55 of 66) this season, including a stretch of hits in 27 of the last 30 games. After starting the season slow hitting only .246 through the first 15 games, Buck has since caught fire going 94-for-223 (.422) over the last 51 games. He launched his second home run of the postseason and his sixth of the year in the first inning of Wednesday's 6-1 win over Florida. For the season, Buck is hitting .384 (109-for-284) with 23 doubles, six homers, 42 RI and 27 stolen bases. He also leads the team with 35 multi-hit games. His 109 hits are tied for ninth in the ASU single-season record books with Willie Bloomquist (1998). Buck also ranks eighth in the ASU career record books with 271 hits and ninth with 202 runs scored. He is only the fourth player in ASU history to record a season with at least 100 hits, 20 doubles and 20 steals and is one of only 21 players to record 100 hits in a season. In 191 career games as a Sun Devil, Buck is hitting .362 (271-for-748) with 204 runs, 19 home runs and 146 RBI. Buck became ASU's 22nd all-time first-round draft pick when he was selected in the 36th round of the 2005 MLB Amateur Draft by the Oakland A's. Here is a look a the top single-season hitting performances in Arizona State history and Bucks' career statistics:
| Player | Hits | G | Avg. | Year | 2B | SB |
| Paul Lo Duca | 129 | 66 | .446 | 1993 | 24 | 0 |
| Hubie Brooks | 126 | 67 | .432 | 1978 | 24 | 13 |
| Kevin Romine | 121 | 73 | .406 | 1982 | 15 | 59 |
| Dustin Pedroia | 120 | 65 | .404 | 2003 | 34 | 3 |
| Ken Landreaux | 119 | 75 | .406 | 1976 | 25 | 34 |
| Oddibe McDowell | 117 | 74 | .405 | 1984 | 18 | 36 |
| Mike Sodders | 114 | 68 | .424 | 1981 | 19 | 14 |
| Dan McKinley | 113 | 61 | .423 | 1997 | 21 | 32 |
| Travis Buck | 109 | 66 | .384 | 2005 | 23 | 27 |
| Willie Bloomquist | 109 | 64 | .414 | 1998 | 14 | 33 |
| Year | Avg | GP-GS | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | TB | SLG% | BB | HBP | SO | GDP | OB% | SF | SH | SB-ATT | PO | A | E | FLD% |
| 2003.... | .326 | 66-65 | 239 | 59 | 78 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 46 | 109 | .456 | 35 | 11 | 28 | 9 | .432 | 2 | 5 | 12-14 | 94 | 4 | 4 | .961 |
| 2004.... | .373 | 59-59 | 225 | 64 | 84 | 16 | 1 | 9 | 58 | 129 | .573 | 41 | 11 | 34 | 6 | .486 | 3 | 6 | 13-16 | 118 | 5 | 1 | .992 |
| 2005.... | .384 | 66-66 | 284 | 81 | 109 | 23 | 3 | 6 | 42 | 156 | .549 | 28 | 6 | 35 | 5 | .448 | 1 | 6 | 27-36 | 97 | 40 | 6 | .958 |
| TOTAL... | .362 | 191-190 | 748 | 204 | 271 | 52 | 7 | 19 | 146 | 394 | .527 | 104 | 28 | 97 | 20 | .455 | 6 | 17 | 52-66 | 309 | 49 | 11 | .970 |
No Rest For Bordes -- Junior LHP Brett Bordes made his 37th appearance of the season in Tuesday's 8-7 win over Nebraska, moving into sole possession of second place in the ASU single-season record books. Bordes is 5-6 with a 3.87 ERA after allowing only two hits in three shutout innings Tuesday vs. Nebraska. The lefty has pitched in 13 of ASU's last 17 games, including seven of 10 postseason games, and ranks fourth in the ASU record books with 77 career pitching appearances. In two appearances in the CWS he has allowed only one run and has struck out seven in 5.1 innings.
ASU Single-Season Pitching Appearances:
1. Noah Peery, 1994 39
2. Brett Bordes, 2005 37
3. Chuck Crumpton, 1998 36
4. Ryan Bradley, 1997 35
5. Ryan Bradley, 1996 34
Kevin Dukes, 1981 34
ASU Career Pitching Appearances:
1. Kendall Carter, 1981-84 102
2. Ryan Bradley, 1995-97 99
3. Kevin Dukes, 1978-81 82
4. Brett Bordes, 2003-P 77
5. David Cassidy, 1986-89 74
Ken Hansen, 1968-71 74
Larish Leading Off -- Since moving Jeff Larish into the leadoff spot in the lineup, Arizona State has gone 11-2. Larish, who has nearly half (23 of 50) of ASU's home runs this season, is not your prototype leadoff hitter. But in 13 games in the leadoff spot, Larish has shown his ability to get on base by hitting .348 (16-for-46) with 22 runs scored, seven home runs and seven home runs. He has recorded an impressive .508 on-base percentage and a .870 slugging percentage in those games.
Averill Notches Fifth CG -- Junior left-handed pitcher Erik Averill recorded his fifth complete-game victory of the year with a five-hit gem in Wednesday's 6-1 win over Florida. In 20 starts this season (24 appearances), Averill is 11-4 with a 3.39 ERA. He has struck out 99 and walked only 30 while holding opponents to a .266 batting average. The five complete games are the most by a Sun Devil since Kaipo Spenser also had five in 1995. 1993 Pac-10 Pitcher of the Year Marc Barcelo recorded 10 complete games and a 12-4 record. In four postseason starts this season, Averill is 3-0 with a 2.01 ERA and has recorded a pair of complete games against Coastal Carolina and Florida. Here is a look at Averill's regular season, postseason and combined season statistics:
| | ERA | W-L | APP | GS | CG | SHO/CBO | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | 2B | 3B | HR | AB | B/Avg | WP | HBP | BK | SFA | SHA |
| Overall............ | 3.39 | 11-4 | 24 | 20 | 5 | 1/0 | 0 | 127.1 | 131 | 57 | 48 | 30 | 99 | 28 | 2 | 7 | 492 | .266 | 5 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 9 |
| NCAA Tournament.... | 2.01 | 3-0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0/0 | 0 | 31.1 | 26 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 22 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 116 | .224 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Regular Season..... | 3.84 | 8-4 | 20 | 16 | 3 | 1/0 | 0 | 96.0 | 105 | 50 | 41 | 23 | 77 | 21 | 2 | 6 | 376 | .279 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
Quick Hits:
... Arizona State started the season 6-9, but have responded by going 36-15 over the last 51 games.
... ASU was the only No. 2 seed to advance to the College World Series and entered the CWS with the fewest number of wins (39).
... Jeff Larish leads the Pac-10 with 23 home runs, becoming only the 12th Sun Devil to hit 20 homers in a season.
... ASU is hitting .307 (104-for-339) and pitching for a 3.40 ERA in 10 games in the 2005 NCAA Tournament.
... Wednesday's game against Florida was the latest played game in ASU baseball history. The previous was June 20, 1969 in the CWS.
... Tuffy Gosewisch has a current six-game hitting streak and has combined to go 10-for-24 (.417) with seven RBI during the streak.
... 20 of ASU's 24 losses this season have come against teams that have been ranked at some point this season.
... ASU has played error-free in the field in the last two games and made only two errors in the CWS for a sparkling .987 FLD%.
... Catcher Tuffy Gosewisch has thrown out nine of the last 15 attempted base stealers.
... Seven Sun Devils, including first-rounder Travis Buck by the Oakland A's, were selected in the 2005 MLB Amateur Draft.
... Averill's five complete games are more than season total marks by the Sun Devils in 2004 (2), 2003 (1), 2001 (1), 2000 (2) and 1998 (4).
... ASU leads the Pac-10 with 128 stolen bases, the most by a Sun Devil team since swiping 130 in 1999.
... The Sun Devils are 22-4 when scoring in the first inning and 29-10 when they score before their opponent.
... In 10 postseason games, ASU's starting pitchers have combined go to 4-0 with a 2.72 ERA.
Arizona State Comeback Wins in College World Series History:
2005--ASU has had a pair of comeback wins in the CWS this year, including rallying for a 4-2 win over Tennessee and a 8-7 win over Nebraska in 11 innings. Both came in elimination games. Below are several more memorable comeback wins that ASU has notched during its 19 trips to Omaha and the CWS. The list was compiled by former ASU SID Doug Gerlach.
1965--ASU's first national championship. In the championship game, with ASU leading 2-1, Ohio State loaded the bases with no one out in the 7th inning, but did not score. Then, in the ninth inning, Ohio State got two runners on, but again, did not score, and ASU won 2-1. In that ninth inning, with Ohio State threatening to tie or win, Bobby Winkles turned to one of his assistants, who looked as if he was about to have a heart attack, and said, as only Winkles could, "This game's pretty close, isn't it."
1967--ASU beat #1 ranked Stanford, 4-3 in 14 innings in the semi-final game, with Gary Gentry pitching a complete game. ASU scored the winning run when Scott Reid hit a fly ball to center field. The Stanford center fielder mistakenly broke in on the ball and then, realizing his mistake, broke back but to no avail. As the ball hit the ground and the winning run scored, the Stanford center fielder ran to the center field fence and threw his glove over it.
1977--ASU's 2-1 win against South Carolina in the championship game was a nail biter from beginning to end. Chris Bando's home run in the bottom of the 7th inning broke a 1-1 tie. ASU earlier in the game scored its other run on a base running mistake -- Mike Henderson singled but rounded first base too far and was hung up, and while South Carolina was dealing with him, Rick Peters ran home, giving ASU a 1-0 lead at the time.
1976--ASU was all but dead, but came from behind to beat Arizona, 7-6 in 10 innings in the opening game. ASU was just about out of players. Needing a pinch hitter in the 10th inning, Brock sent up Gary Rajsich, who had been to bat only 53 times all season. He lined a single to left to drive in the winning run.
1975--ASU beat Oklahoma, 1-0 in 10 innings. John Poloni, who was ASU's number 4 starter, pitched a complete game. (Yes, ASU actually had a number four starter in those days.)
1972--ASU, behind Eddie Bane's pitching, beat Oklahoma, 1-0 (9 innings).
