 |
|
 |
Coach Murphy's Responses
This Week's Winner of the ASU Baseball Cap: Nick Stupey
Richard Jacob (Salt Lake City, UT)Last year the baseball conference was expanded from the Six-Pac to the Pac-10, with each team playing every other team in only one 3-game series. How do you feel about this change in confrence play, and how would you feel about expanding confrence play to two 3-game series with each team at the expense of fewer non-confrence games? It seems that, to have a true confrence champion, each team should have to play every other team in both a home and away series. Your comments?
Coach Murphy: I am saddened that we don't have the opportunity to play everyone in the conference in a home and away series. It would be great. Because of weather factors for the northern Pac-10 schools, it would be difficult to have a 48-game conference schedule. But you're right, it would show the true conference champion.
Rich Frederick (Redding, CA)
This team is off to a simular start as last year's team. How does this
team compare to last year's? Will the Pac-10 be more or less competetive
this year?
Coach Murphy: This year's team is far more inexperienced and our schedule is tougher so it's hard to compare the 2000 squad to the 1999 team. We've already played Florida State - a top 5 team and Florida Atlantic, who finished in the top 16 in the RPI rankings last year. It's a new season and we're looking ahead to great things. The Pac-10 conference is as experienced as it's ever been in 2000. We are inexperienced compared to teams like Arizona, UCLA and California. Those three teams are as talented as they've been in the last six years. Then you look at Southern California and Stanford who always have good teams. It will be a highly competitive year in conference play with a lot of experienced teams going head to head.
Don Price (Tempe, AZ)
Coach Murphy, I just got home from the ASU victory over FSU, 15-9.
Congratulations on an excellent victory! It was
an exciting game. I noticed during the game that you kept moving the
right fielder, Jonah Martin, to different spots in
right field, depending on the batter. I was just curious:
how do you determine exactly where he stands? If it
is based on scouting reports, how do you acquire those
for a non-conference team like FSU? Keep up the great work!
Coach Murphy: We move our outfielders around according to scouting reports from previous years and opponent coaches. The basic positioning of the rightfielder is if you drew a straight line from third base to second base and extended it into right field, that would be his reference point on where to start.
Nick Stupey (Kayenta, AZ)
Coach, I caught most of your game with FSU on Sunday driving into
Flagstaff from here. I can't get the games otherwise. I have to rely on
the Republic or the Internet to get my information. My question after
hearing and reading about the games this weekend is: Do you believe the
Devils have the pitching to compete with top 10 schools? I seems to me
that the pitching was the difference in the 2 loses this weekend. I will
continue to follow you as best I can. Thanks and my 12 year old son wants
to play at ASU when he graduates.
Coach Murphy: I believe we have the team to compete with top ten squads. Our pitching staff is inexperienced but I feel defense was just as important in the losses to FSU as pitching. I hope that your son continues to play hard and keeps in contact with us through the upcoming years.
T.J. Brewster (Orem, UT)
Once again it is a thrill to see the team do so well at the beginning of
the 2000 season. You have really worked hard with the guys to get them
ready and they look like they will go a long way this year. I am looking
forward to it. How difficult is it to coach both the pitching and manage the team? I
know you have a great set of assistant coaches in Jay Sferra, Mike
Rooney, and new addition (I am glad to see back) Richey Leon. Also how would you asses the performances of the pitching staff against
the tough hitting of the Seminoles? I wish we could of had three I think we could have. I think this will be a
confidence builder for this young team. I think the next tough series
you will come out on top.
Coach Murphy: College baseball is different from pro baseball and shouldn't be coupled together. I get help from Richy Leon for pitching and I get help from Jay Sferra and Mike Rooney in managing. We work together to help the team succeed. It's difficult to maintain the highest level of competitiveness and reach the national championship but that's what we strive for year in and year out.
The pitching staff performed fairly well against Florida State. Defense and a few tough breaks led to some bad results. I am confident that this team will rise to the challenges placed before them and play their hardest every week. Having a healthy mental approach to the game is just as important. We will learn from these losses.