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Chat Transcript: Tim Esmay And Jack Krawczyk
New assistant coaches answered your questions about Sun Devil Baseball.
Former Sun Devil player and coach Tim Esmay and former USC All-American pitcher Jack Krawczyk were hired as new assistant coaches last week for Arizona State. Both new coaches answered your questions in a live chat on Sept. 7.
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| Moderator: Coach Esmay and Coach Krawczyk have just gotten back from lunch and are ready to take your questions! |
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| Scott (San Diego): Tim: What goals do you have for this team heading into this season? |
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Tim: Tht goals are for this team to play championship baseball that will be achieved by day in and day out hard work and committment from the kids and coaching staff. Obviously the ultimate goal is a trip to Omaha and a national championship!! |
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| Eric Phoenix: I heard Jack was also a very good high school basketball player at Arcadia. Is this true? |
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Jack: Yes, this is true. I can still dominate and shoot the three! |
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| Karen C. (Tempe): Jack: Welcome to the Sun Devil Family. My question is: Why ASU???
Tim: Welcome Back!!! How does it feel to be back in the Maroon and Gold???
Good luck to you both!!! |
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Jack: Because I've always been a Sun Devil fan and grew up watching ASU baseball. It's a great program to be a part of and to work with great coaches like Tim, Jay and Murphy. |
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Tim: Obviously, once you've put this uniform on, you never want to take it off. It has always been a goal of mine to return to this program and I am excited that Coach Murphy has given me this opportunity! |
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| Dave (Scottsdale): Tim and Jack;
What attracted you to this program? What are your short-term goals (this season) and long-term goals (in 3 to 5 years) for this program? |
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Tim: I grew up in Arizona and followed the Sun Devils ever since the Bob Horner days. This is by far the best baseball program in America and to have the opportunity to be part of this program again is the chance of a lifetime. |
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Jack: My short term goals are to develop the pitchers into the best staff in the Pac-10. The long term goals are to be national champions. |
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| Warren (Peoria): Since we haven't made the College World Series since 1998, do you think that the team this year will be able to break that curse of losing to Cal State Fullerton again this year. |
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Tim: Losing to a program like Cal State Fullerton is not considered a curse. It is becoming tougher and tougher each year to make the College World Series and the dominance in the SEC conference will dictate who ASU will play in the earlier rounds. There is a certain about of luck also involved in the seeding and that factors into the eight teams that make it to Omaha every year. |
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| Janet (Tempe): Tim, Can I count on you to be on the Alumni Golf Committee now that you are back? Welcome, glad to have you back. |
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Tim: For you Janet, anything :) My answer is yes! |
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| linty ingram (dallas tx.): who was the national champion in the short hop game in omaha in 1988. you or linty
do not lie |
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Tim: That was by far myself. Linty Ingram could not rise up to the challenge of the national championship game. Don't let him tell anyone else otherwise! |
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| JB (SLC): Ez, I wanted to congratulate you on the opportunity to go back to ASU! I also wanted to say thanks for the time and effort you put into the Utah program. The program and players are better for your efforts, particularly guys like me that talent-wise had no business being there. You and your staff gave me a chance and I hope I didn't disappoint. Thanks again and good luck to you and your family! |
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Tim: My time at Utah was one of the greatest experiences of my life and coaching guys like you made everything worth its while. I will cherish the memories and hard work you put into the program every day. Best of luck in the future! |
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| Don, Tempe: The pro baseball draft always seems to decimate ASU's recruiting classes. Any way around that? How can we best handle recruiting in light of the big buck$ flashed in front of these young men? |
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Jack: To be the best program you have to go after the best players. There is a risk that you take when you go after the best players and the draft factors into that each year. We've actually had some success in the last two years getting these young men to come to our program, with guys like Andrew Romine, Vinny Biancamano, Drew Bowman, Quentin Andes and Zechry Zinicola that decided that they wanted to come play baseball at ASU and get an education! |
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| Pedro (Austin): When are the Devils coming back to Texas (mainly Austin)? |
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Jack: The Devils will be in Texas several times before the next few years are up... stay tuned and hook 'em Devils! |
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| Don, Tempe: Is it just my imagination, or does ASU get treated unfairly by the NCAA committee regarding post-season play? |
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Tim: There is no doubt that stigma is out there, but college baseball has changed drastically. It is not like the '80s where the West ruled the world. There are 100 quality college baseball programs out there competing for eight spots in the College World Series. There is a lot of parity out there and they tend to regionalize the competition and that makes for some great competition to get to Omaha each year. |
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| Ryan Mahoney (New Orleans, LA): My question is for Jack. The past two seasons Coach Murphy has put together dominant clubs, but both clubs seemed to be plagued by an inconsistent pitching staff in the second half of the season. We all know the talent is there, but how will you help overcome this obstacle especially with the likes of Averill and Urquidez returning to help lead the staff? |
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Jack: Obviously Averill and Urquidez are going to help our staff and add a lot of veteran leadership. One or two guys won't make a complete pitching staff.. it is going to have to be a whole staff effort. We have a nice supporting staff of guys like Quentin Andez, Zechry Zinicola and Brett Bordes. As far as making them stronger down the stretch, I think that is a goal of any program. Pitching is a premium at this level. My philosophy is to throw strikes and get outs... and that is what we are going to accomplish. Hopefully that translates into guys being stronger down the stretch. |
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| Tom(Tucson): After you've read all about the Sun Devil's season last year, can you expect them to go further than they did in the College World Series? |
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Jack: Must be a Wildcat fan here... every year we have the goal of not only getting to Omaha, but winning in Omaha! |
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| Karen C. (Tempe): I know that ya'll have just started, but could each of you tell us who you think, based on your limited knowledge of the kids, will surprise the fans this year??? |
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Jack: Pitching wise, I think Jason (Urquidez) will be one of the dominant guys in the Pac-10 once again. Erik (Averill) had a good summer and has two years of experience under his belt. As for some of the new guys, I think Tony Barnette and Kevin Dryanski will be solid figures in our bullpen! |
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Tim: I think fans will really enjoy watching Kevin Romine. Replacing Dustin Pedroia will not be easy, but Kevin is an exciting player that can really play. Rocky Laguna is a redshirt that is pretty exciting and Eric Sogard can flat out hit. I think people are really going to like watching J.J. Sferra. He has grown up around the program and will make an impact right away! |
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| Greg (Mobile, Ala.): How has college baseball changed since you were a player and even an assistant coach at ASU in the late '80s? |
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Tim: From being a player, I've noticed that the game is a lot more physical. The weight training is a big part of the every day life of a college baseball player. From a coaches standpoint, the parity of the college game is unbelievable. It is an exciting time in college baseball. The game is more publicized and it gets a lot more attention when the postseason rolls around. I think this sport is ready to explode and that will do nothing but good for the game. Getting to Omaha is a lot tougher than it was back in the '80s. |
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| Tim (Crystal Lake, Ill.): What's it like coaching along side Murphy... there are a lot of things said about him across the nation and just wanted to see what it's like from one of his coaches. |
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Jack: It has been great. I couldn't imagine being in any other situation. He is a competitor and wants to win at all costs. Don't we all! |
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| Doug (Tempe): Where do you see Larish moving to -1st or 3rd? Will he see any time in the outfield? Also with him moving to the infield, how do you see the outfield shaping up besides Buck/Curtis? |
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Tim: Jeff is a guy that has played first and third in his career here and we want to take a long look at him at third base. Obviously Jeff is very versatile, so we will put him in the best position to make our club and and himself better. As for the outfield, Travis and Colin are returning starters and will be out there once again. Rocky Laguna and J.J. Sferra will also push for time out there. We are going to have a very talented outfield and one that I consider will be one of the best in the nation! |
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| Moderator: Sun Devil sophomore infielder Joe Persichina just stopped into the baseball office to say hi to everyone! |
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| Don, Tempe: Welcome back to ASU, gentlemen! How is ASU's baseball program viewed from outside the Valley? |
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Jack: It is viewed as one of the top five baseball programs in the nation. Being in pro baseball, ASU is a college program that is always talked about. It has unlimited potential and is always near the top of the rankings. Coming from USC, they were always our biggest rivals and they were always the toughest games. This program is well known for playing a hard-nosed style of baseball. It is pretty special to watch. |
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| Karen C. (Tempe): What team/teams do you look forward to coaching against in the Spring?? |
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Tim: I am really excited to just come back and play the Pac-10 each weekend. It is going to be awesome to see those rivalries from the old Six-Pac days. Tulane, Long Beach State, East Carolina... those will all be tough games. ASU always has one of the toughest schedules in the nation. Stay tuned for the 2005 schedule to be released in the next month, but it will once again be very tough. |
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| Jason (Peoria): Coming from Utah, Tim, what was it like playing against Pat Murphy's teams. Are you glad you don't have to play them anymore? |
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Tim: It was a given that the Devils played hard, aggressive and a relentless style of baseball. If you gave them an inch, they took advantage of it. The kids were always well prepared and well coached. We were also treated with class whenever we came down here. It will nice to be iin the same dugout as Murph, rather than across the field. |
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| Don, Tempe: What can you tell us about the improvements to Packard Stadium this year, and future plans for upgrades? |
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Tim: A new clubhouse for the players has been completed and it is easily one of the best in the nation. It is long overdue by recruiting standards. Packard Stadium is now playing catchup with the rest of the top-notch programs. We have a long ways to go with hopes of installing chair-back seats, some coverage from the sun, a new press box and a coaches lockerrom that is on the way. |
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| Moderator: A shameless plug is also needed from the SID for wireless internet over at Packard Stadium! Any supporters would be welcome :) |
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| john-mesa: To what extent has the Az D-backs hurt the ASU program in terms of interest in ASU, and declining ASU baseball attendance from the 1980's???? |
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Jack: I don't think it has. There is every kind of pro team in town, so I think that some interest has left to the pro level, but overall we still have some of the best supporters in college baseball. Year in and year out we are No. 1 on the West Coast in attendance and that says something about our fans. I think once people come out and see the brand of exciting baseball that is played, people get hooked. I invite everyone to come out in late January to see us take on Long Beach State to open the 2005 season! |
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| Janet (Tempe): I know school has just started, but of the new freshman class, who looks to stand out as exciting new players. |
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Tim: We are excited about this freshman class. It is a great class and they have shown so far that they have a lot of ability. There is a lot of time before the season, so figuring out who is the best will take some time. |
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| Martha, San Diego: What is the recruiting climate for ASU? Have you seen increased competition for So. California talent? |
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Tim: Arizona State recruiting is dedicated to finding the best talent in state of Arizona, the West Coast and around the nation. So, the climate is pretty much all inclusive. Southern California is a baseball hotbed, no doubt about it. We recruit that area hard and have gotten some great players out of that area. Andrew Romine is the latest from that area and he will be an immediate impact player. |
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| Moderator: Thanks to everyone that asked questions to Tim and Jack. We will be sure to do more of these live chats to keep you informed on what is going on with Sun Devil Baseball. Look for the 2005 schedule to be announced in the coming month! |
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