PHOENIX -- The No. 9 Sun Devil Baseball program returns home for a three-game Territorial Cup tilt against in-state rival Arizona, beginning Friday, March 29 at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. The game is scheduled to have a first pitch of 7 p.m. Arizona Time on Friday and Saturday while Sunday's tilt getting underway at 1 p.m. Each game will be available through the Pac-12 Networks.
Follow the Action
- Each game this weekend will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks. Friday's game with be available on Pac-12 Arizona while Saturday and Sunday's tilts will be broadcast on the national network. Daron Sutton and Ben Francisco will be on the call.
- Each game will also be available over the airwaves on NBC Sports Radio 1060 AM KDUS with the Voice of the Sun Devils, Tim Healey, alongside analyst Max Rossiter.
- Fans are encouraged to follow along in-game content throughout the weekend on the Sun Devil Baseball account (@ASU_Baseball).
A Hot Start
- The Sun Devils were the last undefeated team in the country, starting out the season 21-0 and matching the second best start in program history (1961). Only the 2010 team that started 24-0 had a better start to the year.
- The Sun Devil offense has put up monster numbers during the start, scoring 226 runs (6th nationally/2nd Pac-12). ASU is second in the country in scoring at 9.8 runs per game.
- The Sun Devils have scored double digit runs in 11 of the team's 23 games this season. For perspective, ASU scored double digit runs just 8 times in 55 games last season.
- ASU is fourth nationally in home runs (first in the league) with 38, second nationally in batting average (.344), fifth in on-base percentage (.427) and second in slugging percentage (.557).
- While much ado has been made about the bats, it has been the Sun Devil pitching rotation that has quietly put up a 2.68 ERA that is currently 9th in the nation and third in the Pac-12 after several consecutive seasons above a 4.50 team ERA.
Fear the Tork
- All-American Spencer Torkelson now has multiple hits in 33 of his 78 career starts (.423).
- Torkelson is batting .389 on the season on 37-of-95 hitting with four home runs, six doubles with 28 RBIs.
- His 37 hits are 2nd in the league and 39th nationally while his 28 RBIs are also second in the conference and 44th in the country.
- Torkelson has multiple hits in a team-best 14 of ASU's 23 games this season and at least one RBI in 13 of those (multiple RBIs in 8).
- Torkelson is batting .455 with runners in scoring position with a team best 15 hits on 33 chances.
- He has been an extremely tough out to end the inning, currently 13-of-28 with two outs (.464) with a team-best 18 two-out RBI on his 28 total RBIs - three of which coming on his 11th-inning walk-off home run against Michigan State.
- He is leads the team in advancing runners, doing so 41 times on 66 opportunities (.621).
- Spencer Torkelson was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week for the Opening Week of the 2019 season. It was the second time in his career earning the honor.
- Defensively, Torkelson has also made impressive strides. He has yet to post an error on 197 chances (3rd in the Pac-12) while he leads the league in helping to turn 21 double plays this season.
#TorksUp
- Torkelson led the country in 2018 with 25 home runs – two more than any other player and just one shy of the NCAA freshman record while becoming first freshman in NCAA history to lead the nation in home runs.
- Became 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.
- Slugged a gaudy .743 on the season (25 homers, 12 doubles), the third-highest total for any freshman in the NCAA in the past two decades and the highest for a freshman in the BBCOR era (since 2011). Only Rickie Weeks (.849 in 2001) and Jeremy Baltz (.771, 2010) posted higher freshman slugging percentages in the past 20 years.
- Torkelson was a unanimous All-American, as every major baseball media outlet in the nation rewarded the freshman with at least one All-America accolade (Collegiate Baseball Newspaper, Baseball America, NCBWA, and Perfect Game).
- Honored with Perfect Game's National Freshman of the Year award.
- Named a Golden Spikes Award Semifinalist, an award honoring the best player in college baseball.
- National Collegiate Baseball Writers of America named him as a third-team All-America selection; Earned third-team recognition from Perfect Game; Placed on the Perfect Game Freshman All-America First Team; Named by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper as the National Co-Freshman of the Year and the NCBWA as the National Freshman Hitter of the Year.
- Just the seventh Sun Devil in school history to be named an All-American as a freshman, joining Mike Kelly (1989) and Casey Myers (1998) as the only two ASU position players to be named All-Americans as freshman.
- The third Sun Devil to be named Pac-12 Freshman/Newcomer of the Year, joining Ike Davis (2006) and Jason Kipnis (2008).
Hunting Party
- Hunter Bishop leads the nation with 14 home runs this season - six more than any other player in the Pac-12
- Bishop has just one less home run (14) this season than he has strikeouts (15). He has also walked 20 times - fifth in the Pac-12
- The junior is second in the Pac-12 with a .427 batting average on the season - 13th nationally - and leads the league with 36 RBIs (3rd in the nation).
- His 1.034 slugging percentage leads the country. He has accounted for 92 total bases - 28 more bases than any other player in the Pac-12 and second in the nation.
- He is also a 8-for-10 on stolen base attempts - second in the Pac-12.
- Bishop has scored 36 runs on the season, a total that leads the Pac-12 and is third in the country.
- Bishop's .545 on-base percentage is third in the league and 9th in the country.
- Bishop leads the team in successfully advancing baserunners, doing so .645 percent of the time on 40-of-62 chances.
- He is the only player that has reached base in each of ASU's 23 games this season and posted the longest hitting streak at 13 games.
- He leads the team with 10 multi-RBI games (two more than any other player) and is second on the squad with 13 multi-hit games.
Marshing to the Beat
- Alec Marsh has allowed three earned runs or fewer in 24 of his last 25 appearances dating back to his freshman season.
- Dating back to last season, Marsh has a posted a quality start in 10 of his last 14 starts since assuming the mantle of Mr. Friday Night midway through the 2018 campaign. He has posted three consecutive quality starts on Friday nights and has not allowed a run in his last 22.2 innings pitched in a series opener/Friday (he took the Saturday start in the series against Xavier).
- Marsh posted three consecutive quality starts to open 2019 and is 6-0 on the season - tied for first nationally in victories.
- His 0.65 ERA is currently 6th in the nation and second in the Pac-12 - though first among Pac-12 starting pitchers. Marsh is one of just two players nationally to have 40+ innings pitched with a sub-1.00 ERA and one of just 23 players in the country to have a sub-1.00 ERA, period.
- Marsh has allowed just three earned runs this season, two fewer than any other Pac-12 starter on the year.
- His 38 strikeouts are currently fourth in the league as well.
- Marsh is first among Pac-12 pitchers with 41.2 innings pitched this season.
- Marsh has been absolutely dominant when runners reach base against him, holding opponents to just 10-of-62 hitting (.161) with runners on the base path.
- The junior is not hesitant about pounding the strike zone, recording a first-pitch strike a team-best 67.4 percent of the time this season and has fallen into 2-0 counts just 15 times on 144 batters faced on the year.
- Marsh dominates when getting ahead of the count, holding batters to 1-15 hitting (.067) with balls in play on 0-2 counts and 1-of-21 hitting (.048) on 1-2 counts with 17 combined strikeouts between the two.
- Marsh struck out 10 batters on Opening Night, the first time an ASU player had reached double digits in a game since Seth Martinez in March of 2016. Marsh also became the first Sun Devil in at least 20 years to throw 10 strikeouts on Opening Night. Since at least 1998 (as far back as readily accessible records go), no Sun Devil had struck out more than eight batters on Opening Night until Marsh's performance.
#LINSANITY
- Lyle Lin has embraced his new role as the team's designated hitter this season, currently second the Pac-12 and 44th in the nation with 28 RBIs.
- Lins 28 RBIs through 23 games are an incredible tally considering the junior had just 18 RBIs total during the 2018 season, despite starting every game.
- He has multiple RBIs in 7 games this season, good for third on the team.
- Lin is 10-for-14 this season in bringing runners from third home with less than two outs, a notable area of struggle for the junior was was just 2-for-12 in the category last season.
- Lin is third on the team in advancing baserunners, doing so 34 times on 61 chances (.557).
- Lin recorded the game-winning RBI (the RBI that put ASU ahead for the remainder of the game) in all three of ASU's games against UC Davis.
- Lin became the first Sun Devil since 2014 to hit a grand slam with his round-tripper in the second game of the UC Davis series.
- Lin has started in all 133 games he has appeared in at Arizona State.
Put Me In, Coach
- The consummate team player, fans can expect to find Carter Aldrete all over the diamond this season. Aldrete has seen time in right field, second base, third base and on the mound this season
- Aldrete is currently 8th in the Pac-12 with 25 RBIs this season. Of those 25 RBIs, 14 have come with two outs.
- He has 12 hits with two outs this season, third on the team and has a .364 average in the scenario on 12-of-33 hitting.
- Has four home runs on the season, already a career-high and tied for 10th in the Pac-12.
- Aldrete is second on the team in advancing runners home from third with less than two outs, doing so 6 times.
- Had a monster game in Game 2 against Notre Dame, posting his first multi-home run game of his career while adding a career-best six RBIs in the process.
Just Like He Drew It Up
- Despite missing three weeks to injury, Drew Swift returned to the lineup and continued to show he is one of ASU's most improved hitters.
- The sophomore was batting .326 with 6 doubles and 10 RBIs in the early going of the year. The 6 doubles are already a career high, despite missing several weeks of action and currently sit just outside the Top-10 in the Pac-12.
- Batting out of the nine-hole this season, Swift successfully turned the order around over 40 percent of the time with his .418 on-base percentage.
- Swift has been a part of 10 double plays this season, despite the time missed, and sits just outside the Top-10 in the Pac-12 in the category.
- Became the first Sun Devil since Jake Peevyhouse in 2014 to have three doubles in a game, doing so against San Diego.
A Lot to Alika
- Alika Williams has quietly continued to put up impressive numbers as a sophomore is currently third on the team in batting .388 with 22 RBIs as well as his first career home run against Fullerton.
- Williams surpassed his 2018 RBI total (20) just 23 games into this season.
- Williams is currently 7th in the Pac-12 with a .490 on-base percentage
- Williams is second on the team with 6 doubles this season - just outside the Pac-12 top-10 in the category
- Williams has been a part of 11 double plays this season, good for 11th in the Pac-12 and playing a key role in ASU currently sitting second in the Pac-12 with 24 double plays turned on the year (12th in the country).
- Williams is currently sixth in the Pac-12 with 53 defensive assists this season.
- Wiliams .965 fielding percentage this season is currently third among the Pac-12 day-to-day starters at shortstop behind only WSU's Andres Alvarez (.987) and Stanford's Brandon Dieter (.984).
- Last season, his 13 strikeouts were the lowest among players with at least 22 starts.
- As a freshman, Williams teamed up with fellow freshman infielder Drew Swift to execute 30 double plays.
Putting in the Work
- On the year, Gage Workman is batting .330 with 20 runs scored, three home runs, a triple and five doubles for a solid .505 slugging percentage.
- After not having a home run in the first four weeks of the year, Workman erupted for three in the Washington State series (two coming as a left-handed batter and the other as a right-handed batter).
- The sophomore is 10th in the Pac-12 with 49 defensive assists this season.
- Workman has helped turn nine double plays on the season, helping ASU to currently being second in the Pac-12 with 24 double plays turned.
- Collegiate Baseball News Freshman All-American in 2018
- Collected seven triples as a freshman, tied for the fifth highest total in the country and second on the team behind the national leader in the category, teammate Gage Canning.
- Did not ground into a double play all last season, the only ASU regular that can make that claim.
- Posted an OPS of .805, slugging .466 (3rd on team) and reaching base at a .339 clip.
Filling the Boyd
- Boyd Vander Kooi is current 2-0 on the season and second on the team with 30 strikeouts in 29.2 innings pitched.
- Vander Kooi has 14 strikeouts looking on the season, good for 6th in the Pac-12 Conference while his 27 strikeouts are tied for 13th.
- Made 10 appearances as a freshman last season, including five starts, finishing the campaign with a 3-3 record.
- His 3.00 ERA tied him for the lowest on the team among those with at least 36 innings pitched as a freshman last season
- Stuck out 35 batters, allowing just 12 earned runs in 36.0 innings pitched.
- Made his final five appearances (8.1 innings) out of the bullpen, preventing an earned run from scoring in four of the five outings.
- Did not allow an earned run in six of his ten outings.
Trev Lightly and Carry a Big Stick
- Perhaps no player on the Sun Devil roster has shown as much improvement this season as sophomore Trevor Hauver.
- The leadoff man has a .496 on-base percentage this season - a total good for 5th in the Pac-12.
- Hauver has drawn 22 walks on the season - currently 4th in the Pac-12 and 35th nationally.
- Hauver has scored 33 runs this season, second in the league and 7th nationally
- Hauver has also showed plenty of pop in the bat, second on the team with 7 home runs this season - fourth in the Pac-12 and 29th nationally.
- As a leadoff batter in an inning, Hauver has reached base 19 times this season on 42 chances (.452).
- Hauver has been very productive for his teammates as well, successfully advancing runners 26 times on 49 chances (.531). Of ASU's day-to-day starters, Hauver's 12 runners left stranded this season are the fewest on the team.
Pay the Tolman
- Erik Tolman has been thrust into several crucial spots as a true freshman this season and responded best when the lights were on.
- Tolman is 3-0 with a save this season and second on the team with a 0.74 ERA - good for third in the Pac-12 and 13th in the country this season
- Tolman has struck out 23 batters and in 24.1 innings pitched.
- Opponent's .125 batting average against Tolman this season is the lowest total in the Pac-12 and nearly 25 points lower than any other pitcher.
- Tolman has allowed just tw extra-base hits this season (both doubles) - the lowest total among Pac-12 pitchers.
- He is one of just seven Pac-12 pitchers with the minimum innings pitched to not allow a home run this season.
Dab On 'Em
- RJ Dabovich has proven to be one of the top offseason additions for the Sun Devils, currently posting a 5-0 record while dominating Sundays for the Sun Devils.
- Dabovich has a 2.97 ERA on the season, just outside the Pac-12's top-10 in the category.
- His .218 batting average against is good for 11th in the league and his five wins are second in the league and tied for third in the country.
All That Chaz
- Chaz Montoya has quickly developed a role as the team's stopper in several crucial scenatios this season.
- Montoya leads the squad with 13 appearances in 23 games, posting a 0.79 ERA in 11.1 innings pitched with 13 strikeouts to 4 walks.
- Montoya has inherited a team-high 17 runners this season, allowing just one of them to score
- In his 13 appearances, Montoya has retired the first batter he has seen on 11 occasions.
- Montoya has not allowed an earned run since the second game of the season - a streak of 11 consecutive appearances.
- Montoya is 2-0 on the season with a team-high two saves as well.
A Ferri Tale
- Forced to sit on the bench with injury for the majority of his first two seasons, catcher Sam Ferri has quickly established himself as a gamechanger as a regular in the ASU lineup.
- Ferri is batting .303 on the season with 14 RBIs and eight extra-base hits.
- Ferri's 6 doubles are just outside the Pac-12's top-10 in the category.
- More importantly has been his effect on the game behind the plate, where he is fourth in the Pac-12 with five runners caught stealing this season and just one error on 156 chances.
- Ferri notched his first career home run in walk-off fashion, a solo shot in the bottom of the ninth to help clinch the series over Washington State.
Sam I Am
- Sam Romero has quietly put up impressive numbers this season, giving ASU solid midweek starts while being able to turn it around and eat some quality innings on the weekends as well.
- Romero is 1-0 with a save this year with a 0.79 ERA in 22.2 innings pitched, just 0.1 innings away from qualifying for the national rankings in which he would be 14th nationally in ERA and fourth in the Pac-12 conference.
- Romero has struck out 19 batters to just four walks while allowing just two total earned runs on the year.
- Had an impressive week against Cal Baptist and Oregon, earning the win with a scoreless 5.0 innings pitched against Cal Baptist before coming back and sealing the series on the road against Oregon with another scoreless 3.2 innings pitched to earn the save. In those two performances, Romero stranded a total of 11 baserunners on the base path.
The Brady Bunch
- Brady Corrigan has quickly asserted himself as one of ASU's go-to players out of the pen, appearing in 12 of ASU's 23 games this season.
- Corrigan has inherited 16 runners this season, allowing just two of them to score.
- Corrigan has a 2.75 ERA in 19.3 innings pitched with a 2-0 record while sitting third on the team with 27 strikeouts.
Bend But Don't Break
- Opponents haven't been without their chances to score runs this season, but the Sun Devil defense and pitching rotation have been exceptional on the year in getting out of innings with minimal damage caused.
- ASU has stranded 203 opponent baserunners this season (8.8 per game), including stranding 15+ in games against Washington State and Oregon.
- The Sun Devils have done so in part by turning a ton of double plays, with the squad's 24 total double plays currently 12th nationally and second in the league.
- The Sun Devil pitching rotation is holding opponents under .220 hitting on the season with runners on the basepath.
- Leading that charge is Chaz Montoya (2-for-20, .100), Erik Tolman (4-for-34, .118) and Alec Marsh (10-for-62, .161).
Chicks Dig The Long Ball
- ASU's power numbers this season have been at another level with ASU already posting 38 home runs through 24 games - a total that is currently fourth nationally.
- Nine different Sun Devils have gone yard this season, with seven of those doing so 3 or more times.
- ASU's 38 home runs are 14 more than any other team in the Pac-12 (Cal is second with 28).
- The Devils' .566 slugging percentage as a team is nearly 76 points higher than any other program in the conference.
- ASU had 50 home runs last season, a mark that the current roster is well on pace to demolish as the season goes on.
On The Ground
- The Sun Devil pitching staff has been exceptional at inducing soft contact this season and allowing balls to go into play for the defense to handle, currently leading the Pac-12 with 899 defensive chances this season.
- The frequent groundouts (208) have put the pressure on a Sun Devil defensive infield that had struggled with errors in recent seasons but the group has responded admirably to the extra chances this season.
- ASU has record 244 defensive assists this season, a total that leads the Pac-12 by 16.
- The roster has turned 24 double plays on the year, second in the Pac-12 and 12th in the country.
- ASU is 36th nationally in fielding percentage (.977), which is a far cry from the team that was 230th last season and 184th the season before.