PHOENIX -- Eighth-ranked Sun Devil Baseball will host its second consecutive series to open the season, welcoming Boston College for a three-game set beginning this Friday, Feb. 21 at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Friday and Saturday's tilts will get underway at 6:30 p.m. AZT while the finale is set for a 12:30 p.m. first pitch on Sunday. All three games will be available to be streamed live through the Pac-12 Network Live Stream.
Follow the Action
- All games this weekend will be carried through the Pac-12 Network Live Stream, available at: https://pac-12.com/live/arizona-state-university.
- Fans are encouraged to follow along in-game content throughout the weekend on the Sun Devil Baseball
#10THINGS (Twitter-Friendly Notes)
1. The Sun Devils logged 94 home runs last season, leading the nation in home runs per game and a Pac-12 record in the BBCOR era.
2. .@spennyt leads the nation in being walked nine times this season, five of which have been of the intentional variety
3. .@spennyt has at least one hit in 95 of his 117 career games at ASU and has multiple hits in 47 of those.
4. .@spennyt has played in 31 weekend series/postseason tournaments in his career and homered at least once in 25 of those.
5. All five Sun Devil pitchers have recorded a quality start through ASU's first five games, the first such five-game stretch of QS's since 2011.
6. It is the first time in recorded history that ASU has had five DIFFERENT pitchers record a quality start in five straight games.
7. Against OSU, .@ErikTolman became the first Sun Devil to strike out 12 batters in 6 or fewer innings of work since Mitchell Lambson in 2009.
8. ASU's 61 double plays last season were fourth in the nation as the Devils tied a school record with a .976 fielding percentage.
9. ASU's 18 total strikeouts against Oklahoma State were the most its had against a Power Five team since 1998 (Cal).
10. Early returns on new pitching coach Jason Kelly have been largely positive with ASU second in the Pac-12 with a team 2.20 ERA.
BY THE NUMBERS
94 - The Sun Devils led the nation in home runs during the 2019 regular season with 92 (finishing with 94 including the postseason), the most since the 1993 Sun Devils recorded 97 homers. The Sun Devils were the NCAA statistical champion in home runs per game at 1.65. The 94 homers were easily a Pac-12 record for the BBCOR era of batting standards, surpassing Oregon State's total of 67 in 2018. ASU was the first Power Five school in that BBCOR era to have multiple players reach the 20-home run milestone thanks to Torkelson (23) and Bishop (22).
18 - ASU's 18 strikeouts against #24 Oklahoma State were the most for against a Power Five program since March 21, 1998, against Cal. It was the most, period, since a 21-strikeout effort in 2001 against a now defunct Southern Utah program. Erik Tolman struck out 12 - the most for an ASU pitcher since Ryan Kellogg had 12 strikeouts against Oregon on May 12, 2014. It took Kellogg eight innings to get to that mark, while Tolman was able to reach the number in just six innings of work.It was the most strikeouts in six or fewer innings since Mitchell Lambson had 12 on March 14, 2009 in 5.2.
5 - The Sun Devil pitching rotation has had as effective of a five-game stretch to open the season as it has in recent memory. The Sun Devils have not allowed more than five runs in each of the first five games, the first time accomplishing that feat to start a season since 2012. Each of ASU's five separate starting pitchers has recorded a quality start in their first outing of the season (3 or fewer earned runs in 6.0+ innings of work). ASU's five consecutive quality starts are the most since a seven-game stretch in 2011.
5 - Opponents have wanted no part of Spencer Torkelson this season, intentionally walking him five times through the first five games. Torkelson was electric in the first two games of the season, sending each of his first two hits of the 2020 season out of the ball park. The junior now has 50 homers in his career and is within six of tying Bob Horner's long-standing school record of 56. He needs two home runs to move into sole possession of second in ASU history (Jeff Larish, 51)
On The Eagles
- ASU is 5-0 all-time against Boston College and but have not seen each other since a dominant four-game series for the Sun Devils back in 1999 that included one game where ASU set a school record with 10 doubles. ASU scored 20 or more runs in three of the four games.
- BC went 3-1 on opening weekend against Northern Illinois in Winter Haven, Fla. Three senior Eagles went 6-for-13 in the series, including shortstop Brian Dempsey, who hit an opening day home run and totaled a team-high seven RBI.
- First baseman Jack Cunningham hit two doubles and outfielder Joe Suozzi added a triple. Sophomore outfielder Sal Frelick returned to the lineup and went 5-for-14 with six runs and three stolen bases.
- Sophomore right-hander Mason Pelio gets the ball on Friday night. He went five innings with two runs against him and four strikeouts in the opening day win vs. NIU.
- The BC game hat features a "Strike Out ALS" patch on the side and this year the Eagles honor former captain Pete Frates with a "PF3" patch on each jersey. Frates, diagnosed with ALS in 2012, was an avid fundraiser and advocate for a cure by spreading awareness, including the Ice Bucket Challenge. He passed on Dec. 9, 2019. The Sun Devils will honor Pete prior to Sunday's contest.
Fear the Tork
- Projected as No. 1 Overall Pick in several early MLB mock drafts and a unanimous Top-3 Pick in any mock draft he's not listed No. 1, junior first baseman Spencer Torkelson figures to pace a potent offense against this season.
- The junior opened the season with a bang with each of his first two hits of the campaign leaving the ball park in the series against Villanova. The Wildcats didn't need a third reminder, and Torkelson was intentional walked four times over the rest of the series.
- Torkelson leads the nation with nine walks through five games, five of which of the intentional variety.
- Torkelson has 50 homers in his career, needing just seven to surpass Bob Horner's long-standing school record of 56 and two to move into sole possession of second in ASU history (Jeff Larish, 51).
- Torkelson needs 23 home runs to break into the NCAA all-time Top-10 in career homers and in doing so would become the first player in the BBCOR era to even sniff the feat. He would be just the second player since 2000 to have a career home run tally that left him in the Top-10 in NCAA homers (Matt LaPorta, Florida).
Pay the Tolman
- Erik Tolman was thrust into several crucial spots as a true freshman this season and responded best when the lights were on, showing off his skills in a number of two-way roles
- Tolman's 2020 debut was absolutely electric as he posted a career-best 12 strikeouts against #24 Oklahoma State - the most for an ASU pitcher since Ryan Kellogg had 12 strikeouts against Oregon on May 12, 2014. It took Kellogg eight innings to get to that mark, while Tolman was able to reach the number in just six innings of work.
- It was the most strikeouts in six or fewer innings since Mitchell Lambson had 12 on March 14, 2009 against Kansas in 5.2 innings.
- In 2019, Tolman went 3-1 with two saves this season and a team-best 3.38 ERA among pitchers averaging at least two innings per game and didn't allowed an earned run in 15 of his 24 appearances
- Tolman struck out 49 batters and in 48.0 innings pitched.
- Opponent's .206 batting average against Tolman last year, easily the lowest on the team.
- Tolman was dominant when he has two strikes to his credit in 2020, holding opponents to 4-35 (.114) in 1-2 counts and 5-of-30 (.167) in 2-2 counts with 33 of his 49 strikeouts.
- With runners on the basepath, opponents bat just 17-of-86 (.198) against Tolman in 2020 and he has been shutdown with two outs, limiting the opposition to 8-of-54 (.148) while stranding 53 baserunners.
Pounding The Zone
- ASU's new pitching coach Jason Kelly has made immediate impressions on the Sun Devil pitching staff based on early returns
- The Sun Devil pitching rotation has had as effective of a five-game stretch to open the season as it has in recent memory. The Sun Devils have not allowed more than five runs in each of the first five games, the first time accomplishing that feat to start a season since 2012.
- Each of ASU's five separate starting pitchers has recorded a quality start in their first outing of the season (3 or fewer earned runs in 6.0+ innings of work).
- ASU's five consecutive quality starts are the most since a seven-game stretch in 2011 (one game against Fullerton and series against Arizona and Oregon).
- ASU finished the first week of action second in the Pac-12 and Top-50 nationally with a team 2.20 ERA.
- ASU's 18 strikeouts against #24 Oklahoma State were the most for against a Power Five program since March 21, 1998, against Cal. It was the most, period, since a 21-strikeout effort in 2001 against a now defunct Southern Utah program.
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#24 OKLAHOMA STATE (1-2) | BOSTON COLLEGE (3-1) | #8 ASU (2-2)
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THIS WEEK
Tuesday, February 18, 6:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Oklahoma State (Tempe) | WATCH LIVE: Pac-12 Live Stream | LISTEN: NBC Sports Radio 1060 AM
Friday, February 21, 6:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Boston College (Tempe) | WATCH LIVE: Pac-12 Live Stream
Saturday, February 22, 6:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Boston College (Tempe) | WATCH LIVE: Pac-12 Live Stream
Sunday, February 23, 12:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Boston College (Tempe) | WATCH LIVE: Pac-12 Live Stream
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NEXT WEEK
Tuesday, February 25, 6:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. New Mexico State (Tempe) | WATCH LIVE: Pac-12 Live Stream
Friday, February 28, 6:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Nebraska (Tempe) | WATCH LIVE: Pac-12 Live Stream
Saturday, February 29, 6:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Nebraska (Tempe) | WATCH LIVE: Pac-12 Live Stream
Sunday, March 1, 12:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Nebraska (Tempe) | WATCH LIVE: Pac-12 Live Stream
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LAST WEEK
Friday, February 14, 6:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Villanova (Tempe) | W, 4-1
Saturday, February 15, 12 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Villanova (Tempe) | L, 1-2
Saturday, February 15, 6:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. #8 Michigan (Tempe) | L, 0-5
Sunday, February 16, 12:30 p.m. | Arizona State vs. Villanova (Tempe) | W, 6-4
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