PHOENIX -- Sun Devil Baseball returns home to square off UC Irvine in a three-game set at Phoenix Municipal Stadium beginning Friday, March 3. The opener will get underway at 6 p.m. AZT with Saturday set for 1 p.m.. and closing things out Sunday at 12:30 p.m.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
- All three games will be available through Pac-12 Network Live Stream, produced by the ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and accessible here: https://pac-12.com/live/arizona-state-university
- Friday and Saturday's games will be broadcast live over local airwaves on KDUS 1060 AM with Jeff Munn and Max Rossiter on the call.
- Fans are encouraged to follow along pre-game and in-game content and any schedule updates throughout the weekend on the Sun Devil Baseball Twitter account: @ASU_Baseball.
#10THINGS
1. ASU has stranded 66 opponent baserunners this season (8.3 per game), continuing a trend from a year ago where the tally was 8.6 per game.
2. Wyatt Crenshaw is the Pac-12 leader with his .484 batting average this season while Luke Hill is second at .481.
3. The Sun Devils are 3-0 in one-run games this season, a notable tally as ASU went just 1-7 in one-score games last season.
4. The Sun Devils have also won two games by way of walk-off this season (both courtesy of Will Rogers' bat), something it did not do a year ago.
5. Ryan Campos was one of just 19 freshmen to crack the Top-250 in the NCAA in batting average last year and the only freshman Power Five catcher to do so.
6. ASU is second in the Pac-12 with 13 home runs this season and eight different Sun Devils have gone yard in the first couple of weeks.
7. Dunn, Curtis and Hansell have done especially well with runners on the basepath, holding opponents to 6-for-37 hitting with runners (.162).
8. ASU is 14-for-39 (.360) on first pitch balls in play this season with four home runs and 11 of the team's 43 RBIs this season.
9. Christian Bodlovich has allowed just 19-of-66 inherited runners score in his career (28.8 percent) as ASU's go-to arm in a jam
10. Brock Peery led the Pac-12 in '22 with 10 saves - tied for 7th-most at ASU since 1998 and first in double digits since 2016. He has two this season.
BY THE NUMBERS
28 - The Sun Devils welcome an incredible 28 new faces to the roster in 2023. ASU went hard in the Transfer Portal during the offseason, recording the No. 2 transfer portal class in the nation according to several outlets. The new batch was highlighted by a total overhaul of the pitching staff, which will feature three transfer starters this weekend in LHP Ross Dunn (Florida State), RHP Khristian Curtis (Texas A&M) and LHP Timmy Manning (Florida). Preseason All-American Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) highlights the incoming position players).catcher to do so.
6 - Last year, true freshman Ryan Campos led the Sun Devils with a .357 average on the year – the sixth best freshman average in program history and just ahead of head coach Willie Bloomquist's .356 average. It was the seventh-highest average in the Pac-12 prior to the NCAA tournament. It was the 11th-highest batting average for a catcher in the NCAA prior to the tournament and the fourth-highest for a Power Five catcher. It was the 10th-highest batting average for a freshman in the NCAA prior to the tourney and the best freshman catcher average in the country.
3 - Ethan Long leads the team with three home runs this season and has a homer in each of the last two games. His .304 average is currently third on the team. Long enters the weekend 11th in the Pac-12 in OBP (.529), tied for third in homers (3) and tight for eighth in walks (8). His eight walks to just four strikeouts are a notable stat as he is showing increased plate discipline early after striking out 38 times to just 18 walks last season. Long is up to 26 career home runs as he starts to eye the Top-10 in ASU history, needing to reach 38 to break through.
1 - The Sun Devils are currently 3-0 in one-run games on the season. This tally is especially notable as ASU managed just a 1-7 record in onep-run games last season. ASU has not lost a game this season in which it has been leading after the sixth (6-0), seventh (5-0) or eighth (5-0) innings. The Sun Devils have also walked off opponents twice this season, a feat it did not manage last year. Will Rogers owns the honor of both of those walk-off knocks with an RBI single on Opening Night followed by his one-out solo shot in the ninth against NDSU in a game where ASU trailed 7-0 at one point.
HONORING THE PAST
- The Sun Devils will wear black SB and MG tribute patches on batting helmets throughout the 2023 season to honor the loss of two great alumni this past offseason in Sal Bando and Mike Gallagher.
- While ASU has had several memorable pitching performances, none are more memorable than the perfect game thrown by Eddie Bane in 1973. ASU is proud to celebrate the 50th anniversary of this historic event and the team at Friday's game is Sun Devil southpaw Eddie Bane to throw out the first pitch. On March 2nd, fifty years ago, Bane struck out an amazing 19 batters and allowed only one fly ball to leave the infield in the 9-0 victory and perfect game over Cal-State Northridge.
LAST TIME OUT: MISSISSIPPI STATE/NORTH DAKOTA STATE
- ASU went into a tough road contest in Starkville last weekend and came back with a historic Friday night win, taking the contest 13-4 before dropping the final two games of the series.
- The nine-run winning margin is tied for the largest for Sun Devil Baseball in a road non-conference game against a Power 5 opponent (excluding Arizona) since May 2, 2001 - a 15-1 victory at Tennessee.
- After falling behind 7-0, for the second time in head coach Willie Bloomquist's tenure, the Sun Devils erased a seven-run deficit to win a game in Wednesday's 10-9 walk-off vicory over North Dakota State. ASU also doing so in the series finale against Cal last season.That's notable as ASU had not erased a seven-run deficit prior since March 3, 2000 against Arizona.
- It was ASU's second walk-off victory of the season, notable as ASU did not have any last season. It was also ASU's third one-run victory moving to 3-0 in such games after being 1-7 in one-run games last season.
ON DECK: UC IRVINE
- The Anteaters are off to a 7-1 start this season after starting 5-0 for just the third time in program history.
- While the two teams played a pair of midweek games in Irvine last season, this is the first weekend series between the two programs since the 1975 season. ASU went 6-3 over UCI in three weekend series from 1973-75.
- ASU dropped both games in Irvine last season by a single run in each game and have won four straight in the overall series (which ASU leads 9-8), including the loss that eliminated the Sun Devils from the 2007 College World Series.
WE WANT EZ
- Ethan Long was tabbed as the No. 37 overall collegiate prospect in the 2022 MLB Draft class by Baseball America last season and was selected with the very final pick of the 2022 MLB Draft though he will look to prove he is, in fact, Mr. Relevant for the Sun Devils this season. He was named to the Preseason All-Pac-12 Team for the 2023 season.
- Long has been one of the standouts offensively for ASU this year, sitting third on the team with a .304 average and leading the squad with three homers - including one in each of the last two games. His eight walks also pace the team
- Long enters the weekend 11th in the Pac-12 in OBP (.529), tied for third in homers (3) and tight for eighth in walks (8).
- Due to a left wrist injury last year, Long was unable to bat over the last month of the season, though he contributed on the mound. The big bat was a little slow getting going last year, but Long settled into a nice pace and he was fourth on the team with seven homers on the year despite missing the last month-plus of the year. Four of his seven home runs last season came in the sixth inning or later.
- He used 18 walks and 3 HBPs to post a .384 OBP over his .300 average.
- He was named the Pac-12 Player of the Week for the fourth time in his career following his efforts in the Washington series.
- Long became the 129th Sun Devil to be named an All-American following his freshman campaign in 2021, becoming a consensus selection after being named to teams by Collegiate Baseball News, NCBWA, and Baseball America. He also earned two freshman All-America nods (CBN/NCBWA) and was a First Team All-Pac-12 pick as well as an ACBA All-West Region second team selection and Pac-12 All-Conference first team pick
- Long finished the 2021 regular season 22nd nationally and second in the Pac-12 with 16 home runs while finishing 13th nationally and leading the league with a .725 slugging percentage on .340 hitting. He was sixth in the league with 53 RBI. His .340 average was the ninth-highest freshman average in Sun Devil history.
- That season, he finished with a team-best 54 RBI, tied with Barry Bonds for fourth in ASU freshman history while his 16 homers on the year surpassed Bonds for second in ASU freshman history behind only Spencer Torkelson (25) and good for Top-Five in the league.
- Behind Long's bat, ASU won five straight weekend series in the last half of the year. In a 19-game stretch, Long bat .444 with 40 RBI, 15 home runs, eight doubles, a 1.181 slugging percentage, a .500 OBP and an absurd 1.681 OPS. Of his 32 hits in that span, 23 were for extra bases.
GOING CAMP-ING
- Ryan Campos is tied for the team lead with eight walks this season, also tied for seventh in the Pac-12 while playing errorless ball behind the dish.
- Campos led the Sun Devils with a .357 average last year as a true freshman – the sixth-best freshman average in program history and just ahead of head coach Willie Bloomquist's .356 average.
- It was the seventh-highest average in the Pac-12 prior to the NCAA tournament and the 11th-highest batting average for a catcher in the NCAA prior to the tournament and the fourth-highest for a Power Five catcher.
- It was the 10th-highest batting average for a freshman in the NCAA prior to the tourney and the best freshman catcher average in the country.
- He was one of just 19 freshmen to crack the Top-250 in the NCAA in average and the only freshman Power Five catcher to do so.
- It marked the second straight season a true freshman led the team in average (Ethan Long last year) - something that has never happened in consecutive years in program history and just the fourth time in program history overall that it had happened.
- His .363 average in league-only games was the fifth-highest in the conference.
- His .438 OBP in league games was also tops on the team and ninth in the Pac-12 and tops among league catchers
- Campos had the best average on the team with runners in scoring position at 21-for-59 (.356).
- He had 20 multi-hit games last year – good for third on the team despite starting 13-15 fewer games than the majority of the other starters on the team.
- He threw out seven baserunners on the year despite catching in 10+ less games than the other league catchers.
ROGERS THAT
- Will Rogers got the Sun Devils off to a huge start on Opening Night, going 3-for-5 and a stolen base with a home run and a the game-winning walk-off single.
- He added his second walk-off of the season against NDSU with his one-out solo shot in the bottom of the ninth for a 10-9 victory.
- Rogers had nine homers last season, tied for fourth in ASU freshman school history.
- From April 1 on, Rogers had the second-highest average on the team at .373. respectively. He led the team with a .746 slugging percentage in that time with nine doubles, a triple and five homers.
- His 27 extra-base hits on the season were the third-most of any Pac-12 freshman and 19th in the league overall.
JACOB'S LADDER
- Jacob Tobias got the first RBI of the 2023 season with his RBI single in the first inning of Opening Night.
- Tobias knocked his first home-run of the season against NDSU, a go-ahead two-run shot late in the game and sits tied for the team lead with seven RBIs this season.
- Tobias was named to the Preseason All-Pac-12 team after being a first team selection as designated hitter last season.
- His 12 bases (two homers, two doubles) against Utah in the series finale were tied for the most by a Pac-12 player in a game last year.
- His seven homers last year were tied for eighth in ASU freshman history.
- His 23 RBIs in Pac-12 games were the second-most on the team, 20th in the Pac-12 and third among Pac-12 freshmen.
RUNNING UP THAT HILL
- Luke Hill did not at all look like a true freshman starting at shortstop over the first week of action, showing savy skills with the bat and with the glove.
- Hill lis second on the team with a .481 average that is second in the Pac-12 behind teammate Wyatt Crenshaw and his 13 hits are tied for fourth in the league.
- He notched his first career homer in the series finale against Mississippi State
- He has played errorless ball at short with a perfect 36-for-36 fielding percentage and his 22 defensive assists are tied for second in the league.
NOT SO QUIET WYATT
- Transfer Wyatt Crenshaw posted video game numbers last season at Colorado College and has quickly shown that was no fluke, speaking plenty loud with his bat despite saying approximately 18 total words in two post-game press conferences thus far thus season.
- Crenshaw is batting .584 on the season on 15-of-31 hitting, leading the Pac-12 in averaghe in the process.
- His gaudy .871 slugging percentage is third in the league while he is tied for second in the conference with four doubles.
- He has also played a nice right field for ASU, recording all 14 put outs on balls flown his way thus far with no errors.
STARTING ON THE RIGHT FOOT
- It took until the seventh game of the season for a Sun Devil starter to give up an earnd run.
- The group of Ross Dunn, Khristian Curtis, Timmy Manning and Josh Hansell combined for 22.1 innings to start the season before MSU broke through in the third inning of last Saturday's contest.
- Opponents are batting just .220 against ASU's starters this season and have yet to hit a home run off a weekend starter. The group has a 31-14 strikeout-to-walk ratio thus far this season.
- Dunn, Curtis and Hansell have done especially well with runners on the basepath, holding opponents to 6-for-37 hitting with runners (.162).
- The ASU pitching staff as a whole has a 21-3 strikeout-to-walk ratio in its last two games.
WELCOME TO THE JAM
- Christian Bodlovich has inherited 66 runners in his career at ASU, with only 19 scoring (28.8 percent), including an 11-for-37 tally last season.
- As a whole the Sun Devils have allowed just 13 of 28 inherited runners to score this season (46.4).
- ASU stranded 497 opponent baserunners last season - an average of 8.6 per game. That total is 66 this season - 8.3 per game.
- Brock Peery finished 10th in the nation with 34 appearances last season, a tally good for second in the Pac-12. He has appeared in five this season, currently tied for 11th in the nation
- Peery has yet to give up a run this season and has stranded a team-high six inherited runners on the year.
- Peery led the league with 10 saves last season year - good for 26th in the country. He added two in the first four games and tacked on a win for good measure.
- The 10 saves last season were tied for seventh-most at ASU since the 1998 season and marked the first time a closer reached double digits in the category at ASU since 2016.
PLAYING THE FIELD
- ASU turned 50 double plays last year - a tally good for 21st in Division I and fourth in the Pac-12. The squad has turned 110 double plays over the previous two seasons. ASU has seven this season, good for 40th in the country.
- After a shaky first game that saw three fielding errors, ASU has cleaned it up with just one in its last three games to bring its season fielding percentage up to .976 with only one other game with 2+ errors.
- ASU had four fielders in the Top-30 in fielding percentage in the Pac-12 last year (min. 100 chances) in Joe Lampe, Kai Murphy, Ryan Campos and Conor Davis. That was tied with USC and Oregon State for the most in the Pac-12.
- Sean McLain had the second-most defensive of assists of any player in the Pac-12 (179) - the second straight season an ASU player accomplished that feat following Drew Swift (171) in 2021.
- For the third straight season, the majority of position players on the diamond will be new faces with only Will Rogers (left field) and Ryan Campos (catcher) expected to reprise their roles from last season. ASU had just two players start last season in the same position they finished in 2021 (Joe Lampe in CF, Nate Baez at C and Sean McLain at 2B, though McLain was playing shortstop by the second weekend while Baez moved around the field by Week Two as well). ASU's only veteran starter in 2021 was Drew Swift - who shifted over to shortstop after spending the majority of his career at second base. All other positions on the diamond that season replaced by newcomers.
HEADED TO THE GAP
- ASU logged 10 doubles this season and multiple doubles in three games. Wyatt Crenshaw is second in the Pac-12 with four doubles
- ASU's .510 slugging percentage is fourth in the league and the team is second in the league.
- The Sun Devils recorded 134 doubles last year, good for 19th in the nation and third in the Pac-12. The 127 doubles during the regular season were the most for a Sun Devil team in the REGULAR SEASON in the BBCOR era (since 2011) and tied for the fifth-most in a regular season since 1998.
- ASU had at least one double in all but six games last season and multiple doubles in 36 of 58 games.
- There were 45 Pac-12 players with double-digit doubles in the regular season, of which ASU had seven (Baez, Lampe, Rogers, McLain, Long, Davis, Murphy). No other team had more than six.
- ASU reached double digits in hits in 28 of the last 34 games of 2022 and 37 times in 58 games. They are 2-for-4 in that category this season.
CHICKS DIG THE LONG BALL
- Eight different players have logged a home run for ASU already and four have multiuple home runs.
- ASU's 13 homers are second in the Pac-12 and 37th nationally.
- Of the nine position players with at least 30 starts last season, all nine had multiple home runs. ASU had ten total players with multiple homers.
- ASU had five players with at least seven homers last year, tied for the second-most at ASU since 1998.
- The timing of the home runs improved immesely over the second half of the last season. On 24 of the final 37 homers on the year, ASU had at least one runner on base. That was notable as ASU had runners on base just eight times on the teams first 27 homers. ASU will hope for some deja vu in that area with all six homers this season being of the solo variety.
- The Sun Devils had four grand slams last year - the most it had had in a season since 2004 (also four).
HOLD ON TO YOUR SEATS
- ASU has its part to shake off some of that bad mojo from last season in close games thus far, winning three one-run games and going 5-0 in games decided by three runs or less - a category ASU was 14-16 in last season and was 1-7 in one-run games
- The Sun Devils played no shortage of tight games last season - for better or worse - with 26 of the teams 58 games being decided by one or two runs - the most since it also played in 26 in 2017.
- Unfortunately, ASU was 1-7 in one-run losses and 15 of the teams 32 losses came by way of 1-2 runs.
- That said, the Sun Devils have shown that no opponent lead is safe, showing off plenty of grit in erasing multi-run deficits. On 11 occasions last season, ASU erased a lead of at least three runs.
- The seven-run deficit overcome by the Sun Devils to defeat and take the series from Cal was the most since March 3, 2000 against Arizona.
- ASU doubled down at that with the victory over North Dakota State on Tuesday, overcoming a 7-0 deficit in an eventual 10-9 walk-off victory.
- Three times last season ASU rallied from a deficit of five or more runs to tie or win the game - the first time that had happened since 2010 (also 3).
WHO'S THE NEW GUY?
- The Sun Devils welcome an incredible 28 new faces to the roster in 2023. ASU went hard in the Transfer Portal during the offseason, recording the No. 2 transfer portal class in the nation according to several outlets.
- The new batch was highlighted by a total overhaul of the pitching staff, which will feature three transfer starters this weekend in LHP Ross Dunn (Florida State), RHP Khristian Curtis (Texas A&M) and LHP Timmy Manning (Florida). Owen Stevenson (San Francisco) also figures to find a spot in the rotation over the course of the season.
- Dunn competed for Team USA on the Collegiate National Team this past summer.
- Preseason All-American Luke Keaschall (San Francisco) highlights the incoming position players).
- Among the newcomers, freshman Isaiah Jackson ('22, Astros, 18th Round), Dunn ('19, Yankees, 11th Round) and Drake Varnado ('21, Diamondbacks, 17th Round) have all been drafted at some point in their careers.
- The Sun Devils didn't have a single freshman arm in the clubhouse last season but welcomes four this season (Ryan Hanks, Brandon Compton, Austin Humphres and Stephen Hernandez).
- After the departure of Sean McLain to the MLB Draft following last season, the Sun Devils will welcome his brother Nick McLain to the clubhouse this season with the youngster expected to be the Opening Day center fielder.
- ASU will feature an entirely new infield this season, highlighted by standout freshmen Nu'u Contrades, Luke Hill and Reese Beheler with a deep group of veteran transfers in Keaschall, Vernado, Jonny Weaver, Willie Cano and Wyatt Crenshaw.