PHOENIX -- Sun Devil Baseball returns home looking to hold on to its spot at the top of the Pac-12 rankings with a three-game set against the Washington State Cougars in a rare Thursday-Saturday series in observation of Easter Sunday. Thursday and Friday are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. AZTfirst pitches with the finale getting underway at 12:30 p.m. on Saturday.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
- All three game will be available via the ASU Live Stream at: https://pac-12.com/live/arizona-state-university
- All games will be broadcast live over local airwaves on KDUS 1060 AM with Tim Healey and Max Rossiter providing the highlights.
- Fans are always encouraged to follow the Sun Devil Baseball team on social media for any program or schedule updates throughout the week on the Sun Devil Baseball Twitter account: @ASU_Baseball.
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.
#10THINGS (Twitter-Friendly Notes)
1. The Sun Devils have gone 6-1 on Friday night games this season, led by Ross Dunn who is 4-1 with a 2.97 ERA - sixth in the Pac-12.
2. In Pac-12 only games, Nu'u Contrades leads the league with 17 RBIs despite playing three viewing games than the majority of players.m
3. The Sun Devils are 4-2 in one-run games this season, a notable tally as ASU went just 1-7 in one-score games last season.
4. Sun Devil Baseball has 45 doubles in its last 18 games after posting a measly 13 in the first 11 games this season.
5. Jacob Tobias and Ryan Campos lead the Pac-12 with active 28 and 27-game reached base streaks. Campos' 10-game hit streak also leads the league.
6. Jacob Tobias has posted a team-leading 32 RBIs this season that are third in the Pac-12 conference and notable as he had just 29 for the season last year.
7. The Sun Devils have trailed at some point in nine of the team's last 11 victories and in 11 of the squa'ds victories overall.
8. Nolan Lebamoff enters the weekend having not allowed an earned run in any of his last 13 appearances after allowing three in the first two.
9. The Sun Devils have seven players with 13 or more RBIs this season - tied for second in the Pac-12 behind Stanford.
10. The Sun Devils are the only team in the Pac-12 with seven players that have posted three or more home runs this season.
BY THE NUMBERS
45 - The Sun Devils have 39 doubles over their last 18 games (2.5 per game) - notable as the team had a paltry 13 in the first 11 games of the season. That has brought ASU back up to 70th in the NCAA in doubles and third in the league (58). On March 5, ASU was 252nd in the nation in the category. The team has recorded a double in 22-straight games (and 26 of 29 overall) with multiple doubles in 14 of those. Luke Keaschall leads the Pac-12 with 11 doubles while Wyatt Crenshaw is fourth with 10 and Luke Hill sits eighth with nine.
17 - Nu'u Contrades has 17 RBIs in Pac-12 only games this season, tops in the league despite playing three fewer games than the majority of players in the league. Contrades is batting .522 in conference games - .72 points higher than any other player in the league in the category with teammate Luke Keaschall sitting second at .450. Over his last 16 games, Contrades is batting 36-of-74 (.486) with a team-leading 26 RBIs, 12 extra-base hits, and 22 runs scored. He is slugging at an .811 clip. His .389 overall average this season is 11th among all freshmen in the country.
10 - The Sun Devils have shown an ability to be successful in close games, going 10-2 this season in games decided by three runs or less. A year ago the team was 14-16 in those games. More notably, ASU is 4-2 in one run games this season after going 1-7 in those games last year. ASU has also been impressive in its single-game midweek tilts this year, going 6-0 in such games after Tuesday's victory over Seattle U. ASU was 4-6 in single-game midweek tilts last season. ASU is 19-0 when leading after eight innings, 19-1 when leading after seven and 18-2 when leading after six.
10 - Ryan Campos enters the weekend tied for the Pac-12 lead with a 10-game hit streak and second in the league behind teammate Jacob Tobias with a 27-game reached base streak. Campos was named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List this week. His .430 average is easily tops in the Pac-12 and 21st in the country. He leads the Pac-12 with 36 runs scored this season. He also joins Stanford standout Braden Montgomery as the only players in the Pac-12 in the Top-10 in average, slugging, OBP, runs and walks this year.
LAST TIME OUT: CAL/SEATTLE
- After winning just two total Pac-12 road games a year ago, the Sun Devils picked up their second Pac-12 road SERIES win with a exciting rubber match finale on Sunday, scoring nine runs in the decisive eighth inning to complete the comeback.
- ASU's 19 hits were the most given up by Cal this season, topping the 14 ASU posted on Friday evening.
- The 15 runs ASU scored were also the most given up by Cal this season, notable as Cal entered the weekend with the Pac-12's third-lowest team ERA at 3.84. The nine-run eighth inning alone would have been the third-highest run tally allowed by Cal in a game this season.
- ASU has trailed at one point in nine of its last 11 victories and in 11 of the team's 20 wins overall, including coming from three down several times in the finale against Cal.
- ASU moved to 6-0 in single-game midweek tilts with the win over Seattle U after going just 4-6 in such games last year.
- ASU became the first team in the Pac-12 to reach 20 wins on the season with the victory.
ON DECK: WASHINGTON STATE
- ASU has not lost a home series at Phoenix Municipal Stadium against the Cougars and are winners of 10-straight in Phoenix. However, the Cougars swept the Sun Devils for the first time in program history last year in Pullman.
- ASU owns an all-time 63-22 record over the Cougars. Each of the last two series (one for ASU and one for WSU) have ended in home sweeps.
- Washington State enters the weekend with an 18-9 overall record including a 5-6 mark in Pac-12 Conference play after taking both games against No. 12 UCLA last weekend in Pullman where weather canceled the final game but WSU beat BYU 6-1 in Pullman Monday afternoon.
- The Cougars enter the weekend leading the Pac-12 Conference in hit-by-pitch (52), third in doubles (59) and third in scoring (7.4) while the pitching staff leads the league averaging 11.1 strikeouts/9 innings.
- First baseman Sam Brown is tied for sixth in the league in hits (37) and seventh in RBI (30) and reliever. Chase Grillo shares the Pac-12 lead in saves (5).
- WSU took 2 of 3 at No. 15 Oregon State for its first series win in Corvallis since 2009. WSU won both meetings against No. 12 UCLA last weekend, WSU's 1st series win against UCLA since 2017
GOING CAMP-ING
- Ryan Campos was named to the Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List and for good reason, swinging one of the hottest bats in the nation coming into the weekend.
- Over the last 12 games, Campos is batting a team-high .532 (33-of-62) with 12 walks and two HBPs for a .618 OBP. He has three homers, a triple and six doubles in that time for a .806 slugging percentage and a OPS over 1.400.
- His is second on the team with an active 27-game reached base streak. He is tied for the Pac-12 lead with an active 10-game hitting streak.
- For the season Campos is now batting .430 - easily tops in the Pac-12 by 18 points and 21st in the nation - and also second in the Pac-12 with a .537 OBP - aided by his team-leading 23 walks, which are fifth in the league. He sits 8th in the Pac-12 with his .654 slugging percentage as well.
- Campos 9.3 percent strikeout rate this season is the six-lowest in the Pac-12 while the .43 strikeout-to-walk ratio is tops in the league.
- The sophomore also leads the Pac-12 with 36 runs, a tally that tops the Pac-12 as well and 31st nationally..
- Campos and Stanford Braden Montgomery are the only players in the Pac-12 ranked in the Top-10 in average, OBP, slugging, runs and walks.
- Camps is successful advancing runners at a .610 clip (36-of-59) - the highest average on the team.He has also been ASU's most efficient hitter when it comes to extending innings, leading the team with a .429 average with two outs (12-of-28).
- 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 in 2021) - 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.
USE THE FORCE, LUKE
- After a slow start at the dish this season, Luke Keaschall has come alive in the past month.
- Moved to the cleanup spot in the batting order after leading off for the first month of the season, Keaschall has responded by hitting .426 with a team-leading 15 extra base hits in the last 16 games. Five of those are home runs with 10 doubles, good enough for a .794 slugging percentage. He has also walked 8 times for an OBP of .500.
- His .635 slugging percentage on the season (7 homers, 1 triple, 11 doubles) has him at 11th in the Pac-12 while his 19 total extra-base hits are second.
- He is up to 30 RBIs for the season, including a herculean five-RBI effort in the series opening win over Arizona - sitting seventh in the Pac-12 in the process.
- Keaschall leads the team with four go-ahead/game-winning RBIs this season.
- His 11 doubles for the season are tied for the Pac-12 lead and he also sits third in the league with 10t steals.
- Keaschall has also been getting it done in the field, turning a league-best 80 defensive assists this season - three more than any other player in the Pac-12.
- In four games against Utah Tech and Utah, the second baseman hit .625 (10-for-16) with 11 RBI, eight runs scored, three doubles, three home runs and a pair of stolen bases en route to Pac-12 Player of the Week honors and recognized by Collegiate Baseball News as one of its National Players of the Week.
JACOB'S LADDER
- Jacob Tobias got the first RBI of the 2023 season with his RBI single in the first inning of Opening Night and that has been a trend for his season.
- Tobias leads the team with 32 RBIs this season - good for second in the Pac-12. His 10-multi-RBI games are three more than any other player on the team. The tally is especially notable as he had just 29 in the entirety of last season.
- He is responsible for the game-winning RBI in three of ASU last six wins - his first three of the season.
- Tobias leads the team with an active 28-game reached base streak - the longest in the Pac-12 entering the weekend.
- While not looking the part, his three triples this season give him four for his career, marking him the active career leader in the category at ASU in games played for the Sun Devils. The three triples are also 29th nationally.
- 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 couple months of action, showing savy skills with the bat and with the glove.
- Hill is sitting with a .333 average that is Top-20 in the Pac-12 and Top-30 among all freshmen nationally.
- His 34 total hits are 17th in the league and the freshman is also eighth in the Pac-12 with nine doubles this season.
- He had the massive go-ahead RBI in the rubber match against Cal with his eighth inning RBI single that was part of a massive nine-run inning to complete the comeback.
- He notched his first career homer in the series finale against Mississippi State
- His 77 defensive assists are tied for second in the Pac-12.
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 post-game press conferences this season.
- Crenshaw is batting .298 on the season, slugging .516 with five homers, a triple and 10 doubles - the latter good for fourth in the Pac-12 and 38th in the nation.
- He has also played a nice right field for ASU, recording all 37 putouts on balls flown his way thus far with no errors.
WHO'S THE NU'U GUY
- It was a quiet start for true freshman Nu'u Contrades but he has swung one of the hottest bats in the country over the last month.
- Over the last 16 games, he is batting 36-of-74 (.486) with a team-leading 26 RBIs, 12 extra-base hits, and 22 runs scored. He is slugging at a .811 clip.
- Contrades is up to a .389 average on the year after sitting below the Mendoza line after the March 7 loss at Oklahoma State.
- The .389 average is 13th among all freshmen in the country this season and fourth in the Pac-12. His .611 slugging percentage of rthe year is 15th in the league and his 29 RBIs are ninth.
- In league-only games, Contrades has 17 RBIs - the most in the conference despite playing three fewer games than the majority of the players in the league. His .522 average in pac-12 games is .72 points higher than any other player in the conference - with second being Luke Keaschall's .450 average. His .826 slugging percentage in Pac-12 games is third in the league.
- Contrades was the Pac-12 Player of the Week after he single-handedly propelled ASU to victory in the series clinching win on Saturday against rival Arizona, going 3-for-5 with a career-best five RBIs - including the go-ahead three-run homer in the sixth inning. He followed that up with a 4-for-5 outing with another bomb and three RBIs in the series sweeping win on Sunday. He led the team with 10 RBIs (of 31 total for the week for ASU) with a .947 slugging percentage while batting .474 on 9-of-19 hitting.
SHOP AT ROSS
- Ross Dunn has quietly put up some impressive numbers as the team's Friday night starter, and ASU is 6-1 in Friday night series openers with Dunn posting a 4-1 record himself.
- Dunn has a team-leading 40 strikeouts over 30.1 innings pitched and is holding opponents to a .214 batting average against.
- The 40 strikeouts are good for sixth in the Pac-12 this season.
- Dunn is posting a 2.97 ERA that is fifth in the Pac-12 overall and second among players with at least 7 starts (Stanford's Quinn Mathews at 2.78).
GRABBING THE BULL-PEN BY THE HORNS
- ASU stranded 497 opponent baserunners last season - an average of 8.6 per game. That total is 192 this season - just under 8.0 per game.
- ASU's has used midweek games as bullpen days and the crew has been absolutely electric, going 6-0 in single-game midweeks this season while posting a team ERA of 3.00 with 56 strikeouts to just 16 walks and limiting opponents to .220 hitting.
- Over the last 16 games, the bullpen has posted an overall ERA of 4.56, earning 10 decisions with a 8-2 record and recorded five saves. The group has struck out 62 to just 26 walks and allowed just a .224 average against. In the first 13 games of the year, the group had a 5.27 ERA and allowed 39 walks and a .254 average against.
- Matt Tieding has been essential in saving the Sun Devil bullpen after tough outings for starters this year. AS A RELIEVER, the newcomer has team-low 2.78 ERA in 22.2 innings (min. 8.0 IP) and a 3-1 record. He is holding opponents to a .203 average out of the bullpen with 11 strikeouts to just three walks.
- Nolan Lebamoff has been another that has come on strong of late, posting a 3-0 record out of the bullpen with a 2.61 ERA. After giving up three runs in his first two games over 1.1 innings, Lebamoff has posted 13-straight appearances withot allowing an earned run. His ERA sits at 2.08 over 13.0 innings this year while opponents are managing just a .091 average against him.
- Timmy Manning and Owen Stevenson have solidified valuable roles out of the pen for ASU with Manning posting scoreless outs in four of his last six appearances with 12 strikeouts to four walks in those. Stevenson has allowed just two runs in his last seven appearances over 13 innings, with 17 strikeouts to three walks in that stretch.
- Brock Peery has given up just a single run and has stranded a team-high 12 iinherited 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 this season 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.
- Christian Bodlovich has inherited 73 runners in his career at ASU, with only 24 scoring (32.9 percent), including an 11-for-37 tally last season.
- Jonah Giblin has also done his part as an inning eater, tossing 11.2 innings in relief with a 3.09 ERA and 11 strikeouts. The effort earned him his first weekend start against UC Davis where he spun 5.0 innings of scoreless baseball to earn his first Division I victory. Giblin has established himself as a weekend starter now with 29.1 innings pitched and a 3.68 ERA that is 11th in the Pac-12.
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 23 double plays this season, second in the Pac-12 and Top-50 nationally.
- The Sun Devils are fielding at a .975 clip this season, good for fifth in the Pac-12.
- Luke Keaschall leads the league with 80 defensive assists while Luke Hill is fourth with 77.
- For the third straight season, the majority of position players on the diamond are new faces with only Will Rogers (left field) and Ryan Campos (catcher) starting the season reprising their roles from last year. 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.
- 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.
HEADED TO THE GAP
- ASU got a slow start in the doubles category this season but has come on hot of late. The team has 45 in its last 18 games after posted just 13 in the first 11 of the season.
- That has brought ASU back up to 70th in the NCAA in doubles and fourth in the league (58). On March 5, ASU was 252nd in the nation in the category.
- The team has recorded a double in 22-straight games (and 26 of 29 overall) with multiple doubles in 14 of those.
- 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.
CHICKS DIG THE LONG BALL
- 11 different players have logged a home run for ASU and eight have multiple home runs.
- ASU's 37 homers are third in the Pac-12 and Top-65 nationally.
- The better news is ASU has finally started the get knocks with runners on base. 13 of ASU's last 20 home runs have had at least one runner on base after 14 of the teams first 17 homers this season were solo shots. Four of those homers in the last 20 were of the leadoff variety as well, not giving there any opportunity to have a runner on base.
- The seven Sun Devils with three or more home runs this season are the most in the Pac-12.
- 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 14 solo homers on 17 home runs this season.
- The Sun Devils had four grand slams last year - the most it had had in a season since 2004 (also four).
COMING IN HOT
- The Sun Devil bats have been at another level over the last three weeks, sitting near the top of the league in most offensive categories.
- ASU's .319 average as a team is tops in the Pac-12 and 14th nationally while the squad's .500 slugging percentage is fourth in the league and 41st in the country.
- The team currently leads the league with 323 hits, good for 12th nationally and notable as the team was 115th in the country in the category on March 8.
- ASU was 92nd in the nation in slugging percentage on March 8, 191st in doubles and 131st in batting average. One month later, those totals sit at 41st, 70th and 14th respectively.
- ASU has reached double digit hits in 12 of its last 16 games and 17 games overall. ASU reached double digits in hits in 28 of the last 34 games of 2022 and 37 times in 58 games.
- Campos, Keaschall and Contrades have been unstoppable over the last 16 games, combing to go 98-for-204 (.480) with 62 of the team's 132 RBIs in that span. The trio has logged 14 homers, 22 doubles and a triple as well and all three have posted over a .500 OBP in that span.
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, going 4-2 in one-run games (after going just 1-7 in such games last season) and 10-2 in games decided by three runs or less - a category ASU was 14-16 in a year ago.
- ASU has trailed at one point in nine of its last 11 victories and in 11 of the team's wins overall this year.
- ASU has been incredibly efficient at closing games out, going 18-2 when leading after six, 19-1 when leading after seven and 19-0 when leading after eight.
- 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 this season, 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).
DO I KNOW YOU?
- 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.
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.