(Photo: Susan Wong/WCSN)
Arizona State Baseball has won six games in a row, but it has once again been the recipient of injuries.
D1 Baseball reported that redshirt sophomore left-handed pitcher Erik Tolman will miss “at least a couple of weeks” due to arm soreness. Tolman has 14 strikeouts in 13.1 innings of work so far this season. He is the third Sun Devil pitcher to go down with an injury alongside redshirt freshman left-hander Cooper Benson and redshirt junior right-hander Boyd Vander Kooi.
ASU got just eight innings out of Benson and Vander Kooi this season and will get a significantly reduced amount from Tolman even if he is able to return to the mound at some point.
One player that could step up into a full-time starting role is redshirt junior left-handed pitcher Justin Fall. Pitching in a relief role in 2021 after being a starter last season, he could be an option the Sun Devils turn to in order to give them a lefty on a Saturday nights following redshirt sophomore right-handed pitcher Tyler Thornton presumptively on Fridays.
How it shakes out will be seen this weekend, as ASU welcomes Cal State Fullerton to Phoenix for a three-game series beginning Friday. The Titans come in at 4-7 on the season, and lost 6-2 loss to No. 6-ranked UCLA on Tuesday.
CSU Fullerton has played one series against a Pac-12 opponent already, as it opened the season taking two of three from Utah, ASU’s most recent opponent. Additionally, the Titans played a single game against UCLA on March 2, losing 14-1, and also played a single game at USC on March 5, where they won 5-0. This series with ASU will be CSU Fullerton’s final tuneup before its conference schedule begins next week.
Junior right-handed pitcher Tanner Bibee would figure to get the start for the Titans on Friday. He has been superb in his three starts. Through 21 innings, he sports a 2-1 record with 20 strikeouts and an 0.43 ERA. He threw a complete game shutout against the Trojans on March 5.
Beyond Bibee, there has not been much depth in the Titans’ starting rotation so far this season. Sophomore utility man Kyle Luckham has also made three starts this year, but has struggled with a 5.74 ERA in just 15.2 innings. Next up could be freshman left-hander Peyton Jones, who has made two starts but has pitched just 5.2 innings. His seven earned runs in those innings equate to an 11.12 ERA.
When CSU Fullerton wins, it tends to win big. The Titans have outscored opponents 28-3 in their four victories, with Bibee earning the win twice on the mound.
With injuries decimating ASU’s rotation, the possibility of the bullpen eating a lot of innings for ASU could provide the Titans a chance to break out the bats.
Junior outfielder Jason Brandow has been one of CSU Fullerton’s key bats, hitting .333 with a home run, five RBI and an .879 OPS. Its RBI leader, freshman outfielder Nate Nankil, is also a vile threat with a .772 OPS and a .314 batting average on the young season.
This weekend’s series with Cal State Fullerton and Tuesday afternoon’s contest with UNLV will cap off ASU’s 15-straight home games to start the season and will be the final outings before beginning Pac-12 Conference play next weekend in Oregon.
