(Photo: Nicholas Badders/WCSN)
On the turf field in Eugene, Oregon, inside the opposing team dugout, Arizona State was forced to sit and watch the euphoria that unfolded on the field. The Oregon Ducks climbed over the railing and onto the diamond. Evan Williams, the owner of the blast that ended the game, jumped vehemently onto home plate. His team celebrated an emphatic victory.
The animated scenes of jubilation flashed onto the field in the moments immediately after a 5-4 walk-off defeat that ended the Arizona State Sun Devils’ (21-1, 4-1 Pac-12) undefeated run to start the season. After kicking off 2019 with 21 straight wins, history, a 24-0 start to the season, was in the arms reach.
Had they achieved 24 straight wins, the Devils would have gotten there in idyllic fashion. Two straight years of crushing defeat and doubt from the fans followed by an opening to 2019 that would only comparable to a wildfire: flaming hot and nearly impossible to put out.
But, in front of the rain-soaked crowd and under the bright lights that cast shadows of an ASU loss, the Devils could not collect another victory, rather, they were handed their first defeat.
The experience was unwelcomed and certainly foreign. ASU is home to the nation’s best offense, the nation’s best player and a pitching staff that sits in the mix atop the charts. A game against an unranked Ducks was supposed to be no problem.
But, despite the success and a record just three wins shy of surpassing the team’s victory totals from the last two years, Saturday night was nothing but a problem.
The Devils went down early.
The start was made by sophomore gun Boyd Vander Kooi and it was abbreviated by the control of that same man. In 2.2 innings, Vander Kooi walked five batters, hit one and surrendered four earned runs.
Smith was forced to his bullpen, a maddening action so early in a game. Maddening as it was, his offense offered no comfort.
The Devils put runners on base. In the first six innings, despite being stifled by Oregon starter Robert Ahlstrom, they scratched across six base runners. Not one of them scored.
At many points in the game, the Sun Devil offense looked disjointed. Opportunities were thrown away, strikeouts were plentiful and the productive, methodical approach to each at-bat was not there.
The bullpen, despite an early calling, did the offense every favor it could.
Erik Tolman, Blake Burzell, Chaz Montoya and Brady Corrigan combined for 9.1 innings in which they surrendered just one run. That one run happened to be the fatal blow.
So on a night where the pitching was fantastic outside of the starter, what went so wrong for ASU? How could a narrow defeat, the only one on their record, be so upsetting for this team?
It’s simply because they are capable of more.
The Devils struck out 18 times on Saturday night, nine of them were with runners on base. It’s one stat, yes. But, it’s one that speaks a thousand words. Plate discipline will make and break this team.
Let’s paint a picture.
You’re in a hurry. It’s 3 p.m, you have a meeting to get to and you still haven’t eaten anything all day. Your culinary choices are severely limited due to your time constraint but in your current state of hunger, not eating is a non-option
You get in your car, nice clothes ruffled and sweat dripping down your forehead. The physical signs of your hurry are ever present. You stop at your favorite fast food place.
Fast food is special. Its consistency is its claim to fame and the market is so robust because the simplicity and the consistency of the food never disappoints.
Arizona State baseball’s offense through 21 games had operated on those same guidelines.
It had flashy moments, yes, but, the Devils’ success was largely rooted in their ability to never do too much. They were consistent, they were simple, and they were good.
Nothing has occurred to imply that this will change. Saturday night’s loss was simply just a deviation from the path, a blemish in the perfection.
So, now 22 games into the season, Arizona State baseball has seen defeat and a lesson. How will they move on and how will they learn?
