(Photo: Susan Wong/WCSN)
Arizona State had already turned its series finale with Oregon State into a mess by the fourth inning.
But with one out in the frame, ASU’s defense truly epitomized what was a forgetful day.
Oregon State’s freshman right-fielder Justin Boyd laid down a bunt on the first base side. Freshman reliever Joe Hauser and freshman first baseman Jack Moss both went after the ball as it dribbled near the foul line. Hauser was the one who snagged it and looked to retire Boyd at first for a ground out.
Except, there was nobody there. There was not enough time for redshirt freshman second baseman Sean McLain to rotate over and cover first base, leaving all three Sun Devils looking around the infield in a moment of disbelief.
Boyd reached safely and first baseman Garret Forrester was able to score from third base to extend the Beavers’ lead to 11-1.
After a superb Saturday night offensively and defensively for the Sun Devils the switch was completely flipped as ASU ended up losing the finale of a physical series 11-4 to Oregon State.
Just like the RBI bunt gone wrong, the Sun Devils’ mistakes caused much of the damage. They had two errors, two wild pitches and eight walks compared to Oregon State’s four.
While redshirt freshman starting left-hander Kai Murphy went 1-2-3 in the first inning, that would be the last zero he would put on the board.
The Beavers got after Murphy in a five-run second inning. Junior catcher Troy Claunch, who batted 7-15 (.467) in the series, started things off with a solo shot to dead center. After an RBI double by sophomore designated hitter Kyle Froemke, sophomore third baseman Matthew Gretler opened the lead up with a two-run home run launched to left field.
After allowing only one hit in seven innings in his first start last Sunday, Murphy would exit in the third after giving up five hits, five earned runs and just one strikeout.
“I would just say [a] couple pitches got elevated,” ASU head coach Tracy Smith said of Murphy’s struggles Sunday afternoon. “They put good swings on him and that was the difference. He’s going to be important for us down the stretch, so we’re not going to make much out of this. It just wasn’t a good day for him on the mound and that happens sometimes.”
The Beavers would go on to score at least three runs in three straight innings.
After exploding last night with 11 runs, the ASU offense was slow out of the gate Sunday, and the game was out of reach by the time the bats got going. Only freshman third baseman Hunter Haas was able to manage multiple hits on the day, with just three of the team’s eight hits going for extra bases. In addition, the usual heavy hitting gang of McLain, redshirt shortstop Drew Swift and star freshman designated hitter Ethan Long were held to two hits combined.
It was the first time in its last six games that ASU failed to score at least six runs. Long, who entered Sunday with 14 home runs in ASU’s last 13 games, extended his hitting streak to seven with a single to left field in the bottom of the seventh.
“We had enough guys on base, we just couldn’t punch one through there to climb back in,” Smith said. “Nobody [is] freaking out about it, we’re not going to redraw up any diagram. We’ve got good hitters and today just didn’t happen for us.”
Oregon State’s starting sophomore right-hander Jake Pfennigs was effective in five innings to earn the win and improve to 4-0 on the season. Once he was pulled, the Beaver bullpen shut down the Sun Devils, who amassed two hits altogether from that point. After being uncharacteristically lit up on Saturday, Oregon State went back to showing why they hold the fourth best ERA (2.91) in the country.
Even with the lopsided victories in the last two games of the series, Sunday was another example of just how physical, competitive and amped up both teams were throughout the weekend.
McLain and Long, ASU’s leaders in batting average, were routinely pitched inside on the hands. Those two combined to be hit five times, with 10 hit by pitches across both sides in the weekend.
There was also a scary moment in the ninth inning Sunday when a ball grazed Long’s helmet. He appeared shaken up following the hit but was able to walk to first and remain in the game as a baserunner.
“They’re a lot more physical and older team, veteran team than we are, but this conference is kind of that way,” Smith said. “It’s a physical league, I’ve said numerous times [it’s] an unforgiving league. I think that’s important as we mature down the stretch.”
Despite the ugly loss, ASU earned the series win and sit in a three-way tie for fourth place – which includes the Beavers – in the Pac-12 standings.
“Honestly Friday night was the loudest I’ve ever heard it (Phoenix Municipal Stadium),” Haas said. “It was just awesome, like the competitiveness, just going at it. We know we’re with them, so we knew that was a huge series. We’re glad we got the series win at least.”
Haas also noted that with just six games left in the regular season, ASU’s focus is securing each series left on the schedule.
“Our biggest goal is to keep winning series. We’re not satisfied with being in fourth, we want to keep moving up and give ourselves the best chance for the postseason and a regional,” said Haas. “The biggest thing is just winning every weekend and taking every game like it’s a new game.”
