(Photo: Reece Andrews/WCSN)
For Arizona State Baseball on Tuesday night against UNLV in a single-game midweek matchup, it was a tale of two halves.
The first half was filled with frustration and mistakes from a pitching staff that has plagued the team all season. ASU head coach Willie Bloomquist highlights the number of free bases that the Sun Devils give away to the opposition after every loss, and Tuesday was no different, as the Sun Devils allowed nine walks.
The second half saw a different ASU club – a roster determined and locked in. The bats dialed in, erasing a five-run deficit to force a tie and saw veteran arms from the bullpen stepping up to show what the program can do if all of its facets of the game came together.
However, the second half didn’t have a happy ending for the Sun Devils. After crawling back and tying the game in the top of the ninth inning, UNLV walked it off on their side with a wild pitch by ASU, resulting in a heartbreaking 11-10 loss on the road for the Sun Devils.
A tremendous second half of the game ended with the problems that plagued it in the first.
In the beginning, ASU tried to match UNLV’s explosive bats by being aggressive early, and the first three batters put the ball into the field of play on the first pitch. ASU sophomore outfielder Joe Lampe would steal third base, and the Sun Devils would look to strike early with runners on the corners.
Before UNLV starter sophomore left-hander Josh Sharman could even throw ten pitches, ASU had made their mark with two runners on. Graduate student infielder Conor Davis and sophomore catcher Nate Baez would both tag on the run, but that would be all for the Sun Devils as freshman outfielder Will Rogers would strike out with the bases loaded to end the first side of the game.
ASU senior right-hander Jacob Walker was on the mound and started the game impressively by not allowing a baserunner to the high-powered UNLV offense. The Rebels’ offense was fourth in the nation in hits and doubles prior to the game, and had an on-base percentage of .412 – 24th in the country.
The first frame wouldn’t indicate Walker’s outing, though the second would be his last as UNLV’s bats started to pile on the Phoenix-native. The Rebels had their first five batters get on base, thanks to back-to-back tough plays in the infield from Davis and sophomore infielder Ethan Long, who fumbled a scoop allowing UNLV a run.
Bloomquist would try to stop the bleeding by calling in sophomore left-hander Graham Osman. However, the southpaw continued his early-season woes, allowing all the inherited base runners to score, two of which he walked in. The Rebels would end the frame with a 4-2 lead.
UNLV bull-rushed ASU in the second inning, a strategy that has made the Rebels so dangerous to start the season.
ASU right-handed sophomore pitcher Christian Bodlovich relieved Osman in the third inning. Bodlovich entered the matchup not allowing a run since March 1st in seven appearances and had been one of the few bright spots in the Sun Devils’ bullpen.
However, even with the hot hands, the Rebels would strike quickly against Bodlovich, similar to how ASU did to Sharman, tacking on two runs before the right-hander could throw his tenth pitch. The ASU sophomore would retire the rest of the bats but had allowed the lead to expand 6-2 in UNLV’s favor after the third inning.
The game looked like it could start to get out of the Sun Devils’ hands, similar to how other blowouts for them have ended this year – mostly notably BYU’s 19-3 onslaught and Oregon State’s 21-0 drubbing. Those worries were hushed by sophomore infielder Sean McLain, who splashed a two-run home run right into the Las Vegas Ballpark’s pool, slicing the deficit to 6-4.
Bodlovich returned to the mound, getting the first two outs with ease, and ASU was ready to sail into the fifth inning with momentum. However, the Sun Devils’ Achilles heel all season reared its ugly head, as Bodlovich gave up a free base with a walk. That snowballed into a disastrous frame.
The right-hander would then allow a single that was squeezed by the ASU infield, which could’ve ended the inning. Bloomquist saw enough with runners on the corners and put in his best arm in the bullpen – junior right-hander Chase Webster. But with a new pitcher, the same problems occurred for ASU, as the Texas Tech transfer would walk his first batter before allowing base-clearing double, adding to the Sun Devils’ disadvantage 9-4.
ASU found itself in a deep hole due to the exact faults that have plagued the club all season. Despite the discouraging first half of the game for the Sun Devils, the second half would see a completely different club take the field.
Entering the sixth inning, the top-three ASU bats that have been the saving grace for the club’s offensive production would be the anchor for the comeback, as Lampe would reach first base off an error by UNLV.
The Rebels had five errors in the game, but the Sun Devils had not taken advantage until McLain followed his homer in the fourth inning with an RBI double. Long copied McLain with his own RBI double, cutting the UNLV lead to 9-6.
ASU freshman outfielder Ryan Campos had a similar opportunity to his outfield partner in Rogers with a bases loaded situation – this time to steal the lead for the club. Identical to Rogers, the freshman flew out, which was a huge missed opportunity for the Sun Devils as they would leave ten runners on base in the game.
Webster had found his groove after the three-run fourth inning but created a bases-loaded jam in the sixth. ASU elected junior right-hander Will Levine to try and escape the frame with no runs across. The hopes would be squashed, though, as Levine would walk his first batter, giving the Rebels a free base and a free run.
This was the third run that ASU had walked across for UNLV – a hard stat to digest for the Sun Devils in hindsight. Despite the free run, Levine would force a lineout, which turned into a double play at second base to end the frame and surrendered only one run for a 10-6 UNLV lead.
The top side of the seventh saw the bottom third of the ASU batting order tack on a few base runners. Lampe mentioned during the team’s series against Washington how good the bottom of the order has been with getting on base and how big of a reason it was for the recent offensive success. It was a timely and fitting sentiment, as Lampe would head to the plate and smack a huge three-run shot that changed the game’s complexion and shortened UNLV’s lead to just 10-9.
The Sun Devils had the game in their hand with the Rebels reeling. ASU looked to be running out of time, though, as it was down one entering the final frame, but the hot streaks of the bats continued with freshman designated hitter Jacob Tobias stepping up to pinch-hit and starting the inning with a double.
Fellow freshman infielder Alex Champagne came to the plate and smoked a ball to left field to drive in the tying run, which officially erased the five-run deficit in the ninth inning. The top two reliable hitters for ASU would get a shot with Lampe and McLain up to bat, but both could not capitalize, ending the inning.
The bottom of the ninth would see ASU’s bullpen break down, as it allowed a triple to open the inning. At that moment, Bloomquist tried to salvage a gutsy performance by the Sun Devils by intentionally walking the bases loaded. Still, the challenge was too much for sophomore right-hander Brock Peery, who would lose control of a pitch in the dirt and give UNLV the walk-off.
Bloomquist has preached all season how ASU needs to be ready from the first pitch, and Tuesday seemed to be a clear example of why.
