ASU Baseball: Vander Kooi picks up the win, Sun Devils salvage series finale

Photo: Karli Matthias/WCSN

Boyd Vander Kooi was the star of the show on Sunday. The freshman right handed pitcher got his second start of the season and to say it was a quality start is an understatement. He got the win today as Arizona State won the game 2-1, preventing a sweep at the hands of the Saint Mary’s Gaels.

After a dismal performance on Friday and a heartbreaking defeat on Saturday, the Sun Devils needed someone with Vander Kooi’s mindset to lead them on Sunday. The young pitcher is quickly becoming known for his maturity and ability to stay loose through the game.

“He’s clearly a young pitcher but as I said yesterday you don’t have to put qualifier on it. He’s good,” Head coach Tracy Smith said post-game. “He didn’t get rattled and made some big pitches when he needed to.”

Smith is not the only one who is noticing Vander Kooi’s maturity and approach. His teammates are as well.

“Mentally he’s ahead of the game, he’s ready to go. He’s not gonna look like a freshman out there tomorrow,” relief pitcher Sam Romero said last week before Vander Kooi’s first start, a seven inning, one-run, outing last Sunday against Miami (OH).

His outing today against the Gaels was just as impressive. Vander Kooi hurled 7.2 innings, allowing just four hits and one run, while striking out nine. His ERA is at 0.61 through two collegiate starts.

The game was the closest of the series, but that didn’t change Vander Kooi’s mindset on the mound.

“Get early contact. Really just pound the strike zone so I could go later in the game,” Vander Kooi said.

The Mesa native’s approach would pay off in the middle innings as his offense went to work. Lyle Lin launched his second of the season to give the Sun Devils 1-0 lead. He went 3-4 today against an excellent St. Mary’s starter, Ken Waldichuk. Lin’s batting average right now .464.

The Sun Devils were able to salvage the final game of the series shorthanded, with third baseman Carter Aldrete sidelined with a lower-body injury, sustained on Saturday in a collision on the base path with Jackson Thoreson. Aldrete is day-to-day right now according to Smith.

Gage Workman started in Aldrete’s place, going 1-3 and scoring the go-ahead run on a single by Gage Canning. Canning kept up the red-hot start he’s had to begin the season, notching two singles with that RBI. His batting average currently sits at .593.

Vander Kooi kept the Sun Devils in the game into the eighth. He was relieved by Chaz Montoya who recorded the final four outs for ASU. This was Montoya’s first save of the season and the sophomore has yet to allow a run.

Even though Vander Kooi has had arguably the best two starts for the Sun Devils starting off the season, Smith isn’t ready to move him into the Friday night spot just yet.

“We’re in no rush with him, just allow him to establish some confidence and some feel for the game,” Smith said when asked about moving Vander Kooi into that Friday spot. “And we’ll keep him on the Sunday piece for now.”

That’s not to say Vander Kooi is out of the running for that spot. “We’ve gotta get that Friday thing figured out. You know he’s definitely an option,” Smith also stated.

Whether Vander Kooi stays as the Sunday starter or moves up in the rotation, so far he’s showing that he can be relied upon by Smith and his teammates when he takes the mound.