Sun Devils close regular season with eighth Pac-12 series win

(Photo: ASU Athletics)

The Arizona State baseball team (33-22, 19-11) entered Pullman on a seven-game winning streak. Though the streak was snapped at eight games, the Sun Devils nevertheless took two out of three games against Washington State (24-29, 14-16). The series win for Arizona State is its eighth out of the 10 total Pac-12 series, and gives the Sun Devils an outright third place finish in the conference standings.

The Sun Devils extended their winning streak to eight games on Friday with a 12-8 win over Washington State. ASU starter Brett Lilek uncharacteristically allowed four runs in the second inning, but blanked the Cougars for the next four frames. The Sun Devils responded from the early deficit with a three run third inning to cut the lead to one, and then dealt the fatal blow with a six-run eighth inning.

Arizona State saw its season-high eight game winning streak come to an end on Saturday, as the Sun Devils fell to Washington State 10-7. Despite recording 14 hits and having five players with a multi-hit game, the Sun Devils were unable to come back from an early 10-0 deficit. The dominant Ryan Kellogg that has taken the mound so often as of late was nowhere to be found as his day ended after only 3.1 innings pitched (his shortest outing of the season) after allowing eight runs and 10 hits.

The Sun Devils concluded conference play with a 6-3 win over Washington State on Sunday. The win secured ASU its eighth conference series win—the second most in school history. Right-hander Darin Gillies earned his third win of the year, as he scattered seven hits and two runs over five innings. A four-run fourth inning for the Sun Devils broke a 1-1 tie, and ASU would go on to add another run in the ninth to provide a three run lead for closer Ryan Burr.

That was the gist; here are the details.

Player of the Series:

Sun Devil shortstop Drew Stankiewicz was honored last week with the “Pac-12 Player of the Week.” That is, out of every hitter in the Pac-12, Stankiewicz’s performance reigned supreme in the eyes of the selection committee. Yet in last week’s series recap, Dalton Dinatale received the “Player of the Series.”

In a sense, Stankiewicz was snubbed. But the baseball gods always amend any previous wrongdoing, and thus, Stankiewicz receives this week’s “Player of the Series.”

The senior shortstop led the team in hits this weekend with seven. Over his past five games, he is hitting .500 (11-for-22) and has added four runs and four RBIs. Stankiewicz continues to lead the team in batting average (.337) and slugging percentage (.479) and is in a heated race for the top on-base percentage with Johnny Sewald (Stankiewicz trails by .001 of a point). Also, amongst everyday starters, Stankiewicz leads the team with a 27:25 K:BB ratio—a positive sign that he will sustain this production while facing the elite arms in the College World Series.

Unsung Hero:

Trever Allen had not only lost his starting spot in the outfield at one point in the season, but also his status as the most “draft-able” Sun Devil bat. While Nate Causey and Stankiewicz have certainly made a claim to most “draft-able,” Allen has undergone a vast improvement at the plate.

Once a measly .220, Allen has bumped up his batting average to .280 thanks to a 13-game hitting streak and he now leads the team in home runs.

Stat of the Series:

Nine of 10.

The Sun Devils have won nine of their last 10 games: two games against Oregon, three against Utah, two against Washington State, and midweek matchups against UNLV and Abilene Christian.

But why is this significant?

Perhaps the Sun Devils were fortunate to have only won two of three (instead of three of three) against Washington State. The stigma behind long winning streaks is that the team is due for a loss at any moment—the last type of mojo the Sun Devils wish to have going into the postseason tournament, in which margin for error is minimal. The mindset is to now build on success and improve instead of simply sustaining success to preserve an unimportant streak.

Biggest Concern:

Arizona State’s biggest concern is simply uncertainty. The team has proven that it can compete with the best teams in college baseball with series wins over nationally-ranked UCLA, Oklahoma State and Oregon. But in the month of May, the Sun Devils reached their season low with a four game losing streak, but bounced back with their longest winning streak of the season.

As a result, ASU has gone from a four-seed to a two-seed and are a lock to earn a postseason berth, although the team is at the mercy of the Selection Committee in terms of where they will be located.

What’s next?

Hosting a regional was a top priority for this Sun Devil team for numerous reasons. Accomplishing such a feat would have prolonged the life of Packard Stadium and would have allowed the Sun Devils to enjoy the support of the largest crowd on the west coast that has propelled them to a 20-11 home record.

But even without a home regional, they will be given the chance to dance. As we saw with the offensively inept 2013 champion UCLA Bruins, that opportunity is all a team needs. The location of the Sun Devils’ regional matchups will be decided on Monday at the NCAA Selection Show, which airs at 9 a.m. on ESPNU.

You can reach Jacob Garcia on Twitter @Jake_M_Garcia or via email at Jacob.M.Garcia@asu.edu

Use Facebook to Comment on this Post