(Photo: Sam Fenway/WCSN)
As the calendar flips from January to February, the 2025 college baseball season is rapidly approaching. In just about three weeks’ time, Arizona State baseball will begin its fourth campaign under head coach Willie Bloomquist when it hosts Ohio State on Feb. 14.
There are several storylines surrounding the Sun Devils this year, from joining a brand-new conference to depth across several positions. With over 20 newcomers, this year’s ASU team possesses a strong foundation of returners with an infusion of talent. Only time will tell if this is the spring Bloomquist finally takes the Sun Devils back to an NCAA Tournament, but for now, he holds great optimism for the season ahead.
“We’re in a pretty good spot,” Bloomquist said. “We know we’ve got to keep improving, but we have, still, a lot of position battles going on, and a lot of guys fighting for innings, that type of thing. I think it’s going to be, ultimately, a very competitive team throughout the entire year, but guys are really focused on doing the details right, and I think that’s a sign of hopefully a good team to come.”
Depth Yielding Confidence
It’s become common for Bloomquist to say he has “a lot of good problems” when it comes to preseason position battles, and this year is no different. About three weeks out from the season opener, there are several spots on the diamond that are still up for grabs.
Let’s start with the elephant in the room: pitching. In each of Bloomquist’s first three years at the helm, the Sun Devils posted a team ERA close to six, with a 5.97 mark in 2023 being their best. Part of this can be attributed to the Sun Devils playing at one of college baseball’s more hitter-friendly parks, but there’s no doubt that struggles on the mound have defined the program under their fourth-year bench boss.
But this year, with a brand-new pitching lab and first-year pitching coach Jeremy Accardo, a former professional pitching coach, ASU is poised to flip the narrative on its pitching upside-down and produce better results on the mound. It may have lost some key arms during the offseason, but there are still ample options for the Sun Devils’ staff to turn to.
“We’re ready to turn this into a pitching school,” junior southpaw Ben Jacobs said. “This is the year it happens.”
It should come as no surprise that junior lefty Jacobs, a 2025 Preseason All-Big 12 selection who enjoyed a stellar 2024 campaign, is expected to be the Sun Devils’ Friday starter. However, the rest of ASU’s rotation is still in the air.
Bloomquist mentioned a lot of names that could find themselves in the rotation. Senior right-handed pitcher Jack Martinez, who had a solid junior year at Louisiana Lafayette, and sophomore lefty Cole Carlon, a reliever for much of the 2024 campaign, are two of the more experienced arms in the mix for starting roles.
Younger pitchers like sophomore Rohan Lettow, freshman Easton Barrett, sophomore Wyatt Halvorson, sophomore Josh Butler and sophomore transfer Derek Schaefer (Tennessee) also find themselves in the starting conversation. Naturally, whoever doesn’t get those spots will be utilized as midweek starters or in the bullpen. By all accounts, though, the depth shown on the mound is encouraging.
“We got a ton of talent, a ton of great arms,” junior left-hander Sean Fitzpatrick said. “Before that, they’re great kids and people. We compete hard against each other and we’re fighting for spots and innings and everything. But at the end of the day, we’re still trying to make each other better in whatever way we can.”
The other main area where the Sun Devils could see a variety of names see action is in the middle infield. Like the rotation, there are a handful of candidates who can fill those spots. Sophomore Jax Ryan played in 17 games before missing the remainder of last season with a shoulder injury and finds himself in the running, but the other options are all newcomers.
The two most notable incoming names are redshirt junior Kyle Walker and senior Matt King, who transferred from Grambling State and UTSA respectively. Walker had an incredible 2024 campaign that saw him slash .401/.523/.651 in 45 games while King hit .336 with 41 RBI. Sophomore transfer Camden Bates (Tennessee) and freshman Beckett Zavorek are two more alternatives.
In addition to “good problems” and position battles, this depth also provides starters confidence that they have strong, capable options behind them in case of any issues throughout the season.
“We have so much depth, not even in the outfield but so many of the other positions as well,” junior outfielder Kien Vu said. “We’re pushing each other, and during the fall that’s all you can ask for. It’s been great having that competition out there and then that depth that we can kind of rely on when things don’t necessarily go our way. So it’s a huge confidence boost to have the depth that we do.”
Outfield Poised For A Big Year
Speaking of confidence, the Sun Devils have no shortage of that when discussing their outfield. Despite some turnover during the offseason, ASU’s outfield has above-average hitters and solid defenders who could play on any given day.
Jackson, who Bloomquist said reinvented his swing and looks the best he’s looked since arriving at ASU, is still a strong defender but is trying to find more consistency at the plate.
“He’s come back swinging really well in the spring,” Bloomquist said. “Just his overall consistency and just batting practice alone, you can see it… He’s getting true backspin and very consistent with his approach and swing and balance and all that type of stuff. So if he stays there all year, I think he’s got a chance to have a big year.”
If Jackson indeed has a big year, he surely won’t be the only outfielder supplying offense. Vu hit .413 with 27 extra-base hits and redshirt sophomore Brandon Compton put forth a 14-home run, 51-RBI 2024 campaign that earned him Pac-12 Freshman of the Year honors.
That’s without even mentioning redshirt junior Jonathon Hernandez, a transfer from Central Arizona College and well-regarded defender. Last season, he hit .342 with a .455 on-base percentage and looks to be a crucial part of the Sun Devils’ outfield this season.
“I truly, firmly believe we have the best outfield in the country,” Jackson said. “I honestly don’t know what (Bloomquist) is going to do, I’m really happy with where we are and our depth at every position, across the board.”
New Season, New Conference
A self-proclaimed “Pac-12 guy”, ASU’s departure from the conference Bloomquist spent three seasons playing in isn’t something he takes lightly. At the end of the day, though, the Sun Devils are playing in the Big 12, another Power Conference that provides quality competition week in and week out.
They might as well embrace it.
While the Big 12 only has three teams ranked inside D1Baseball’s Preseason Top 25 — No. 17 Oklahoma State, No. 21 Arizona and No. 23 TCU — it produced six NCAA Tournament teams in 2024, the third-most in the nation and three more than the Pac-12. Closing the door on such a historic baseball conference isn’t easy, but there’s no time to dwell on it, as competing for a championship will still be a hefty task.
“I miss the Pac-12,” Bloomquist said. “But on the same token, we’re in a new home right now, and the Big 12 has been outstanding to us already. We’re excited about our new conference, we’re excited about where we’re going and the teams we’re playing. We know it’s going to be very challenging.”
They may be in a new league, but the outlook for the Sun Devils is the same as it’s been for all three previous seasons under Bloomquist: middle-of-the-pack. For the third consecutive year, ASU has been picked to finish sixth in its conference, only this time in the Big 12 Preseason Poll.
Even with big brands like Texas and Oklahoma leaving for greener pastures in the SEC, ASU faces a tall task if it intends to establish itself as a Big 12 contender in its inaugural season. The Sun Devils will face ten conference opponents including four of the five teams picked to finish ahead of them, giving them a good opportunity to do just that.
ASU’s road leading up to Big 12 play will be uber-important, too. Playing in 17 non-conference games — one of which is a midweek clash at Arizona — the Sun Devils will need to start off strong to hit the ground running when they compete in their first Big 12 game at TCU on Mar. 14.
“Every year is important to get off to a good start, that’s kind of the key,” Bloomquist said. “We’re going to have our work cut out for us. Not looking too far ahead, we have four very tough non-conference series before then, but our first conference game is at TCU, and that’s going to be a big challenge.”
