Series Win Over No. 17 TCU Offers Glimpse of ASU’s Potential

(Photo: Aiden Longbrake/WCSN)

PHOENIX – Before any pitches were thrown or bats were swung, each Big 12 head coach cast a ballot predicting how the standings would play out. For the third time in four years, TCU was ranked No. 1 and received all 13 possible first-place votes. Arizona State received zero.

Preseason rankings have a use, but the games are played for a reason. Sunday afternoon, the Sun Devils proved why. A 4-0 shutout propelled them (14-5, 2-1 Big 12) to a series victory over No. 17 Texas Christian University (11-8, 1-2 Big 12).

ASU head coach Willie Bloomquist knew how formidable the Horned Frogs were; after all, he was one of the 13 coaches who listed them atop his preseason rankings. Instead of shying away from competition, he wanted to test his team early.

“We knew this was going to be a big test right out of the gates,” Bloomquist said. “We got walked off on Friday… We lost a tough one, but the way our guys stayed resilient and bounced back Saturday and Sunday was impressive.”

Outside of the 5-4 loss on Friday, the series went about as well as Bloomquist could have hoped. The Sun Devils picked up their first conference shutout since joining the Big 12 and scored 23 runs on the weekend.

Star hitters Landon Hairston and Dean Toigo were the driving force behind the offensive output. They combined for six of those runs and four of ASU’s five home runs. In Game 3, both hit their eighth home run of the season.

Hairston struck first, smashing the ball over the center field wall for his fifth home run in the last six days. The sophomore left fielder was nearly perfect on the day, recording two hits and a walk in four at-bats.

Hairston opened the game with a line drive single on the first pitch. Toigo followed in his footsteps, recording the second hit of the game when he led off the second inning.

Toigo surpassed Hairston’s impressive home run in the eighth inning by putting the 2-1 pitch 410 feet to dead center over the outfield wall. Bloomquist acknowledged the exhilarating power of the duo, but reaffirmed that he cares more about “solid at-bats” than big plays.

“They are doing a great job, obviously putting the ball in the seats, but they’re good hitters too,” Bloomquist said.

Fortunately for the Sun Devils, Hairston and Toigo are both home run magnets. They have led an offense that is top three in the Big 12 in batting average, hits and home runs.

The pitching staff has raced to keep pace with their offensive counterparts. ASU is third in the Big 12 in earned runs allowed and first in strikeouts. Its Sunday starter, senior Kole Klecker, pitching seven scoreless innings against a top-25 opponent, is a testament to the depth of this pitching staff.

Klecker’s career performance against his former team was propped up by support from his defense, especially catcher Brody Briggs.

In the third inning, TCU had a man on first and third with just one out. The Horned Frogs had their leading hitter, Sawyer Strosnider, at the plate and appeared poised to blow the game wide open.

Strosnider was unable to capitalize on the moment. His swing resulted in an accidental bunt, dropping in a place where only Briggs could get it. As the Sun Devil catcher scrambled after the ball, TCU sent Jack Bell barreling home. Briggs fielded the ball just in time to make a diving tag to preserve the shutout.

Bloomquist called the play a “big momentum shift” and praised the redshirt sophomore’s ability to impact the game even when hits are not coming.

Later, he created an out by throwing a back pick to first base that got ASU out of the fifth inning.

“His leadership and his energy behind the plate is just outstanding,” Bloomquist said. Guys love throwing to him. He has just done a great job back there.”

Briggs’ playmaking behind the plate helped secure the shutout early, but credit in innings eight and nine belongs solely to relief pitchers Sean Fitzpatrick and Derek Schaefer.

Fitzpatrick relieved Klecker before the eighth inning and struck out the subsequent two batters. The senior then earned an infield groundout to end his day.

Schaefer joined Fitzpatrick, by throwing a three-up, three-down inning of his own. He forced flyouts from the heart of TCU’s lineup, ending the game and sealing ASU’s biggest series win of the season.

When the pitching staff performs that well, four runs are more than enough, but the ASU hitters aspire to a higher standard. Bloomquist said that slight miscues kept his team from converting “good swings” into runs. The Sun Devils also struggled to bring runners home, they hit 1-for-7 with men in scoring position.

“We would still like to get more hits with runners in scoring position,” Bloomquist said. “But again that is something that we are not a finished product.”

The idea that this Sun Devil team can make meaningful improvements throughout the season should be a scary thought for other Big 12 teams. When it made the NCAA tournament last season, ASU laid the groundwork for a return to the standard of one of college baseball’s greatest programs.

The Sun Devils finished fifth in the Big 12 last season, and a series win over the preseason No. 1 shows that ASU is ready to compete in the conference.

“The momentum is going here,” Bloomquist said. “We had a goal to get this program back to where the fans expected, the alumni expected and the administration expected. We are working tirelessly as a staff to do that.”