Drew Swift, Alika Williams gearing for the start of their college careers

Months later, Swift and Williams are Arizona State baseball freshmen, who, a few weeks ahead of Opening Day, are projected to make up the team’s starting middle infield. Swift at short, Williams at second base, though it was the other way around at the beginning of the preseason.

“We have the exact same body type, so just to know that someone plays exactly like you, it’s easier to kind of get a chemistry between us,” said Swift, listed at 6 feet tall and 150 pounds, a tad smaller than Williams, who’s 6-2, 165.

And right when they set foot on campus, the two connected. Perhaps that’s because they’d been texting and using Snapchat and other forms of social media to keep in touch after the workout. Maybe it’s because they’re double-play partners, so the chemistry is natural. Or it could be because they have similar personalities.

Swift described Williams as a quiet guy who needs to be “warmed up” before conversing. Williams said Swift is “laid-back, relaxed, just a chill guy.”

For ASU baseball’s sake, and coach Tracy Smith’s sanity, let’s hope the double plays they turn in the future are better than the first one they turned. Or, tried to.

Back when the Sun Devils started fall practice, they hosted a Maroon and Gold World Series, a slate of intrasquad scrimmages. Of course, Swift and Williams were on the same team.

“We had zero outs and I thought we had two outs and we went to go roll a double play and I just stepped on the base and Skip started yelling at me and stuff, saying, ‘Hey, what are you doing out there?!’ Swift said. “So we actually didn’t turn it, that wasn’t our first turn, but that was the first time catching a flip from him.”

As Smith yelled at Smith, Williams laugh. Swift looked over to find his teammate with a look that said, What are you doing?

It seems like the only large difference between the two infielders is from where they came. Swift was a highly touted local product of Hamilton High School, Williams a respected recruit from San Diego, California, who attended Rancho Bernardo High School, a college baseball factory.

But there was a slight chance these two would never have the opportunity to share the same diamond.

Prior to the 2016 MLB Draft approached, ASU begged Swift to have patience.

“Drew, just please give us until after the draft to let us see how things shake,” Greenspan said the coaches told Swift back then. “If we lose these guys, you’re going to be our first phone call.”

The Sun Devils ended up losing four infielders — including Gavin Lux (first round) and Bo Bichette (second round) — from a recruiting class that had been named the top-ranked in the country. They were officially thin in the infield.

During the draft, Greenspan remembers Mike Woods, Hamilton’s baseball coach, sending him a text:

“We got an infielder waiting for a call from you.”

Alas, Swift — the No. 4 shortstop in the state — would be a Sun Devil, something he’d dreamed of since his childhood. He used to attend games at Packard Stadium, the program’s former home, and remembers sitting on the first-base line and watching ASU teams with future major leaguers.

As Smith, now his head coach, recalls Swift’s recruitment, a nervous smile appears on his face.

“This is where he wanted to be,” Smith said. “Here’s — I think — one of the better players in the conference, and probably ultimately will be (one of the better ones) in the country, and you’re sitting here saying, ‘Wait, wait, wait.’

“I say every day that I’d be sick to my stomach if he didn’t come here.”

Brandon Higelin, Smith’s former pitching coach, was actually the first to see Williams play. He mentioned the high schooler a few times to the rest of ASU’s coaches. At that time, they hadn’t seen him play, but when they eventually got to, they were impressed by the kid who was rated the No. 44 overall prospect in California.

“There have been a couple people who have compared him to (Arizona Diamondbacks shortstop) Nick Ahmed,” Greenspan said of Williams, who was selected in the 32nd round of the 2017 MLB Draft. “I think it’s a really good comparison. He makes everything look easy. Athletic body. Can run, can field, can hit. He’s the total package.”

The fact that two players so alike ended up in the same infield perhaps reflects Smith’s recruiting vision. Greenspan said every recruiter has a “type” they seek.

“(Smith) likes rangy infielders that can take a hit away in a hole, and he wants guys with enough arm strength that they can go with a backhand at short and they can go and make that throw,” Greenspan said. “A lot of the things we were looking for, both possessed.”

There’s a chance Swift and Williams could be ASU’s middle infield for three years. According to Swift, the two don’t think about that quite yet, but are trying to take it one step at a time.

And though they’re only freshmen, Williams said there’s an element of fun in the challenge of trying to handle expectations (Perfect Game just projected Swift as the Pac-12’s Freshman of the Year). Swift said that distinction would only matter if it occurs at the end of the season, and Williams said he’s not focused on personal accolades but only wants to help the program reach Omaha.

Dustin Pedroia. Jason Kipnis. The list goes on. Swift has seen some play in person. When Williams would turn on an MLB game, he’d inevitably hear the broadcasters bring up an ASU alum.

“It’s awesome seeing all the names,” Williams said.

When asked if he’s ever seen two middle infielders as identical as Swift and Williams, Greenspan paused and slowly shook his head.

“No, not since I’ve been coaching,” says Greenspan, who is starting the ninth season of his coaching career.

Smith was asked the same question minutes later.

“Good question,” he said, stumped, as he didn’t have an answer.