Barry Bonds, Reggie Jackson, Rick Monday, Ike Davis, Paul Lo Duca. These are just a few of the names that Dustin Pedroia and Andre Ethier joined on the wall of honor before the ASU baseball home opener Friday night. The two are the 18th and 19th players on the wall and the first who played in the new millennium.
“It’s a great honor,” Pedroia said. “To see that ball out there is pretty cool. Just to be a part of that now is pretty special.”
Pedroia completed his ASU career as a .384 hitter who hit safely in 155 of 185 career games. He remains one of only four Sun Devils to be named first team All-Pac-10 player in three separate seasons. In 2004, Pedroia was a Golden Spikes Award finalist and was picked 64th overall by the Boston Red Sox in the MLB Draft.
Friday night he had the opportunity to throw out the first pitch along with Ethier to his nephew Andrew Snow, who is a sophomore infielder for the Sun Devils.
“I grew up with him,” he said. “It’s pretty cool that he’s playing here and playing good. I’m pretty proud of him and hopefully he continues to get better.”
Pedroia once had a 22-game hit streak for the Sun Devils and went 26 games without recording an error during his sophomore year. He finished his time in Tempe with a .975 fielding percentage. Pedroia also holds the ASU record single-season doubles with 34 and ranks sixth in all-time runs scored and fourth in hits during his time as a Sun Devil. He finished his ASU career with 98 multi-hit games.
Pedroia has spent his entire Major League career in Boston where he won Rookie of the Year in 2007 and MVP in 2008. He also has four gold gloves, four All-Star Game appearances and has helped the Red Sox win two World Series titles. He’s a .299 career hitter in the major leagues and a .365 on-base percentage and a .444 slugging percentage.
Ethier was a local product from St. Mary’s High School who was a two-time All-Pac-10 player. He originally transferred to Chandler-Gilbert Community College after playing for ASU in the fall of 2000 before returning to Tempe for his sophomore and junior seasons.
“Packard will always hold a special place in my heart not just because I played there but growing up there as a kid in the valley watching all those games,” Ethier said.
He had a 23-game hit streak his junior year and had 49 multi-hit games in his Sun Devil career and was a career .371 hitter with 14 home runs and 118 RBIs.
“To be a part of it, it’s special. It gives a lot of testament to the program and where it’s come,” he said. “I can remember staring at them all those times when we were taking BP or playing games.”
In 10 years with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Ethier has two All-Star Game appearances with one Gold Glove and one Silver Slugger Award. He’s a .286 career hitter with a .359 on-base percentage and a .464 slugging percentage.
Major league success is something former Sun Devil skipper Pat Murphy saw early in both players. Pedroia was heavily recruited while Ethier wasn’t as big of a name when he joined the Sun Devils.
“It’s great to see the respect these guys get in the game,” he said. “To see them believe in themselves and take the messages from the older players and take that to the next level is a real kick for me.”
Now the program falls on the shoulders of Tracy Smith to get the program back to consistent Super Regional and Omaha appearances.
Pedroia believes it’s only a matter time.
“He’s done a great job,” he said. “Now he’s starting to get his recruiting classes and the fun is going to start happening.”
