Arizona State baseball has begun to knock the rust off its bats as the team prepares for its first fall game Saturday at home against Long Beach State.

Head coach Willie Bloomquist spoke to the media on Thursday ahead of the matchup and detailed his approach to managing the team, the new additions and positional adjustments on the roster, and the areas of improvement. Below are nine insights from Bloomquist on the Sun Devils, straight from the Phoenix Municipal Stadium dugout.

1) A structured routine

Bloomquist stressed the importance of efficiency without overworking his players, a challenge presented by the pro-style model he has implemented since he took over in June. Each member of the club was given a practice plan that outlines what their daily procedure should look like as well as what is expected of them. The reason for adhering to stricter personalized regimens is to maximize opportunities for improvement without disrupting the bustling nature of a collegiate student-athlete.

“We don’t want our guys going out and doing eyewash,” Bloomquist said. “If we’re going to do it, we’re going to do things right. Get in, get off, and on to the next thing. All that encompasses a little bit of the pro background, but also trying to deal with the college rules and the amount of time that we’re limited to.”

Bloomquist reported that responses to the specification of schedules have been overwhelmingly positive. With expectations for Sun Devil baseball clearly defined, the main focus is executing team and individual principles on a regular basis.

2) Transfer portal

There are many new faces that arrived in Tempe over the summer that aim to relieve the Sun Devils in areas that lost depth. The starting pitcher rotation, in particular, was bolstered by the arrival of Kyle Luckman (Cal State Fullerton), Adam Tulloch (West Virginia), and Chase Webster (Texas Tech).

“With the injuries we had last year and the draft guttin’ us pretty good, we knew we were going to need to fill in with some guys that had some experience,” Bloomquist said.

Bloomquist was encouraged with how well each pitcher has meshed with the rest of the team but stopped short of saying things are set in stone. Their improvement over the next few months will be vital to getting the arrivals situated and fully integrated.

3) Transition into coaching the Sun Devils

Bloomquist has only spent less than four months as head coach of the ASU baseball program since he was hired to replace Tracy Smith. In that time, the 14-year Major League Baseball veteran has been forced to learn on the fly as he adjusts to developing talent at the collegiate level.

“It’s something new every day,” Bloomquist said. “There’s a lot of fires to put out on a daily basis, and there are others ones you need to light and get going.”

Bloomquist has drawn on plenty of the tendencies he accumulated through his experience in professional baseball but noted some of the methods simply won’t work at ASU. The head coach understands the limits and time constraints that the team needs to follow. Bloomquist won’t sacrifice order for the sake of progress.

“I’m a worker,” Bloomquist said. “I want to get out and work nonstop with these guys, but understand we got “x” amount of hours, and we are very dedicated to understanding and abiding by the rules. You have to live in those parameters.

“I’m used to going out and spending as much time as it takes to fix things. But from that standpoint, we got to be really careful on a daily basis how we can improve incrementally to stay within those rules.”

One of Bloomquist’s preseason goals is to continue to familiarize himself with the backgrounds and routines of his players. Through that process, Bloomquist said he will recognize the best techniques to motivate the club to show growth and accomplish its goals for the 2022 season.

4) A distinguished leader

Bloomquist made it clear who he expects will command the dugout for the Sun Devils. A healthy Conor Davis, who tore his ACL last fall, has held players accountable and embraced the leadership role in his super senior year. Bloomquist was bullish on the 6 foot 3 infielder and admitted his presence outside the lineup is a massive benefit for the program.

“He’s been through a lot,” Bloomquist said. “He’s had years taken from him, from the Covid stuff and of course an injury last year; he’s been through an awful lot. Having that leadership in the clubhouse for me is paramount and huge. He understands what we as a staff are trying to do, and it’s no secret he’s our leader in the clubhouse.’

Davis himself is off to a hot start, hitting two home runs and batting in nine runs in his first game back. Bloomquist praised the former Auburn transfer’s resilience amidst a year of uncertainty and adversity. Davis credits the promising stat line to keeping a sharp mind during his rehab process.

“I feel like I haven’t missed a beat, honestly,” Davis said. “I did a lot of stuff when I was hurt just to stay as mentally prepared and mentally focused as I could to stay on top of my game.”

5) Catcher position still being sorted out

ASU has options behind the plate. Nate Baez, who played first base for the Sun Devils earlier in his career, is now a full-time participant at the position. Two freshmen will also see time, along with redshirt sophomore transfer Bronson Balholm. All four players are in the mix to start, but each has work to do.

“We don’t have a definite starter there right now,” Bloomquist said. “First thing I’ll say on that is we got to get better behind the dish. That’s one area of many that we need to improve in.”

Bloomquist said Baez is still learning the position, while the newcomers are still adjusting to a “whole new world” of settling into a new environment, pitching staff, and facing competition at the college level. Balholm is also getting comfortable playing in the desert.

“We’re pleased with the work ethic, but we understand we have to get better there quickly,” Bloomquist said.

6) Starting pitching will be workshopped

Flexibility will be a theme for ASU’s pitching as Bloomquist anticipates creativity and tinkering with the starting rotation while employing the arms on his roster with intent.

“We’re still defining some roles,” Bloomquist said. “As a staff, we have some different ideas on which we’re going to go with that. We aren’t going to have a set 1-2-3 that we’re like, ‘yes, we’re going there, and that’s who we’re going with,’ because we have been decimated with some injuries and the draft, we got hit pretty hard in that.”

It isn’t a patchwork job, as Bloomquist is confident in the ability of the players. Moreover, it’s a journey to find the right formula, which will challenge the staff to utilize its pitchers and bullpen correctly.

“Spit and glue isn’t the right term, but we’re going to have to be really defined in our roles in how we use guys.”

7) The role of Ethan Long

The second half of Ethan Long’s freshman season was a sight to behold, as he took the spring by storm en route to All Pac-12 honors and a semifinalist finish for the Golden Spikes Award. Long established himself as one of college baseball’s most exciting young sluggers, batting .340 with 16 home runs and 54 RBI.

Long also contributed on the mound before soreness in his shoulder relegated him to an infield role for the rest of the 2021 campaign. However, as much as Bloomquist admires Long’s fastball and prowess throwing the slider, Bloomquist said the club has “shied away” from playing the sophomore there.

“He’s too valuable as a position guy to even mess with,” Bloomquist said. “If he were to have arm trouble again, that’s just not a bridge I want to cross yet unless we absolutely need it.”

Instead, Bloomquist expects Long to be ASU’s primary option at third base, which will move fellow sophomore Hunter Haas to shortstop. Bloomquist said he feels the Sun Devils “are a better team” with that setup, which also allows the lineup to be more flexible with the rest of the infield.

8) Emphasis on decisive and tactical base running

Outfielder Joe Lampe spoke before Bloomquist and said one of his focuses is improving his decision-making once the ball is in play. Bloomquist illustrated base running as a complex art with a variety of factors, including primary and secondary reads on the pitcher, situational awareness, and outfield depth. In addition, Bloomquist views intelligence around the diamond as a way to gain an advantage and disrupt strong pitching this season that will challenge ASU’s batters.

“The way we run bases as a program is very important to me and to our staff,” Bloomquist said. “As an organization, you’re going to go against pitchers that are going to dominate us, to be frank.

“We’re going to have to figure out ways to beat them versus something other than a three-run home run. We got to be able to get a guy on base, move him over, maybe steal a bag and put pressure on guys from a base-running standpoint.”

9) The weekend scrimmage and welcoming fans back in attendance

Bloomquist mentioned he is anxious to see how the team will play against Long Beach State this Saturday, Oct. 23 at Noon at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

While the head coach isn’t expecting perfection, Bloomquist anticipates both positive play and weaknesses to be revealed. That focus is not restricted to just the players; Bloomquist is keen to evaluate his performance in his first action as skipper and the cohesiveness of the entire staff.

“It’ll be nice to break up the monotony of the fall a little bit,” Bloomquist said. “To play somebody in a different uniform will be great. I would anticipate the energy and the effort level to be where we expect it to be.

“This will be a great early season measuring stick of things we need to focus on and get better at.”

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