Across a 2021 slate of 51 games for No. 23 Arizona State, the Sun Devils had not lost three games in a row all season. Arizona State was thrashed on Thursday night and fell apart late on Friday, as they looked to bounce back to prevent the sweep against Pac-12 foe UCLA.
However, stellar UCLA pitching and a lack of offensive firepower proved to be enough to break that three-consecutive-loss mark as ASU (32-20, 16-14 Pac-12) fell to UCLA (35-18, 18-12 Pac-12) in the final game of the regular season at Phoenix Muni by a score of 3-0.
Arizona State’s pitching staff, which conceded 29 runs on 27 hits through the first two games of the series were significantly better than it had been all weekend, as freshman righty Jared Glenn got the start on the bump and set the tone. Glenn logged back-to-back strikeouts to open the contest, before inducing six straight outs in the field all the way to the third inning, when he made his first mistake.
On a 2-2 count with two outs in the frame, Glenn left a pitch high in the zone for junior catcher Noah Cardenas, who connected with the ball and sent it into the top of the palm tree in left field at Phoenix Muni.
Glenn got back into a groove following the big fly, just allowing two singles to the next eight batters he faced. In the fifth, Cardenas stepped in for the second time against Glenn, hoping for the same result. Once again, with two outs, this time on a 1-0 count, Cardenas sent a fastball to Scottsdale.
Out of the five hits allowed by the ASU freshman righty, Cardenas’s two big flies were the only runs to cross home plate in the regular season finale. All other runners were stranded, the closest being leadoff hitter Kevin Kendall, who went all the way around to third on a throwing error from Glenn. The freshman struck out the ensuing hitter to escape the jam.
Despite the mistakes, ASU skipper Tracy Smith seemed pleased with Glenn’s performance, going to even say that the freshman is “capable” of a solid potential postseason outing.
In the sixth, redshirt freshman lefty Graham Osman entered the contest. After initially entering with a lead, the Colorado native allowed five runs in the eighth on Friday but bounced back on Saturday with a one-two-three frame, striking out two Bruins in the process.
“Graham had a tough one last night, but he’s pitched in high-leverage situations for us all year,” Smith noted. “We’re going to need him; he’s a key piece at the back end for us, so for him to come out and have some success today, I think that bodes well for the regional.”
One of ASU’s more solid relievers, redshirt sophomore Will Levine filled in for the remainder of the contest, pitching the seventh, eighth, and ninth frames in relief. Levine sat down the sides in the seventh and eighth in order but came under fire in the final frame. Junior shortstop Matt McLain, brother of Sean, led off with a single to left field. JT Schwartz followed up with another single before Kyle Cuellar grounded into a fantastic double play from the ASU infield. Kyle Karros fired a two-out single through the middle to score McLain, extending the lead to three. All of UCLA’s runs came with two-outs on the board.
“Will’s been struggling a little bit, and we want to get him back to (peak form), get him into the plan going forward,” Smith said. “We were giving the ball to him in the seventh regardless because we need to get him some work to get back on track.”
“It was good to see a (solid pitching) performance today. I thought we pitched the baseball well enough to win but didn’t hit the ball today.”
Indeed, ASU was unable to hit the ball on offense as the lineup came to a standstill. The squad that produced 22 hits through the first two games of the series was only able to muster four on Saturday afternoon.
Redshirt junior outfielder Hunter Jump notched the first hit of the day on a single to center field, which was misplayed by UCLA’s JonJon Vaughns. Jump stretched the play, aiming for second on account of Vaughns’s miscue, but paid the price as he was tagged out, sliding headfirst into second base.
Redshirt freshman Nate Baez, who logged three hits across Thursday and Friday’s contests lead off the third with a single but were stranded. The other two hits came via the bats of redshirt senior Nick Cheema and redshirt freshman Sean McLain, both with two outs. Cheema, celebrating senior day with the other redshirt senior Sam Ferri, fired a double into deep left-center field before the ball bounced over the wall for a ground-rule double. McLain’s double was a liner down into the left field corner.
Regarding his seniors, Ferri and Cheema, Smith gave the highest of praise for their contributions to the program.
“Those guys, in particular, have been through a lot,” Smith asserted. “They've have stuck it out and have been tremendous examples in the locker room. They've been very team-oriented guys on and off the field. That’s the type of culture you want to be a part of.”
“We talk a lot about passing the torch and how it’s the (veteran’s) responsibility to set a standard and an example to pass on… Both of those guys have done a really good job of that and have nothing to be ashamed of in their careers at ASU. Whether they play baseball or whatever they choose to do in life, they’re going to be really successful.”
Most of ASU’s ineptitude in the batter’s box can be accounted to the prowess of junior righty Jesse Bergin, who produced a masterclass in groundball and flyout efficiency. Bergin threw seven innings of scoreless baseball, permitting all four of ASU’s hits while striking out five and allowing zero walks on 73 pitches. Bergin and the Bruin defense retired the ASU side in order for the first five innings until Cheema’s double broke the streak in the sixth.
“I’m always quick to remind people that other team’s get scholarships too,” Smith pointed out regarding Bergin. “That guy has mid-90s stuff with an 86 mile an hour breaking ball in the zone all day. So as much as I’d like to say we should tear that guy up; what he threw today was big league stuff; I don’t think there’s much to talk about in that regard.”
“We struck a few balls hard, but with the command (Bergin) had today, being able to drop in that breaking stuff, with us mostly behind in the count, that stuff is tough to hit, really, really tough.
With the regular season now in the rearview mirror, placement into an NCAA Regional is the next prospect on Smith and the Sun Devils’ minds. Monday, May 31st is the date for the NCAA selection show as the selection committee will allot the top 16 seeds regional sites, before fielding the full bracket of 64 teams that will compete for the national championship.
Baseball America has the Sun Devils as a two seed in the Austin Regional with No. 3 Texas while D1 Baseball has ASU as a two seed in the Lubbock Regional, hosted by No. 10 Texas Tech.
“Come next Friday; everyone is 0-0. Come Friday, everything you’ve done last night means absolutely nothing compared to what we’re doing now,” Smith said. “That’s where we are, that’s where we’ve got to be. We feel very fortunate to be able to continue our season.”
No matter how far the Sun Devils make it in the postseason, ASU’s skipper is proud of what his squad accomplished this year after injuries plagued the starting rotation early in the year. While demands of Smith from the ASU faithful are certainly high; the Sun Devil manager remains steadfast and committed to his group and hyper-focused for the postseason.
“This was the first time we’ve lost three games in a row across this entire season,” Smith remarked. “If you look at our situation on the mound and our youth, I think that’s pretty remarkable. I’m proud of these guys for battling every day and believing in themselves enough to be able to extend our season and eventually get to Omaha.”
“We’re not just going (to the postseason) to show up; we’re going to win the regional wherever they send us.”
The field of 64 teams who will earn a berth in NCAA college baseball postseason will be announced on ESPN2 at 9 am PT on Monday, May 31.
