Mike Cather kept pumping in signs to his starter, Boyd Vander Kooi. The sophomore righty repeatedly peeped over to his long-haired pitching coach stationed in the Sun Devil dugout, hoping Cather’s next call would be the one to fool Xavier designated hitter Conor Grammes.

With two outs and runners on first and second in the fifth, Vander Kooi was in the midst of his first, and only, jam Friday night in No. 23 ASU’s (13-0) 12-0 win over Xavier (5-6.) The righty started off Grammes with two fastballs that both missed outside.

Then Cather called for the arsenal, a chance for Vander Kooi to stymie Grammes with some of his lesser-used off-speed stuff. Sporting just about no facial expression under his luscious blonde locks, Vander Kooi attacked with a curveball, slider, slider, and then a 94 mph fastball.

Grammes fouled off each.

Vander Kooi has been working on two types of curveballs. One is his “slow curve”, a high-70s pitch that boasts dramatic movement. The other is his “harder curve”, a mid-80s ball that nearly resembles a slider. On a 2-2 count following four-straight fouls, Vander Kooi again threw that “harder curve.”

It was an 85 mph near-slider that caught the inside of Grammes bat and ricocheted to shortstop Alika Williams, who stepped on second to get out of the inning.

“I should have buried that pitch,” a critical Vander Kooi said after the game. “I probably would have struck him out, but I’ll take the ground ball.”

A year ago, Vander Kooi probably wouldn’t have looked over to the dugout on his left; he was going to throw a fastball, regardless. In a year hampered by injury, Vander Kooi started off his collegiate career with an all-fastball outing and seemed to always lean on his primary pitch.

In his first three starts this season, Vander Kooi was up and down, putting together great inning but never a great outing. Against Notre Dame on the first Saturday of the season, he felt like he was “babying the ball.”

The results became a 5.93 ERA and eight walks after just a trio of appearances. His command was off. His humble confidence deteriorated. He wasn’t right. But the problems weren’t as easy as a few mechanical tweaks from his pitching coach.

“Me and Cat haven’t really worked on anything physically,” Vander Kooi said. “Just mentally. I don’t know if it was anxiety or trying to be someone I’m not.”

Cather instructed the youngster to just go and throw every pitch as hard as he possibly can, to have intent each time he fires towards the mound. At least that philosophy doesn’t require as much thinking.

Vander Kooi bought in.

“Today, I just said screw it,” he said. “I went out there and it felt better, I felt more confident today. The harder I throw it the better location I have.”

Vander Kooi threw a seven-inning shutout, allowing five hits with six strikeouts and a pair of walks on 95 pitches. His most dominant outing of the season (by far) lowered his ERA over two runs, down to 3.92.

“He did what he needed to do, which was fill the strike zone, pitch aggressively to those guys and pitch to contact” ASU head coach Tracy Smith said. “I thought he did an excellent job.”

A week ago, following ASU’s 13-2 win over Michigan State, Cather sat in the Arizona State media room for the first time all season, assuring those in the room that the Boyd Vander Kooi who was competing for a Friday starting spot as a freshman in non-conference play was still in there.

Without needing Vander Kooi to directly telling him, Cather knew he was babying it. The evidence came when ASU’s pitching coach would see his 6-foot-5, 210-pound right-hander a day after a start.

“He goes out there and I say, ‘Hey man, how do you feel?” Cather said. And he’s like, ‘Man, I feel great.’ and I’m like, ‘Good, then don’t save anything when you’re pitching.”

Cather’s suspicion was that Vander Kooi was still trying to be cautious after tearing his forearm flexor in the middle of last season. But, somehow, Vander Kooi’s velocity was up 4-5 mph, into the mid-90s, from then.

“It’s a trust factor of him knowing that he’s ready to compete,” Cather said.

Whether it was trust in himself, in his pitchers, in Cather, Vander Kooi returned to where he was at his best a year ago. Armed with his two curveballs and a fastball that possesses wild movement, he became aggressive in the zone, unafraid to pitch to contact right away.

“That was good for him,” Smith said.