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Sun Devils Eye NCAA Return After Sweep Of Long Beach…

By CB360 Contributor Kevin Kennedy

The Arizona State baseball team continued to roll over the weekend with a sweep of  Long Beach State in a non-conference series  in Tempe.  The Sun Devils outscored the Dirt Bags by a combined total of 32 to 14 in the three-game series.

The Sun Devils, who were playing in their last non-conference games of the season, won for the 13^th time in the last 15 games to improve to 35-11 overall.

Long Beach dropped to 23-22 overall. LBSU came into the weekend needing some resume building wins to boost their NCAA Tournament credentials.

Brady Rodgers

In the Sun Devils 6-3 win over the Dirtbags on Friday Devils ace pitcher sophomore Brady Rodgers dominated en route to picking up his 7^th win of the season. Rodgers (7-2 2.92 ERA) went 7.1 innings allowing three runs on 8 hits while striking out five.

Rodgers seemed to get stronger as the night worn on before he was hit in the ankle by a come-backer off the bat of LBSU freshman catcher Royce Murai in the 8^th. Rodgers allowed the next three hitters to reach after the Murai single. Prior to being hit in the leg Rodgers had retired 13 of the previous 14 Dirtbag hitters. The injury is not believed to be serious.

Long Beach rallied against ASU in the 8^th cutting the deficit to 6-3. The Dirtbags had the tying run at the plate with two outs, but Devils junior LF Johnny Ruettiger made a spectacular sliding catch in the left center field gap off the bat of LBSU sophomore Matt Duffy to end the inning and the threat.

ASU struck first with a run in the bottom of the first leading off the inning with Ruettiger double, and a single by junior Zach MacPhee. Ruettiger scored on an error by Long Beach starter junior Andrew Gagnon (4-7, 2.73 ERA).

In Saturday’s win ASU jumped out early and were never threatened in the 9-2 win. ASU led 4-0 after three innings and 9-0 after five.

Arizona State starting pitcher Kramer Champlin (7-2 2.82 ERA) bounced back from his loss to Stanford last weekend pitching eight strong innings allowing two earned on eight hits, with seven strikeouts. Champlin didn’t allow a run until the 8^th inning.

Joey DeMichele

Joey DeMichele continued his offensive tear with hit second five hit game of the season going 5-for-5 with a double and 3 RBIs. Junior DH Austin Barnes was 2-for-3 with 2 RBIs. DeMichele (.406 average), and Barnes (.362) currently rank number one, and five respectively in the Pac-10 in hitting.

ASU got 14 hits in Saturday’s win with MacPhee, and Newman having multiple hit games for the second straight night. Duffy was the offensive leader for LBSU going 3-for-4 with a double, and 2 RBIs.

Long Beach’s pitching staff struggled with starter junior Branden Pinder (3-5 5.53 ERA) lasting just three innings allowing 4 runs (3 earned). Junior Matt Johnson relieved Pinder and he allowed five earned in just two innings.

In the series finale ASU exploded for its highest scoring output of the season in there 17-9 win. The Devils broke the game wide open with a six run 5^th pushing their lead to 11-2.

The Dirtbags scored six runs in the 9^th inning to make the final score look closer than the game really was.

Andy Workman led the offensive charge going 4-for-5 with 7 RBIs, a double, and two HRs. DeMichele was 2-for-5 on Sunday, he was 9-for-14 (.643) in the series. Zach Wilson was 3-for-4, and MacPhee was 2-for-3 in the win.

MacPhee was 6-for-12 in the series as the reigning Pac-10 Player of the Year raised his average from .270 to .286. MacPhee hit .398 in 2010.

Long Beach starter freshman Ryan Strufing (3-2 3.92 ERA) took the loss allowing eight runs (five earned) in four innings. Freshman Kyle Friedrichs went two innings in relief of Strufing allowing five runs.

The Dirtbags fielders were no help to the team’s pitchers committing four errors, leading to five unearned runs.

ASU has been with out sophomore shortstop Deven Marrero since May 1 because of an ankle injury. Riccio Torrez was also out the last two games of the series because of injury. Neither injury is believed to be serious.

Currently ASU is second in the Pac-10 in hitting with a (.312), on base percentage (.383), runs scored (.299), hits (497), and RBIs (269). The pitching staff is fifth in the conference with a team ERA of 3.17.

The Devils sit in second place in the Pac-10 with three weekends left in the conference schedule. ASU is one game back of conference leader Oregon State. The Beavers hold the tiebreaker over ASU after sweeping the Sun Devils in Corvallis last month.

Arizona State, which went 6-2 in eight games played in ten days, now travels to USC next weekend followed by a series at Washington. The Sun Devils finish their season at home vs. UCLA.

ASU remains eligible for the NCAA Tournament, because the NCAA appeal process continues. The school is set to have its appeal heard a couple of weeks before the NCAA Tournament selections are made May 30, and it is unlikely the appeals committee will have a ruling before the 30^th.

If ASU remains eligible and continues to play well down the stretch it could find itself in position not only to be in the tournament, but also as one of the Top-8 National Seeds.

Despite not picking up any wins this weekend, Long Beach State still has some chances for some quality resume wins down the stretch.  They travel to Cal State Fullerton next weekend, and finish the year at UC Irvine.

They also have a Big West series at home vs. Cal State Northridge, and non-conference home games vs. UCLA, and Pepperdine.

(Front page photo courtesy Arizona State)

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Here’s our by the numbers look at the highs and lows from the latest week of college baseball.

Mike Gillespie

900…Career wins for UC Irvine head coach Mike Gillespie. The 23-year Division One veteran notched the milestone with Saturday’s 5-3 home win over Sacramento State. The 2010 ABCA Hall of Fame inductee is 901-526-2 in his career (he picked-up another win in Sunday’s series finale), including a 1998 national championship as head coach at USC.

1…Career loss for TCU ace Matt Purke. The sophomore is now 18-1 in his still young career after suffering his first loss Saturday to Houston Baptist, which was 0-14 going into the match-up in Ft. Worth. Purke, who has missed a start this year due to a finger blister, gave-up four runs (one earned) in just 3 2/3 IP in the 7-4 setback.

31…Career saves for Matty Ott, to set a new LSU program record. Ott recorded his record-setting 30th save in Friday’s 7-6 win over Cal State Fullerton. He notched #31 (and his fourth of the season) in another one run game on Saturday.

10…Errors committed by Fullerton en-route to being swept in their 3-game series at LSU (15-1). The Titans (8-6) had committed just seven errors in their first 11 games prior, but suffer a 3-game sweep for the first time since 2009. They look to snap their skid Tuesday at Texas A&M.

Sam Gaviglio (Courtesy Oregon State).

29…Scoreless innings pitched by Oregon State’s Sam Gaviglio. The junior fired 8.0 shutout innings in Friday’s win over New Mexico State for his third win of 2011. He gave-up two unearned runs in a season-opening win over Gonzaga, but has a 0.00 ERA with 26 strikeouts and just four walks in 29 2/3 innings this season.

2…Players who hit for the cycle last week. Tennessee’s Matt Duffy became just the second Volunteer to ever achieve the feat when he did it in Wednesday’s win over New Orleans. Matt Holland also hit for the cycle in Texas A&M Corpus Christi’s upset of Texas Tech.

11…Combined scoreless innings pitched by Cal relievers Kevin Miller (7.0 IP) and Kyle Porter (4.0 IP) in Saturday night’s 7-6 win in 15-innings over Rice. Golden Bear ace Justin Jones surrendered an uncharacteristic 6 ER in just 4.0 IP, but the duo combined to allow just two hits with 10 strikeouts in the marathon.

5:22…As in 5 hours and 22 minutes, the time of Pacific’s 11-10 win in 13 innings on Tuesday against San Jose State. The game featured 127 plate appearances, 513 pitches by a combined 13 pitchers and just three errors in 219 total fielding chances.

42…Game hitting streak by Ronnie Freeman in Friday’s loss to Belmont. Freeman had extended his streak to school record status in mid-week losses to Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt.

Danny Hultzen (Photo courtesy Virginia).

14…Strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings (14 of 20 outs) by Virginia’s Danny Hultzen in Friday’s 5-0 win over Clemson. Justin Thompson notched 4 Ks in 2 1/3 IP to close the game to give the Cavs a season-high 18 strikeouts in the game, which also marked the first time Clemson had been shutout since May 22, 2008-a stretch of 148 games. The Tigers had entered the game with an ACC-best .343 batting average. Hultzen (4-0) now had 50 Ks with just 4 BB in 27 1/3 innings this season. He lowered his ERA to 0.66.

17-4…Virginia’s record against Clemson since 2004 after sweeping their ACC-opening series over the weekend at Clemson. Virginia (16-1) has won 10 straight, while Clemson (7-6) has dropped four straight and four of its last five overall. The Tigers dropped two of three games to South Carolina prior to the UVA series.

2…Combined home runs hit by Virginia and Duke through the first month of the season. The two teams have a combined 28-5 record, but each hit its first long ball of 2011 over the weekend. Virginia’s came Sunday, while Duke’s came Saturday. The Blue Devils opened ACC play by taking two of three from NC State.

1-2…UCLA‘s record over each of the last three weekends. The Bruins (8-6) dropped two of three at Nebraska last week after losing two of three to San Jose State to close February. They lost two of three again this past weekend, with a win over St. Mary’s and losses to Georgia and arch rival USC at the Dodgertown Classic. The pitching remains the team’s strength, with a stellar 1.80 and 165 strikeouts in 130 1/3 innings. However, the team is hitting just .245 and averaging 4.1 runs-a-game.

0…Road wins through the first month of the season by New Mexico after dropping three games over the weekend at Oklahoma State (12-3). The Lobos (3-11) started the season with three losses at Arizona State (11-3) and have also lost a game at New Mexico State. After the program’s first NCAA berth in more than 40 years in 2010, New Mexico has struggled this year due to nearly complete roster turnover.

Sean Gilmartin

11…Strikeouts in each of his last two starts registered by Florida State Friday starter Sean Gilmartin. The senior fanned 11 in 8.0 IP in Friday’s 3-1 win over Boston College. In his last two starts against BC and Georgia, Gilmartin (4-0) has allowed just one earned run on three hits with 22 strikeouts and two walks in 15.0 innings. The ‘Noles (15-1) face #1 Florida on Tuesday.

64…Two-out runs scored by Florida State through 16 games this season. The Seminoles scored 11 two-out runs in Saturday’s 15-6 win over Boston College alone. The 64 two-out runs represents 45% of the team’s 138 total runs to date. Meanwhile, FSU’s opponents have crossed the plate just 13 times this season. Jayce Boyd and James Ramsey are Florida State’s top two-out RBI men with 12 and 10, respectively.

1.30…ERA by Long Beach State’s Andrew Gagnon, with four starts against four ranked teams this season. Gagnon (2-2) earned his second win after allowing just a run in 8.0 innings Friday against Rice in San Francisco. He has also faced Cal State Fullerton, Oregon and Arizona this season.

0…Walks issued by the Central Florida pitching staff in a 3-game weekend sweep of Wagner. The Knights (13-3) registered 29 strikeouts in 27.0 IP. The pitching staff has failed to issue a free pass in seven different games this season. Ben Lively turned-in UCF’s first 9-inning complete game in three years in Saturday’s win, while Ray Hanson followed suit the next day. For the season, UCF has 152 strikeouts and just 29 walks in 142.0 innings.

Wong & Ribera Head The List…

West Pitching Steals Show At Fenway Park…

BOSTON, MA — The old adage that “Good pitching beats good hitting” rang true on a beautiful summer night at the oldest ballpark in the Major Leagues on Wednesday, as the West All-Stars beat the East All-Stars 5-0 before 10,470 fans in the Cape Cod League All-Star Game at Fenway Park.

Fenway Park at the 2010 Cape All-Star Game (courtesy capecodbaseball.org)

Pitching was the story for the first four innings. Andrew Gagnon (Long Beach State), Marcus Stoman (Duke), Derek Self (Louisville), and Matty Ott (LSU) each made their innings count for the East, combining to allow only two hits over four shutout innings.

The West staff matched the East’s dominance, as Austin Wood (St. Petersburg), Grayson Garvin (Vanderbilt), Max Perlman (Harvard), and Tyler Ray (Troy) held the high-powered East squad scoreless.

The scoreboard was awash in zeroes until the West struck in the top of the fifth. The East’s troubles began when Tyler Bream (Liberty) singled off Braden Kapteyn (Kentucky), and moved to second on a wild pitch. Bream stole third, and rode home on a wild pitch.

The East ran into more trouble in the sixth when the West roughed up East pitcher Kyle Simon (Arizona). Johnny Ruettiger (Arizona State) stroked a leadoff double and moved to third on a wild pitch. East shortstop Joe Panik (St. John’s) kept the score at 1-0 by throwing out Ruettiger at the plate on Zach Wilson’s (Arizona State) grounder up the middle. But Panik’s efforts went in vain when Casey McElroy (Auburn) drove in Jordan Leyland (UC-Irvine) for a 2-0 lead.

Now operating with some breathing room, the West pitching staff continued to shine. Jed Bradley (Georgia Tech), Christian Jones (Oregon), AJ Achter (Michigan State), and RJ Alvarez (Florida Atlantic) strung together four more unblemished innings and keep the shutout intact.

“Our guys pitched great,” West field manager Harvey Shapiro said. “It isn’t too taxing when you have nine great pitchers in the bullpen. It’s very stress free.”

(Cape Cod Release)

Game Set For July 28 At Fenway Park…

The Cape Cod All-Star Game will be played at Boston's historic Fenway Park.

The All-Star game is presented by the leading banks of Cape Cod —- Bank of America, Eastern Bank, TD Bank, Cape Cod Cooperative Bank and Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank.

Scott Pickler of the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox will be the field manager for the East Division, with Harvey Shapiro of the defending champion Bourne Braves piloting the West.

Leading the way for the East are Brewster outfielder Drew Martinez (Memphis) and Orleans second baseman Kolten Wong (Hawai’i), who are currently 1-2 in the league in batting average.

Wong will be joined on the right side of the infield by Chatham first baseman Aaron Westlake (Vanderbilt). Anchoring the left side will be two players from second-place Y-D —-  shortstop Joe Panik (St. John’s) and third baseman Tyler Hanover (LSU). This is the second All-Star selection for Hanover, who was a reserve last year.

Martinez will also have a friendly face beside him in the outfield as teammate Cohl Walla (Texas) was named a starter along with Y-D’s Caleb Ramsey (Houston).

The designated hitter is Harwich’s Clint Moore (West Point), with Harwich’s Pratt Maynard (N.C. State) named the starting catcher.

The Mariners also landed two reserve players in utility man Levi Michael (North Carolina) and outfielder Ronnie Richardson (Central Florida). Chatham catcher Joe Pavone (UConn) fills out the roster.

Leading the pitching staff for the East will be Brewster’s Andrew Gagnon (Long Beach State). Gagnon leads the league with five wins and sports a 1.69 ERA through six appearances. He also ranks second with 38 strikeouts. He will be joined by a strong supporting staff that includes teammate and closer Colton Murray (Kansas), Kyle Simon (Arizona) and Marcus Stroman (Duke) of Orleans, Derek Self (Louisville) and Logan Verrett (Baylor) of Chatham, and Adam Morgan (Alabama), Braden Kapteyn (Kentucky) and Matty Ott (LSU) of Harwich.

The Wareham Gatemen lead the West Division All-Stars with five selections, while the Braves had three players named.

Representing Bourne will be starter Grayson Garvin (Vanderbilt), and relievers, RJ Alverez (Florida Atlantic) and Tony Zych (Louisville). Alvarez and Zych have yet to allow an earned run this summer. Garvin is 3-0 in four starts with a 0.79 ERA.

Right-hander Austin Wood (St. Petersburg), who has dominated, going 3-0, with an 0.58 ERA in 31 innings, represents Cotuit. Joining him from the Kettleers is right-handed reliever AJ Achter (Michigan State), who has posted a 1.03 ERA in 10 appearances.

Making the team from the Gatemen are right-hander Max Perlman (Harvard) and lefty Jed Bradley (Georgia Tech). Hyannis’ Tyler Ray (Troy) will make the trip to Fenway, along with Falmouth southpaw Christian Jones (Oregon).

Falmouth’s Andrew Susac (Oregon State) gets the start behind the plate, with Hyannis’ Cam Seitzer (Oklahoma) at first base, Falmouth’s Kevin Medrano (Missouri State) at second, Wareham’s Tyler Bream (Liberty University) at third and Falmouth’s KC Serna (Oregon) manning shortstop.

The starting outfielders are Cotuit’s Chad Wright (Kentucky), Wareham’s  Zach Wilson (Arizona State) and Hyannis’ John Ruettiger (Arizona State).

The designated hitter will be Cotuit’s Jordan Leyland (UC Irvine).

The reserves are Wareham catcher Tony Caldwell (Auburn), utility infielder Casey McElroy (Auburn) and Bourne outfielder Scott Woodward (Coastal Carolina).

General admission tickets for the game, priced at $10, are still available and can be purchased on the Cape League website at www.capecodbaseball.org, or at any of the 10 ballparks.

(Cape Cod Release)