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Baseball takes on Utah for three conference home games


May 03, 2012

Utah (12-30, 6-15) at Arizona State (26-17, 11-10)

Game notes- Utah Get Acrobat Reader

Radio
Click here to listen to all three games live on The Fan AM 1060

Webcast:
Watch all three games live on Fox Sports Arizona on foxsportsarizona.com

GAMETRACKER ONLINE
Click here to follow Friday's game on Gametracker
Click here to follow Saturday's game on Gametracker
Click here to follow Sunday's game on Gametracker

Click here to get Twitter updates during the game

Click here to watch highlights, interviews and videos from the season

Click here for the 2012 ASU Baseball Media Guide

The 20th-ranked Arizona State baseball team returns to Packard Stadium to host Utah for a three-game Pac-12 series Friday-Sunday. The games on Friday and Saturday are slated for a 6:30 p.m. start, while Sunday's contest will begin at 12:30 p.m. All three games will be broadcast live by Sun Devil Sports Network on The Fan AM 1060 and will also be webcast by FoxSportsArizona.com.

Can't Make It?:
You can listen to the game on The Fan AM 1060 as Tim Healey and Seth Dhaenens have the call for the Sun Devils Sports Network. Friday and Saturday's broadcast will begin at 6:15 p.m., while Sunday's is slated for 12:15 p.m.. Live webcasts of the games will also be available online at FoxSportsArizona.com, or get live, up-to-the-minute stats online with gametracker.

Date/Time:
Friday - May 4 - 6:30 p.m.
Saturday - May 5 - 6:30 p.m.
Sunday - May 6 - 12:30 p.m.

Stadium:
Packard Stadium - Tempe, Ariz.

Pitching Matchup:
Friday-
ASU - RHP Brady Rodgers
Utah - RHP Brock Duke
Saturday-
ASU - RHP Trevor Williams
Utah - RHP Joe Pond
Sunday-
ASU - TBA
Utah - RHP Mitch Watrous

Getting To The Game:
Tickets to games at ASU's Packard Stadium start at $8 for adults and $6 for youth (ages 16 and under) and seniors. ASU students earn free admission with their SunCard. The Sun Devils' home stadium is located on the Northeast side of campus, along Packard Dr., just east of Sun Devil Stadium and south of Loop 202.

In The Polls:
NCBWA: #23
Baseball America: #20
Collegiate Baseball: #28
Perfect Game: #20

Devils vs. Utah
The Sun Devils are 26-5 all-time against Utah, with ASU winning the last meeting between the two teams, 6-4, on March 8, 2003, at the Bob Schaefer Classic. The Devils swept the Utes in the past two three-game series' in 1999 (17-4, 3-0, 9-2) and 2000 (13-2, 11-6, 9-1) at Packard Stadium to open the respective seasons.

Pac-12 Pitcher Of The Week For April 23-29:
Right-hander Trevor Williams earned his team-leading eighth win of the season after throwing a complete game shutout on the road in a 2-0 win over Washington State. He walked none and struck out four on 101 pitches, including 78 strikes, and gave up no runs on seven hits in his second complete game of the year. He has not walked a batter in 25 consecutive innings dating back to April 6 against Oregon State and also pitched a complete game shutout with no walks in a 4-0 win over USC on April 14. Williams has thrown 11 2/3 scoreless innings in three career appearances against the Cougars.

Cory Hahn Nights:
Every Friday night, ASU's portion of the 50/50 raffle, which takes place at all Sun Devil baseball home games, is going to support Cory Hahn's fund. This started on April 23 against California and will continue through the end of the season. The Devils' next midweek game against Arizona on May 16 will be Cory Hahn Fund "Pass The Bucket" Night, where a volunteer will be present at every section passing buckets for donations to Cory's fund. The first "Pass The Bucket Night" took place on April 17 against Arizona and fans raised more than $4,000 for Cory and his family.

Up Next:
The Sun Devils make their way back to Eastern Washington for a three-game non-conference series with Gonzaga May 11-13. All three games will be broadcast live by Sun Devil Sports Network on The Fan AM 1060. The game on May 11 is set for 6 p.m., while the contest on May 12 will begin at 3 p.m. and the one on May 13 is slated for 1 p.m.

Facing His Former Team:
Head coach Tim Esmay was at the helm of the University of Utah from 1997 to 2004, and won a WAC title and WAC Coach of the Year honors in 1997. This is the first time coach Esmay will face his former team since he returned to Arizona State in 2004, first as an assistant coach and then as a head coach. In eight seasons, he compiled a 213-235-1 record, guided 18 of his players to go on to play professional baseball and had 27 players earn all-conference recognition during his tenure.

Making Them Earn It:
The Sun Devil pitching staff is first in the Pac-12 in walks allowed with 96 and is the only team in the conference to give up under 100 free passes (two teams are tied for second at 113). They are fifth in Div. I in walks allowed per nine innings at 2.26 and their strikeout-to-walk ratio is 17th-best in Div. I at 2.88. Right-handers Brady Rodgers and Trevor Williams have conceded a combined 23 walks and 135 hits in 162.1 innings this season, putting them at 28th (0.97) and 38th (0.98), respectively, in Div. I in WHIP.

Washington State Recap:
The Sun Devils won two-of-three on the road against Pac-12 foe Washington State. The Devils won 7-4 on Friday night behind a combined eight hits from the top of their order and right-hander Trevor Williams earned his team-leading eighth win of the season after throwing a complete game shutout in a 2-0 win on Saturday. ASU rallied from two runs down in the ninth inning before falling 7-6 on a walk-off single by the Cougars in Sunday's series finale. Andrew Aplin collected four hits over the weekend, including a home run, and drove in three RBI and scored five runs. Abe Ruiz also hit a home run and Deven Marrero led the team with five hits, including two doubles and a triple.

A Formidable One-Two Punch:
As of May 2, Abe Ruiz and Joey DeMichele ranked in the top 10 in the Pac-12 in slugging percentage, RBI and total bases. With a combined 102 hits, 76 RBI, 16 home runs and 186 total bases, the duo accounts for just under a third of the team's RBI and more than half of the team's home runs, and more than a fourth of the team's total bases and just under a fourth of the team's hits.

Welcome To Mr. Rodgers' Neighborhood:
Brady Rodgers has three complete games this season and went the distance in back-to-back games after allowing one earned run in a win over Cal on March 23 and giving up one earned run in a loss to Oregon on March 31. He began the season with 23 consecutive scoreless innings, which is sixth-best in the school history, and has allowed 19 earned runs and just 13 walks in 83.2 innings this season. He also went nine innings in an extra-innings contest against UCLA. He has a career ERA of 2.33 in 254.2 total innings and is currently second on the school's career "Best Earned Run Average" list, behind Floyd Bannister (74-76), who had a 1.88 ERA in 396.2 innings pitched.

Separating From The Pac (Individual):
Williams and Rodgers rank third and fourth, respectively, in the conference in ERA, with Williams at 1.94 and Rodgers at 2.04. Rodgers is also second in innings pitched at 83.2, while Williams is tied for first in wins with eight and runners picked off at four. Right-hander Jake Barrett is tied for first in games finished at 23 and tied for fourth in saves with seven.

Golden Spikes Watch List:
Brady Rodgers and Joey DeMichele were selected to USA Baseball's 2012 Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List. Three Arizona State student-athletes were named to the preseason watch list, including DeMichele, Rodgers and Deven Marrero. Marrero was named to the watch list in 2011 as well.

A Deep Staff:
Arizona State has used 15 pitchers through 43 games of the season. The Devils only used 11 all season last year. Right-hander Mark Lambson, who appeared in 10 games and threw 23.2 innings in 2011, has not made an appearance yet this season. Eight pitchers have also made at least one start this season and 11 have registered either a win or a loss.