The number “3” carries plenty of weight in society, representing a round number for the foundations of many normalities in our day-to-day lives. The United States government divides itself into three branches, the recommended number of meals per day is three, and even the phrase “third times a charm,” is based on the Holy Trinity of Christianity and represents good fortune.
Fittingly, the number “3” carries the game of baseball on its shoulders, dictating the number of strikes per at-bat and outs per inning. Three-game sets are also the standard in college baseball, and after dropping the first two games on Friday and Saturday to the Wildcats, the Sun Devils had the opportunity to still come out victorious in Sunday’s matinee.
Arizona State (21-11, 8-4 Big 12) would do just that, rattling off 14 hits while riding Cole Carlon’s herculean relief outing to land the final blow on Arizona (22-9, 8-4 Big 12) in 8-4 fashion.
The rule of “3” found its host in shortstop Matt King, who compiled three hits in three at-bats, scored thrice and drove in a trio of Sun Devils. His biggest hit of the night got the scoring started for ASU in the bottom of the fifth, a 412-foot two-run blast for his first home run as a Sun Devil that cut ASU’s deficit in half.
“I was really just trying to get on base,” King said. “Trying to get B-Comp over, get him in, but yeah the change of momentum was huge.”
Once the energy resurfaced, the offense rode the momentum into a comeback four-run sixth inning, a lead they would preserve for the rest of the game. After the conclusion of Sunday’s ballgame, every member of the starting lineup was hitting over .290, a sign that ASU’s offense was merely dormant, not extinct.
It wasn’t the offense that made the most of an impact, however. That honor belonged to the flame-throwing southpaw Cole Carlon.
Carlon entered in the top of the fourth to work Alba out of the jam, tallying a quick four-pitch strikeout to move the game forward. From that moment on, Carlon proceeded to strike out 9 of the next 12 batters he faced, including seven in a row between the middle innings to completely stifle Arizona’s offensive production.
“It was really just filling up the zone and trusting all my pitches,” Carlon said. “Just overall throwing everything with intent over the plate.”
Carlon’s 4 ⅓ perfect innings of work was the longest outing of his collegiate career, something Carlon got used to doing in summer ball while pitching for the Anchorage Bucs, where he received weekly starts.
“I can’t really sit still,” Carlon said. “I just pace around the dugout mostly and before (the next inning) I just throw a plyo ball on the wall.”
Coach Willie Bloomquist has been alongside Carlon’s journey and seen his progression from year to year. When Carlon’s name was mentioned, Bloomquist was all smiles and gushed about the sophomore left-hander.
“Kid was electric tonight, it’s the best I've ever seen him,” Bloomquist said. “Went a little bit longer than we wanted to, but the kid was rolling, man. I didn’t want to take him out.”
Arizona State’s Sunday starter Jaden Alba pitched well until the fourth inning, where Arizona would compile all of their runs on a Maddox Mihalakis RBI single and Andrew Cain’s three-run shot. Up to that point, Alba had struck out five Wildcats in three scoreless frames.
Together, the pitching staff compiled 45 strikeouts on the weekend, the most in a three-game series since 2001. For Bloomquist, the strikeouts are merely a product of winning battles against hitters.
“I think that’s part of Jeremy’s philosophy ‘win the race and get the punch out’,” Bloomquist said. “Especially in our ballpark, where the less guys can put the ball in play, the better.”
With Sunday’s win, the Sun Devils are now 4-4 against opponents who’ve eclipsed the Top 25, a mediocre record but an indication that the team is battle tested and capable of going the distance in regionals.
“It’s been difficult, and those guys played us tough,” Bloomquist said. “But a lot of those teams have gone on and are winning a bunch of games, so it prepared us pretty well for conference play.”
Arizona State and Arizona are now tied for third place in the Big 12 with TCU and Kansas State, a jam that showcases the sheer magnitude of talent in ASU’s new conference. But with series wins over TCU, Utah and first-place Kansas, the Sun Devils know they have what it takes to hold their own against the big boys.
“You see what they do after they get done playing us, and they go on a run, and it’s like we’re right up there with those guys,” Bloomquist said. “It gives us confidence that we can play anybody in our conference and should just give us continued confidence that we can do this thing if we play the way we’re capable of.”
ASU will look to build off their win with a midweek matchup against Cal State Northridge on Tuesday, first pitch set for 1 p.m. MST.