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Sun Devil Baseball Readies for Weekend By the Bay at Cal

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Sun Devil Baseball Readies for Weekend By the Bay at CalSun Devil Baseball Readies for Weekend By the Bay at Cal

BERKELEY -- Sun Devil Baseball hits the road this weekend, scheduled for a three-game set in the Bay Area against California beginning Friday, April 7. The opening game of the series will get underway at 4 p.m. PT at Evans Field in Berkeley, followed by Saturday's tilt at 12 p.m. with the finale set for a 2 p.m. first pitch.

#10THINGS (Twitter-Friendly Notes)

1. .@SquadSlayerChaz earned his first career quality start against UCLA and the Devils are 2-0 in games he's started this year. 

2. The 8 Devils who've combined for ASU's 14 homers this season entered 2017 with 3 collegiate homers between them.

3. .@elingos15 has already matched his 2016 win total with 3 in just 7 starts w/ 0 earned runs in two of those starts.

4. .@SquadSlayerChaz had a 14.29 ERA through his 1st 8 appearances. He has a 1.53 ERA in last 4 games with a 2-0 record.

5. Since AT LEAST 2000, no @ASU_Baseball freshman has had multiple hits in 13 of their first 27 games. @lin_lyle has done so. 

6. .@elingos15 has four quality starts in his seven starts, allowing just two earned runs and a W over #1 TCU.

7.  .@lin_lyle's 13 multi-hit games through 27 games is 4th among ALL Sun Devil players since 2000.

8. .@j_god23 has inherited 13 runners this season (second on team) and stranded 12 of those overall.

9. .@lin_lyle has multiple hits in 13 games this season already. No other Sun Devil has done so in more than six. 

10. .@ASU_Baseball has won at least 30 games in 56 consecutive seasons, two more than Florida State in second.

Follow the Action

  • Each game this weekend will be broadcast live on the Pac-12 Networks and availble online via live stream at pac-12.com/live.
  • The Sun Devil Sports Radio Network is scheduled to broadcast Friday's game on 100.7 KSLX HD 2 while Saturday and Sunday's tilts will be on both NBC Sports Radio 1060 AM and 100.7 KSLX HD 2. The games will also be available through the TuneIn app on TheSunDevils.com. Broadcaster Jeff Munn will be on the weekend call alongside color analyst Max Rossiter, who was an all-conference catcher for the Devils from 2012-13.
  • Fans are also encouraged to follow along on Twitter (@ASU_Baseball) for live updates throughout the weekend. 

Scouting the Bears

  • Cal's youth continues to play a major role in how the 2017 season develops. Freshman Andrew Vaughn leads the team in batting average (.366) entering the ASU series while also leading the Pac-12 in home runs with seven.
  • Sophomore catcher Tyrus Greene is enjoying a strong first season as Cal's main backstop and he also ranks eighth in the conference in batting average with a .357 mark. 
  • Cal's top seven hitters in batting average are either a freshman or sophomore and junior third baseman Denis Karas is the only regular starter older than a sophomore.
  • With the first few weeks of Pac-12 play in the books, Cal ranks second in the conference when it comes to home runs. The Bears have hit 18 big flies as a team.

Sun Devils vs. Cal

  • The Sun Devils are 119-65 all-time against California and 12-5 in series' against the Bears since 2000 with five sweeps in that time.
  • Last year's series against Cal proved to be a turning point in the ASU season as the Devils took two out of three in Tempe and went on to win for consecutive Pac-12 series following that weekend to solidify a postseason berth and make a run at the conference championship. Like last year, this year's Cal series is the fourth conference series of the year.
  • ASU dropped two of three against then-No.13 Cal the last time the Devils visited Berkeley in 2014. 

Eli's Coming 

  • Eli Lingos, who earned first team Pac-12 All-Academic honors in 2016, has quickly solidified himself as the team's ace this season after entering the year as the Friday Night Starter.
  • Lingos has opened the 2017 season with a bang, going 3-2 with four quality starts in his first seven appearances of the season. No other Sun Devil has more than one quality start this season.
  • Among those wins were an upset over then-No. 1 TCU and a career-best 7.2 IP outing against LMU in which he allowed no runs.
  • Lingos went over 6.0 IP in his first five appearances this season after neving having consecutive games over 6.0 IP in his career prior to this season.
  • The junior lefty has allowed no earned runs in two starts this season, something he had done in a start just once in his career prior. 
  • His three wins this season match his 2016 total while he has issued no walks in two his starts this season, something he had accomplished in just two starts prior to 2017.
  • He is eighth in the league with 44.0 innings pitched this season and eighth in the conference with 36 strikeouts.

Mr. Friday Night

  • Lingos is the sixth pitcher since 2014 to assume the Friday Night role, joining Ryan Burr, Brett Lilek, Seth Martinez, Ryan Kellogg and Hever Bueno. 
  • ASU used four pitchers in the Friday night role in six seasons between 2008 and 2013 with Mike Leake ('08, '09), Seth Blair ('10), Brady Rodgers ('11, '12) and Trevor Williams ('13).
  • Lingos joins a long and illustrious line of Mr. Friday Night's at ASU that includes nine Major Leaguers and numerous ASU Hall of Famers, including Eddie Bane, Floyd Bannister, Kendall Carter, Mike Esposito, Larry Gura, Gary Gentry, Mike Leake, Trevor Williams and Brady Rodgers.

Lin-Sanity

  • True freshman Lyle Lin continues to be the highlight of the freshmen class, ranked fifth in the Pac-12 Conference with a .369 average this year, as are his 38 hits.
  • Lin has had three or more hits in three games on the year while registering multiple hits in 13 games on the season overall. No other Sun Devil has more than six such games.
  • That number is especially notable as since AT LEAST the year 2000 (as far as pertinent records were available), no other freshman has had 13 multi-hit games in their first 27 games at Arizona State. The previous freshman high in the first 27 gamessince 2000 was Dustin Pedroia's 11 in 2002. 
  • With 28 games left in the season, Lin's 13 multi-hit games are tied for 12th among all Sun Devil freshmen since 2000 for an entire SEASON. Pedroia's 2002 mark of 27 leads the way.
  • In fact, the 13 multi-hit games at this point in the season are good for fourth through 27 games with any player since 2000, regardless of year. 
  • Lin has started every game this season, one of just three players to do so - with a team-leading .369 average and 17 RBI in the process.

Re-LYLE-able

  • Lyle Lin has an approach at the plate that is tough to find in many freshmen. The youngster leads the team's starters with a .441 average this season with two outs on the board on 14-of-34 hitting. 
  • Lin leads the team with eight two-out RBIs - three more than any teammate - and also holds a team-leading 14 hits with runners in scoring position on 32 at bats (.438), six more than the next closest Devil.
  • Lin has reached base in all but one game this season. 
  • Lin enters the weekend riding a 10-game hitting streak and a 13-game reached base streak - both marks tied for the team leads this season.

And All That Chaz 

  • In the first 13 games of the year, Chaz Montoya made eight appearances and struggled with a 14.29 ERA and an 0-1 record. 
  • In the last 11 games, Montoya has a 1.53 ERA in four appearances and a 2-0 record, striking out 17 and walking just three. The Sun Devils have won just three of their last 10 games - two of which were games that Montoya started.
  • He had a streak of 17.1 innings without allowing a run come to an end in his start against UCLA.

Zach Cer-Bomb

  • One of the most pleasant surprises of 2017 has been the emergence of senior catcher Zach Cerbo, a four-year veteran who is seeing his most significant action as a Sun Devil this season.
  • Cerbo with marks that are second on the team with a .311 average in his 19 appearances with a .429 on-base percentage. He leads the team with his nine walks and also in slugging at .533 on the year.
  • Cerbo has advanced runners on base on 12-of-21 chances this season (.571) - another category in which he leads the team.

12-Gage

  • Gage Canning holds the Devils third-longest hitting streak this season at seven games. Canning had a team-best 13-game hitting streak as a freshman in 2016.
  • Canning leads the team with four games this season with three or more hits - already matching his 2016 total as a freshman. 
  • Canning has spent time at the leadoff spot and turning the order back around in the lower part of the lineup this year and done exactly what's expected of him in that role, stealing three bases, leading the team with 18 runs scored and advancing runners on 22-of-46 opportunities (.478).
  • Canning also leads the Devils with six doubles and four triples this season (the latter tied for first in the Pac-12).

Shaps Blasts

  • After missing the first five games of the season to suspension, junior Andrew Shaps matched the Sun Devil season lead with 13 consecutive games reaching base, a streak that was snapped in the finale against No. 2 Oregon State.
  • The outfielder had a career-best 10-game hitting streak entering that OSU finale and is already second on the team with 13 runs scored this year.
  • Despite missing five games, Shaps is tied for first on the team in walks this season with nine and also tied for the team lead with three home runs - notable as he had just two in his career prior.

Big Willie Style

  • Tyler Williams has provided some much needed pop in the lineup this season, leading the team with three home runs on the year after having none in his freshman campaign.
  • The sophomore has picked up the game-winning RBIs in two of the last three Sun Devil victories, plating the first run in his team's 7-0 victory over USC (on a day where he had a career best three RBIs) while knocking the go-ahead two-run homer against UNLV to earn a 5-4 victory.
  • His 14 RBIs this season are second on the team. 
  • Williams is slugging .414 on the year and is second on the team when it comes to advancing runners, doing so 19 times on 34 chances (.559).

Taylor Made

  • Three series into the Pac-12 slate and a surprising name has found its way to the top of the Sun Devil conference stats in the form of Taylor Lane.
  • The junior is batting a team-best .444 in Pac-12 games on 8-of-18 hitting with a .474 on-base percentage.
  • Lane is third on the team in all games with a .308 average this season.

Turning The Tides

  • In the first 13 games of the season, the Sun Devil bullpen struggled mightily to the tune of a 7.80 ERA. Since then, the group has started to turn things around with a 4.77 ERA in the team's last 13 games.
  • Connor Higgins was in pretty dire straights in the first 13 games with a 27.00 ERA in three appearances with just 1.1 innings pitched. Since then, Higgins has a 1.00 ERA in five apperances with 10 strikeouts to two walks in 9.0 innings pitched while picking up his first career win and save as well.
  • Eder Erives had a 9.00 ERA in three appearances and just 2.0 innings pitched and that's down to a 0.00 ERA in his last three relief apperances with seven strikeouts, one walk and two saves.
  • Jake Godfrey had a 6.35 ERA early in the year that is now 2.38 in his last five appearances. The junior college transfer has been solid in keeping his team out of trouble all season, inheriting a team-leading 13 baserunners on the year and stranding 12 of those.

They Can Mash Too

Clutch Hitting

  • The Sun Devils have lived and died by their clutch hitting this season, currently batting 43-of-135 (.319) with runners in scoring position and 49-of-142 (.345) with two outs in the team's wins but struggling to get timely hits in the team's losses at just 23-of-132 (.174) with runners in scoring position and 33-of-158 (.209) with two outs.
  • On the flip side, ASU has struggled defensively to get out of some innings, allowing 73 two-out RBIs of the 157 total by the opposition this season while allowing opponents to bat .321 (105-of-327) with two outs.

Baseball's in Their Blood

Keeping It Interesting

  • The Devils had a knack for success in close games last season and that continued this season
  • Since 2016, the Devils are 7-2 in extra-inning games (1-1 in 2017), with six walk-off wins (two this season) and are 16-3 (4-2 this year) in one-run games including 5-2 in Pac-12 play. ASU has driven in the game-winning run in the eighth inning or later 13 times (three times this year).
  • Arizona State has notched 10 wins since 2016 when trailing after six innings (four times this season).

#OccupyPHXMuni 

  • ASU drew more than 78,000 fans last season, finishing in the top 30 nationally in total attendance and attendance per game. 
  • The Sun Devils have had a pair of big attendance games this season, including 6,010 against Oregon State in the series opener - the second largest crowd since moving back to Phoenix Muni - as well as 4,107 fans against UNLV in the largest mid-week attendance since returning to Muni and fifth-largest overall since returning.
  • The Devils are currently 19th nationally with 52,180 cumulative fans this season (first in the Pac-12) and 23rd with 2,609 fans per game (second in the Pac-12).
  • ASU ranked 13th in total attendance and was the only school west of Texas to draw more than 100,000 fans in 2015, and ranked 18th in average attendance with 3,082 fans per game. ASU's 107,010 fans were the program's most since 2010 and ranked as the fourth-highest regular-season attendance since 1988. 
  • ASU moved back to Phoenix Municipal Stadium in 2015 after playing 40 seasons at Packard Stadium from 1974-2014, winning their first contest in the team's on a walk-off home run in extra inning against No. 5 Oklahoma State on Feb. 13, 2015.
  •  The Devils played 137 games at Muni from 1964-74, and went 111-26 at the stadium, including 17-6 against Arizona. ASU's first game at Muni was April 10, 1964, and was a 5-3 win over Arizona. ASU's last game at Muni was March 18, 1974, and was 9-6 win over Colorado. ASU won District 7 titles in 1965 and 1967 at Muni before going on to win National Championships in Omaha. 
  • Former Sun Devil and eventual Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson was the first college player to hit a home run at Muni.

Erives On Fire

  • Sun Devil Baseball senior RHP Eder Erives has been named to the preseason watch list for the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Stopper of the Year Award, given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball, members of the association announced Monday.
  • Erives is the first Sun Devil to be named to the preseason watch list for the award since Ryan Burr in 2014.
  • Erives, a Pac-12 All-Conference Honorable Mention in 2016, notched a 6-2 record with a 2.95 ERA last season. His 10 saves trailed only Oregon State's Max Englebrekt, whose 11 saves top the list of returning relievers in in the Pac-12.
  • Last season, Erives struck out 73 batters and walked 36 in 76.1 innings. The 76.1 innings pitched rank fourth among the 55 players named to the watch list while his 73 strikeouts are good for seventh. Erives held opponent batting average to .192, a career-low for the right-handed pitcher. He made 23 appearances with three starts and finished fourth in the conference in saves.
  • Erives holds a 3.00 career ERA and a 9-4 record overall with 61 total appearances, three starts and 11 saves over 129 innings.