Home is where your head is, according to ASU baseball coach Pat Murphy.
And as his No. 1 Sun Devils host University of Massachusetts-Amherst this weekend in Tempe, Murphy's undefeated squad will continue its 22-game home stand at Packard Stadium.
In fact, the Sun Devils (9-0) will not play outside of Arizona until April 4, when the Pac-10 schedule begins.
"Playing at home is tougher than you think when you do it so much," Murphy said. "It loses its luster."
UMASS begins its season with the three-game series against ASU, and Murphy said he hopes his team does not "overlook things."
"Like any other team that comes down here, they [have] everything to gain and nothing to lose," he said.
Still, no single player has outdone sophomore transfer Jason Kipnis. After nine starts, the outfielder is batting .400 and leads the team in home runs (5) and RBIs (15).
UMASS will likely see senior Josh Satow and true freshman Seth Blair on the mound.
Blair has won his first two collegiate starts, allowing just one run in nine innings and should get the chance to go deeper into games as his arm strength builds.
UMASS, picked to finish ninth in the Atlantic-10 Conference, finished last season with a 22-25 overall record and has 14 new players.
ASU and UMASS know about each other only by what others say — the two teams haven't met since 1973. But wise Sun Devil fans likely remember when ASU topped the Minutemen in 1969 toward its third of five national championships.
Reach the reporter at: apentis@asu.edu.
