The comfortable confines of Arizona were kind to the ASU baseball team throughout the first three weekends of the 2011 season.
Come this Friday, however, the No. 9 Sun Devils (9-2) will be thrown into the Tigers’ den.
Literally.
ASU travels to Auburn, Ala., this week for a three-game set with the No. 24 Tigers (9-3) of the Southeastern Conference.
So far this season, the Sun Devils have only played in front of pro-ASU crowds.
That will change once the team enters into SEC territory, a conference that in 2010 boasted five of the top six attendance schools in the nation.
“We went there a couple years ago and the atmosphere is awesome,“ ASU coach Tim Esmay said. “It’s great in the fact that nobody likes you. Nobody wants you to do well. This is another good chance for our guys to just play baseball and see how we handle everything.”
ASU last visited the Tigers in 2007, when the team took two of three games from the home squad.
“I think we’re ready for the test,” junior transfer starting pitcher Kramer Champlin said. “It’s time to see what we’re really made of and I think our coaches have done a good job preparing us for what we’re about to go do.”
The status of ASU sophomore starting pitcher Brady Rodgers, who tweaked his arm on opening night, is still up in the air, but if the Sun Devil ace still can’t go after improving all last weekend, the team has a lot to fall back on.
Juniors Champlin and Kyle Ottoson, along with sophomore Jake Barrett, have pitched great in their upgraded roles since Rodgers went down.
They are a combined 4-1 with Champlin leading the way in ERA at 2.50.
“It’s unreal to play and have your teammates behind you. That really does make a difference,” he said. “When I’m competing against myself and what I want to accomplish, I have results in my own mind that I try to live up to, but I’ve given the team a chance to win and that’s the most important part.”
Just like their starting counterparts, the ASU bullpen has been impressive throughout the young season.
Aside from a game-winning solo home run he gave up to Cal State Bakersfield, ASU junior reliever Mitchell Lambson hasn’t let the opposing team score.
In eight and two-thirds innings this year, Lambson has an ERA of 1.04 with 11 strikeouts and an opponent batting average of just .074.
“I made one bad pitch and I knew not to overreact, just to stay focused and work on not making another bad pitch,” Lambson said. “My arm feels great. Pitching coach Ken Knutson does a great job of conditioning our arms and keeping us in shape.”
The Tigers will likely counter on the mound with Derek Varnadore (3-0), Cory Luckie (1-1) and Will Irvin (2-0).
Varnadore, a junior, leads AU starters with a 1.17 ERA and 22 strikeouts.
Junior Ethan Wallen, the Tigers’ closer, boasts four saves already with a 0.79 ERA.
Reach the reporter at tyler.emerick@asu.edu
FRIDAY’S GAME
No. 9 Sun Devils at No. 24 Tigers
When: 6:00 p.m. CT
Where: Auburn, Ala.
Auburn Update: The Tigers have had a strong start to the season, but were exposed during a 13-2 loss to Virginia earlier in the season. The team as a whole is batting .319 this season.
