Following a four-game sweep of Xavier University, ASU experienced a mid-week speed bump against Nevada in which defensive struggles outweighed what was actually a solid five-run, 10-hit night at the plate.
Now, the evaluation process continues as the team heads to Long Beach State (3-1) for a weekend series at Blair Field against the Dirtbags, who pummeled No. 15 UCLA 10-1 on Tuesday.
ASU head coach Tracy Smith didn't fret over Tuesday night's 11-5 loss, which is perhaps the correct mindset given the season is young.
"We're going to get better from it, but we can't sit and worry about (anything) other than trying to correct those mistakes we made tonight," he said immediately following the loss. "I think some of that is just as we start narrowing down a lineup and where guys' roles are, I think you'll see guys play with maybe a little bit more comfort level."
Entering the season, a focus was put on returning hitters in the lineup such as junior shortstop Colby Woodmansee, sophomore second baseman Andrew Snow, junior first baseman David Greer and junior catcher Brian Serven.
Through five games, ASU's (4-1) core in the lineup has not disappointed.
Woodmansee is 9-for-20 with nine RBIs and leads the nation with six doubles. Greer has a hit in every game so far this season and is batting .533 with two doubles, four RBIs and a .619 OBP. Snow is hitting .529 with three doubles and has driven in three runs of his own.
"From winter break until the season started, I was hitting horrible," Woodmansee said. "(Assistant coach Ben Greenspan) and Skip were literally just telling me to pull the ball ... just trying to get the head (of the bat) out there and get some whip, it's working well for me."
While Serven has started slowly with just two hits in 15 plate appearances, things should turn around for a guy who hit .294 with six home runs and had 34 RBIs last season. He's stood out behind the plate, as he already leads the Pac-12 with four runners caught stealing.
Freshman Gage Canning and sophomore Andrew Shaps — two outfield newcomers — have also had solid starts at the plate. Canning is batting .375 with four RBIs and Shaps has plated three runs thus far.
Long Beach State features junior shortstop Garrett Hampson, who is in his third year manning the position. Through four games, he's batting .500 with a pair of doubles and an RBI.
Dirtbags junior infielder and newcomer Lucas Tancas has a team-leading six RBIs. Sophomore Luke Rasmussen, who led the team with six homers last year, has tallied five RBIs to help power the bats.
Sophomore Chris Mathewson is the ace of the Long Beach State's staff and is expected to take the mound on Friday night, but there were concerns heading into the season after he suffered an ACL injury during the summer. In 2015, he earned Big West Freshman Pitcher of the Year by posting a 1.94 ERA and .187 batting average against.
After leaving unexpectedly with trainers on opening night, junior Hever Bueno is listed as day-to-day with a muscle strain and will not pitch on Friday. Instead, ASU will go with Seth Martinez, who gave up no earned runs and just four hits in seven innings in his first outing.
The Sun Devils are expected to turn to a pair of sophomore lefties in Eli Lingos and Reagan Todd to start on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.
Todd started the final game of opening weekend and pitched 5 1/3 innings of scoreless, three-hit ball.
ASU's first road trip of the season will not only serve as a time for the staff to keep whittling down to its best lineup, but will be a test to see how consistently the team can put together a complete performance.
Related Links:
Dirt on the Spikes: Recap of ASU baseball's first five games
Clutch hitting, solid pitching earn ASU baseball victory
Reach the reporter at Justin.Toscano@asu.edu or on Twitter @justintoscano3.
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