A perfect start is hard to come by in Division I baseball. After this weekend's series, only 18 of 307 teams remain undefeated, and the Sun Devils are one of them.
Combining strong pitching, the long ball and a steady stream of base knocks, ASU cruised to a series sweep over St. John's, outscoring the Johnnies 28-8.
Head coach Willie Bloomquist has emphasized the many ways his versatile ballclub can win, and the Sun Devils proved it this weekend.
"The big takeaway is we're deeper, we're better, we're versatile," Bloomquist said. "We can beat you by 1,000 cuts, too, versus the long ball all the time. We're going to need to be able to have a variety of ways to beat people moving forward."
The Sun Devil offense exploded for 16 runs on 18 hits in the series finale Sunday.
Sixteen of the 18 hits were singles, a rarity from a usually powerful ASU lineup that has relied on the longball in the past.
"It just goes to show the style of team (that) Willie and all the coaches brought in this year," sophomore infielder Beckett Zavorek said. "I think we all complement each other really well, and we could find a way to win, anyway we can."
ASU sophomore starter Easton Barrett was plagued once again by the free passes, walking four batters in his 2.1 innings of work. Last weekend, he walked six in his season debut.
READ MORE: ASU displays versatility in opening weekend series sweep
Junior Jaden Alba relieved Barrett, mirroring the move from the opening weekend. Alba settled things over 2.2 innings of work, striking out four, allowing no earned runs to earn himself the victory.
"The last two outings, it hasn't come out like we were hoping," Bloomquist said of Barrett's outings. "This raises a little bit more concern today, a couple of them that just haven't been real sharp, and the ball hasn't been exploding out of his hand like it was this fall and this spring. So, we're going to have to take a peek at that and see what ultimately is going to be best for us moving forward."
Pitching ruled on Saturday for ASU as four arms combined to strikeout eight, allowing only five hits and one run in a 3-1 victory.
Junior Josh Butler picked up his first victory of the season in relief, tossing 2.1 innings of scoreless ball after redshirt junior Colin Linder pitched 4.2, striking out five and giving up one run.
Junior Derek Schaefer collected a five-out save, retiring the final four hitters faced to slam the door.
Redshirt sophomore third baseman Austen Roellig led offensively, notching a double, RBI and run scored in the low-scoring affair.
"Sometimes we're not going to have our best stuff," Schaefer said. "These guys seem to pick us up pretty well (offensively), and I hope we can do the same for them."
Junior ace Cole Carlon commanded the series opener, striking out nine over six innings of work as he continues to flourish in his transition from reliever to starter.
Carlons' reliever pedigree was shown early on as he left two runners stranded with less than two outs in both the second and third innings.
"I needed to get back into where I was mechanically and mentally, just attacking the zone," Carlon said.
Redshirt junior second baseman Nu'u Contrades smashed his second grand slam of the young season, a part of a five-run seventh inning to put the dagger in St. John's.
Fifth-year right fielder Dean Toigo and junior first baseman Dominic Smaldino also tallied home runs.
"We're just relentless," Contrades said. "We're going to try and keep that going."
Despite being 7-0 for the first time since 2019, Bloomquist hasn't softened his edge as the standard-driven skipper emphasized the need for improvement, especially with five games in six days upcoming, all against Top-25 opponents.
Three of the four teams the Sun Devils will play are also undefeated, including No. 13 Oklahoma, which they will meet in a quick two-game midweek series in Norman, Oklahoma, before heading to Arlington, Texas, to play in the Amegy Bank College Baseball Series against No. 4 Mississippi State, No. 20 Tennessee and No. 23 Texas A&M.
"We're 7-0, great, but that means nothing right now," Bloomquist said. "We have to get better. We're going to be facing good teams this week. We have a lot to prepare for."
Edited by Alan Deutschendorf, Jack McCarthy and Pippa Fung.
Reach the reporter at eapache3@asu.edu.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on X.
