ASU pitching powers Sun Devils to 3–1 win over St. John’s

Three runs usually are not enough.

For ASU, it certainly has not been. Over the past two seasons, when the Sun Devils score three runs or fewer, the result is almost automatic. They entered the day just 3–16 in those games, a reflection of pitching staffs that too often forced the offense to carry the margin.

College baseball rarely allows that luxury. Metal bats punish mistakes. Young arms make plenty of them. Most nights turn into scoring races, and for two years, ASU lived in that reality, swinging as if every inning required another insurance run.

Six games into a new season, however, the tone already feels different.

Saturday was the type of game ASU has struggled to win, a tight, low-scoring grind where every baserunner matters. Instead of unraveling, the Sun Devils leaned on their pitching. Instead of chasing runs, they protected them.

Against St. John’s, ASU’s staff worked out of danger all afternoon, stacking strikeouts behind a steady defense. Junior right-handed pitcher Colin Linder set the tone with 4.2 innings of one-run ball and five strikeouts before the bullpen took over. Senior left-hander Sean Fitzpatrick and junior right-handers Josh Butler and Derek Schaefer combined for 4.1 shutout innings, allowing just three hits. The offense did enough. Graduate outfielder Matt Polk delivered an RBI triple, and junior infielder Nu’u Contrades added an RBI single to create the margin. It was not explosive or comfortable, but it was effective. Three runs held up as ASU (6-0) secured the series with a 3–1 win over St. John’s (1-5).

The final line shows only one run for the Red Storm, but the afternoon was far from quiet. Pressure surfaced often. What separated ASU was timely execution and the ability to find the right pitch at the right moment.

That story opened with Linder on the mound.

Making just his second career start, Linder showed swing-and-miss stuff while working through the normal inconsistencies of an early-season outing. Walks and deep counts kept him from settling into a rhythm, forcing him to pitch through traffic. Still, he handled key moments well. He moved efficiently through the first two innings, struck out two in the second, then allowed a solo home run to redshirt sophomore Adam Agresti before responding with two more strikeouts to end the frame.

“He battled, didn’t have his best stuff,” head coach Willie Bloomquist said. “We need to pick the tempo up a little bit there… He needs to do a better job landing the breaking ball for strikes. But the fastball plays. He’s got one of those weird fastballs that guys have a hard time squaring up and was able to make pitches when he needed to. I think there’s a lot more in there with him.”

The raw stuff was evident. Linder sat 94 to 96 mph and leaned on a high-80s slider that generated swings and misses, though inconsistent command kept innings from ending quickly.

The real test arrived in the fifth.

A single and a walk created traffic, and a two-out walk tightened the moment further. With Linder at 83 pitches and a left-handed hitter approaching, Bloomquist made the move.

The game hung there. One swing could change everything.

Senior left-handed pitcher Sean Fitzpatrick prevented it.

ASU’s left-handed specialist and co-captain entered having struck out every hitter he had faced this season. Three pitches later, that streak continued. A fading slider produced a swing and miss, ending the inning and shifting momentum.

“Whenever I get the rock, I’m just gonna go throw it and compete,” Fitzpatrick said. “Doesn’t matter if it’s a hitter like today, or an inning like last Sunday, I’m just gonna go compete and try to do everything I can to help us win… I enjoy it when there are runners on. I think that’s pretty fun to execute pitches then.”

While the pitching kept the game contained, the offense provided just enough spark to create separation.

Getting on base proved a challenge as ASU went 5-for-26 at the plate, but timely hitting made the difference. With two outs in the second, junior outfielder Dominic Longo singled sharply up the middle. One pitch later, Polk jumped on the first pitch and drove a triple into the right-field corner, putting ASU on the board.

An inning later, the pattern repeated. Two quick outs set the stage for opportunity. Sophomore infielder Austin Roellig doubled, graduate outfielder Dean Toigo was hit by a pitch, and Contrades stepped in, carrying the momentum from Friday’s grand slam and now the pivotal hitter with a runner in scoring position. He lined a clean RBI single up the middle, his 12th of the season, putting ASU ahead.

Even with a .192 team average, ASU excelled in high-leverage moments, going 4-for-10 with two outs and 3-for-7 with runners on base. Later in the middle innings, Roellig demonstrated the team’s small-ball versatility.

“We were having a hard time squaring anything up today, so I just wanted to get that run across and stretch to a two-run lead,” Bloomquist said. “I don’t like playing for one, but in that type of game, one run is big. With first and third, I didn’t want to risk a double play… we were making contact, just soft contact… just wanted to make sure we at least scored one there.”

With sophomores Beckett Zavorek and Landon Hairston on base, Roellig executed a perfect squeeze bunt that allowed Zavorek to sprint home for the insurance run.

From there, the bullpen tightened control.

Butler delivered 2.1 strong innings before a walk in the eighth, passed the ball to Schaefer, who currently handles the closer role. Schaefer downplays titles and insists pitching is pitching, but Bloomquist understands the mentality behind the assignment.

“It takes a different breed to come out of the pen and close games,” Bloomquist said. “It’s just the toughest three outs of the ninth inning, and it’s like he’s calmer when he comes in in the ninth. To have that demeanor and have that late-inning guy who can do that is extremely valuable.”

Schaefer finished it with that calm presence, striking out one and allowing just one hit across 1.2 innings while needing only 15 pitches to seal the win.

Days like this are rare. It’s easy to get frustrated with an offense that struggled to produce, but given this program’s history, the focus should be on the bright side: a complete, dominant pitching performance. That’s the takeaway Bloomquist emphasized.

“It’s reassuring because it’s been a while since we’ve been able to win a low-scoring game, or have low-scoring games for the most part,” Bloomquist said. “Tribute to the pitching staff, coaching staff, obviously, for bringing in better talent and giving us the opportunity to do this. Again, we haven’t arrived by any stretch of the imagination, but the momentum has been better. Being able to win a game like this and gut it out when our offense just doesn’t show up, those are the games it’s nice to be able to win.”