Carlon, Contrades lead Sun Devils in opening night victory

Opening night did not arrive with postcard weather. Gray clouds pressed low over Phoenix Municipal Stadium. A sharp chill replaced a week of desert sun, and wind knocked the center-field flags toward home plate.

Still, it felt like baseball again.

The reason it finally felt like opening night was clear long before the first pitch. Fans streamed through the gates, filling the stands with chatter, cheers, and a restless energy that pulsed through Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Rare in the early years of Willie Bloomquist’s tenure, momentum began building last season, and now the buy-in felt real, even with a roster full of new faces.

The crowd confirmed it. ASU drew 3,690 spectators, the second-largest opening-night crowd in stadium history. Channeling that energy fell to a team Bloomquist largely rebuilt through the transfer portal, a group that fueled D1Baseball’s No. 13-ranked transfer class, and to junior left-hander Cole Carlon, making his first Friday start in maroon and gold.

There was symmetry in the matchup. With Omaha as the sport’s ultimate destination, ASU opened against Omaha. The game was played in Phoenix. The dream is won in June. Carlon looked ready for it. After earning All-Big 12 first-team honors as a reliever in 2025, he delivered five composed innings, allowed one run, and struck out three. The offense followed, breaking a slow start with six runs over the final four innings to finish with seven on 11 hits. The new pieces produced. Junior infielder PJ Moutzouridis, a Cal transfer, had three hits and an RBI. Junior infielder Garrett Michel added two hits, including a double, and drove in a run. ASU opened 2026 with a 7-2 win over Omaha.

Carlon’s command of the moment was not accidental. When he stretched into longer outings last season, dominance flashed in previews. He struck out 10 over 4.1 innings against an Arizona team that later reached Omaha. He followed with four more innings, allowing one hit and striking out six against Cincinnati. 

Those appearances were auditions. The offseason was preparation. He is not the same mold of left-hander Sun Devil fans once watched in Ben Jacobs, but the ceiling may be higher because of it.

On Friday, growth replaced projection. His second fastball reached 98 mph, a reminder of his arm talent. Yet the outing was defined by restraint. Rather than hunt strikeouts, he trusted weak contact and attacked the zone. The three punchouts reflected efficiency, not limitation. Bloomquist said the outing lasted longer than expected, as Carlon reached a career high of five innings, surpassing the 4.1-inning benchmark against Arizona.

“It felt really good,” Carlon said. “I feel like I could have gone more. Obviously, pitch count we’re looking after that early on. I felt like I was able to hold my stuff pretty good. I’m pretty sure that was my longest outing that I’ve had in my three years here. So I’m excited to just kind of keep rolling and building off that.”

The only mistake came in the fifth, when senior catcher Brody Sexton drove a fastball down the left-field line for a solo home run. Carlon finished the inning and walked off to applause. He ended the night at 67 pitches, a number likely to rise as he settles into the role.

“We’ll probably stretch him out a little bit more next outing, assuming he’s good,” Bloomquist said. “We’re not going to guarantee guys anything, but the plan would be to stretch him out to 75 or maybe 80 pitches his next outing, so long as he continues to be sharp and hold his stuff right.”

Offensively, the breakthrough required patience. The crowd waited for a towering swing and the familiar notes of “Hey Baby,” but the wind refused to cooperate. A few early fly balls teased the stands, only to fall harmlessly.

So ASU manufactured its spark instead. Junior infielder Nu’u Contrades opened the second with a sharp single through the left side. He stole second, then third. A wide throw from Sexton allowed him to sprint home for the first run of the game and the season. It was not a booming shot. It was pressure.

“That was kind of our game plan going in,” Contrades said. “We’re gonna try and cause havoc in any way possible. Bloom, he gave me the green light, so I wanted to take advantage of it.”

That sequence set the tone for Contrades’ night. Transitioning to second base after an injury cut his 2025 short, he reached base in all four plate appearances, going 2 for 2 with a double, a walk and a hit by pitch. He scored three times and ignited multiple rallies.

The fifth, sixth, and eighth innings layered on the damage. After Michel doubled to open the fifth, sophomore catcher Brody Briggs lifted a sacrifice fly. Sophomore outfielder Landon Hairston followed with an RBI single after a Moutzouridis knock. In the sixth, Contrades doubled off the top of the wall, the wind holding it in the yard, and Michel answered with a line-drive single against an infield drawn tight.

By the eighth, the approach was clear. Contrades took a pitch to start the inning. Moutzouridis cashed in with an infield RBI single. Briggs drove another up the middle. It was situational, disciplined and relentless.

Briggs, Miche,l and Moutzouridis fueled an offense that may not rely on the constant light tower power once provided by Isaiah Jackson or Brandon Compton. Instead, tonight’s version pressured the defense and trusted in execution. 

Up the middle, Moutzouridis and Contrades looked as comfortable turning double plays as they did building rallies. On a night defined by new pieces and renewed belief, the partnership felt symbolic.

“It was awesome,” Moutzouridis said about opening night. “When you’re playing with a coaching staff like we have and the boys that we have on our team, it’s hard not to play hard for each other… Nu’s a phenomenal player, works really hard, so it’s pretty easy to go with him.”

When Carlon’s night ended, the bullpen extended the statement. UNLV transfer Alex Overbay, who closed games last season, embraced a broader role. He worked three innings, navigating traffic in both the seventh and eighth. He escaped a bases-loaded jam in the seventh with a popout. In the eighth, a fielder’s choice pushed across a run, but a double play erased further damage. Five hits and two walks dotted the line, yet only one run crossed. 

It may not have been a fireworks display on opening night, but 1-0 is still 1-0.

“Definitely, it wasn’t a typical Muni night,” Bloomquist said. “We’ve kind of been preaching to these guys early on in the season. The ball at night usually doesn’t go as well as it does when we start hitting in March and April. So we’ll take advantage of it now, and we’ll have to get creative on ways to win.”