Utah Baseball Set to Face a Hot Sun Devils Team
Senior Hunter Simmons (9) stretched to cath the runner out during the University of Utah Baseball game against Washington State at Smith’s Ballpark, Salt Lake City, UT, 4/29/17.Photo by Adam Fondren/Daily Utah Chronicle
March 4, 2021
Utah baseball will get a chance to test the waters with a conference rival in a non-conference setting this weekend when they travel to Phoenix to take on the Arizona State Sun Devils. The Utes are coming off of a three-loss series on the road against Loyola Marymount.
Scouting the Sun Devils
ASU is 5-2 on the season and they are coming off a statement 13-4 victory against the University of Nevada. In that game ASU showed their extensive depth in the bullpen, switching pitchers six times with two more warming up before the end of the game.
ASU led the Pac-12 in strikeouts in 2020 before the season was stopped short due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This season they are ranked sixth in K’s but have played two fewer games than the top four. Accounting for that, ASU is ranked fifth overall in strikeouts over nine innings and team ERA, at 10.33 and 3.00 respectively.
Against Nevada, the Sun Devils also showed their offensive efficiency, turning 13 runs from 15 hits in 37 at-bats for a .405 batting average, leaving eight runners on over eight innings. In the Pac-12, they are ranked fourth overall in team batting average at .278 with a .341 on-base percentage.
Scouting the Utes
Utah is heading to Phoenix after losing three close games to Loyola Marymount, the first two of which were winnable after mid-game rallies put the Utes within striking distance. On the season, Utah’s stats do not instill confidence moving forward. In the Pac-12, Utah is ninth in batting average at .220 and last in on-base percentage at .299.
Where Utah struggles the most compared to the rest of the conference is on the mound. Utah ranks dead last with a team ERA of 5.88 and strikeouts with 34, posting 10 less K’s than Oregon and Stanford who have each played two fewer games. The Utes have plenty of depth in the bullpen, but this has not translated to improved pitching performance.
If Utah can manage to increase consistency at the plate and the mound, it could make the difference in close games like the ones they have played so far this season. This weekend against ASU will be an uphill battle though, as the overall record against the Sun Devils is 7-19 and 2-12 on the road and they are coming off a resounding performance against Nevada.
How to Follow the Matchup
The Utes will face the Sun Devils in a three-game series taking place on Friday, March 5, at 6:35 p.m. MST, Saturday, March 6, at 2:05 p.m. MST and Sunday, March 7, at 12:35 p.m. MST. Each game is available for streaming via the ASU Live Stream.
