The reeling No. 23 Arizona State baseball team returns to the friendly confines of Packard Stadium this weekend for a three-game series against the No. 17 Oregon State Beavers. ASU was swept by the Oregon Ducks last weekend in Eugene. The Sun Devils have not lost four games in a row since 2005.
Arizona State (16-12) will look to find some offense this weekend, as last weekend against Oregon, the Sun Devils could only muster four runs total. Despite the poor offensive weekend, ASU leads the Pac-12 in home runs (21) and total bases (415). ASU ranks second in the conference in hits (276), RBI (161) and triples (12).
Production will need to come from the heart of the lineup, Joey DeMichele and Abe Ruiz. Ruiz leads the Pac-12 in doubles (12) and home runs (7). DeMichele leads the conference in triples (4) and is third in RBI (30).
The ASU pitching staff has carried the Sun Devils all season. Both Brady Rodgers (1.29) and Trevor Williams (1.51) rank inside the top-40 in the country in individual ERA. Rodgers has been the ace of the staff all season and he is having one of the best seasons in ASU history. The junior right-hander has thrown four complete game already this season.
Oregon State (18-8) is riding a three game winning streak heading into the weekend's series. Oregon State has received solid pitching in Pac-12 play as their weekend rotation of Dan Child, Ben Wetzler and Jace Fry have combined for an ERA of 1.91 in 61 1/3 innings. The trio is 5-1 in conference play.
Oregon State swept ASU last year in Corvallis, and ASU took two of three games from the Beavers in 2010 in Tempe.
First pitch tonight and Saturday is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. First pitch on Sunday is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. All three games can be heard on KDUS The Fan AM 1060.