2021 Season

[ekat]

Great, great game. Good anecdote to the softball day.

[Irish27]

One more win to advance.

[AzCatFan2]

Great game. And the complete game means all hands on deck to pitch minus Irvin. Let's get one more win tomorrow night.

[EastCoastCat]

Couldn't have drawn it up any better. Irvin was money - kudos to Johnson & staff for leaving him in and not going by the book.
Bit too many LOB for my taste but UCSB's starter was really good at getting out of jams.

In the drivers seat. Interesting to see who pitches tonight.

[Irish27]

Btw, they are selling beer at the WCWS.

[azcat49]

Would be nice for Okie St and UCSB to go about 15 innings this afternoon

[qwertyus]

So who would we prefer to win? UCSB or OK State? I suppose UCSB since we've beaten them already?

[azcat49]

It shouldn’t matter as we have really used our pitching staff well. I think we start Murphy and we have Flanagan, Nichols and Abshire waiting. We can still finish with Vanelle and Price.

[azcat49]

Looks like UCSB as it’s already 8-0 in the third inning. They have a good offense which makes last night’s performance by Irvin so impressive

[ekat]

Yes, Irvin’s performance looks even better today. They are killing OSU.

[EastCoastCat]

I hope the Gauchos use up all their hits today. One thing about scoring a ton of runs, it’s hard to duplicate it the next game. The baseball gods won’t allow it.

[azgreg]

Looks like UCSB as it’s already 8-0 in the third inning. They have a good offense which makes last night’s performance by Irvin so impressive

Now 12-0 after 6.

[TheCatInTheHat]

Yes, Irvin’s performance looks even better today. They are killing OSU.

That was truly amazing. A complete game 3-hit shutout at a critical time against what is obviously a very good team.

After all the stuff on Twitter yesterday about #Gary#Gary#Gary, I was trying to find the clip from Bridge of Spies where the KGB guy is interrogating Francis Gary Powers with: "So, Gary, I really think you should cooperate with us, Gary, because, Gary...it would go so much easier on you, Gary, if you only would. What do you say, Gary, can we count on you to help us, Gary?"

But, I couldn't find it...

[TheCatInTheHat]

So why is it that the SEC network is showing some of these tournament games, and the Pac-12 isn't? I've been streaming them, and the Pac-12 crew of Roxy Bernstein and Wes Clements are doing the games. I'm in LA right now, so I just get regular P12N and P12LA, but that's just old football games. Are they even showing the games on P12 Arizona?

[qwertyus]

ASU dumped out by Fairfield.

[TheCatInTheHat]

Yeah, that would be the Stags for the uninitiated. So much for a blowout rematch with Texas. We are apparently supposed to be reminded that this is a young ASU team (in Tracy Smith's seventh year at ASU.) Just like we've been reminded that ASU had the normal injuries everyone always experiences and they were short-handed in every game they lost in any sport this academic year.

[Irish27]

ASU dumped out by Fairfield.

Will asu fire Smith? If they do, they should at least give Central Michigan's Jordan Bischel an interview.

[EastCoastCat]

ASU dumped out by Fairfield.

And to a school 20 minutes from me. Hahahah!

[azgreg]

Oregon St eliminated TCU.

[qwertyus]

So, we're playing UCSB when?

[azgreg]

[azgreg]

So, we're playing UCSB when?

6:00

[Siempre Verde]

So why is it that the SEC network is showing some of these tournament games, and the Pac-12 isn't? I've been streaming them, and the Pac-12 crew of Roxy Bernstein and Wes Clements are doing the games. I'm in LA right now, so I just get regular P12N and P12LA, but that's just old football games. Are they even showing the games on P12 Arizona?

Rights issue. SEC is in the ESPiN family of networks. Pac12 isn’t. Thanks, Uncle Larry.

[qwertyus]

Gracias.

[TheCatInTheHat]

ASU dumped out by Fairfield.

Will asu fire Smith? If they do, they should at least give Central Michigan's Jordan Bischel an interview.

It's an interesting question. Our having a big year doesn't help Smith's cause. But, Ray Anderson hired him, and Anderson has all of his people in place and probably doesn't want to admit making a mistake. And, I get a sense that part of the deal with Smith has been to deal with their most over-the-top baseball boosters and to lower expectations. Smith was competitive and made the NCAAs...with a young team, no less, so there's the built-in excuse. I think there's an acknowledgement that ASU can't win the league and go to Omaha every year, or even every few years, and Anderson prefers to have the pressure of those expectations diminished. It's okay; there are still 30+ teams left in the baseball tourney, so the odds are statistically against our winning the whole thing. And we'll have another losing season in football, while Herm finishes second to Utah in the South (after being picked to win it), and he can go play North Carolina St in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, and everything will be fine.

[azgreg]

UCSB it is.

[Irish27]

ASU dumped out by Fairfield.

Will asu fire Smith? If they do, they should at least give Central Michigan's Jordan Bischel an interview.

It's an interesting question. Our having a big year doesn't help Smith's cause. But, Ray Anderson hired him, and Anderson has all of his people in place and probably doesn't want to admit making a mistake. And, I get a sense that part of the deal with Smith has been to deal with their most over-the-top baseball boosters and to lower expectations. Smith was competitive and made the NCAAs...with a young team, no less, so there's the built-in excuse. I think there's an acknowledgement that ASU can't win the league and go to Omaha every year, or even every few years, and Anderson prefers to have the pressure of those expectations diminished. It's okay; there are still 30+ teams left in the baseball tourney, so the odds are statistically against our winning the whole thing. And we'll have another losing season in football, while Herm finishes second to Utah in the South (after being picked to win it), and he can go play North Carolina St in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, and everything will be fine.

What Anderson has on his side is that asu has owned the UofA in football the last four years. It's not looking good that streak will end this year.

[azgreg]

UCLA eliminates N Carolina.

[TheCatInTheHat]

Regarding ASU feeling all warm and fuzzy over beating us in football...if owning the kind of 9-20 slop Kevin Sumlin put out on the field is enough to make anybody feel satisfied, that makes my case. I don't particularly care for ASU because their fans are annoying, stupid, and obsessed, and their local media are disingenous. But outside of alums and some residents of Pima and Maricopa counties, the world cares about our head-to-head results about as much as the annual Egg Bowl between Mississippi and Mississippi St. To me, it's all about significant post-season accomplishments. We've sucked at football for awhile now, but the fact that they've been better to the extent of being mediocre isn't call for any chest-thumping on Sunset Boulevard, unless you actually want people to roll their eyes. Meanwhile, regardless of the latest in a 20+ year string of unmet high expectations for any other sport, I'm sure they're not happy about having a Fairfield end their baseball season while we appear to be on a roll.

[Irish27]

Some residents of Pima and Maricopa counties, I don't agree with that opinion at all. The entire state gets into this game. It has been mentioned nationally that the UofA/asu football game is ranked up there when it comes to rivalries. You win the football game, you have bragging rights for a year. Out of all the sports played against asu, football is the biggest and most meaningful one. The last four years have been horrible. Blowing that 20-point game in the 4th quarter and then being totally embarrassed on national tv last year was pathetic. If it was the other way around and we had won the last four games the way asu won them, I am sure most of the UofA fans would be gloating and reminding their fans of it. And I don't care if it was a Covid year, football is football.
Until the UofA wins a Rose Bowl, asu fans can brag. Just like we can with the '97 basketball title. I believe in Fisch and love what he has been doing. I really think he can turn this around, but if they only win one game this year, I would hope it's the asu game. Looking back, so many people loved the hiring of Sumlin and laughed at asu for hiring Edwards, but those hires have drastically changed the programs. asu is recruiting 4 and 5 star players while Sumlin was getting the bottom-of the-barrel recruits. This year reminds me of 2004, but I think the program can turn it around quicker thanks to the transfer portal.

[azcat49]

UCSB it is.

Another dominating win over the top 14 RPI team. Either our AZ team is really really good (seePAC results) or the RPI is fouled. We win tonight big and we have feel really good about getting to another championship final I think

[84Cat]

[azgreg]

Murphy, Chandler
ERA: 3.79
WHIP: 1.46
Record: 6-0
App-GS: 18-7
SO/BB: 58/24
HR: 0

[AZCatGirl]

Let's finish this.

[ekat]

Nice double play to clean up that mess.

[84Cat]

Donta is a beast as a base runner

[qwertyus]

Nice double play again.

[ekat]

Always good to strike first.

[azgreg]

And we're on the board!

[azgreg]

2-1 Cats after 3.

[84Cat]

Whew!

[ekat]

HUGE, HUGE strikeout. HUGE!

[ekat]

Can I just say here that I love Donta Williams?

[UAEebs86]

Double play!

[qwertyus]

Should be a double play. Play at 1st is close.

[UAEebs86]

Definitely out at third. 1st was a bang bang play.

[azgreg]

Just your typical 6-3-5 double play.

[azgreg]

Beavers force a 2nd game tomorrow with DBU.

[prh]

Susac with a cannon but that's a very very bad tag by Kato. Gotta let that ball get to you

[azgreg]

S miss forces a game tomorrow with Ole Miss.