Last season, the heart of ASU baseball’s lineup was often comprised of junior Brian Serven, junior Sebastian Zawada and sophomore Andrew Snow.
Now, the fourth, fifth and sixth spots in the order have most recently been filled by freshmen.
“It’s awesome to help the team like that and be in the five spot, or wherever they hit me — the seventh spot,” said freshman outfielder Hunter Bishop, who most recently batted fifth against Oregon State. “But it’s definitely something I expect out of myself. It’s not a surprise to me or anything new. I expect that out of myself and I’ll do anything to help the team.”
As Bishop has hit fifth as of late, freshman catcher/first baseman Lyle Lin has hit fourth, while freshman infielder Carter Aldrete has hit sixth. They’re all a part of the latest Sun Devil recruiting class that was ranked No. 1 in the country by Collegiate Baseball.
Though they’re freshmen who have been thrust into the ASU lineup’s middle spots, Lin, Bishop and Aldrete have done damage against opposing pitchers.
Lin’s .351 batting average and 13 RBI both lead the Sun Devils. Bishop, hitting .310, already has a triple and a home run in 15 appearances this season and boasts a .432 on-base percentage. Aldrete has started all 19 of the Sun Devils’ games this year, has two home runs and is third on the team with 28 total bases.
Not only are the freshmen hitting well, but they’ve been versatile.
Lin has played both first base and catcher, while Bishop has seen time in the outfield and at designated hitter. Aldrete, often a second baseman, played some third base over the weekend against the Beavers.
“He’s unphased, nothing bothers him,” head coach Tracy Smith said of Aldrete when asked of the position change. “He’s a baseball player. Baseball players make plays.”
Smith was asked if Aldrete is one of the team’s more confident players.
“Oh, absolutely,” Smith said.
Though Aldrete is described as confident and has the numbers to back it up, he admitted there’s a big adjustment from high school to college.
“It’s a lot faster. High school’s definitely a different game than college,” he said. “The preparation and how much it means to the city, the school, as a community — Arizona State baseball’s no joke. So, the preparation we put into each game, it’s way different than high school.”
Bishop and Aldrete both said they’ve had older players help show them the ropes. Bishop said outfielders like juniors Ryan Lillard and Andrew Shaps have helped him. Aldrete said infielders like Snow and junior Jackson Willeford have given him tips.
“I’m learning from everyone,” Aldrete said. “Even (sophomore) Jeremy McCuin, who’s one year older than me, he knows so much more than I do. So, I’m just soaking it all in from them and trying to get better every day.”
Carter Aldrete's first career dinger for @ASU_Baseball earns the Sun Devils' @OpusBank #12Best Moment! #Pac12BSB https://t.co/NPXQpnEQDS
— Pac-12 Network (@Pac12Network) February 21, 2017
Other freshmen have played a key role for ASU as well. At the beginning of the season, freshman catcher Sam Ferri was named a starter – senior Zach Cerbo has since taken over as the everyday backstop, but Ferri has nonetheless hit 4-for-15 with one double in seven appearances.
Freshman outfielder Myles Denson has hit .300 (6-for-20) in 10 games (five starts) with three RBI.
On the mound, freshman southpaw Spencer Van Scoyoc has taken the reins as one of the Sun Devils’ starting pitchers.
And even through all the work to stay productive, the players can soak up the new experience of playing college baseball.
“It’s something I’ve dreamed of as a kid. It’s awesome,” Bishop said. “It’s an experience that some people never get to have, but I’m lucky I’m doing it every day. It’s been a lot of fun.”
Reach the reporter at matthew.layman@asu.edu or follow @Mattjlayman on Twitter.
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