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Baseball: Baseball to try various changes against Houston


BY TOM KELLEY

THE STATE PRESS

After getting outscored 32-9 at the Coca-Cola Classic and being swept at the event for the first time ever, ASU coach Pat Murphy will shake things up a little for the Sun Devils' three-game series with Houston this weekend.

One of the most significant changes will be the insertion of freshman left-hander Jeff Urlaub into the starting rotation. Urlaub will get his first career start Saturday.

"I'm glad I finally get the opportunity to go help the team out," Urlaub said. "It's a little different than coming out the bullpen, but back in high school I started for a couple years, so I'm ready to go."

Urlaub has been solid out of the bullpen so far this season, posting a 2.84 ERA and striking out eight.

"I have confidence in [Urlaub] whether starting or relieving," Murphy said. "He's young, so being able to go five or six [innings] would be unheard of, but I'm going to give him a chance to go out there."

One trend that Urlaub will try to avoid when he takes the hill for the first time will be the Sun Devils' propensity to give up the big inning, putting the offense in a very tough position.

In all four of ASU's losses this season, it has given up a big inning, including an eight-run stanza to Cal State Northridge in the season opener and a seven-run inning to Gonzaga last weekend.

"Guys are just so big and strong these days, and with these bats you can score 10 runs an inning just like that," sophomore outfielder J.J. Sferra said. "We can't let that affect us and we have to try and have those big innings ourselves to give our pitchers some support."

Those big innings have not come for ASU (5-4) this season, which is averaging 5.6 runs per game, a drop off from 7.2 runs per game a year ago.

"You can't be explosive all the time on offense," Sferra said. "It's the beginning of the season and we still have some stuff to work out."

In an attempt to put some runs on the board Murphy will start freshman Brett Wallace at first base and move sophomore Willy Fox over to third. Fox is leading ASU in average (.429), RBIs (8), and home runs (2).

"It's early in the season and Willy's doing well," Murphy said.

The position won't be completely foreign to the traditional first baseman. Fox played the hot corner for the Rochester Honkers in the Northwoods League this past summer.

Reach the reporter at thomas.j.kelley@asu.edu


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