There are hot stretches, and then there’s whatever senior infielder Matt King has been doing in the batter's box for ASU.
King went hitless in the second game of the Sun Devils' series against Texas Tech to end his hitting streak at 15 games. King went 1-for-4 and 1-for-3 in the first two games of the streak, but the 13 games that followed were sheer dominance.
He went 33-for-57, good for a .579 batting average, with 12 extra-base hits, including his only four home runs of the season. 11 of the 13 were multi-hit games, with five of them being three-hit games and two of them being four-hit games.
One of the four-hit games came against Cal State University, Northridge, when he went 4-for-5 with two home runs, six RBIs and scored four times to help ASU win 20-11. The two home run performance came the game after King launched his first home run of the year in a 3-for-3 effort against UA.
"It's more mental," King said. "I don't even think about mechanics at all right now. I'm just swinging up there without hesitation. I'm getting exactly what pitch I want, and I'm just trying to do damage on it."
King was hitting .288 before the hot stretch, and his batting average peaked at .415 after his three-hit performance against Texas Tech. He was having a good season before the hit parade, but now he's turned into one of ASU's most productive hitters.
On the season, King leads the team in batting average at .401, slugging percentage at .599, OPS at 1.062 and hits at 57. King's .401 batting average is also the best in the Big 12. Nothing has changed at the plate for King.
"Just sticking to my approach, going up to the batter's box with a clear head and just getting the pitch that I want to hit, not the pitch the pitcher wants me to hit," King said.
The recent surge in production has forced head coach Willie Bloomquist's hand to move King higher in the lineup. King has built himself a home in the three-hole in the lineup and doesn't seem to be moving from there anytime soon.
"The kid's just a solid player," Bloomquist said. "I've said it a million times, that kid just comes to the ballpark ready to play. Not a real vocal guy, not a flashy guy, just a baseball player. I'll take 15 of those dudes any day of the week."
Despite going hitless in the final two games of the Texas Tech series, King got back on track with a 3-for-4 performance with four RBIs in the midweek matchup at GCU.
"He just keeps getting those knocks," said sophomore pitcher Cole Carlon.
King's play hasn't gone unnoticed. He picked up the Big 12 Newcomer of the Week award on March 31 and Brooks Wallace Shortstop of the Week award on April 15.
With 15 games left in the regular season, ASU is hoping King can carry his stellar production at the plate into the postseason.
Edited by Jack Barron, Abigail Beck and Natalia Jarrett.
Reach the reporter at jmjanes1@asu.edu and follow @JackJanes_ on X.
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Jack is a graduate student studying sports journalism. This is his second semester with The State Press. He has also worked at Walter Cronkite Sports Network and The Sporting Tribune.
