Workman's seven RBI lead baseball to 17-9 win of Long Beach State
Andy Workman's career day led the Sun Devils to a 17-9 series-sweeping victory over the Long Beach State Dirtbags on Sunday. Workman established new career highs with his five hits, two homers and seven runs batted in, helping ASU improve to 35-11 on the year. Arizona State pounded out 16 hits and was aided by four Dirtbag errors that led to five unearned runs. The 17 runs scored is a season high.
Starter Jake Barrett earned the win, boosting his record to 7-3. He went five innings, allowing two runs, one earned, on seven hits. He struck out four. Long Beach State starter Ryan Strufing took the loss, dropping him to 3-2 on the year. He lasted four innings, allowing eight runs, five earned, on eight hits.
The Dirtbags touched Barrett for a run in the first on an RBI double to right by Mike Marjama. The Devils would grab the lead in the second, plating two off of Strufing. After three straight singles to lead off the inning, Xorge Carrillo put ASU on the board with a sac fly to left that scored Zach Wilson. Johnny Ruettiger's two out single scored Matt Newman to make it 2-1.
Long Beach State evened things up in the fourth, scoring an unearned run. After a leadoff single by Matt Duffy, he moved to second on a failed pickoff throw by Barrett, went to third on a balk and scored on a grounder to short by Johnny Bekakis.
The Devils took advantage of some Dirtbag miscues in the bottom of the fourth to retake the lead. After two quick outs, Carrillo was hit by a pitch. The inning appeared over when Michael Benjamin hit a ground ball to shortstop Michael Hill, but Hill's throw to first was high putting the runners on second and third. Ruettiger made Beach pay for the error, sending a ball down the left field line for a two-run double that made it 4-2. The next hitter, Zack MacPhee, hit a ball up the middle that was fielded behind the second base bag by second baseman Matt Duffy. Duffy's throw to first was late and high, allowing Ruettiger to score to make it 5-2.
Joey DeMichele added to the lead in the fifth, leading off the inning with his team-leading sixth home run of the season to make it 6-2 Devils. Andy Workman got in the long ball game later in the inning, smashing a three-run shot over the left field fence for his second career homer and first ever at Packard Stadium. An RBI triple by Zack MacPhee and an RBI single by Austin Barnes gave the Devils a six spot in the inning and an 11-2 lead.
Workman made sure his mother Mindy would remember Mother's Day 2011 for a long time in the sixth inning, homering again down the left field line, a two-run job to make it 13-2 Arizona State. Workman, who hit his first career homer earlier this season at Oregon State, became the fourth Sun Devil with a multi-homer game this season, joining Riccio Torrez, Matt Newman and Joey DeMichele.
Arizona State would add four more in the ninth, including two on Workman's double off the wall. Long Beach State would score sixth in the ninth, five off Josh Moody and one off Trevor Williams, but it was too little too late as ASU held on for the 17-9 win.
Workman went 4-5 with seven RBI and three runs scored. Johnny Ruettiger went 3-3 with three RBI, Zach Wilson was 3-4 while Zack MacPhee and Joey DeMichele each had two hits.
The Sun Devils return to Pac-10 action next week, traveling to Los Angeles for a three-game series with USC at Dedeaux Field beginning Friday night.