TEMPE – The Phoenix metro has not been kind to Arizona baseball through the first month of the season.
Arizona fell to rival ASU 10-4 on Tuesday night in front of a packed crowd at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. The Wildcats clawed back after falling behind 6-1, but the Sun Devils closed the door in the late innings.
The nonconference game was the first of five matchups between the rivals, with the UA hosting a 3-game Big 12 Conference series in early April followed by one more non-league game in Tempe.
Arizona (6-10) is now 0-4 in the Phoenix area, with three losses coming in the opening weekend College Baseball Series in Surprise. Arizona dropped to 0-3 in midweek games.
Collin McKinney got the start for the Wildcats, allowing four earned runs on five hits and six strikeouts. McKinney conceded one run in the first inning but escaped out of a bases loaded jam. He looked sharp until giving up a 2-run homer to ASU’s Dean Toigo in the fourth inning.
“We saw the velocity at times. We saw the breaking stuff,” Arizona coach Chip Hale said. “It was very encouraging from us on our side for him.“
The Sun Devils tacked on three more runs in the fourth, including a 2-run blast from Landon Hairston off reliever Matthew Martinez.
Arizona answered in the sixth inning when sophomore catcher Roman Meyers drilled a 450-feet 3-run homer to bring the score to 6-4. It was Meyers’ third homer of the season.
“He always has a chance. He’s got massive power,” Hale said. “So if he hits it he has a chance for a home run.”
Arizona’s five through nine hitters combined for six of the team’s eight hits, led by 2-hit games from Caleb Danzeisen and Cash Brennan.
Arizona’s offense, however, couldn’t keep up with the Sun Devils, who added runs in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings to pull away. Wildcats pitchers gave up eight free bases on the night.
Arizona is back in action Friday when it begins Big 12 play at Utah. First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. MST.
