By Jeffrey Cohen | Sports Writer
No. 25 Arizona State clung to a 3-2 lead over Baylor entering the bottom of the fifth. After a leadoff walk and a strikeout, Austen Roellig hammered the first pitch he saw over the right-field fence to give the Sun Devils a three-run lead.
Roellig’s home run opened the door for his team, as the Sun Devils tallied two more runs in the fifth with back-to-back RBI base hits to end senior left-hander Ethan Calder’s start.
On the shoulders of a four-run fifth and three runs in the sixth, Arizona State (31-14, 14-7 Big 12) dominated Baylor (22-21, 9-12 Big 12) on Sunday afternoon, 11-4.
The victory secured the sweep for the Sun Devils, who defeated the Bears 11-2 on Friday and 4-2 on Saturday.
Arizona State got on the board in the first inning on an errant pickoff attempt that crept by redshirt senior first baseman Tyce Armstrong, scoring Landon Hairston from third.
Armstrong redeemed himself at the plate. He launched his 15th home run of the season, a solo shot to left field in the second, to tie the game. He added a single in the sixth and his second homer of the game in the ninth, mashing a two-run bomb that traveled 428 feet.
Junior catcher JJ Kennett (2-for-4) laced a double to left field in the fourth, bringing in redshirt sophomore designated hitter John Youens from first base. Kennett’s double ended up as Baylor’s only RBI that did not come off Armstrong’s bat.
The Sun Devils tacked on two runs in the third behind a sacrifice fly from Hairston and an RBI single off the bat of Nu’u Contrades. Their final run came in the bottom of the eighth with a 438-foot home run from Dominic Smaldino to reach 11 runs for the second time on the weekend.
Arizona State handed Calder his fifth loss of the season as he allowed seven runs (six earned) on 11 hits in his 11th start. Four bullpen arms finished the game with four runs against on four hits. The staff also struggled to get past the Sun Devils’ swings, recording only two strikeouts through eight innings.
Arizona State starter Kole Klecker received his fifth win while Jaden Alba earned his second save of the season after dealing the final three frames.
The series sweep extends Baylor’s losing streak to six games, including two losses to TCU and a Tuesday upset against Sam Houston State.
The Bears return to Waco to face off against UT Arlington (16-25, 5-7 WAC) at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Baylor Ballpark. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
