When the final story of the Arizona Wildcats’ 2017 season is told, it will be easy to identify the turning point.
Arizona had lost six consecutive Pac-12 games and faced a one-run deficit in the bottom of the ninth inning against Washington on May 5 when Cal Stevenson came to bat with one on and one out. Stevenson launched a home run over the right-field wall to give the Wildcats a 5-4 walk-off victory. They have played winning baseball ever since, and the junior outfielder has played an integral role.
Arizona’s sweep at Arizona State over the weekend gave the UA five consecutive wins and nine in its past 11 games. Stevenson, a transfer from Chabot College in Hayward, California, reached base eight times in the three-game series via hit or walk and scored five runs — including his mad dash from second base on Alfonso Rivas’ two-run squeeze bunt Friday.
The 2015 co-Mountain West Freshman of the Year at Nevada has raised his batting average 40 points since it sunk to .264 on April 1. Stevenson leads the Pac-12 in runs (57) and walks (41). He’s fifth in on-base percentage (.440).
“I knew he was a good player,” said UA coach Jay Johnson, who also coached Stevenson during his freshman year at Nevada. “We brought him in (anticipating) he would be a key part of our team, and he’s absolutely done that.
“It’s more than just the production. His style of play, the way he plays, has elicited a lot of respect from his teammates.”
Johnson described Stevenson as a “prototypical table-setter-type hitter.” The 5-foot-9, 170-pound left-handed batter typically hits first or last and almost always looks at a lot of pitches.
“We have some dangerous hitters usually hitting right behind him,” Johnson said by phone Monday in between recruiting stops in Southern California. “If he’s on base, it changes the complexion of the inning for the pitcher. The work that they have to do to try to get him out makes it more difficult when those other guys are coming up. He’s a guy that functions really well in our lineup.”
It took time for Stevenson to adjust to the Pac-12. As mentioned, his averaged dipped into the .260s at one point. Johnson at times sat him against left-handed pitchers.
But Stevenson — like many of his teammates — seems to be peaking at the right time. Arizona has one series left, at home against Cal this weekend, before postseason play begins next week.
“It’s not going to go smoothly all the time,” Johnson said. “He has had some really great stretches for us, and he’s persevered through a couple of tough spots that are inevitable. When you look up and you look at those numbers, that’s what we thought and hoped he would be.”
Finishing strong
Another transfer has made a positive impact in recent games.
Right-hander Tylor Megill, who struggled earlier in the season as a starter, has emerged as a go-to guy to finish games.
The junior, who began his career at Loyola Marymount and pitched last season at Cypress (Calif.) College, has finished three of Arizona’s past four victories, recording two saves. He allowed only one run (unearned) in five innings during that stretch and has taken over the team lead in saves with three.
With Cameron Ming and Cody Deason joining the starting rotation, Megill is one of three pitchers Johnson has come to trust most in late-inning situations. Righty Michael Flynn and lefty Rio Gomez are the others.
“The outs at the end of the game are the toughest to get,” Johnson said. “Tylor’s pitchability has an uptick over a shorter amount of innings. His stuff plays up a little better when he can just kind of come in and go for it. I think that’s helped him be successful.”
Megill’s ERA is 5.23 — the lowest it has been all season.
Inside pitch
• Johnson said he removed catcher Ryan Haug early in Saturday’s game at ASU for “precautionary” reasons. Haug had back issues last year and was feeling “a little sore,” Johnson said. Saturday marked Haug’s fifth consecutive start at catcher or in left field.
• Arizona (36-17, 15-12 Pac-12) moved up one spot to No. 16 in Baseball America’s Top 25. The UA was 15th in RPI entering Monday night. Long Beach State — Arizona’s chief rival as a potential third West Coast regional host — was No. 17. Long Beach closes the season with a three-game series at Cal State Fullerton, a likely NCAA Tournament participant.
