OMAHA, Neb. — Upgrading Arizona’s pitching has been an ongoing project for Wildcats coach Jay Johnson. He has invested heavily in it in terms of manpower and scholarships.
That the staff struggled in the College World Series — it allowed 21 runs in two games — doesn’t mean the UA is on the wrong track.
The pitchers projected to lead the rotation next season — TJ Nichols, Chandler Murphy and Dawson Netz — were big-time recruits who, for the most part, performed promisingly during their first full seasons as collegians.
Those three form a portion of a returning nucleus that’s brimming with potential and will make Arizona a strong candidate to return to Omaha again in 2022.
The “Baby Bombers,” 2021 freshman standouts Jacob Berry and Daniel Susac, also will be back. So will outfielder Chase Davis, who didn’t start in ’21 but was a higher-rated recruit than any of them.
Although it didn’t show at TD Ameritrade Park, where they were swept out of the CWS by Vanderbilt and Stanford, the Wildcats improved steadily over the course of the season.
Arizona’s Dawson Netz pitches during the eighth inning of Saturday’s College World Series game against Vanderbilt.
The Wildcats lost two of their first three games in 2021. They lost their first Pac-12 series at UCLA. They lost three games in a row in mid-April, including a 21-2 drubbing at Washington State.
From that point forward, Arizona played .774 baseball.
“I thought we got better as we went,” Johnson said. “In my opinion, here, nothing really changed. We just ran into two worthy opponents. The margin between winning and losing that game Saturday night against Vanderbilt was incredibly small, and they put themselves on the right side of that. (Monday) we just got beat by a good team.
“I thought some guys really made some steps forward. Some guys played their way into professional opportunities. Guys played their way into being elite college players.”
As has become customary under Johnson, Arizona stands to lose several productive performers to the MLB draft, which is 20 rounds this year and will take place July 11-13.
The Wildcats’ highest-rated pro prospects, per Baseball America, are right fielder Ryan Holgate (No. 106), first baseman Branden Boissiere (144) and right-hander Chase Silseth (145). Center fielder Donta’ Williams (324) also is expected to be drafted. Second baseman Kobe Kato (249) could be as well.
Arizona definitely will lose late-inning relievers Preston Price and Vince Vannelle, who have run out of eligibility. Both should receive interest from MLB organizations.
Price struggled to recapture his form after a midseason arm injury, and Vannelle was the tough-luck loser in the Vanderbilt game. But as the season progressed, Arizona relied increasingly on young pitchers who are expected to assume even bigger roles in 2022.
Right-handers Murphy and Netz were second-year freshmen who worked out of the rotation and the bullpen. Murphy finished with a 4.29 ERA — a number inflated by a rough outing against Stanford on Monday (one inning, five earned runs). Over his previous six appearances, a span of 21 2/3 innings, Murphy had a 1.66 ERA. He threw five hitless innings in relief against Arizona State on April 1.
Netz, the surprise opener in Game 3 of the Super Regionals against Ole Miss, allowed the knockout-blow home run to Stanford’s Brock Jones on Monday. But from May 2 on, Netz was nearly unhittable. Over his final 12 appearances, Netz allowed four hits in 13 innings. His ERA over that span: 1.38.
Johnson considers Nichols, a true freshman this year, to be the most talented pitcher he’s gotten to Arizona’s campus. Nichols, a 6-4 righty, regularly hit the mid-90s with his fastball during his two innings of scoreless relief against Vanderbilt. Over his final eight appearances, Nichols allowed just 11 hits in 23 1/3 innings. He had a 1.54 ERA and a 26-7 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Another true freshman, left-hander Riley Cooper, led the team with 29 appearances and gives Johnson and pitching coach Nate Yeskie a versatile chess piece. Cooper allowed just one earned run in 7 2/3 innings over his final five games.
Berry and Susac — who accumulated multiple All-Freshman and All-America accolades after combining for 29 home runs and 135 RBIs — made the top 10 in ESPN.com’s ranking of the best pro prospects in the CWS regardless of class. Both will be eligible for the 2022 draft. Nichols made the “others of note.” He’s eligible for the ’23 draft.
Inside pitch
- More than half of Arizona’s roster is draft-eligible. But with the draft at 20 rounds – up from five last year but down from the standard 40 – it’s unlikely that more than 6-8 current players will be picked. Others who could be in that mix include left-hander Garrett Irvin and righty Quinn Flanagan. They’re among 10 Wildcats who graduated in May.
- Two of Arizona’s known 2021 signees appear in the top 300 of Baseball America’s rankings. Las Vegas outfielder Tyler Whitaker is No. 60, and Sacramento pitcher Anthony Susac — Daniel’s cousin — is No. 291.
- The ’21 draft will have 612 total selections. Slot values are assigned for the first 10 rounds, ranging from $14.394 million for the first pick to $142,200 for the 312th.
- Williams, speaking after Monday’s game, on the draft: “I haven't even thought about that yet. I haven't thought (a) second about the next few weeks. I've just been out here trying to give everything I got.”
