The Arizona Wildcats have played 31 games. That’s more than twice as many as they played last season.
For most of the veterans on the team, this is nothing new. For many of the newcomers, it’s uncharted territory.
As such, UA coach Jay Johnson is keeping close tabs on his squad’s mental state as the Cats enter what might be termed the “dog days” of the season.
“My No. 1 target this year is to keep the players in the right frame of mind, and at different points in the season that requires different things,” said Johnson, whose team visits Washington State for a three-game series starting Friday afternoon.
“There’s some mental and physical toll that some of these guys have that they haven’t gone through in a couple years; some of them have never gone through it.
“It’s important that the teaching is always sound, that the fundamentals are always sound and the messaging is always really clear. The messaging going into this weekend is, we want to be better this weekend than we were last weekend.”
No. 13 Arizona (21-10, 7-5 Pac-12) took two of three from Cal last weekend for its third consecutive series victory. The Wildcats also have lost two games in a row for the third time this season.
There were no signs of panic, or even mild concern, when Johnson and two of his players meet with the media via Zoom from their hotel in Pullman, Washington, on Thursday.
“I’d say that we’re getting to the point of being mentally bulletproof,” reliever Preston Price said. “Our team is very mature.”
Price is one of two “super seniors” in Arizona’s bullpen; the other is fellow right-hander Vince Vannelle. Most college baseball teams skew older this year because of the NCAA extending eligibility and MLB shrinking the 2020 draft.
But the Wildcats do have some freshmen, such as DH Jacob Berry and catcher Daniel Susac, playing key roles. They also several players classified as “second-year freshmen” who played just over a quarter of a season in 2020 before the pandemic shut down spring sports.
Price is impressed with the maturity of the “new guys” but still offers occasional advice on how to handle the inevitable ups and downs of a long baseball season.
“Hey man, we’re not gonna be perfect,” Price is apt to say. “You gotta be where your feet are. Just keep pushing.”
Johnson and his staff constantly stress a day-by-day, game-by-game, pitch-by-pitch approach. It helps the players refocus after tough losses such as Tuesday night’s 5-4, extra-inning setback at Grand Canyon. The next day, Baseball America released its latest projection for the NCAA Tournament and had Arizona as the No. 2 overall seed.
“Especially in today’s world, there’s a lot of media that’s focusing on things way down the road,” said outfielder Mac Bingham, one of the UA’s second-year freshmen.
The coaches, he added, “just kind of help us block it out ... and focus on the task at hand.”
The next task is a Washington State club that’s 16-12 overall but only 4-8 in the Pac-12. The Wildcats have won five consecutive series against the Cougars, including a sweep the last time they played, in 2019.
Green’s new deal
WSU’s program has undergone major changes since that ’19 series in which the Wildcats outscored the Cougars 46-15.
WSU already had fired Marty Lees before that series in late May. About a week after it, the university hired Brian Green, who had been the coach at New Mexico State.
Johnson and Green are good friends. Both apprenticed under University of San Diego coach Rich Hill.
“I think they’re gonna be much improved,” Johnson said of the Cougars, who already have won more games than they did in 2019, when they went 11-42-1. “The first thing that you notice about this Washington State team is they’re more talented. This is not maybe what we had seen two years ago.
“Brian does a good job with developing team and competitiveness, and it looks like, through four Pac-12 series, they’re playing very competitively in all of the games. So this will be a tough matchup.”
Washington State ranks second in the Pac-12 behind Arizona in batting average and runs. The Cougars rank 10th in ERA and last in walks allowed.
Golden achievers
Johnson was disappointed when he saw the midseason watch list for the Golden Spikes Award. He thought outfielder Ryan Holgate should have made it, in addition to Berry and first baseman Branden Boissiere.
Berry leads the conference in RBIs and total bases. He ranks in the top 10 in several other categories, including hits, runs, walks, home runs, batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage.
“The thing that has been impressive to me is that quick transition to a high level of play,” Johnson said of Berry. “You don’t see that all the time. There’s certainly been great freshmen, historically, throughout the Arizona program. But I would imagine to this point in the season, he’s right up there with guys that have really come in and made a positive impact.”
Boissiere, a third-year sophomore, paces the Pac-12 in runs and hits. He ranks in the top 10 in walks, RBIs, total bases, batting average and OBP.
“Branden, in my opinion, is one most underrated hitters/players in college baseball,” Johnson said. “That’s nobody’s fault. It’s just the season didn’t happen last year.
“He’s really become a good first baseman. He’s a great person. There’s not one guy on our team that isn’t in Branden’s corner because of how he treats people.”
Inside pitch
- Shortstop Jacob Blas did not play against Grand Canyon because of upper-body soreness, Johnson said. Blas made the trip to Pullman and is expected to play this weekend.
- The Wildcats remained in Phoenix after playing the Lopes since they were departing from there anyway. The team practiced at Tempe Diablo Stadium on Wednesday before flying to Spokane. All three games at WSU have afternoon start times.
- Johnson said the team is planning to honor Jackie Robinson during an upcoming home game. “Our players are obviously really familiar with him and what he stood for, the type of player he was,” Johnson said. “ ‘42’ is one of my favorite movies. He’s the best of the best.”
- The WSU roster features two Tucson products: senior first baseman Tristan Peterson, who transferred from NMSU, and infielder Preston Clifford. Peterson, who attended Canyon del Oro High School, is batting .279 with 22 RBIs. Clifford (Sabino High) is hitting .235 with seven RBIs in 34 at-bats.
- Arizona is sticking with its usual rotation for the WSU series: RHP Chase Silseth (5-0, 4.37 ERA), LHP Garrett Irvin (2-1, 3.12) and RHP TJ Nicholls (3-3, 6.38). The Cougars will start RHP Brandon White (4-2, 5.73) on Friday and RHP Zane Mills (3-2, 3.02) on Saturday. Their Sunday starter is TBA.
