The Arizona Wildcats accomplished a lot under Jay Johnson. They made two trips to the College World Series in five tries. They won almost 65% of their games.
Arizona did that despite being one of the worst defensive teams in the Pac-12. Over Johnson’s final four full seasons, the Wildcats ranked eighth or worse in the conference in fielding percentage. They had the most errors in the league in three of those four years.
Arizona’s best defensive team during Johnson’s tenure was the 2016 squad, which ranked second in the Pac-12 in fielding percentage. That team advanced the furthest, coming within a hit of winning the CWS.
Improving the Wildcats’ defense has been a major point of emphasis under first-year coach Chip Hale, a former infielder who made only eight errors in his seven-year MLB career. And the key figure in that endeavor is a pint-sized, cherubic shortstop who already has proved he can make a difference.
Arizona became a better team — especially in the field — when Nik McClaughry took over as the starting shortstop last season. The Wildcats averaged 1.4 errors per game in their first 20 contests, when McClaughry was a backup. That figure dropped to 1.16 over the final 43 games. McClaughry started all of them.
“The biggest change was the mentality,” UA catcher Daniel Susac said Wednesday. “The energy he brings to the lineup and the field every day really just sparks the whole team.”
McClaughry, who’s listed at 5 feet 9 inches and 165 pounds, transferred to Arizona from Sacramento City College. He hit way better than expected, posting a .316 average and a .412 on-base percentage. But his fielding was a game-changer.
McClaughry committed only five errors, finishing with a .967 fielding percentage. He was the “glue guy” the Wildcats needed to take their game to an even higher level. Susac said that when he runs to first to back up throws from short, he’ll sometimes tell the infielders how many outs there are before McClaughry throws the ball. “I just know that play’s going to be made every time,” Susac said.
It didn’t take long for Hale to feel McClaughry’s presence.
“He’s a true leader on the field,” said Hale, whose teams opens the season Feb. 18 against Kansas State in the State Farm College Baseball Showdown in Arlington, Texas.
“He will definitely let the guys know if we’re not playing the right way, which is nice for a head coach. You don’t always have to be the one (to say), ‘Hey, let’s get it going.’ He’s got a very strong personality, which you want out of your shortstop.”
McClaughry enters his senior season as the elder statesman among the infielders. Third baseman Tony Bullard, a fourth-year junior, is also a returning starter. First baseman Noah Turley and second baseman Garen Caulfield are newcomers, having transferred from junior colleges.
McClaughry sees the game the same way Hale does. They share a belief that sound defensive play starts with the most basic element of the sport: playing catch.
“I’ve always felt this way, but he really emphasizes it,” McClaughry said. “He says defense is just a big game of catch.”
Players said Arizona’s defensive work has been more detailed during practice. The Wildcats spend more time working on specific situations that might arise in a game.
“Fundamentally, there’s a lot of things I teach,” Hale said. “But really, it comes down to just playing catch. Catching a groundball and getting it to first. Getting the ball in the outfield and getting it to home plate or third base on a cutoff or relay. So we work a lot on that.
“And Nik has the same ideas I do: It’s just unacceptable when we can’t make routine plays. We’re not asking anybody to make ... the highlight-reel plays. The routine plays have to be made.”
If they can do that, the Wildcats again will have a chance to make a deep postseason run. They advanced to the CWS last year behind one of the nation’s most potent offenses. They return plenty of powerful bats and arms. And they have in Hale a former MLB player and coach instructing them on the finer points of fielding.
“It’s really cool, especially him being an infielder, learning from him,” McClaughry said. “That’s the biggest thing that he’s emphasized this year: We’re going to catch the ball and throw the ball and play catch a lot better than we did last year.”
Walking it back?
One area where the 2021 Wildcats improved immensely was cutting down on walks. The UA pitching staff allowed 3.90 walks per nine innings, down from 4.67 in 2020 and 5.33 in ’19.
But Hale still wants to see his pitchers throw more strikes. Asked about team strengths and weaknesses, Hale said he’d like to see the staff pound the zone more than it has in recent intrasquad scrimmages.
“When the pitchers face our hitters, what we’ve noticed (is that) we walk more guys than we will when we face outside competition because they’ve seen these guys so much and there’s a fear factor in there with some of our big boys,” Hale said. “What we saw in the fall when we faced outside competition (exhibition games vs. UNLV and Air Force), those guys had no issue with walks.
“So I’m assuming our pitchers will throw more strikes when we face outside competition. That’s a little bit of a concern for us so far.”
Inside pitch
Hale said the starting rotation isn’t completely settled yet and that he expects to use a “piggyback” system early in the season with one starter following another after four or five innings. The starter on opening day is expected to be sophomore right-hander TJ Nichols or senior lefty Garrett Irvin. Veteran Dawson Netz and freshman Anthony Susac, both righties, are next in line.
McClaughry had high praise for freshman right-hander Josh Randall. “He’s going to be really good for us this year,” McClaughry said. “His stuff plays up. He might not throw 97 like TJ, but his stuff looks hard. His fastball is hard. He’s able to throw it at the top of the zone, and he’s got a really good curveball as well.”
The Wildcats are scheduled to have an intrasquad scrimmage at Hi Corbett Field at 2 p.m. Saturday, following by an autograph-signing session inside the Terry Francona Hitting Center. Tickets are $5 for the general public. Admission is free for season-ticket holders and kids 12 and under.
