Cam Walty did not begin the season as one of Arizona’s weekend starters. He is one now. And you can make the case that he’s been the Wildcats’ most valuable player, regardless of position, entering Pac-12 play.
Walty’s 1.84 ERA ranks fifth in the conference among qualifiers; his three victories are tied for No. 1.
Pitcher wins have been devalued in baseball as starters’ outings have gotten shorter and shorter. Additionally, the advanced-stat community has recognized that the starting pitcher can’t control how many runs his own team scores.
But Walty has come through when Arizona needed him most. The senior right-hander delivered 5⅔ innings of one-run relief in Arizona’s 10-9 victory at San Diego on Feb. 25, enabling the Wildcats to avoid a sweep. A week later, he allowed only one run in six innings as Arizona defeated Indiana in the Frisco College Baseball Classic to end a three-game losing streak.
“He’s just earned it,” said UA coach Chip Hale, whose team faces USC in a three-game road series Friday-Sunday. “He’s been fantastic.”
In his first start of the 2024 season, Arizona RHP Cam Walty allowed one run in six innings in a 12-1 victory over Indiana in the Frisco College Baseball Classic in Frisco, Texas.
Walty was basically in a dead heat with Anthony “Tonko” Susac for the No. 3 starter job when the Cats broke camp. The coaching staff decided to put Walty in long relief because he had pitched out of the bullpen some last season. He could get loose quickly if necessary and give the team multiple innings.
That’s exactly what was required against San Diego. Susac struggled and couldn’t get out of the first inning. Walty was called upon with one out, runners on first and second and the score 4-0. After a double steal and a single made it 6-0 — all the runs were charged to Susac — Walty shut the Toreros down aside from an unearned run in the third. That enabled the Wildcats to rally.
Walty followed that performance with a quality start in which he allowed only five baserunners and no extra-base hits. He credited his strong early-season performance to improved confidence, pitching with conviction and trying not to get “too cute.”
“Understanding that I don’t need to be so pinpoint and right on the corner,” said Walty, who’s scheduled to start Sunday vs. USC. “And understanding that my stuff is good and that I have the ability to get guys out. I just have to throw it in the right place at the right time.”
Arizona RHP Cam Walty, shown pitching against USC in May 2023, has earned a spot in the rotation and is scheduled to start against the Trojans on Sunday.
Walty was ticketed to start last season, his first at Arizona after transferring from Nevada, but was slowed by injury. He had a sizzling midseason stretch in which he didn’t allow a run in four appearances spanning 20 innings, followed by a quality start vs. Air Force. But Walty faltered late, and his ERA swelled from 3.12 to 6.80.
Working with new pitching coach Kevin Vance, Walty converted his slider into a cutter, which has become an effective secondary pitch. He’s always had good control. He’s actually striking out batters at a lower rate than last season. But he’s inducing softer contact. Among the 14 hits he has yielded so far, only two have gone for extra bases — both doubles. Opponents are slugging .262 against Walty. Last year that figure was .510.
“I’ve always been the miss-the-barrel guy. I’m not always gonna be the one who’s gonna blow it past you,” Walty said. “My ability to hit those spots and to throw the pitches when I needed them just wasn’t (sufficient late last year).
“I’ve got four pitches. My best days are when everything is able to work.
“Being able to mix and match everything (and) just keeping all the hitters on their toes — I think that’s (why) I’ve been able to have the success I’ve had so far this year.”
Welcome to the O.C.
As if the dissolution of the Pac-12 weren’t strange enough, Arizona is opening its last run in the conference against longtime rival USC ... in Orange County.
Dedeaux Field, the home for USC baseball since 1974, is being torn down and rebuilt. The Trojans are playing their home games at multiple locations over the next two seasons (all with free admission). This weekend’s series is set for the Great Park Sports Complex in Irvine.
“It’s disappointing,” Hale said. “Obviously huge memories for me as a player, always seemed to perform well there, had a lot of big hits and always felt like our team was at our best at Dedeaux Field. There was so much history there, going way back to all their World Series teams.”
Arizona got swept at USC in 1984, Hale’s freshman year. The Wildcats went 6-3 at Dedeaux Field over the remainder of his UA career.
UA coach Chip Hale, shown hitting grounders during a preseason practice, on Arizona's tough schedule to date: 'I think we’ve grown a lot, especially this past weekend. We did it for a reason. We felt like it was going to make us better for conference play. We’ll find out how much it’s going to pay off for us.'
“I know that they’re building, and it’s gonna be a nice facility once it’s done,” Hale said. “It’s gonna take two years. Unfortunately, we won’t be in the same conference anymore.”
Arizona is moving to the Big 12 this summer. USC is headed to the Big Ten. Whether they’ll continue to play each other remains to be seen.
On UA’s SOS
Arizona has played the fourth-hardest schedule in the nation so far this season, per WarrenNolan.com. Ten of the Wildcats’ 11 games have come against Quad 1 opponents.
“We knew we were going to play a tough schedule to start the year,” Hale said. “And with a new group of position players, it’s been tough on them.
“I think we’ve grown a lot, especially this past weekend. We did it for a reason. We felt like it was going to make us better for conference play. We’ll find out how much it’s going to pay off for us.”
Inside pitch
Arizona is sticking with the same starters Friday and Saturday: left-hander Jackson Kent (1-0, 3.12 ERA) and righty Clark Candiotti (0-0, 4.50).
Second baseman Garen Caulfield is expected to be available despite getting hit in the face with a pitch Sunday. Caulfield had to get dental work done after the pitch “rattled his mouth and broke some teeth,” Hale said.
After a promising first season (34-23-1) under Andy Stankiewicz, USC is off to a 3-9 start. The Trojans rank in the bottom three in the Pac-12 in multiple offensive categories. They did beat Cal State Fullerton on Tuesday, their first non-Quad 4 win of the season. “Quite frankly, our record’s not so pretty either,” Hale said. “So we’re trying to get ourselves back to respectability also.”
