TCU Baseball: Arizona State Preview

After defeating the Texas State Bobcats by a score of 5-3 on Tuesday night, the TCU Horned Frogs (13-4) have rattled off 6 straight wins and now host Arizona State (12-5) for their first conference series of the year.

It's safe to say that the offense has found its rhythm at the right time. In the 6 games after the series loss vs Southern Miss, TCU has outscored their opponents 59-24. It doesn't matter what conference you're in, a team that averages almost 10 runs per game will often find themselves in the win column.

But now is the time of the season where we find out just how good teams are. That's right. We're headed to conference play. For their first conference series, TCU faces off against a good Arizona State team that shouldn't be taken lightly. Not only do the Sun Devils boast a 12-5 record, but this is a team that recently lost 2-3 to their in-state rival, Arizona.

What Does the Matchup Look Like?

Before we highlight some of the players to take note of, it's always interesting to look at what each team does better. Here's what the numbers look like for both teams.

Team Batting Comparison	TCU	ASU
Team Batting Average	.282	.285
Team On-Base %	.398	.395
Homeruns	19	23
Runs/Game	7.1	7.3
Strikeouts	137	113
Walks	87	84

On the hitting side of things, this weekend should shape out to be a pretty balanced matchup. While TCU does have a sizeable lead in the strikeout category, the Horned Frogs have been much better about putting the ball in play since their first two weekends.

Team Pitching Comparison	TCU	ASU
Team ERA	3.84	4.38
Team Hits Allowed	131	128
Team Walks	49	65
Team Strikeouts	165	186

Despite the Sun Devils having a small lead in strikeouts this season, I would lean the Horned Frogs on this one. While there are some questions about the starters for the Horned Frogs, the depth of the TCU bullpen has been really efficient through the first couple of weeks. Namely, true freshman Mason Brassfield has proven that he can throw 4-5 innings with ease if TCU gets in trouble.

Sun Devil Hitters to Watch

#11 Kien Vu, Junior, Outfielder

Vu has been nothing short of astonishing so far this season as he's been the sparkplug for the Sun Devils through the first 17 games of the season. The junior outfielder boasts a .349 average including 6 homeruns and 6 doubles. His best game came against UNLV on March 3rd where he went 3 for 4 at the plate with 2 homeruns and 3 RBIs.

While these aren't necessarily videogame numbers, Vu can make his mark on the basepaths as well. On 13 steal attempts this season, Vu has reached base safely 10 times.

#27 Brandon Compton, Sophomore, Outfielder

Brandon Compton is another hitter to be wary of on the Sun Devils roster. While Compton only has 3 homeruns so far this season, he has the 2nd highest batting average out of qualified hitters at .310. Compton also has the same number of RBIs as Kien Vu with 16 so far this season.

With a .586 SLG %, you can expect some hard-hit balls from Compton this weekend.

Sun Devil Pitchers to Watch

One of the main differences this weekend will be the opposing bullpen. Outside of the Southern Miss series, the Horned Frogs have been pretty good about putting stress on the opposing team's bullpen. The series with the Sun Devils this weekend will likely be a different case. Instead of just 1 or 2 arms that they rely on, Arizona State has 5-6 pitchers that can eat up innings.

#10 Jack Martinez, Senior, RHP

Jack Martinez has been one of the more reliable arms for Arizona State this season. While he hasn't been one of the premier arms in the Big 12 so far, Martinez has been able to eat innings for this Arizona State ballclub with a team-leading 24 innings pitched in 2025.

Not only has he been able to eat innings, but his strikeout-walk ratio lands at 5-1 with 35 strikeouts on the season through 4 games started.

#40 Jonah Giblin, Redshirt Senior, RHP

Gibby with an efficient 1-2-3 frame.

Lookin' for some insurance in the 6th.

📺 ESPN+ pic.twitter.com/68dHncCZr0
— Sun Devil Baseball (@ASU_Baseball) February 15, 2025

Jonah Giblin has proven to be one of the more reliable relief pitchers for the Sun Devils. Not only does he have the 3rd most innings pitched on the team with 16.0, but he also boasts a solid 2.25 ERA.

In his most recent appearance, Giblin threw 3.1 innings against a very good Arizona team while only allowing 2 hits and 0 runs. He had 4 strikeouts in the outing against the Wildcats as well.

Other names on the Arizona State pitching staff to be aware of include Derek Schaefer, Ben Jacobs, Jaden Alba, and Josh Butler.

How to Watch TCU vs Arizona State

When: Mar. 14, 6 p.m. | Mar. 15, 1:00 p.m. | Mar. 16, 1:00 p.m.

Where: Lupton Stadium (Fort Worth, TX)

TV/Streaming: ESPN+ (all)

Radio: KTCU 88.7 FM, Varsity App

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