Arizona State dropped its third straight game to the Stanford Cardinal, 13-8, on Saturday night at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. However, the subject of questions tossed at Sun Devils head coach Tracy Smith had little to do with the final outcome of the contest—the focus surrounded the team’s latest roster changes, including the earlier dismissal of Andrew Shaps and departures of Ryan Lillard and Jackson Willeford.
The first two losses of the series were preceded by exits of pitchers Zach Dixon and Chris Isbell, whom each left the program earlier in the week. With those moves happening simultaneously with the fading of the Sun Devils’ postseason hopes, Smith addressed the media in a postgame questionnaire which lasted over 25 minutes. The third-year coach touched on several topic points, including the state of the program, the leadership and assembly of the squad, and his thoughts on high expectations and the future.