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Brett Wallace starred for ASU on the diamond from 2006-08. After an illustrious Sun Devil career, he was taken by the St. Louis Cardinals with the 13th overall pick of the 2008 MLB Draft. Two years later, he debuted in the MLB with the Houston Astros. He also played for the San Diego Padres until 2016. Wallace recently took some time to reflect on his career in Tempe in our latest former Sun Devil Q & A.
Favorite Memory as a Sun Devil?
My favorite memory would have to be the clinching game of the Super Regionals my sophomore year (2007) We got to do it on our home field, and going to Omaha was really the culmination of a year of hard work.
What does a typical day look like in your current life?
Im retired from pro ball now, not currently involved in baseball. I have two young sons, a 4-year-old and a 3-month-old, so that keeps me busy. I’m really just enjoying being a dad.
If you could re-live one game from your ASU career, what would it be?
I have so many great memories it’s tough to pinpoint one. I will say I’d like to re-live a couple in order to change the result. The two elimination games my sophomore and junior seasons come to mind. Sophomore year losing in Omaha was tough, and then junior year getting knocked out in the Supers on our home field was certainly not the way I wanted to go out.
Who was a former teammate or coach who had a major impact on your life?
Coach (Pat Murphy) definitely comes to mind. He pushed us and expected a lot of us. Sometimes he would push us to produce even more than we knew we were capable of. Stuff like that is really helpful when you get up to pro ball. He instilled a lot of confidence in me when I was a freshman.
Who is a current Sun Devil you enjoy watching?
I obviously liked watching and following (Spencer) Torkelson, hard to not like watching him. They had a great group this past season. I’ll cheat a little bit and say I’m excited to watch Kai Murphy, (Pat Murphy’s son), I knew him when he was a little kid when I was there, so he’ll be fun to watch.
How did ASU baseball shape your pro career?
I learned great habits and toughness. The constant competition and high level of practice and play really sets the tone for a great pro career. It’s really important to have those tools when you get to the minor leagues.
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