Another End Leads To Another Beginning

So, maybe this loss took me a little bit longer to get over than I thought it would.

Let’s face it. I’m used to getting knocked on my ass because of my teams over the past decade.

I’ve seen Garrison Hearst’s ankle fall victim to AstroTurf in an NFC Divisional Playoff game, Luis Gonzalez break up a dynasty in the state I now live in, Scott Spiezio and a dancing monkey derail a 1st world title since 1954, the greatest collapse in baseball history Alex Smith (period) and, most recently, a regular season dynamo get quashed by a band of Ducks in Round 1.

However, I’m usually quick to recover from crushing losses and bad memories. It’s just sport, after all, it’s not life.

Except for Alex Smith; may this era of the grand history of the San Francisco 49ers burn in hell.

This is why, naturally, I expected my usually optimistic personality and spirit to bounce back fairly quickly after Friday’s 4-3 walk-off loss to Texas to end the 2009 ASU baseball season four wins short of a National Championship.

However, when I sat down to write this here article yesterday afternoon, I couldn’t get the echo of the ping off Cameron Rowe’s bat out of my head.

This one hurt more because this one, out of all three of ASU’s College World Series apperances of this decade, seemed destined to end with a national title.

But you know what? It didn’t. And that sucks, especially considering the sudden end our Devils and all of us in Pitchfork Nation were subjected to.

In trying to find a silver lining outside of the superficial ones - Mike Leake’s ridiculous 16-1 season, Josh Spence’ and Kole Calhoun’s coming-out parties in Omaha, Jason Kipnis’ monster campaign, among others - I realzed that the real bright side is that we don’t have to get off this ride just yet.

After the 2005 and 2007 seasons, the Sun Devils lost a staggering amount of their core players to the pro ranks. It certainly showed in those two seasons immediately following.

The 2006 Sun Devils struggled mightily finding their idendity after losing guys like Jeff Larish, Nick Walsh, Jason Urquidez and Erik Averill. They never got the offense they needed all season and bowed out silently in the 2006 Waco Regional.

In ‘08, the Sun Devils showed a stirring lack of killer instinct, blowing leads and losing games they shouldn’t have. It all culminated on that horrendous Monday night on which we witnessed “The Incident” and, later on, an inexplicable 6 run inning to a Cinderella that went on to win a national title.

2010 will be like 2006 and 2008 in which it’s going to be a season where the program tries to get back from off the mat after coming up just short of the ultimate goal of being an NCAA champion.

What’s different here is the volume of core returning, something that should excite everyone here in Tempe.

Sure, we can dwell on the fact that Mike Leake and Josh Spence will most likely not be back. They were wonderful, dynamic and game-changing pitchers that will be missed.

Some may cry that the impending departure of Jason Kipnis will leave this team without a big stick in the middle of the lineup. It’s a fair assessment; he was only the 2009 Pac-10 Player of the Year.

It’s at this point which I can’t find any other reason to run for the Mill Avenue bridge and cleanly throw myself into Tempe Town Lake over this loss.

To the pitching dilemma, I say: Urquedez, Averill and Josh Satow were also dynamic game-chaning pitchers who left and we thought were irreplacable. I’m not standing here saying that in 2010, we’ll have another Golden Spikes finalist on the mound. I am saying that this program has a knack for finding tremendous hurlers year in and year out. I can’t tell you who right now, but I’m always optimistic that the next terrific arm is right around the corner for Arizona State. It’s just a hunch.

And to those who say that Kipnis’ impending departure will leave a gap in the lineup, I give you the upcoming senior seasons for Carlos Ramirez and Kole Calhoun, the steady eye of Zach MacPhee and Johnny Ruettiger and, again most likely, a fine crop of freshmen that always seems to produce a couple diamonds that will shine immediately upon their arrival at The WPB.

Despite the way it ended, and trust me, the echo of the ping will linger until next Spring, I’ve never been more optimistic about the immediate future of this program.

You should be too.

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