The Twins Killing

Following a series loss to the juggernaut Philadelphia Phillies, the Diamondbacks returned home to Chase Field at 38-40 and were tasked with taking on the Minnesota Twins, who came in with a record of 43-35 and sitting in 2nd place in the AL Central.

Game 1 of this series started with Twins ace Joe Ryan on the bump versus the Diamondbacks young stud Brandon Pfaadt aka “The GodPfaadther”. The offense got off to a hot start but Pfaadt still ran into his usual blowup inning troubles, which had the crew discussing if if and when they would have taken Pfaadt out of the game, along with wondering how much longer this Diamondbacks team can rely on Marte to carry this offense,

The typical June game 2 blowout was disappointing but not unexpected, as Ryne Nelson’s ‘Jekyll and Hyde’ season continues at home in a 8-3 loss. The fellas each give their own thoughts as to if they think Ryne is an actual MLB caliber pitcher, along with what the possible causes could be to this teams constant game 2 blowouts (5 of their last 6 series).

The matinee rubber match of this series was not much better than the previous game, but what better way to get ourselves introduced to writing game recaps than getting an absolute clunker out of the way first? The 13-6 loss in the finale had plenty of downsides, but nothing more notable than Jordan Montgomery’s 2.2 IP with 8 R (4 ER). Considering Monty was coming off 3 straight efficient starts that resulted in him getting the W, the crew questioned what might have been the biggest factor to his disastrous 2nd inning.

After a short series preview of the upcoming Oakland Athletics matchup, the fellas touched on Zac Gallen’s potential but probable return to the mound this Saturday. They also briefly talked about Alek Thomas finally getting back to rehabbing in Reno, and Ketel Marte moving on and being announced as a finalist for the All-Star Game Starters. MAKE SURE TO SHOW OUT FOR KETEL DBACKS FANS

Arizona volleyball released its first Big 12 Conference schedule at the beginning of April, but the Wildcats were still finalizing their nonconference schedule at that time. It has now been posted.

The season kicks off on Friday, Aug. 30 with the Cactus Classic in McKale Center. The Wildcats start their first home tournament with a matchup against Boise State at 6 p.m. That is followed by a match against VCU on Saturday and Tennessee State on Sunday.

Arizona goes on the road to Montgomery, Ala. for the second week of the season. It plays host Alabama State on Thursday, Sept. 5. Prairie View A&M is on the slate for Friday, Sept. 6 and Alabama on Saturday, Sept. 7.

The Wildcats stay on the road to take part in New Mexico State’s tournament during week three. They play both Abilene Christian and Texas Southern on Friday, Sept. 13, and wrap things up with the host Aggies on Saturday, Sept. 14.

UA finally returns to McKale Center for the Wildcat Classic on Friday, Sept. 20 to finish out the nonconference portion of the schedule. The weekend starts against Southern Utah. UC San Diego is up next on Saturday, and North Dakota State finishes things on Sunday, Sept. 22.

The Wildcats start their first Big 12 season on the road at Baylor on Wednesday, Sept. 25.

Arizona head coach Rita Stubbs gave her team a considerably easier challenge in nonconference play this year. Her first season featured five teams that made the NCAA Tournament, including then-No. 1 Wisconsin on the road. The team then went into the tough Pac-12. The result was an 8-23 overall record and a 3-17 run in the final year of the Pac-12.

This year, the Wildcats will not play a team that made the 2023 tournament until conference play. Their only major conference opponent is Alabama, which went 11-18 overall and 1-17 in the SEC last year.

Arizona State football will make its return up north to the legendary Camp Tontozona from August 7-10 ahead of this football season.

It will be the second-consecutive year Arizona State is taking the trip to the high country northeast of Payson after a three-year period from 2020-22 included challenges such as Covid-19 and inclement weather, preventing the team from making the trip.

“We had a fantastic experience last year and decided to add a day this year. It is fun and our team loved it,” head coach Kenny Dillingham said in a press release. “It is a fantastic tradition that we embrace.”

Dillingham said shortly after his hiring in 2023 he would bring back the tradition, and his group is poised to make the trip again ahead of his second season.

Longtime head coach Frank Kush first started the tradition of Camp T in 1959. The camp gives players a chance to experience a lush setting amongst the pines while building a strong team bond amongst each other.

Details regarding practice times and availability have not yet been confirmed. The week will culminate with a practice open to the public on Saturday, Aug. 10.

Three weeks later, Arizona State will kickoff their first game of the season as they host Wyoming at Mountain America Stadium on Aug. 31. It will also mark a new beginning for Arizona State, beginning its first school year in the Big 12 Conference.