From Alaska to Arizona, summer league baseball prepares ASU players for upcoming season

PHOENIX – Fourteen Arizona State baseball players recently participated in summer leagues in various states, leading to some long days for some. Literally, in the case of pitcher Connor Higgins.

Higgins traveled farther than any of the Sun Devils, playing with the Mat Su Miners in the Alaska Baseball League.

“The biggest shock was definitely the 22, 23 hours of sunlight every night in the summer,” Higgins said. “I think I got maybe 15 hours of sleep in the first five days there.”

He also had to adjust to a big change in weather, pitching a league semifinal game in a downpour.

“I really had no clue what to expect going up there, especially coming from Phoenix,” Higgins said. “Going up there it was weird because my first day up there it was about 55 degrees, but I really just fell in love with the overall experience.”

From Alaska to Arizona, summer leagues are available to college baseball players in different parts of the country, offering the chance to develop new skills or hone old ones.

With Sun Devils playing in seven different leagues over the summer, each player had their own unique experience. Sophomore outfielder Tyler Williams played for the Academy Barons in the California Collegiate League.

“It was just a great experience being out there, being able to play against pretty good competition,” Williams said.

A specific experience that stands out to Williams was playing against Team USA in Angel Stadium of Anaheim. He jokingly said Team USA beat the Barons soundly, but added that it was a great experience.

Deciding to stay in Arizona, senior catcher Zach Cerbo played with the Lizards in the Arizona Collegiate Wood Bat League.

College baseball leagues use aluminum bats, but professionals must use wooden bats. The wood bat leagues allow players who aspire to play at the next level a chance to begin making the adjustment to wood.

“It was actually really nice to be able to play locally and stay out here and work out at our own facilities,” Cerbo said.

Cerbo also found it interesting to play against players from smaller schools. He enjoyed seeing what was going on around the country at the junior college level.

“That was cool to see that kind of competition versus what we see during the season,” Cerbo said.
The Arizona State baseball players used the summer leagues to help improve their games. Williams worked on his arm strength over the summer. He took advantage of the Baron’s facility that allowed him to practice every day whenever he wanted.

Cerbo worked with the ASU strength coach to help him get stronger and faster for his senior year. He wanted to fine tune his game and keep himself in good shape.

Higgins developed a third pitch while he was in Alaska. He added a changeup to his pitching repertoire.

ASU coach Tracey Smith thinks summer leagues are good for players. He likes that it gets his players competing.

“The thing that I like about it probably the most is that they are still competing,” Smith said. “It gives them a new experience and they grow up and mature. So not only working on the baseball maturity, but also just maturing as young men.”