Blair looks back at CWS: Omaha trip emotional for Rock Falls pitcher

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Seth Blair has experienced so much in the many years he’s been playing baseball.

The Arizona State sophomore pitcher checked another item off his “Seen It All” list 11 days ago at the College World Series.

The Sun Devils were knocked out of the CWS on June 19 by eventual runner-up Texas after one of the more bizarre turn of events Omaha has ever seen. ASU broke a 2-2 tie in the top of the ninth inning when Jason Kipnis doubled and scored on Zach Wilson’s two-out triple to right.

Before the Sun Devils (51-14) could even stop celebrating and start thinking about having survived to play another game Saturday, the Longhorns (50-15-1) made that game unnecessary.

Cameron Rupp hit his second home run of the game with one out in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game 3-3, then Connor Rowe hit a two-out, walk-off homer. It sent Texas to the championship series and abruptly ended ASU’s season.

“It was definitely the craziest thing in my life. You go from the highest high to the lowest low in such a short span of time,” Blair said. “You’re thinking, ‘This is meant to be,’ and we’re only two outs away from another game.

“Then the next guy hits a home run and it kind of gets you right in the heart. You start thinking extra innings, and that’s still setting in when the second home run comes. We all kind of looked at each other, ‘Oh man, our season’s over, what just happened?’ “

ASU’s bus ride back to the hotel was made in silence, as the end of such a strong season started to sink in. But before the team could get off the bus, Brandon Magee – a freshman reserve and a Sun Devils football player – had something to say.

He grabbed the microphone and proceeded to tell the team that as bad as the loss felt, he still was the envy of all his friends because he got to sit in the dugout at the College World Series. The Sun Devils finished No. 3 in the country in the major polls, and there was no reason why he was going to think about anything but the good things the Devils had gone through this season.

“[The loss] was such a shock. This team had so much fun together, had so much camaraderie that we never thought about it ending, never talked about it,” Blair said. “It was a rough bus ride, but then Magee stood up and basically told us to stop feeling sorry for ourselves, to think about the whole experience.

“It really loosened us up, made us realize what we’d accomplished and kind of broke the ice. We were all fine after that.”

Moving on was hard, but there was little time for the Sun Devils to wallow. MLB draft picks like Kipnis, Mike Leake (the American Basedball Coaches Association player of the year) and Josh Spence all have pro careers to get to, while Blair and a few of the other younger ASU players have already started playing in summer leagues.

Blair returned to the Cape Cod League for the second straight summer. Last year, he went in really looking to prove himself after a sub-par – by his standards – freshman season in Tempe. This year, the feeling is a little different, because he’s been there before.

“But I’m still hungry to do well and prove myself again,” Blair said. “There’s never a time where you can’t get better, and I have the opportunity to do that in of the best summer league around. I’m going to work my butt off and see what happens. Hopefully I can have the same kind of success as last year.”

His next season with the Sun Devils is also starting to intrude into his thoughts. With Leake selected No. 8 overall by the Reds and Spence picked in the third round by the Angels, Blair will likely move from the No. 3 spot in the ASU starting rotation to No. 1. After his junior season, Blair will be eligible again for the MLB draft.

Blair is undaunted by the challenge that possibility presents. He believes that two years of watching, learning and rooming with Leake has given him “a wealth of knowledge” that will provide him with the tools to succeed.

“Next year is going to give me a good opportunity to show what I’ve learned, show what I can do,” Blair said. “As long as I play well and the team plays well, I’ll accept whatever role I’m given. But right now I fully plan on pitching every Friday night and leading this team back to Omaha.”

The young Sun Devils of 2009 will be an experienced ASU squad when baseball starts up again in the fall. Come next February, the Sun Devils will more than likely be one of the early favorites to win a national championship.

Blair says this year’s freshmen “had no idea what they were getting into.” But he expects all those returning players, who now have College World Series experience under their belts, to take their game to the next level.

Should Blair take the steps he believes he’s capable of throughout the offseason, he will be at the top of the Sun Devils pitching staff and get drafted next June.

A return trip to Omaha is always expected at ASU. Whether it happens or not, the Rock Falls native is now a bigger fan of the CWS than ever, and he’s sure he’ll be back again.

“Honestly, I didn’t really have a chance to soak up the whole experience like I wanted to,” Blair said. “When you’re actually out there playing, it’s hard to tell how special an experience it is. You’re so focused on the game.

“But someday, when I’m not sitting in the dugout, I’d like to go back and watch, just to get a better feel of the entire College World Series experience.”

Blair’s 2009

• 7-2, 3.39 ERA; 17 games (13 starts), 77 IP, 29 ER, 70 H, 78 Ks, 30 BBs.

• Pitched to 3 hitters at College World Series, was scheduled to pitch June 20 – the day after Sun Devils were knocked out by Texas.

• Will play in Cape Cod wooden-bat league for second straight summer.

• Will go into junior season as Sun Devils’ top returning starter, with loss of Mike Leake (No. 8 overall to Reds) and Josh Spence (3rd round to Angels) to the MLB draft.

• Will be eligible for 2010 MLB draft.