Sun Devils Baseball Lands Vanderbilt Transfer

The Arizona State baseball season concluded nearly two weeks ago with an 11-6 loss to UC Irvine after securing the program's first tournament win since 2021.

Days later, Willie Bloomquist was confirmed to be returning for the final season of his current contract by Sun Devil athletic director Graham Rossini.

Ever since the end of the season Bloomquist has been working tirelessly to find potential upgrades via the transfer portal to supplement star CF Isaiah Jackson and company.

Bloomquist just secured a major commitment from two year starter and three year utility player for Vanderbilt in Matthew Polk.

From Barkley Truax of ON3:

"Polk initially entered the portal on May 24 as a graduate transfer. During his three seasons playing for the program, Polk batted .295 with 25 doubles, 10 home runs and 13 stolen bases."

"Polk’s transfer takes him closer to home, as he trades Nashville for Tempe, Arizona. A California native, Polk was the No. 13 overall prospect in the state of California coming out of high school, according to Perfect Game. He committed to the Commodores as the seventh-highest rated shortstop in his home state."

"Now, Polk will join an Arizona State team which finished 2025 with a 36-24 overall record and an 18-12 mark against Big 12 Conference opponents. The Sun Devils were able to make the NCAA Tournament with their record, but saw their season come to an end earlier this month at the Los Angeles Regional, hosted by UCLA."

Polk enjoyed his best season in 2025 for the number one seed Commodores - hitting five home runs, batting in 21 runs, and stealing eight bases in the process.

The addition of Polk is also a reinforcement of a recent announcement that Rossini made.

The baseball program was previously only allotted 11 full scholarships, which severely limited the roster building that could be done.

Now, there will be 34 full scholarships at the disposal of Bloomquist - which could be utilized to add pitching help after the rotation served as a driving force behind the untimely end to the 2025 season.

Read more about the future of Sun Devil athletics - including baseball - according to Rossini here, and the fascinating career trajectory of Sun Devil alum Spencer Torkelson here.

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