PHOENIX — Across five collegiate seasons, graduate right-handed pitcher Colby Guy has started 66.7% of the games he’s appeared in. 

From 2023-24, Guy opened 25 games between Jackson State and UNC Asheville, throwing over 70 innings each year. The right-hander even received 2025 Big South Preseason Pitcher of the Year honors. 

However, an injury limited him to just five starts in 2025 before he transferred to Arizona State. 

Flash forward a year, and Guy hasn’t started a game in 381 days. 

Needless to say, Guy said he was ready to answer the call in an unfamiliar role. 

The right-hander threw 2 ⅔ scoreless in late-inning relief while striking out four against Grand Canyon (8-14) on Tuesday, March 17, at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Guy provided a crucial bridge in a 4-3 bullpen game victory, where the Sun Devils (15-5, 2-1 Big 12) went 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position. Tied at three in the game’s later third, head coach Willie Bloomquist said he couldn’t afford to take Guy out.

“The way the ball was coming out of his (Guy’s) hand and the swings that he was getting from those guys. just wanted to keep riding him out there,” Bloomquist said. “I didn't want to take the chance of bringing in another arm who maybe didn't have his best stuff tonight.

“When that guy has his good stuff, you got to keep riding him.”

On a night where the ASU’s pitching staff had little room for error with the offense's lack of production, Guy mentally prepared himself by looking toward the foul pole to reassert his self-confidence.

“This is my moment,” Guy said to himself on the mound. 

In front of a rowdy, 4479-person crowd, Guy said he literally blocked out all the chaos on Tuesday night as he took the mound in the seventh inning.

“I blacked out,” Guy said.  “I don't remember. It was just like a door moment.”

Remaining calm in a high-pressure situation is key to success, Guy said. 

“Just trying to stay calm,” Guy said. “It's my last year, so trying to leave everything out on the field and just being calm out there.

After allowing two runs on Feb. 17 to UConn, Guy has yet to allow a run in 5 ⅓ innings. 

Bloomquist called Guy the “MVP of the game,” saying the Sun Devils must get him more involved going forward. 

“That's a guy that we haven't used enough in my opinion, and that's my fault,” Bloomquist said. “We go with our guys that have been here, that we know that we're comfortable with. But these other guys, when their opportunities are there, they step up.” 

As one of five Sun Devils to see the mound on Tuesday, Guy continued the bullpen’s momentum by retiring all eight Lopes he faced.

Yet Guy said the clean effort wouldn’t have been possible without the close-nit relationships formed out in the right-field bullpen.

Guy credited the vibes instilled by pitching coach Jeremy Accardo for the bullpen’s tight bond, which is easy to buy into. 

“We're down there every day, practicing, getting better, and everybody has good stuff, and everybody believes it,” Guy said.

Facing a bullpen game, Guy said the entire pitching staff had the same next-man-up mentality. Always ready for the moment to contribute to a win. 

“Be ready, because everybody's gonna be a part of this win,” Guy said. “So just stay ready.”

Though flung into an unexpected role, Bloomquist said ASU may have found its next high-leverage arm. 

“It's like, ‘wow. I gotta start using that guy more,’” Bloomquist said. “He's earned more valuable innings, and we're kind of looking to a bridge guy to that back end, and we might have just found it.”