In pregame introductions at Packard Stadium, ASU’s Matt Newman  is “Matt ‘Hello’ Newman,” an allusion to a running gag on the ‘90s sit-com “Seinfeld.” The former Brophy star was “Goodbye Newman ” Friday night as the Sun Devils opened the baseball season with an 8-0 win over the Northern Illinois University Huskies.

It was goodbye as in goodbye, baseball: Newman pulled a change-up down the right field line for a three-homer in the third inning, giving ASU a 5-0 lead.

It was goodbye as in goodbye, NIU assistant coach Steve Joslyn:  After first base umpire Steve Mattingly called the ball fair, Joslyn disagreed vehemently and was ejected.

It was goodbye as in goodbye to the Huskies’s chances in the opener.

“That was the turning point,’’ ASU coach Tim Esmay said. “Our guys felt they were on a roll after that.”

Esmay notched the first victory of his career as head coach at Arizona State, and the Sun Devils chalked up their 1,000^th win at Packard Stadium.

Starter Seth Blair went five innings for the Sun Devils, working himself out of three jams in which the Huskies put two runners on base.

That has been a weakness for him in the past, Esmay said.

“I think you saw signs of maturity,’’ Esmay said. “He was able to make quality pitches when he needed to. We’re going to need him to do that.”

Mitchell Lambson, Jake Barret, and Jordan Swagerty combined on four innings of one-hit relief.

“That was the plan going in,’’ Esmay said. “Blair was never going to go more than five innings.”

Zack McPhee went 3-for-4 with a double, a triple and three runs batted in. Zach Wilson was 2-for-3 with a solo homer.

Former Brophy standout Drew Maggi drew three walks and scored twice. Former Buckeye star Kole Calhoun was 1-for-2 with three walks and a run scored.