Texas A&M Baseball
Series Preview: Texas A&M at Vanderbilt
Who: Vanderbilt Commodores (14-8, 1-2 SEC)
Where: Hawkins Field — Nashville, Tennessee
When: Friday 6:30 p.m. CT (SEC+)
Saturday 7:00 p.m. CT (SEC Network)
Sunday 3:00 p.m. CT (SEC Network)
Pitching matchups
Scouting Vanderbilt
As a traditional SEC baseball power, Vanderbilt is used to preseason top-10 rankings and having potential first-round draft picks in the lineup. The start of 2017 was no different with a No. 6 preseason ranking and junior hurler Kyle Wright and outfielder Jeren Kendall projected as top-10 selections in the June amateur MLB Draft. Surprisingly though, the Commodores have struggled out of the gate with a 14-8 record, losing their conference play-opening series to Ole Miss by dropping a pair of games to the Rebels last weekend. The reasons are obvious. The two first-round picks have not performed as expected yet.
In recent weeks, he's been better, but the Vandy offense has not supported him.
Last Friday against Ole Miss, the Commodores were shut out in a classic, 1-0 pitcher's duel. Hard to fault the junior preseason all-American, who surrendered just one run in seven innings of work. With Wright rounding into shape, Texas A&M's Brigham Hill may need to deliver an equally stellar performance Friday night and shut the door on the Commodore offense.
Saturday starter Patrick Raby has been consistent all season. The sophomore righty has a 3-2 record with a sparking 1.71 ERA. It doesn't get any easier for the Aggie bats on Sunday. Freshman Drake Fellows has been perfect all season with a 3-0 record and a 1.72 ERA.
The bullpen has been spotty for the Commodores in 2017, especially in middle relief. However, the closers have been solid. Reed Hayes leads the team with three saves and has not surrendered a run this season. Matt Ruppenthal also closes for head coach Tim Corbin and has two saves and a 2.63 ERA in 13 innings of action. But guys like Chandler Day (5.19 ERA) and Maddux Conger (5.06 ERA) have struggled as mid-week starters and relievers on the weekend.
While pitching has had its ups and downs, hitting has been a struggle all season in Nashville. Vanderbilt is suffering through one of its worst offensive seasons in the Tim Corbin era, hitting .277 as a team, which is good for 11th in the SEC. That team average was in the .260's before Wednesday night's 17-11 slug-fest win over Belmont. Preseason all-American Jeren Kendall has been solid so far, hitting .297 with an on-base percentage of .393. By most standards, those are good numbers. However, much more was expected of the talented five-tool outfielder, who will hear his name called in the first round of the MLB Draft in about two months.
The inability to get consistent offensive production sounds much too
familiar to Aggie fans. But Texas A&M's offense looks in
better overall shape by the numbers when compared to Vanderbilt. As a team, the Aggies are hitting 22 points higher at .299 and have scored 21 more runs
in one less game played. Braden Shewmake has held the Texas A&M offense together all season, while others have struggled in recent weeks. The freshman leads in the team in batting average (.404), RBI (26), slugging percentage (.649), on-base percentage (.440) and stolen bases (6). He's already being mentioned as the best freshman in the country, and he's doing it with minimal support around him in the offensive lineup.
Cole Bedford has quietly put together an excellent season at the plate (.400 BA) and has nudged into the starting lineup. His throwing arm to second base is a little better than freshman Hunter Coleman's, and his speed on the base paths is phenomenal for a catcher, which provides Rob Childress with some flexibility to move Bedford up in the lineup if necessary.
But the big storyline isn't the two hot hitters in the lineup; it's the other seven guys that have really struggled in recent weeks. Both Logan Foster and Blake Kopetsky were hitting in the .370-.380 range, but have recently slipped back to .337 and .324 respectively. Austin Homan has shown signs of breaking out of his season-long slump, but he's still hitting below .200. George Janca has raised his average to .243, but he really needs to be hitting in the .270-.280 range at a corner spot that's known for offense and power.
Lexie Hudson, TexAgs
Senior first baseman Joel Davis has seen his batting average drop significantly in recent weeks.
Senior Joel Davis jumped out to a nice start at the plate, hitting well above .300 the first three weeks of the season, but he's in a big drought that has seen his average drop to .275. His RBI numbers (18) aren't up to expectations for a middle-of-the-order guy either. If the Aggies hope to score on Vanderbilt's outstanding starting pitching, they have to get good at-bats and put pressure on the opposing pitcher throughout the lineup. Shewmake, Bedford and Foster can't do it by themselves.
On the mound, the Aggies had been getting quality starts from its weekend arms until this past weekend when Kentucky's bats battered and bruised Friday night ace Brigham Hill and Sunday starter Mitchell Kilkenny. Hill's ERA rose to 1.21 after giving up five runs in five innings of work. Hill must be dominant and keep Vanderbilt off the scoreboard on Friday for the Aggies to win.
Kilkenny was completely ineffective in Sunday's 11-7 pounding. Coach Childress brought him into the Tuesday game against Rice hoping to build his confidence, but he again struggled to pitch cleanly. That has resulted in a big question mark for pitching on Sunday. Childress has not announced a starter yet. He may experiment with lefty Kaylor Chafin, who has had several nice outings. He could go with freshman lefty John Doxakis, who had a nice outing on Tuesday. In all likelihood, Sunday will be a pitch-by-committee affair, which doesn't bode well on paper going up against the hot Vandy freshman, Fellows, and his 1.72 ERA. At this point, your guess is as good as mine what will happen with the Texas A&M bullpen, which hasn't shown consistency to this point in the year.
Well, the season is on the line this weekend. If the Aggies play like they did last week at home against Kentucky, the team could be 0-6 and in last place in the SEC. With a follow-up trip to LSU next weekend, we can go ahead and shovel the dirt on this season's post-season hopes if the team can't snap out of the doldrums. On the other hand, win this series against an equally struggling Vanderbilt squad, and there's still life and a lot of hope going into the LSU series.
The bottom line? Figure out a way to survive the next two weeks and split these six SEC games. If they can do that, Texas A&M is still very much in the hunt with three quality SEC wins and a schedule that gets a little more manageable. Of course, that assumes the Aggies play themselves out of this funk while in Nashville and Baton Rouge. It won't be easy, but that's the task at hand. There's no more margin for error.
Where: Hawkins Field — Nashville, Tennessee
When: Friday 6:30 p.m. CT (SEC+)
Saturday 7:00 p.m. CT (SEC Network)
Sunday 3:00 p.m. CT (SEC Network)
Pitching matchups
- Friday: Brigham Hill (RHP, 4-1, 2.61) vs. Kyle Wright (RHP, 0-3, 4.33)
- Saturday: Stephen Kolek (RHP, 1-0, 2.54) vs. Patrick Raby (RHP, 3-1, 1.71)
- Sunday: TBA vs. Drake Fellows (RHP, 3-0, 1.72)
Scouting Vanderbilt
As a traditional SEC baseball power, Vanderbilt is used to preseason top-10 rankings and having potential first-round draft picks in the lineup. The start of 2017 was no different with a No. 6 preseason ranking and junior hurler Kyle Wright and outfielder Jeren Kendall projected as top-10 selections in the June amateur MLB Draft. Surprisingly though, the Commodores have struggled out of the gate with a 14-8 record, losing their conference play-opening series to Ole Miss by dropping a pair of games to the Rebels last weekend. The reasons are obvious. The two first-round picks have not performed as expected yet.
Kyle Wright was one of the SEC's most talented and heralded pitchers last season. So far in 2017, the right-hander is winless at 0-3.
Kyle Wright was one of the SEC's most talented and heralded pitchers last season. So far in 2017, the right-hander is winless at 0-3 with an unspectacular ERA of 4.33. Rusty performances early in the year are part of the issue.In recent weeks, he's been better, but the Vandy offense has not supported him.
Last Friday against Ole Miss, the Commodores were shut out in a classic, 1-0 pitcher's duel. Hard to fault the junior preseason all-American, who surrendered just one run in seven innings of work. With Wright rounding into shape, Texas A&M's Brigham Hill may need to deliver an equally stellar performance Friday night and shut the door on the Commodore offense.
Saturday starter Patrick Raby has been consistent all season. The sophomore righty has a 3-2 record with a sparking 1.71 ERA. It doesn't get any easier for the Aggie bats on Sunday. Freshman Drake Fellows has been perfect all season with a 3-0 record and a 1.72 ERA.
The bullpen has been spotty for the Commodores in 2017, especially in middle relief. However, the closers have been solid. Reed Hayes leads the team with three saves and has not surrendered a run this season. Matt Ruppenthal also closes for head coach Tim Corbin and has two saves and a 2.63 ERA in 13 innings of action. But guys like Chandler Day (5.19 ERA) and Maddux Conger (5.06 ERA) have struggled as mid-week starters and relievers on the weekend.
While pitching has had its ups and downs, hitting has been a struggle all season in Nashville. Vanderbilt is suffering through one of its worst offensive seasons in the Tim Corbin era, hitting .277 as a team, which is good for 11th in the SEC. That team average was in the .260's before Wednesday night's 17-11 slug-fest win over Belmont. Preseason all-American Jeren Kendall has been solid so far, hitting .297 with an on-base percentage of .393. By most standards, those are good numbers. However, much more was expected of the talented five-tool outfielder, who will hear his name called in the first round of the MLB Draft in about two months.
Coach Corbin has been making a lot of changes at the bottom of the lineup in recent weeks, but the Commodores continue to struggle to score runs.
First baseman Julian Infante has been the one Commodore having a great season at the plate. The sophomore is hitting .376 and leads the team in hits and is second in runs scored (20) and RBI (19). The only other starter hitting above .300 is veteran Will Toffey at .321. The bottom of the Vanderbilt batting order has been cold all season with JJ Bleday, Connor Kaiser, and Ethan Paul all hitting below .240. Coach Corbin has been making a lot of changes at the bottom of the lineup in recent weeks, but the Commodores continue to struggle to score runs. Texas A&M storylines to watch
Cole Bedford has quietly put together an excellent season at the plate (.400 BA) and has nudged into the starting lineup. His throwing arm to second base is a little better than freshman Hunter Coleman's, and his speed on the base paths is phenomenal for a catcher, which provides Rob Childress with some flexibility to move Bedford up in the lineup if necessary.
But the big storyline isn't the two hot hitters in the lineup; it's the other seven guys that have really struggled in recent weeks. Both Logan Foster and Blake Kopetsky were hitting in the .370-.380 range, but have recently slipped back to .337 and .324 respectively. Austin Homan has shown signs of breaking out of his season-long slump, but he's still hitting below .200. George Janca has raised his average to .243, but he really needs to be hitting in the .270-.280 range at a corner spot that's known for offense and power.
Lexie Hudson, TexAgs
Senior first baseman Joel Davis has seen his batting average drop significantly in recent weeks.
On the mound, the Aggies had been getting quality starts from its weekend arms until this past weekend when Kentucky's bats battered and bruised Friday night ace Brigham Hill and Sunday starter Mitchell Kilkenny. Hill's ERA rose to 1.21 after giving up five runs in five innings of work. Hill must be dominant and keep Vanderbilt off the scoreboard on Friday for the Aggies to win.
Kilkenny was completely ineffective in Sunday's 11-7 pounding. Coach Childress brought him into the Tuesday game against Rice hoping to build his confidence, but he again struggled to pitch cleanly. That has resulted in a big question mark for pitching on Sunday. Childress has not announced a starter yet. He may experiment with lefty Kaylor Chafin, who has had several nice outings. He could go with freshman lefty John Doxakis, who had a nice outing on Tuesday. In all likelihood, Sunday will be a pitch-by-committee affair, which doesn't bode well on paper going up against the hot Vandy freshman, Fellows, and his 1.72 ERA. At this point, your guess is as good as mine what will happen with the Texas A&M bullpen, which hasn't shown consistency to this point in the year.
What's at stake this weekend
Well, the season is on the line this weekend. If the Aggies play like they did last week at home against Kentucky, the team could be 0-6 and in last place in the SEC. With a follow-up trip to LSU next weekend, we can go ahead and shovel the dirt on this season's post-season hopes if the team can't snap out of the doldrums. On the other hand, win this series against an equally struggling Vanderbilt squad, and there's still life and a lot of hope going into the LSU series.
The bottom line? Figure out a way to survive the next two weeks and split these six SEC games. If they can do that, Texas A&M is still very much in the hunt with three quality SEC wins and a schedule that gets a little more manageable. Of course, that assumes the Aggies play themselves out of this funk while in Nashville and Baton Rouge. It won't be easy, but that's the task at hand. There's no more margin for error.
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