You can take a lot of what I wrote about last week and copy and paste that into this week’s article regarding the fact that the Aggie Baseball team - now up to No. 6 in the D1Baseball poll - keeps chugging along and winning series in the SEC despite some obvious deficiencies and weaknesses. Texas A&M is coming off of a 2-2 week in which it looked lifeless in a 4-1 loss to Houston, only to follow that up with a 2-1 series win at South Carolina. And as I wrote last week, it doesn’t have to look pretty as long as you keep winning games and building up your resume. Ultimately, the NCAA Selection Committee will judge the Aggies by who they beat, what their resume looks like at the end of May and how well they’re playing heading into the Tournament.
There are still a few major hurdles ahead for this team, with road series at Ole Miss and Alabama and home series against Mississippi State and Arkansas, but I think each and every one of us would raise our hand if you asked us before the season whether we would take a 29-12-1 record and an 11-6-1 mark in SEC play entering the last weekend in April. A&M has battled its way to second place in the loaded SEC West and sits just a half-game behind the Razorbacks for first place in the division. The Aggies are a game-and-a-half behind Georgia in the SEC title hunt, and it’s right there for the taking with 12 conference games remaining in the regular season. Yes, the road is long and winding between now and mid-May but the tough-minded Aggies are as primed for a championship run as any other team in the rugged and air-tight SEC.
Here are some Monday afternoon thoughts, notes, stats and interesting nuggets on the A&M team coming out of the series win over South Carolina and heading into a home game against red hot UTA and a trip to Ole Miss this weekend...
Hitter of the Week
OF Zach DeLoach | 6-for-14 (.429); 2 doubles; 1 RBI; 5 runs scored
Elisa Schmitt, TexAgs
After a slow start to the season, DeLoach has figured it out at the plate recently.
Don’t look now but DeLoach is on his way back in a big way. And this hasn’t just been a few games where he’s gotten hot. This resurgence is several weeks in the making. You have to go back to the LSU series to find when the surge started. Zach went to Baton Rouge fighting for his starting spot with Ty Condel. He was hitting a paltry .150. He got just two hits against the Tigers but his at bats were much better and he barrel into a ton of loud outs in the series.
That got him going a little bit but the sophomore really got rolling in game three of the Auburn series when he went 2-for-3. Suddenly, the sophomore center fielder is riding a five-game hitting streak and has watched his batting average rise 63 points to .213.
He was one of just two A&M players with a hit at Houston. He followed that up with a two-hit performance in an 8-2 win in game one at South Carolina. After going 1-for-3 in game two of the series in Columbia, DeLoach moved up into the two-hole and delivered with a 2-for-4 effort, including an RBI and a run scored. If the coaches are not going to consider moving Braden Shewmake up into the two-hole, then I feel that DeLoach is the best solution to hit second that this team has right now. He’s dynamic when he’s going right, and if he is in the process of turning it on, it could do wonders for the top of the A&M lineup heading down the stretch in the regular season.
Pitcher of the Week
LHP John Doxakis | 6.1 IP; 4 H; 2 R; 2 ER; 2 BB; 8 K
Doxakis got himself in a bit of an early jam due to some minor command issues that reared their head in the third inning and led to two runs. He was perfect in the first inning and looked very sharp in the second. But in the third, Dox got in trouble by allowing back-to-back two-out singles and mixing in a walk and a wild pitch. He managed to pitch out of a bases loaded jam without allowing any more damage than just the two runs and was tremendous for the remainder of his start. He was perfect in the fourth and fifth and retired 11 of the final 12 batters he faced. Three of the four hits and both runs given up came in that third inning. The junior walked just two and punched out eight in 6.1 innings of work. Dox is 5-2 on the season with a 1.87 ERA. He’s struck out 71 and walked just nine in 62.2 innings of work.
Who’s Hot?
1B/DH Hunter Watson - The freshman entered the South Carolina series with just two hits on the season and limped in with a .105 average in just nine games played and six starts. But the coaches continued to see the Denison native - his father, Cory, was one of Denison’s best football-baseball players during their dynamite runs in the mid-90s on the gridiron and the diamond ... a far cry from the legacy of yours truly at the same school during a slightly later time period in the ‘90s - putting in work and stringing together strong BP performances.
The power potential is undeniable and Rob Childress, Will Bolt and Co. felt the need to give Hunter a consistent look to see what he could do from a run production standpoint. It’s safe to say the kid delivered in a big way. Watson drove in A&M’s only run in a 4-1 loss at Houston on Tuesday. He followed that up by going 4-for-9 (.444) in the series at SC, with two RBI and a pair of runs scored. The hot weekend in Columbia saw Watson’s average more than double, going from .105 to .214 in just three games. He absolutely must cut down on the strikeouts but you’re seeing a Hunter Melton-like late-freshman-season surge and I fully expect him to get four more starts this week to see what he can do to lengthen out the bottom of the A&M lineup.
OF Logan Foster -
Elisa Schmitt, TexAgs
Logan Foster hit three home runs in the last week.
The junior went just 3-for-11 in the series with the Gamecocks, but two of his three hits left the ball park. Foster has just four home runs on the season but three of them have come since last Sunday’s win over Auburn at Olsen Field.
He’s hitting .297 on the season and features a very impressive slashline of .323 / .358 / .516 against SEC pitching. You’ll take that every day of the week. Foster is the best option right now to hit in the four-hole and it’s a great sign that he’s starting to elevate the baseball and drive it deep to all fields.
2B Bryce Blaum - The sophomore Ole Miss transfer had a much better weekend at the plate than his 4-for-14 (.286) might indicate. He had two hits in the game one victory in Columbia. Then after going 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts in game one of the Saturday double header, Blaum came back in the night cap with another 2-for-4 outing, including a critical two-run bomb to left center in the seventh inning of a seven-inning game for some much-needed insurance and even bigger need for a momentum swing after South Carolina plated two runs in the previous frame to pull to within a run. The blast was his fifth of the season but just his first against SEC pitching. He looks fully healthy for the first time since suffering the serious ankle injury in game two of the Mizzou series last month, and the resurgence at the plate this weekend is a bi-product of that.
RHP Christian Roa - The sophomore is getting closer and closer to 100-percent following his first inning departure with arm issues last month at Kentucky. He’s been really good in limited duty upon his return from the injury scare, and was about as crisp as you could have possibly expected him to be in game three on Saturday. Roa allowed just one run on three hits over 3.2 innings of work. He fanned three batters without issuing a free pass, throwing three pitches for strikes and mixing it up within the count to keep Gamecocks hitters off-balance. Roa exited the game with two outs in the fourth after tossing 45 pitches - 33 for strikes - but assistant coach Justin Seely said Monday on TexAgs Radio that he could have probably gotten to the 60-pitch mark if they wanted to extend him out, but the shortened seven-inning game made it easier to swiftly go to a well-rested bullpen in the fourth. Roa is feeling well and pitching great, and that makes A&M a very dangerous and extremely difficult team to beat down the stretch and into the post-season.
LHP Asa Lacy - The sophomore co-ace and All-American candidate certainly had his fair share of issues in game one of the Saturday doubleheader. He walked five batters and allowed the first two batters to reach via a hit batsman in the first inning, which led to a three-run home run by Luke Berryhill. Lacy struggled with command throughout most of his six innings of work. But when a guy throws a complete game - even in a seven inning game in which the home team didn’t bat in the seventh - and gives up just two hits in his start, how can you not include him in the “hot” category. Admittedly, I struggled with where to slot Lacy this week and there is no doubt the big lefty fireballer has got to figure out the mechanical issues he’s been dealing with on the mound if the Aggies are going to stay in the mix for the SEC title. The wipeout talent is clearly there. It’s always about command for Asa. And after back-to-back rough starts to games, this weekend’s Friday night start in Oxford on one day’s short rest is critical for him moving forward. We’ll know within the first two innings if he’s got it or not. The beauty with Lacy, however, is that he’ll find a way to get outs even on days when the stuff just isn’t at A-level. But when he’s got it all cooking, there might not be a more fun pitcher in the SEC to watch toe the rubber.
LHP Chris Weber - The freshman did not pitch in the South Carolina series, which is a little hard to believe considering how lights out he’s been of late. Weber, a future rocket scientist and Aerospace Engineering major, tossed three scoreless frames at Houston, allowing just one hit and no walks while striking out five Cougars on Tuesday night. After getting roughed up a few times in the first month of his collegiate career, the big southpaw has been spectacular dating back to the Missouri series. Here are Weber’s numbers in his last seven outings: 14.1 innings; 9 hits; 1 run (earned); 3 walks; 20 strikeouts ... straight-up nasty with a three-pitch mix and a very, very advanced feel to pitch. I’d be pretty surprised if Weber didn’t get the ball to start the UTA game on Tuesday, but I also wouldn’t expect him to throw more than one time through the lineup because he’ll likely play a key role in the series at Ole Miss this weekend.
Who’s Not?
C Mikey Hoehner - The junior went 1-for-12 (.083) last week. Now, he’s not a guy that finds himself on the “Who’s Not?” list very often at all and I don’t expect the struggles at the plate to continue beyond just one week. However, what you worry about at this point is fatigue, as Hoehner is being asked to catch every inning of every game right now with Hunter Coleman still on the shelf with a broken arm. That can certainly take a toll on a young ball player and you just have to wish him well and hope he can power through the mental and physical wall and somehow pick up a second wind down the stretch.
3B Ty Coleman - The freshman went 1-for-7 (.143) last week and temporarily lost his spot in favor of Chandler Morris in game three of the series in Columbia. Coleman is A&M’s best option to handle third base duty, but is playing more baseball right now and at a higher level of ball than he’s every played in his life. I’ve heard it said that a ball player’s first year in the SEC is the hardest season of his entire baseball life. We’re seeing the highs and lows playing out right now for the younger Coleman brother. If it were me, I’d put him in the lineup this week and hit him in the nine-hole in every game to try to eliminate as much self-imposed stress and pressure as possible. See if that gets him going because you’ve got to have Ty moving forward in ’19.
Other thoughts and notes:
- I don’t know about you but I’m not ready to throw in the towel on one of the veteran right-handed hitters down the stretch. I think we’re in for some big moments out of Allonte Wingate, Chandler Morris or Jonathan Ducoff at some point between now and the end of the ’19 campaign. I think I would consider platooning Cam Blake (lefty bat) and one of the aforementioned seniors in left field and see if one of those guys might be able to provide a spark to your lineup and some veteran leadership during A&M’s quest for an SEC title.
- I can’t help but get pretty excited thinking about what the Aggies will be able to run out there on the mound in post-season play. Rob Childress is working Roa back very slowly and carefully because he knows what a fully-healthy Christian Roa does for the entire pitching situation come late-May and into June. If A&M can play well enough down the stretch to close out strong and nab a Regional host bid, they’d have the benefit of playing at home in post-season play and would throw Doxakis, Lacy and Roa out there in the first three games of a Regional. You follow that up with outstanding lefty-righty balance and elite talent in the bullpen with Kalich and Miller leading the way from the right side and Weber, Moo Menefee and Chandler Jozwiak coming in from the left side. And if you have to go a fourth or even fifth game, the Aggies could roll with Weber for game four and either Jozwiak or Menefee in an if-necessary game. There are very few teams in college baseball that can run a number four anywhere near the talent of Weber and nobody has a number five that can touch Menefee or Jozwiak. And that doesn’t even count Dustin Saenz, who despite his recent struggles did go to Austin and beat Texas in front of a record crowd at Disch-Falk Field. It’s always been about the offense and whether they can hit enough to make a serious run this season. The pitching is there in spades and as talented and balanced as any program going right now.
- Anyone else want to see a little more of Penn transfer and right-handed flame thrower Jake Nelson? The senior hasn’t allowed a run in six outings this season, spanning 6.1 innings. He’s given up just five hits and has punched out six batters without issuing a walk. I’m wondering what he could do as a bridge piece over the final month of the season to eliminate the need to overuse Weber or Miller in the middle portion of games.
- Every week, we like to close by offering our suggestions at the lineup. Putting aside my one-man crusade to move Shewmake up to the two-hole, here is my best lineup idea vs. lefties and right-handers:
Starting Lineup vs. LHP:
1. Blaum - 2B (R)
2. DeLoach - CF (L)
3. Shewmake - SS (L)
4. Foster - RF (R)
5. Hoehner - C (R)
6. Morris - LF (R)
7. Ducoff - 1B (R)
8. Watson - DH (L)
9. T. Coleman - 3B (R)
Lefty bats off bench:
Blake
Frizzell
Walters
Menefee
Right-handed bats off bench:
Wingate
Condel
Brown
Starting Lineup vs. RHP:
1. Blaum - 2B (R)
2. DeLoach - CF (L)
3. Shewmake - SS (L)
4. Foster - RF (R)
5. Hoehner - C (R)
6. Blake - LF (L)
7. Frizzell - 1B (L)
8. Watson - DH (L)
9. T. Coleman - 3B (R)
Lefty bats off bench:
Walters
Menefee
Right-handed bats off bench:
Ducoff
Morris
Condel
Wingate
Brown
That’ll just about do it on a beautiful and warm Monday afternoon in Aggieland. Big week for the Aggies. These guys haven’t forgotten the 18-inning loss to UTA last season. And the Movin’ Mavs have won nine straight games, including wins over Baylor and TCU the last two Tuesdays. Their RPI is sitting at #55 and they won’t be intimidated by the road atmosphere at Olsen Field, nor the team in the third base dugout. The Aggies need a Tuesday win to keep the momentum rolling into the trip to Oxford, where they’ll see an Ole Miss team that is tied for fourth in the SEC West at 10-8 and features an RPI of 28. Yet another gigantic weekend for Aggie baseball in a very tough place to go in and win games.
Key notes from Justin Seely interview
- You can’t beat a series win on Easter weekend. We probably could’ve walked out of there with a sweep, but all in all it feels good. Anytime you win a road series in the SEC you’re doing something right.
- Four games on the road against good teams is tough. Life is a little more difficult on the road, but it helps galvanize your team. Tuesday we completely no-showed on offense. Part of me wonders if it was because guys were busy with exams and projects, but that's not a good excuse. I really liked what I saw on the weekend, but Tuesday was just bad.
- The game is finally starting to slow down for Hunter Watson. He’ll be able to get a chance to get going now. If we used him too early, it might have crushed his confidence. He’s capable of driving the ball and hitting it out of the park. He’s been very competitive at the plate, and hell continue to do that.
- Zach DeLoach is taking away the other side of the plate to opposing pitchers. It takes away their comfort zone. He has let go of some of the burdens he was carrying with him. He was highly recruited and started off hot, and he just started really slow this spring. He is just starting to show the kind of player that he is. He’s a great kid with and has an incredible work ethic. If he plays like he’s capable of, we’ll be in a great position offensively.
- Logan Foster is big for us. The change in the weather has facilitated some of this. We spoke about it weeks ago, but he’s having better at-bats. He’s really driving the ball well and his ability to hit a home run is key. We started hitting more home runs this weekend, and if we continue to do that we’ll be very difficult to beat moving forward.
- Hunter Coleman has a doctors visit today. After that, we’ll know a lot. Coach Childress will be able to give an update tomorrow.
- Christian Roa was very crisp from the get go. Command was very good, he just wore down a little faster because he’s coming off an injury. Childress took him out at just the right time. He looks really good. We just need to continue to stretch him until he’s back to normal. We could’ve gave him a few more innings, but we had guys in the bullpen so there was no point in stretching him any further.
- UTA and Ole Miss are two very good teams. UTA has won nine in a row, and we’ve struggled with them traditionally. We need our full attention on UTA for tomorrow. Once that is done, we’ll focus on Ole Miss. Ole Miss is a talented, veteran team. They have a lot of seniors that should be in the pros right now. It’ll be a stiff test, they’re sixth or seventh in the league and only a game or so behind us. We need to play our best baseball if we want to win this series.
