Schloss's knowledge of the game is next-level. Listening to him is a real treat.
Photo by Katie Smith, TexAgs
Texas A&M Baseball
Jim Schlossnagle recounts No. 1 A&M's weekend hosting Georgia
Although there are no sights of polar bears in College Station, Jim Schlossnagle's top-ranked Aggies took care of business for a sixth consecutive time, claiming another SEC series win. The skipper joined Monday's edition of TexAgs Radio to recap the weekend from his perspective.
Key notes from Jim Schlossnagle interview
- It’s awesome. The 12th Man has always been amazing, but I think we have put together a solid season to this point, and we have some star power players that people want to watch play.
- They are very rare players. They don’t come to college very often. For the most part, our weather has been good. It's elite college baseball at Texas A&M, which is everything I envisioned A&M to be. It's been great. The fans were awesome. The first game was great. The first game on Saturday was electric. I feel like the fans felt the length of the doubleheader, too.
- Ali Camarillo had a 14-pitch at-bat, and the fans were as into it as if he had hit a homer. In the second game, Ted Burton had the same AB, and no one said anything. It was exhausting. Of course, it didn't rain a drop yesterday until 4 p.m. Trying to play weatherman is brutal.
- It was a great weekend. We did not finish off the way we wanted to again. Justin Lamkin was awesome, which is a huge sign for us. The fan base has been incredible.
- With Gavin Grohovac, hoping and praying he is okay. Hopefully, it's something he can be down for just a little bit of time. Hopefully, just this week, and be ready to go Friday. Something happened when he first took off out of the box. I saw him start to hobble. I thought it was worse.
- I think it scared Gavin more than anything. He sprinted in the right field, and the fans went crazy. It kept getting a little more sore. He did more testing this morning. That guy can play through a lot. He is tough.
- With a game tomorrow, if Gavin needs to sit, we will do that. We need him for this stretch run. I prefer to have him for LSU. I don't want to speculate when it could be nothing or could be worse.
- I thought was pitched to Charlie Condon great. He hit two homers. In his first AB, we wanted to set a tone for the weekend and pitch him hard and in. He just missed the first pitch. On the second pitch, Ryan Prager did not get it in enough, and I don’t even know where that ball landed.
- We played four outfielders for Condon. The balls he usually hits deep go out, though. I think he's only hit three ground balls to the right side all season. Our players love him. The strategy was, "If at any point, Charlie, you want to stick your bat out and hit to second base, have at it. It's all yours, buddy." Their whole team is really good.
- Shane Sdao has been great, and he is holding his velocity. He was touching 97. Max Weiner always says, "One inning save. Give us all you got. One pitch at a time." Sdao has that mentality. I have never been a part of a game like that.
- Shane is a weapon. Could he start? We tried it last year. Sometimes, guys are not as good as starters. It's not just as easy as saying he's the starter. We might, but it makes you weaker in another area.
- The video of the Georgia pitcher, that kind of stuff doesn't rile me up. I think there are people in our profession who are naive to the highest level of college baseball, no disrespect to any other level, but there is so much at stake. It is what it is.
- Our game is starting to mirror the major leagues. Whether it be sneaky video guys moving around the stadium, we had that going on this weekend. Whether it is planted cameras or microphones in dugouts... I will never be in the CIA, but it's high-level stuff. Trying to find a better grip on the ball has always been a part of baseball. It doesn't rile me up.
- I just had a phone call with the SEC office this morning. Should we move to having the umpires check the pitcher after every inning or randomly? That is being discussed right now. Should it be implemented instantly? Should it be something we talk about at SEC meetings and put into our game next year? It does not make me feel good to see that, and I have never seen Braden Montgomery, Jace LaViolette, and Jackson Appel strike out in one inning.
- We put people on watch to make sure nothing happens. At the end of the day, your eyes go to the field. Believe me, we have our eyes out all the time. I pretty much know that Tanner Jones was doing something to tip those pitches the other day. If I had to do it over, I think they had him in the stretch. I couldn't get it out of my mouth in time to have him go to the windup against the catcher who hit the grand slam. We don't normally like our pitchers to do that because it allows the baserunners to get more of a start.
- If it's all technological, do you have the financial resources to police it? We are not allowed to have iPads in the dugout. The MLB does it because they have the same portal system. There is a way for them to block the live feed from the dugout. That costs money. College baseball does not have that kind of money.
- There are ways we could wire our dugout to get a live feed. A school in our league got busted, but I don't know if people know about it yet. They are hitting .306 at home and .206 on the road. I don't know.
- Part of being a coach is giving signs and disguising signs. I will probably get off it next year and go to a pitch comm on offense. Why wouldn't we? It's too expensive to do it right now, on offense and defense, even at A&M.
- If you are at the games, the players are so good. The couple extra hits Georgia got were singles, and the ones we got were homers.
- I had a former coach of mine reach out and ask how I was enjoying our season. I am trying to find a way to enjoy it. How many times are you going to look back and have a team like this? While I'm in it, I'm not saying, "This is neat." Maybe for two seconds when Braden is rounding the bases with a big smile after hitting a grand slam. My job is to put a product on the field so everyone else can enjoy it.
- I try to never criticize a coach because you don't truly have all the information.
- Ted Burton was spectacular. Jack Moss+ level play at first base. Moss was really good around the base. I give our trainer credit. He can not only make that play but throw the lead runner out.
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