Series Preview: Rivalry renews as Ags, No. 1 Horns meet in SEC series
Also included above is a TexAgs Live segment with Ryan Brauninger, Richard Zane and Scott Clendenin from Friday morning, previewing this weekend’s series at No. 1 Texas.
Who: No. 1 Texas Longhorns (34-5, 16-2 in SEC)
Where: UFCU Disch-Falk Field - Austin, TX
When:
Friday: 7 p.m. CT (SEC Network)
Saturday: 3 p.m. CT (ESPN2)
Sunday: 3 p.m. CT (ESPN2)
Pitching matchups
Friday: LHP Ryan Prager (2-2, 4.29 ERA) vs. RHP Ruger Riojas (7-1, 3.33 ERA)
Saturday: LHP Justin Lamkin (3-4, 4.13 ERA) vs. LHP Luke Harrison (3-0, 2.98 ERA)
Sunday: LHP Myles Patton (3-3, 4.85 ERA) vs. RHP Jason Flores (4-1, 1.61 ERA)
Scouting Texas
Admittedly, I haven’t paid much attention to Jim Schlossnagle’s club, but watching from this corner (or “sliver”) of the state, it’s easy to see how the Longhorns have ascended to the top of the polls.
The big news out of Austin is that ace left-hander Jared Spencer is out this weekend and the remainder of the year as he undergoes season-ending shoulder surgery. Thus, the Longhorns have shuffled their rotation, and Ruger Riojas will take the ball to begin the series on Friday. A transfer from UTSA (where he held the Aggies to one hit across two innings in an April contest) has appeared in 13 games, making five starts. His best start came on March 29 at Missouri as Riojas tossed seven scoreless innings while striking out 10. However, he has the highest ERA of any of the three Texas starters. A&M saw left-hander Luke Harrison on March 5 last year, and he struck out three in 1.1 innings. This season, the redshirt junior owns a 1.35 WHIP and has a 2.58 K/BB ratio. While Jason Flores’ 1.67 ERA is very impressive, he has only made three starts and not completed four innings in any appearance this season.
In the bullpen, Dylan Volantis is among the best closers in college baseball. With nine saves to his credit, he has a sub-1.00 WHIP and a 1.05 ERA. Volantis has also struck out 46 against just five walks in 34.1 innings this season. A native of Thousand Oaks, Calif., the freshman left-hander is one of two Longhorns on the College Baseball Foundation’s National Pitcher of the Year Award watch list, along with right-hander Max Grubbs, who owns a 1.50 ERA in 36.0 innings pitched.
Since we began the pitching discussion with an injury, we’ll symmetrically begin the offensive breakdown with an injury: Max Belyeu, the reigning Big 12 Player of the Year, was shut down after suffering a season-ending thumb injury vs. Mizzou. However, even without Belyeu, who boasted a 1.107 OPS with six homers and 22 RBIs in just 24 games, the Texas bats remain extremely dangerous.
Second baseman Ethan Mendoza is hitting a team-high .355, while catcher Rylan Galvan is leading in OPS (1.257), home runs (12) and slugging (.754). Former Aggie (and such a descriptor is correct in this instance) Kimble Schuessler is hitting .323 while playing first base. Shortstop Jalin Flores, who hit a dramatic ninth-inning grand slam to beat Texas State on Tuesday, is tied atop Texas’ RBI leaderboard with 6-foot-6 centerfielder Will Gasparino at 44. Meanwhile, second baseman and former A&M signee Adrian Rodriguez is enjoying a standout rookie campaign by slashing .282/.364/.504 with six homers.
As Michael Earley observed on Thursday afternoon, this is a very complete Texas club. The Longhorns have won their first six SEC series and are 20-3 at home. Earlier this year, after an Opening Night loss to Louisville in Arlington, the Longhorns rattled off 17 consecutive victories as they climbed the national polls to No. 1, a spot Texas holds for a second consecutive week.
| Hitting | Avg. | Runs/Game | Slugging % | On-Base % | K/Game |
| Texas A&M | .280 | 8.10 | .502 | .398 | 8.35 |
| No. 1 Texas | .292 | 7.69 | .520 | .400 | 9.08 |
| Pitching | ERA | WHIP | BB/9 | Opp. Avg. | K/9 | Fielding % |
| Texas A&M | 4.30 | 1.24 | 2.76 | .247 | 9.51 | .969 |
| No. 1 Texas | 3.15 | 1.16 | 3.51 | .212 | 9.48 | .978 |
Texas A&M storylines to watch
Somebody let the Aggies get hot... Texas A&M has won three straight SEC series in large part because the offense has gotten, well, hot.
The Ags have scored 146 runs across their 13 April games dating back to the 21-1 shellacking of Incarnate Word on the first of the month. That 11.2 runs/game average includes the infamous no-hit, run-rule defeat in Knoxville that served as the catalyst for the ongoing turnaround.
During this stretch, the Maroon & White have gotten contributions from a number of players up and down the lineup. Last week, Jace LaViolette had his best week as an Aggie, which is saying something, with five home runs across four games en route to SEC Player of the Week honors. Since implementing mechanical adjustments to his stroke prior to the SHSU game in Huntsville, Blake Binderup is hitting a scorching .375 (12-for-32) with five home runs and 16 RBIs in nine games...and he’s hitting seventh. Perhaps even hotter is Kaeden Kent, who has enjoyed multi-hit outings in six of his last seven games. During that stretch, Jeff’s son is 15-for-27 (.556) with 13 RBIs, and he has driven in a run in nine of his last 10. Caden Sorrell has been better than expected in his return, hitting .358 with an .811 slugging percentage and six homers in just 15 games. Bear Harrison isn’t far removed from being the hottest hitter in college baseball. Terrence Kiel II remains a force in the leadoff spot and has now found at least a momentary power stroke. Oh, and very quietly, Wyatt Henseler is still hitting .315.
If the production listed above continues, watch out.
Now, the weekend will be determined by the A&M pitching staff.
Prior to SEC play, the Aggies owned a 2.87 staff ERA. Overall, that number now sits at 4.30. In conference games, it jumps to 6.16. In their non-conference starts, the left-handed trio of Ryan Prager, Justin Lamkin and Myles Patton had ERAs of 0.39, 2.28 and 2.28, respectively. In six SEC starts apiece, those figures have ballooned to 7.02, 5.45 and 6.99.
Don’t let those stats scare you too much. Lamkin and Patton have still turned in quality starts vs. quality SEC lineups, and we know that pitching in such a talented and offensive league is challenging week in and week out. We also know that Prager hasn’t looked like the Friday night ace he blossomed into last spring, but with his career achievements, experience and even-keeled disposition, he remains poised for a bounce-back start somewhere down the stretch. Ideally, a vintage Prager outing (followed by more quality from his southpaw brethren) comes on Friday night in Austin.
Beyond the consistent force that is Weston Moss and his 1.44 SEC ERA and 0.96 SEC WHIP, the Aggie bullpen has been a mixed bag, but the trip to Fayetteville provided more reasons for optimism. Luke Jackson was dominant in the series finale vs. the Hogs, giving Earley and Jason Kelly another weapon in the bullpen. Caden McCoy’s numbers don’t flatter him, but he has been A&M’s top left-handed reliever for much of the year, while Kaiden Wilson was impressive in the final frame of the Fayetteville success. Additionally, if Brad Rudis and Clayton Freshcorn can find the kind of turnaround Jackson did a week ago, the bullpen would go from a point of concern to an area of strength with the postseason coming into view.
Lastly, and apologies for burying the lede, the Aggies don’t seem interested in talking about the man (or men, when you consider Texas’ entire coaching staff) in the other dugout this week...honestly and humorously, they’d rather talk about an Ivy League showdown as they continue to look the part of the confident, loose ballclub we’ve seen for the last three weekends. While not running from an awkward reunion, the Maroon & White have said all the right things in the build-up to Friday’s series opener. Indeed, it appears the Ags are focused on what they can control and intend to take their road success with them into yet another hostile environment, regardless of what color or coach is on the other side of the field.
For Earley & Co., it’s just another business trip, but to the rest of the 12th Man, it’s the biggest one of the regular season.
What’s at stake this weekend
It’s a big week in college baseball. Sure, some eyeballs will be paid to big-time series such as No. 6 Tennessee at No. 7 LSU, No. 3 Oregon State at No. 13 Oregon or even the huge rivalry that is Penn-Columbia.
However, this one is undoubtedly bigger than the rest.
If A&M can go into Austin and win its third series vs. a top-two foe in four weeks, the Aggies would put the “Can they make the NCAA Tournament?” narrative to rest...and instead, they’d catapult themselves into the “Can they host?” conversation.
Of course, those types of discussions can wait until Sunday night or even Monday morning.
What’s top of mind right now is bragging rights and revenge.
When it comes to hostile environments, the Aggies are battle-tested with victories at Lindsay Nelson and Baum-Walker. The crowd size and noise at Disch-Falk likely won’t faze the Maroon & White, but can they carry the extra pressure of the most highly anticipated Lone Star Showdown baseball series in recent memory?
At least in the week building up to the road trip west, the Aggies appear to be loose and ready.
And just in case you’ve forgotten (we know you haven’t), here’s this:
“I think it’s pretty selfish of you to ask me that question, to be honest with you. But I left my family to be the coach at Texas A&M. I took the job at Texas A&M to never take another job again. And that hasn’t changed in my mind.
”That’s unfair to talk about something like that. That would be like you asking Montgomery if he’s going to sign in the draft. But I understand you’ve got to ask the question. But I gave up a big part of my life to come take this job. And I poured every ounce of my soul into this job, and I gave this job every ounce I could possibly give it. Write that.”
By the way, Braden Montgomery did sign after being drafted 12th overall. #BTHOtu
