Earley & Co. travel to No. 10 Georgia for final regular-season series

Head baseball coach Michael Earley joined Thursday's edition of TexAgs Live as Texas A&M begins a three-game series at No. 10 Georgia on Thursday night. With a 10-17 conference record, the Maroon & White have their backs against the wall in the regular-season finale.

Key notes from Michael Earley interview

• There is no value in still being frustrated about the Missouri series. You have pride and are eager to go out and play. You leave the past behind. We just have to keep playing. Take each game one at a time. Don't let the past be predictive of the future.
   
• We are just trying to get better at hitting, individually. There are individual issues with guys. We are trying to address those. We are trying to put them in a position mechanically to control the strike zone better. It's a constant game of adjustment. Between Tuesday and yesterday, I thought we had some really good practice swinging the bat and getting the guys' confidence to where it needed to be.
   
• There will be no major changes or anything that people can see by eye. It will just be some timing and mechanical things to be on time. Even with Jace LaViolette and Caden Sorrell. This is the place where the ball really carries.
   
• Foley Field is turf. It's got slow turf. It carries as well as I have seen a ballpark carry. I think we can have success anywhere as long as we damage balls in the strike zone and take the balls that we are not supposed to swing at. With the power we have in our lineup, if we go out and are good hitters, not home run hitters, sometimes hitting balls hard will equal homers.
   
• With our backs against the wall, we relax and just play. That's how it’s been all year.
   
• I think Kaiden Wilson should be good to go today. He will throw before the game, so that will tell us everything. I don't anticipate him being out this weekend at all.
   
• Brad Rudis has some tightness. We threw a little bit longer than he has to this year. He did an awesome job. Rudis will pitch. It will be about the right opportunity and putting him in a spot to succeed.
   
• The biggest thing against Georgia is limiting free bases. I hope they don't, but a team that hits a lot of home runs at home will get their home runs. Let's limit how they get them and how they get on. Our guys have done great against similar caliber teams and ballparks that are pretty offensive.
   
• It's just about tonight. You can't hide from it. Our guys are aware. I'm sure every time they open their Twitter account, they will see some opinion on what we need to do. I can't control what they see, but I can control what we talk about. It's called a season for a reason. It's not a game, week or series. You play a season, and you look up and make your evaluation at the end of the year. Right now, it's about today.
   
• The game of baseball is really mental. The guys were really upset this weekend for a mixture of reasons. For a lot of guys, it's probably their last game at Blue Bell Park. Mix that in with losing, and the situation we are in. Over the last two days, spirits have been high. It's not a team dwelling on the past, but recognizing it and moving forward.
   
• Georgia is good. They can steal bases if they need to. They hit homers at home. They are really good on the mound. They do a lot of things right, and that's why they are having a great season.
   
• Wes Johnson has done a really good job for a long time. He's not afraid to put guys in. They embrace "any role at any time." That is why you see him not afraid to take a guy out and put a guy in. He makes guys better.
   
• With Charlie Goldstein, maybe he's an opener, maybe he's not. Maybe he rolls. Maybe you put in a lineup that's left-handed because you think he's going to change. You have to play like he's a starter. If you can get runs in the first two innings, you will take those. Baseball is a hard sport to predict. You have to try to be prepared for any situation.