The series everyone in college baseball has had circled since last summer is here
The Texas A&M Baseball team has found itself over the past three weeks of SEC play. A road series win over then #1 Tennessee, a sweep of South Carolina, and a road series win over #2 Arkansas put this squad firmly back in the postseason conversation.
The SEC gauntlet continues against the current top-ranked team in the nation, Texas.
Of course, the storylines go far beyond just a massive SEC series.
The trip to Austin marks the first time these two teams have met in conference play since the Big 12 days of old.
It’s also the first meeting since Jim Schlossnagle left the Aggies after taking Texas A&M to a national runner-up finish and took the head coaching position in Austin.
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Taking my inherent Aggie bias out of it, those storylines make for a level of emotional pull in this matchup that has captured the interest of any fan of college baseball across the nation.
This series was always going to be an explosive affair. With the added rage and bitterness from Schlossnagle’s perceived betrayal, I don’t know that you can ask for more from a sports entertainment perspective. One can only imagine how hostile the environment might have been had this series taken place in College Station rather than Austin.
Of course, at the end of the day, it’s about what happens on the field, and with Texas A&M’s recent resurgence, this should be an exceptional series in SEC play.
Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images
The Longhorns have earned their place atop the college baseball rankings with an impressive 34-5 overall record, including 16-2 in SEC play. The expected starting trio of Prager, Lamkin, and Patton remains unchanged heading into this weekend.
The bullpen questions for the Aggies haven’t completely gone away, but in addition to the breakout of Weston Moss, Luke Jackson turned in an excellent performance last week against Arkansas to close out the series. If Jackson can prove to be another reliable bullpen arm, the Aggies are in great shape, even against a strong Texas lineup led by Ethan Mendoza and Rylan Galvan.
Photo by Wesley Hitt/Getty Images
The Texas pitching staff has been excellent to this point of the season as well, though one of the biggest pieces of news heading into the weekend is the loss of Jared Spencer for the Horns. Spencer’s season-ending injury is a huge blow to this Texas pitching staff, though Ruger Riojas, Luke Harrison, and Jason Flores still make for a solid trio of weekend starters.
Other than their midweek contest earlier this week against Texas State, the Longhorns have yet to surrender double-digit runs on the season. This is a massive test for Texas A&M’s recent offensive resurgence led by Caden Sorrell. If they can keep the magic going against what is likely one of the best staffs in the conference, from starters to relievers, they can hit against anyone.
With the amount of talent on the field and the level of emotional investment given off-the-field happenings, I don’t think I’ve ever been this excited for a regular season baseball series.
Probable Starters
- Friday: LHP Ryan Prager (2-2, 4.29 ERA, 56.2 IP, 51 K, 14 BB) vs. RHP Ruger Riojas (7-1, 3.33 ERA, 48.2 IP, 48 K, 12 BB)
- Saturday: LHP Justin Lamkin (3-4, 4.13 ERA, 56.2 IP, 61 K, 12 BB) vs. LHP Luke Harrison (3-0, 2.98 ERA, 45.1 IP, 49 K, 19 BB)
- Sunday: LHP Myles Patton (3-3, 4.85 ERA, 52.0 IP, 59 K, 10 BB) vs. RHP Jason Flores (4-1, 1.61 ERA, 28.0 IP, 22 K, 4 BB)
How to Watch
- 7:00 p.m. Friday on SEC Network
- 3:00 p.m. Saturday on ESPN2
- 3:00 p.m. Sunday on ESPN2
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