Jan. 20, 2009
DURHAM, N.C. - For the first time in program history, Texas A&M will open the season as the top-ranked baseball team in the land.
Baseball America magazine pegged the Aggies, the defending Big 12 regular-season champions, as its preseason No. 1 in a poll released Tuesday.
"It is great recognition for our players and our program," fourth-year head coach Rob Childress said. "We work hard every single day to try to be in this spot at the end of the season. But at the same time, this 2009 team has yet to accomplish anything. This is a tribute to all the hard work put in by the team and coaches, and we're going to have to work even harder to reach our goal of being the last team standing in Omaha."
It marks the first time that the A&M baseball program has ever been ranked No. 1 to start a year and the first time the Aggies have held the top spot since the Baseball America poll on May 17, 1999. A&M was ranked first for three straight weeks that season en route to a trip to the College World Series. The 1993 team was ranked No. 1 by BA for five consecutive weeks, while the '89 Aggies sat atop the poll for nine of the final 13 polls of that year. A&M's highest previous Baseball America preseason ranking was sixth in 1988.
The Big 12 placed four teams in the top 10. LSU earned the No. 2 spot, followed by North Carolina, Texas and Cal State Fullerton--who will visit Olsen Field on March 10. Ole Miss was sixth, followed by Rice, Baylor, UC Irvine and Missouri. Oklahoma was the final Big 12 team in the poll at No. 16.
Six top-10 teams--Fullerton, Rice, Baylor, Texas, Missouri and UCI--appear on the Aggies' 2009 schedule.
Texas A&M earned the spot in large part thanks to one of the deepest pitching staffs in the country. On the mound, 84 percent of the innings pitched are back off a staff that finished 19th nationally in earned run average.
Overall, 41 of A&M's 46 wins--or 89 percent--return, led by the entire weekend rotation of '08 freshman All-Americans Brooks Raley (7-2, 4.76 ERA, 68 K) and Barret Loux (6-2, 4.18 ERA, 81 K), and junior All-Big 12 honoree Clayton Ehlert (6-2, 3.41 ERA, 48 K). The back end of the bullpen also remains intact, as all-conference honorees Kyle Thebeau (6-5, 2.12 ERA, 3 saves) and Travis Starling (8-2, 3.70 ERA, 9 saves) are back.
The top offensive leaders returning in 2009 are a pair of first-team All-Big 12 picks in seniors first baseman Luke Anders (.349, 16 HR, 58 RBI) and center fielder Kyle Colligan (.317, 14 HR, 39 RBI). Last year the Aggies hit 81 home runs, averaged just under eight runs per game and stole 91 bases.
Fans will get plenty of opportunities to see the Aggies in action in 2009, as A&M hosts a 37-game home schedule which features Cal State Fullerton, Nebraska, Oklahoma State, TCU, Houston, Texas and Baylor, among others. The opener is set for Friday, Feb. 20 against Wright State, and season tickets are available now by logging on to aggieathletics.com or by calling 1-888-99-AGGIE.
2009 BASEBALL AMERICA PRESEASON RANKINGS
1. Texas A&M 2. LSU 3. North Carolina 4. Texas 5. Cal State Fullerton 6. Ole Miss 7. Rice 8. Baylor 9. UC Irvine 10. Missouri 11. San Diego 12. UCLA 13. Arizona State 14. Georgia 15. Stanford 16. Oklahoma 17. Pepperdine 18. Kent State 19. Clemson 20. Georgia Tech 21. Alabama 22. Arkansas 23. Louisville 24. Florida State 25. Oregon State