COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M Aggies play the Prairie View A&M Panthers on Tuesday night with an opportunity to improve to 22-0 for just the second time in school annals. The Maroon and White marched through opponents like an unstoppable rebel force early in the season with solid mixture of offense and defense. Aggie batters are hitting .309 on the season and averaging 7.5 runs per game led by NICK BANKS (.434) and six other regular starters hitting over .300 on the season. Despite a pair of injuries to starting pitchers, A&M has been dominant on the mound, posting a 1.65 ERA and holding opponents to a 1.65 ERA. Freshman BRIGHAM HILL will get his third career start, entering the contest with a 1-0 record and 0.96 ERA.
#4 TEXAS A&M AGGIES (21-0, 3-0 SEC) vs. PRAIRIE VIEW A&M PANTHERS (7-11, 4-4 SWAC)
Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park (6,100) • College Station, Texas
SCHEDULE - Tuesday - 6:05 pm
RADIO - Sports Radio 1150 The Zone • Dave South (play-by-play)
LIVE VIDEO - SEC Network+ (WatchESPN credentials required through cable provider) • Friday & Sunday - Will Johnson (play-by-play), Mark Johnson (color analyst)
LIVE AUDIO - 12thMan.com • radioaggieland.com (free)
LIVE STATS - 12thMan.com/tamustats.com (mobile devices)
RANKINGS - Texas A&M - 2 (CB), 4 (USAT), 5 (D1B), 5 (BA), 5 (NCBWA); PVAM – unranked
SERIES HISTORY - A&M leads 6-0
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
• TUESDAY: #15 Brigham Hill (Fr., RHP, 1-0, 0.96 ERA) vs. TBA
1,000 WINS AT OLSEN FIELD
With their win in the Saturday game against Auburn, the Aggies secured their 1,000th win at the friendly confines of Olsen Field. Playing their 38th season at the now-Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park, the Maroon and White are 1,001-324-4 (.754) at the corner of George W. Bush and Olsen Boulevard.
FOLLOWING THE ACTION
• RADIO — Fans can listen to all games locally on SportsRadio 1150 The Zone... Dave South (play-by-play) and selected commentators will call the action... pregame show begins 30 minutes prior to first pitch.
• MOBILE PHONE — listen to the game on your iPhone, Blackberry or PDA free of charge ... log on to RadioAggieland.com for more information.
TEXAS A&M/PRAIRIE VIEW A&M SERIES NOTABLES
The Aggies are 6-0 all-time against Prairie View A&M with all of the meetings coming at Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park. They have played every season since 2009, with the Aggies outscoring the Panthers 65-15. Last season, the Aggies scored an 8-2 win in an April meeting. Cole Lankford and LOGAN TAYLOR each hit two-run home runs. Taylor added a pair of RBI singles to account for four RBI on the night. JASON FREEMAN earned the win in relief, with 5.0 shutout innings, scattering two hits with four strikeouts.
MORE ON PRAIRIE VIEW A&M
The Panthers are off to a 7-11 start with a 4-4 mark in SWAC play. Prairie View started the season losing the first five games, but bounced back with back-to-back series wins against Our Lady of the Lake and Southern. Last weekend, the Panthers dropped a three-game series against Grambling State.
Prairie View is hitting .244 as a team with seven home runs and an average of 5.7 runs per game. Walter Wells is leading the squad with a .362 batting average and 19 runs. He has four doubles, two triples and nine RBI. The rest of the squad is hitting .228. Anthony Ferran accounts for nearly a quarter of PVAMU's RBI with 22 of the Panther's 91 on the season.
The Panthers' pitching staff owns a 5.71 ERA, yielding 201 hits and 81 walks while striking out 108 in 156.0 innings.
Prairie View has won three SWAC Tournament titles, winning the automatic bid to the NCAA Championship in 2006, 2007 and 2012.
The Panthers boast three former players who went on to play Major League Baseball, headlined by 12-year veteran Steve Henderson and seven-year hurler Charles Hudson who shined as a rookie for the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1983 NLCS at Veterans Stadium, pitching a complete-game with nine strikeouts against the Los Angeles Dodgers in a 7-2 victory in Game 3, giving the Phillies a 2-1 edge in the best-of-five series.
TUESDAY'S PROBABLE STARTER:Â #15 BRIGHAM HILL
Making his third career start and his four appearance... worked 1.1 innings in the second game of the season, allowing Holy Cross to score one run on four hits while striking out three... was brilliant in his first career start, a win against Incarnate Word, pitching 5.1 blank innings with three hits and two walks while striking out nine... struggled a bit in his last outing, making it just through just 2.2 innings with one unearned run on four hits and two walks while striking out one.
HILL'S CAREER TOTALS
|
Year |
W-L |
ERA |
APP/GS |
SV |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
AVG |
|
2015 |
1-0 |
0.96 |
3/2 |
0 |
9.1 |
11 |
2 |
1 |
4 |
13 |
.282 |
|
Career |
1-0 |
0.96 |
3/2 |
0 |
9.1 |
11 |
2 |
1 |
4 |
13 |
.282 |
BANKS EARNS PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA
NICK BANKS picked up a pair of Preseason All-America honors. The sophomore outfielder was named to the Perfect Game's 2015 Preseason College All-America Second Team and D1Baseball.com Preseason All-America Second Team.
As a freshman, Banks batted .327 with 29 runs, 10 doubles, two triples, two home runs, 26 RBI and seven stolen bases. In 30 SEC contests, Banks ranked fourth in the league with a .360 batting average, going 41-for-114 with seven doubles, one triple, one home run, 15 runs and 16 RBI.
Following his successful rookie campaign, Banks earned Freshman All-America recognition from National Collegiate Baseball Writers' Association and Collegiate Baseball. He was named All-SEC Second Team as well as earning a place on the SEC All-Freshman squad. Banks and Florida's Logan Shore were the only two freshmen to earn All-SEC status in 2014.
Banks is living up to the publicity in 2015. He's batting .434 (33-for-76) with 19 runs, four doubles, two triples, one home run, 16 RBI and four stolen bases. He has reached base via walk, hit or HBP in all 20 of his games.
ALLEMAND'S SENIORITY
BLAKE ALLEMAND enters the season as the most senior of veterans on the squad. Heading into Tuesday's game, Allemand has played in 188 games. With 12 more games, Allemand would become just the 17th Aggie to appear in 200 games. Five Aggies have appeared in 200 games in the 21st century, including school record holder Krey Bratsen (245 - 2011-014), Kevin Gonzalez (236 - 2008-11), Brodie Green (228 - 2007-10), Kyle Colligan (218 - 2006-09) and Brandon Wood (204 - 2010-13).
For his career, Allemand is hitting .279 (180-for-646) with 17 doubles, five triples, two home runs, 79 RBI and 27 stolen bases. He has made 182 career starts, including 47 in 2012, 61 in 2013 and 53 in 2014.
PITCHER WEDGE
KYLE SIMONDS marks the only player on the squad to not play high school baseball. Simonds spent his springs at Grand Island (Neb.) Central Catholic High School playing golf. Skilled on the links, Simonds qualified for the Nebraska Class C state tournament all four years, finishing 11th at the championship as a junior. He got his share of baseball in the summers staring for American Legion squad Home Federal. He went 2-for-2 with one double, one home run and three RBI at the Cornhusker League All-Star Game in July 2012.
Simonds honed his pitching skills at Hutchinson Community College where he blossomed last year. As a sophomore, he was named the National Junior College Athletic Association Division I Pitcher of the Year, posting a 13-0 record (13 wins led the nation) and a 2.30 ERA. He broke single season school records for wins (13), complete-games (nine), shutouts (three) and strikeouts (103) in 2014.
The northpaw has been impressive in his seven appearance this season. Simonds has not yielded a run in 15.2 innings, striking out 14 and scattering nine hits and seven walks. In his first career outing, he retired 12 of 13 batters he faced with the only batter reaching base on a HBP, blanking Holy Cross for 4.0 innings with four strikeouts. Simonds scattered three hits over 2.1 innings against Stephen F. Austin, striking out four. He blanked Penn State for two frames in the series opener and pitched two innings of A&M's 6-0 shutout of then-No. 16 Houston at the Houston College Classic. Simonds earned his first career win working 2.1 innings, scattering two hits and one walk while striking out one in a 4-1 victory against UTPA.
INHERITANCE TAX
In the Aggies' 3-2 win against Baylor, A&M's bullpen had a string of stranding 18 consecutive inherited runners snapped. The Aggie relievers have still been rather salty on the season, allowing just eight of 36 inherited runners to score. TY SCHLOTTMANN has been the most tested out of the bullpen and he has been up to the task, stranding 10 of his 11 inherited runners. KYLE SIMONDS has stranded five of the six runners he has inherited and JASON FREEMAN has stranded all four inherited runners.
WORKING FOR THE WEEKEND
The Aggies' bullpen has been untouchable the last three weekends. The crew has combined to work 23.0 scoreless innings, allowing just six hits and eight walks while striking out 20.
STOUT BULLPEN
The Aggie bullpen has been tested more frequently as the season has progressed and are stepping up to the challenge. Twelve pitchers have combined to work 73.0 innings out of the bullpen, posting a 7-0 record, eight saves, a 1.23 ERA, 49 hits and 12 eight walks while striking out 66. The bullpen sports a WHIP of 0.90, opponent batting average of .194 and a 3.88-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. At the Houston College Classic, the bullpen allowed just one hit in 7.2 innings of scoreless relief.
KYLE SIMONDS has worked the most innings, weaving 15.2 scoreless frames, scattering nine hits and seven walks while striking out 14 in seven appearances. He is 1-0 and owns one of the Aggies' eight saves, a four-inning outing in the season opener against Holy Cross. TY SCHLOTTMANN has been called on the most, with 12 appearances. The southpaw has worked 12.0 frames, earning a 1-0 record with 0.75 ERA, scattering six hits and two walks while striking out 10. Eighth-inning set-up man ANDREW VINSON and dual closers RYAN HENDRIX and MARK ECKER have combined to work 27.2 scoreless innings – Vinson is 2-0, allowing four hits while striking out seven over 8.1 innings in nine outings; Hendrix has four saves and has scattered seven hits and three walks while striking out nine over 10.1 innings in eight outings; Ecker has three saves and has allowed just two hits while striking out 12 over 9.0 innings in eight outings.
SEEMS LIKE JUST LAST YEAR
Texas A&M is averaging 2.3 more runs per game and sporting a batting average .033 higher than the same point last season. Here's a comparison of the Aggies offensive numbers through 21 games in 2014 and 2015.
|
 |
2014 |
2015 |
|
W-L |
14-7 |
21-0 |
|
Batting Average |
.276 |
.309 |
|
Runs Per Game |
5.19 |
7.48 |
|
Runs |
109 |
157 |
|
Home Runs |
8 |
21 |
|
RBI |
101 |
146 |
|
Slugging Percentage |
.369 |
.471 |
|
On-Base Percentage |
.360 |
.415 |
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STREAKS
Last Saturday, NICK BANKS had a career-long 13-game hit streak snapped. The sophomore batted .438 (21-for-48) with four doubles, one triple, one home run and 14 RBI over the span. Banks has logged hits in 19 of the 20 games he's played in this season, currently on a six-game win streak.
NICK BANKS has reached base (via walk, HBP or hit) in all 20 game he's played in 2015. He owns a .488 on-base percentage with 33 hits, seven walks and two HBP over the span.
KYLE SIMONDS is on a 15.2 inning scoreless streak, covering seven outings. He's scattered nine hits and seven walks while striking out 14 over the span.
RYAN HENDRIX is unscored upon in seven outings in 2015, covering 10.1 innings. He's scattered seven hits and three walks while striking out nine over the span.
ANDREW VINSON is unscored upon in eight outings in 2015, covering 8.1 innings. He's scattered four hits while striking out seven over the span.
MARK ECKER has not allowed a run in his last 11 career outings, covering 13.0 innings. He's scattered three hits and three walks while striking out 16 over the span.
MATT KENT is the first Aggie pitcher since Brooks Raley in 2008 to register a win in each of his first five starts in a season.
The Aggies own a 19-game win streak at Blue Bell Park dating back to the 2014 season. It marks the Aggies' longest home win streak since they won 21 in a row in Olsen Field.
A FRIDAY NIGHT FIX?
One of the things that doomed the Aggies in 2014 was an inability to win the opening game of the weekend. Last year, A&M struggled the first night of series, going 3-11 in openers (3-13 if you count the SEC Tournament and NCAA Houston Regional). This season, the Maroon and White have already exceeded the opening night win tally with a 5-0 mark. On Friday nights, the Aggies are batting .313 and they have hit 11 of their 21 home runs. The pitching staff owns a 1.00 ERA and is holding opponents to a .168 bat-ting average in series/tournament openers. Last year, A&M hit .227 in their series openers, averaging just 3.21 runs per game. The pitching staff posted a 3.62 ERA and yielded a .249 batting average to foes.
HOUSTON COLLEGE CLASSIC CHAMPS
The Aggies claimed the title at the Houston College Classic. Both A&M and LSU finished the tournament 3-0, but the Aggies sported a better scoring margin (+8 - 11-3) than the Tigers (+6 - 10-4). It was the first time in eight trips to Minute Maid Park that A&M went 3-0 in the tournament. The Aggies opened the classic with a 2-1 win over Nebraska and added a 6-0 win over No. 16 Houston and 3-2 win over Baylor.
GRAYSON LONG earned the Most Outstanding Player award at the tournament. He worked 7.0 scoreless innings against Houston, scattering three hits while striking out 10 with no walks. Long was joined on the All-Tournament Team by MICHAEL BARASH, JB MOSS and MATT KENT.
QUICK DRAW
The Aggies are outscoring opponents a combined 46-9 in the first two innings of games, including 22-7 in first innings and 24-2 in second innings.
In the first inning of games, the Aggies are batting .301 (25-for-83) with a .429 on-base percentage and .446 slugging percentage. The Maroon and White have drawn 18 walks and have been hit by two pitches. The extra-base hits include seven doubles, one triple and one home run.
In the first inning of games, the A&M pitching staff has held opponents to a .250 batting average (20-for-80) and have struck out 27 of the 88 batters they've faced (30.7%).
In the second inning of games, the Aggies are batting .337 (24-for-83) with a .441 on-base percentage and .590 slugging percentage. The Maroon and White have drawn 12 walks and have been hit by five pitches. The extra-base hits include four doubles, one triple and five home runs.
In the second inning of games, the A&M pitching staff has held opponents to a .205 batting average (16-for-78) and have struck out 23 of the 79 batters they've faced (29.1%).
NINTH-INNING CLAMPS
The Aggie pitching staff has yet to yielded just two run in the ninth inning or extra innings, a body of work that includes 23.0 innings and both the runs came in the Saturday win against Auburn where A&M was leading 10-2 entering the frame. The bullpen, which has not yielded a run in the in the ninth, has allowed just 15 hits and six walks in the 23.0 innings, with 26 strikeouts. MARK ECKER has accounted for 9.0 innings, yielding only two hits and one walk while striking out 12. RYAN HENDRIX has worked 7.0 innings, scattering five hits and one walk while striking out eight.
FINISHING STRONG
Texas A&M has outscored opponents 56-13 combined in innings 7-9 plus extra innings, including 26-3 in the seventh inning and 29-8 in the eighth inning. A&M has been outscored 2-0 in the ninth inning, but A&M has batted in the ninth just twice while the foe has gotten their ninth-inning hacks in all 21 games. Texas A&M is outscoring foes 1-0 in extra innings.
CLOSE SHAVES
The Aggies' road to 21-0 has had a few close calls.
Twice the Aggies trailed 3-0 going to the eighth inning, but escaped with victories. A&M trailed Dartmouth by three headed to the eighth of the series opener, but two-run dingers by HUNTER MELTON and LOGAN TAYLOR pulled victory from the jaws of defeat. The Aggies beat UTPA 4-3 in 11 innings after falling behind 3-0. In the eighth, BLAKE KOPETSKY drew a leadoff walk and, with one out, LOGAN TAYLOR and GR HINSLEY hit back-to-back pinch-hit doubles and BLAKE ALLEMAND followed with the game-tying single. In the 11th, RONNIE GIDEON plated the winning run with a sacrifice fly.
At the Houston College Classic, the Aggies need an eighth-inning solo home run by JB MOSS to post a 2-1 win over Nebraska and held off a late charge by Baylor to post a 3-2 victory.
Last weekend, the Aggies trailed all three of their games against Auburn, but scored comfortable wins.
KENT HARDLY WAIT
MATT KENT has been a consistent performer in the first five weeks of the season. At 5-0, he is tied with for the SEC in victories on the mound. He is the first starting pitcher since Brooks Raley, in 2008, to earn a win in each of their first five starts in a season. The crafty southpaw has impeccable command with 33 strikeouts and just two walks on the season.
MEN IN BLACK
The Aggies have a new black uniform in their wardrobe for the 2015 season. The squad is only permitted to wear the jerseys for games in which they are trying to complete a series sweep. They have had the opportunity to don the black unis on six occasions this season, going 6-0. The uniforms have been especially friendly to the pitching staff that owns a 1.61 ERA, 0.98 WHIP and 56 strikeouts in 56.0 innings of work in the look.
MORE PITCHING AND BULLPEN NOTES
In the last 15 games, the Aggie bullpen has allowed three runs in 51.0 innings of work dating back to the Saturday contest against Penn State. The relief pitchers have scattered 28 hits and 14 walks while striking out 44 over the span. The run includes six bullpen wins and seven saves. The stretch included a string of 23.0 consecutive innings without yielding a run. Aggie relievers own a 0.53 ERA and have held opponents to a .165 batting average over the span.
In the last 18 games, Texas A&M pitchers have held opponents to 132 hits and 37 walks while striking out 166 in 164.0 innings of work. The staff owns a 1.48 ERA, .219 opponent batting average and 1.03 WHIP during the span.
The Aggie pitching staff was the talk of the Houston College Classic. The staff combined to post a 0.67 ERA and hold opponents to a .156 batting average during the tournament. A&M allowed three runs, just two earned, in 27.0 innings of work. The Aggies came two botched pickoff attempts away from allowing just one run total for the three games. The staff sported a 7.5-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (30/4) and a miniscule 0.67 WHIP.
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PICKING UP STEAM
The Aggies' weekend rotation has been a solid foundation five weeks into the season. Despite being down two prospective weekend starters, the rotation put in yeomen's work. They kept their WHIP under 1.00 and posted a 7.00 strikeout-to-walk ratio while putting in their most innings of the year (20.1).
                               STARTING PITCHER COMBINED STATISTICS
|
 |
ERA |
W-L |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
OBA |
WHIP |
K/BB |
|
HOLY CROSS |
2.87 |
2-0 |
15.2 |
14 |
9 |
5 |
7 |
15 |
.230 |
1.34 |
2.14 |
|
PENN STATE |
1.02 |
3-0 |
17.2 |
15 |
3 |
2 |
6 |
18 |
.224 |
1.19 |
3.00 |
|
DARTMOUTH |
2.50 |
2-0 |
18.0 |
19 |
8 |
5 |
4 |
19 |
.271 |
1.28 |
4.75 |
|
Houston College Classic |
0.93 |
2-0 |
19.1 |
13 |
3 |
2 |
1 |
25 |
.191 |
0.72 |
25.00 |
|
AUBURN |
2.50 |
3-0 |
20.1 |
17 |
4 |
4 |
3 |
21 |
.213 |
0.97 |
7.00 |
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FOR STARTERS
Aggie starting pitchers have been solid in 2015, posting a 14-0 record with a 1.91 ERA after 21 games. A&M starters are holding opponents to a .237 batting and boast a 4.54-to-1 strikeouts-to-walk ratio (127/28). MATT KENT is 5-0 with a 2.80 ERA, allowing 13 runs, 11 earned, in 35.1 innings of work. The junior lefty boasts four of A&M's five longest starts. He has issued just two walks on the season, while striking out 33. After a rough outing his first time out, GRAYSON LONG has regrouped in his last four starts. Over the span, he is 4-0 with a 0.72 ERA in 25.0 innings of work. He has allowed just four runs, two earned, on 16 hits and six walks while striking out 24 during the stretch. Out for the remainder of the season, AJ MINTER (3-0) was a start the first four weeks, posting a 0.43 ERA, has held opponents to a .213 batting average and has allowed just six runs, one earned, while striking out 29 in 21.0 innings over his first four starts.
DINGER WATCH
The Aggies already have 21 home runs on the season. Last year, A&M didn't hit their 21st home run until the 52nd game of the season and hit just 25 home runs on the year. The Aggies had just nine home runs at this point in the season in 2014. A&M has hit 11 of their 21 home runs on Friday nights.
UP NEXT
The Aggies head to Hoover, Alabama for a three-game series against the Alabama Crimson Tide starting Friday. The series was moved to Hoover Metropolitan Stadium with Sewell-Thomas Stadium currently being renovated.
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