Texas A&M
Texas Southern
A&M Opens NCAA Tournament Play Against Texas Southern
May 28, 2015 | Baseball
COLLEGE STATION, Texas - The Aggies begin their 31st NCAA tournament appearance with a game against the Texas Southern Tigers. The Maroon and White are making their ninth consecutive tournament appearance, the eighth-longest active streak in the country. Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park is hosting an NCAA Regional for the 10th time and the first time since 2012.
TEXAS A&M AGGIES (45-11) vs TEXAS SOUTHERN TIGERS (31-17)
NCAA College Station Regional
Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park (6,100) • College Station, Texas
SCHEDULE - Friday, 6 pm
VIDEO - ESPN3 (WatchESPN credentials required through cable provider) • Tom Hart (play-by-play); • Gabe Gross (color)
RADIO - Sports Radio 1150 and The Zone 102.7 FM • Dave South (play-by-play)
AUDIO - 12thMan.com • radioaggieland.com (free)
LIVE STATS - NCAA.com
RANKINGS - Texas A&M - 6 (USAT), 6 (NCBWA), 6 (D1B), 8 (BA); Texas Southern - unranked
SERIES HISTORY - Texas A&M leads series 14-0
PROBABLE PITCHERS
Friday – #31 Matt Kent (Jr., LHP, 7-1, 3.42) vs TBA
ACROSS THE BOARD IMPROVEMENT
The Aggies are hitting .019 higher than at the same time a season ago and the improvement can be seen sprinkled throughout the lineup. Below is a comparison of batting averages through 56 games from 2014 and 2015.
| 2014 | 2015 |
.280 | .352 | |
.349 | .369 | |
.226 | .307 | |
.245 | .310 | |
.274 | .371 | |
.272 | .349 |
AGGIES IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
The Aggies are making their 31st NCAA Championship appearance overall and their ninth in a row. The Aggies are 69-68 all-time in NCAA Championship play, including 60-45 in regional action.
Texas A&M has won regionals in 1993, 1999, 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2011. They also captured a district playoff in 1951 before regional play began.
The Aggies have advanced to the College World Series on five occasions, including 1951, '64, '93, '99 and 2011.
TEXAS A&M/TEXAS SOUTHERN SERIES NOTABLES
The Aggies are 14-0 all-time against Texas Southern. All 14 meetings have come at Olsen Field. The Maroon and White have pitched five shutouts in the 14 games and Aggie pitching has yielded two or less runs in each of the last seven games.
Last season, the Aggies scored a 6-0 win against the Tigers. MATT KENT earned the win holding Texas Southern to three hits and one walk while striking out nine in 6.0 innings of work. Cole Lankford drove in five runs as the Aggies scored five unearned runs in the first two innings.
POTENTIAL FRIDAY STARTERS:
#38 GRAYSON LONG
First Aggie pitcher to start 9-0 since Michael Wacha in 2012... looking to become first A&M pitcher to win 10 games since Ross Stripling in 2012... All-SEC Second Team pitcher... received no-decision against Alabama at SEC Tournament despite striking out 10 in 6.0 innings (6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB)... scattered two hits and three walks while strike out 12 in 7.0 scoreless innings at Ole Miss the last weekend of the regular-season.... didn't get a decision four week ago at No. 1 LSU despite a strong outing (6.1 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 4 K)... SEC Pitcher of the Week twice in 2015... eight weeks ago, fanned 14 of the 23 batters he faced in 6.0 innings at Alabama... named Most Outstanding Player at the Houston College Classic in March, scattering three hits and striking out a then career-high 10 batters without a walk in a 6-0 win against No. 16 Houston... enters play as the Aggies' active leader in wins (18), innings pitched (208.1) and strikeouts (171)... his .824 winning percentage (19-4) ranks ninth on Aggies' career list... 19 wins is tied for 15th on Aggie all-time list.
LONG'S CAREER TOTALS
Year | W-L | ERA | APP/GS | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | AVG |
2013 | 4-2 | 3.52 | 12/10 | 0 | 46.0 | 39 | 19 | 18 | 25 | 38 | .235 |
2014 | 6-2 | 3.12 | 15/15 | 0 | 89.1 | 98 | 32 | 31 | 28 | 55 | .284 |
2015 | 9-0 | 2.62 | 15/15 | 0 | 86.0 | 68 | 35 | 25 | 37 | 10 | .214 |
Career | 19-4 | 3.01 | 42/40 | 0 | 221.1 | 205 | 86 | 74 | 90 | 193 | .247 |
#31 MATT KENT
Named to SEC Tournament All-Tournament Team last week... worked A&M's only complete-game of the season in a 6-1 win over No. 9 Vanderbilt at the SEC Tournament, outdueling SEC Pitcher of the Year Carson Fulmer (9.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K)... ranks fourth among active pitchers in fewest walks per nine innings (0.96)... owns a 9.14-to-1 K/BB ratio in 2015 (6th among NCAA DI) and 6.94-to-1 for his career... was in the starting rotation the first 10 weekends... spent the last four weeks of the regular-season in the bullpen... picked up his first two career saves in the Saturday and Sunday games at Tennessee... retired all 16 players he faced, including seven strikeouts, in 5.1 innings of relief against Texas State... induced three inning-ending double plays to work 6.0 shutout innings against Missouri despite allowing seven hits... named to the Houston College Classic All-Tournament Team as he stymied Baylor hitters for the better part of 7.1 innings, allowing two runs on six hits and one walk while striking out nine... opened season with a win against Holy Cross, yielding just one unearned run on five hits while striking out three in 7.0 innings of work... has had success in long relief against SEC squads in the past including 5.0 scoreless innings at Mississippi State in 2014 and 5.0 blank frames at Ole Miss in 2013... his effort against Ole Miss in 2013 earned him SEC Freshman of the Week recognition.
KENT'S CAREER TOTALS
Year | W-L | ERA | APP/GS | SV | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | AVG |
2013 | 2-3 | 4.17 | 26/2 | 0 | 36.2 | 43 | 17 | 17 | 2 | 21 | .299 |
2014 | 3-1 | 3.15 | 20/4 | 0 | 45.2 | 50 | 18 | 16 | 8 | 32 | .284 |
2015 | 7-1 | 3.42 | 16/11 | 2 | 76.1 | 85 | 35 | 29 | 7 | 64 | .286 |
Career | 12-5 | 3.52 | 62/17 | 2 | 158.2 | 178 | 70 | 62 | 17 | 117 | .288 |
BALANCE OF POWER
Coach Childress has the potential to pencil in a lineup that can include eight players with at least five home runs. LOGAN TAYLOR leads the team with 10 home runs, followed by RYNE BIRK with nine. HUNTER MELTON has eight dingers followed by BLAKE ALLEMAND and RONNIE GIDEON with seven apiece. LOGAN NOTTEBROK has six taters followed by NICK BANKS and JB MOSS with five home runs each.
FOUR AGGIES EARN ALL-SEC
The Texas A&M Aggies had four players earn All-SEC honors, the league announced on prior to the league tournament.
Mitchell Nau picked up All-SEC First Team recognition as a designated hitter. Aggies on the All-SEC Second Team included outfielders Nick Banks and Logan Taylor and starting pitcher Grayson Long.
The four honorees set a new high water mark for the program in their third season of SEC play. The Aggies' four All-SEC performers ranked second behind only LSU with six.
COACHES' FAVORITES
The Texas A&M bullpen is chocked full of pitchers that head coach ROB CHILDRESS feels comfortable using. The staff consists of three players who currently rank in the top 15 on A&M's career pitching appearances list and two pitchers who rank on the top 10 single-season list for appearances.
ANDREW VINSON ranks seventh on A&M's career list with 79 appearances with 78 coming in relief. This season he has pitched in 31 games which ranks 10th on the single-season list, tied with TY SCHLOTTMANN who has also appeared in 31 games this year, all out of the bullpen. Last season, Vinson worked in 32 games, tied for eighth on the single-season list.
JASON FREEMAN has made 68 appearances, 12th on the career list with Schlottmann working his way up to 14th with 63 games.
ALLEMAND JOINS THE 200-GAMES CLUB
With 223 games played, Allemand currently ranks sixth on A&M's career list. He trails on Krey Bratsen (245 - 2011-14), Scott Livingstone (241 - 1985-88), Kevin Gonzalez (236 - 2008-11), Sean Heaney (231 -1997-2000) and Brodie Greene (228 - 2007-10) on the Aggies' all-time list. For his career, Allemand is hitting .296 (233-for-786) with 27 doubles, six triples, eight home runs, 102 RBI and 31 stolen bases. He has made 217 career starts, including 47 in 2012, 61 in 2013 and 53 in 2014.
Allemand ranks 16th among active players in games played at 223.
Allemand hit two home runs in his first 196 games. In the last 27 games, the Boerne, Texas-native has left the yard six times. He ranks seventh on A&M's career walks list with 114 and 14th in hits with 233.
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 39 of 140 (72.1 percent stranded) inherited runners to score. TY SCHLOTTMANN has been the most tested out of the bullpen and he has been up to the task, stranding 24 of his 31 inherited runners (77.4 percent). ANDREW VINSON has left 21 of the 28 ducks he inherited on the pond (75.0 percent). KYLE SIMONDS has stranded eight of the nine runners he has inherited. Against Prairie View A&M, Aggie relievers entered the game with seven baserunners, including bases loaded on two occasions, and they didn't yield a run. In the doubleheader sweep of Kentucky, the Aggies allowed just one of six inherited runners to score. Two weeks ago against Rice, the bullpen stranded six of seven inherited runners.
LISTEN AROUND THE WORLD
A&M fans in Bryan/College Station will find it easier to find baseball broadcasts as every game will air on SportsRadio 1150 and The Zone 102.7 FM. Free live audio of every pitch of the 2015 season is also available online at 12thMan.com. Fans across the world can listen to Aggie games free of charge on their iPhone, Blackberry and other selected PDAs and cell phones through the Radio Aggieland app. To check availability or to set up your device to listen to Aggie baseball all season long wherever you go, visit radioaggieland.com.
SEEMS LIKE JUST LAST YEAR
Texas A&M is averaging 1.52 more runs per game and sporting a batting average .019 higher than the same point last season. Here's a comparison of the Aggies offensive numbers through 56 games in 2014 and 2015.
| 2014 | 2015 |
W-L | 33-23 | 45-11 |
SEC W-L | 14-16 | 18-10 |
Batting Average | .288 | .307 |
Runs Per Game | 5.50 | 7.02 |
Runs | 308 | 393 |
Home Runs | 24 | 64 |
RBI | 279 | 371 |
Slugging Percentage | .386 | .472 |
On-Base Percentage | .365 | .399 |
WINNING WAYS
The Aggies are guaranteed their ninth consecutive winning season. The Maroon and White's 45 wins are the most since the 2011 campaign when A&M finished 47-22 en route to the College World Series. At 18-10 in league action, the Aggies recorded their first winning season in the SEC.
CHILDRESS JOINS 400-WIN CLUB
With the win in the series finale at Tennessee, ROB CHILDRESS earned his 400th career win. With his current record of 404-219-2, he trails only Mark Johnson (876 - 1985-2005) and Tom Chandler (660 - 1959-84) in career wins for the Aggies.
HISTORIC START
The Aggies started the season 24-0. It marked the best start for the Maroon and White since the 1989 campaign when A&M set a 26-0 foundation. It also broke the SEC record for longest win streak, topping LSU's 23-game win streak in 2008.
TURNER BASEBALL
Turner Larkins has the distinction of being selected in the 2014 MLB First-Year Player Draft one spot before Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel. The Milwaukee Brewers selected Larkins out of Arlington Martin High School in the 28th round with the 836th overall pick. The San Diego Padres followed by drafting Manziel with the 837th pick.
STREAKS AND TRENDS
• The Aggies are 13-2 on the opening nights of series/tournaments in 2015. Last season, A&M was 3-13 on opening night in the regular season, including losing opening games at the SEC Tournament and NCAA Houston Regional.
• In the series finale at LSU, NICK BANKS had his 42-game streak of reaching base (via walk, HBP or hit) snapped. It was the longest stretch for an Aggie since Mikey Reynolds reached in 46 consecutive games in 2013. He had a pair of 13-game hit streaks during the stretch.
• The Aggies are on an 18-game win streak in midweek games, including a 13-0 mark in 2015. The string includes five games at the end of 2014, including wins over then-No. 16 Rice and then-No. 25 Sam Houston State.
• A&M has won their last 30 regular-season non-conference games, including 25 in a row this season.
• BLAKE ALLEMAND is the only Aggie to start all 56 games this season. He has started the last 99 games for A&M.
• BLAKE ALLEMAND has hit in the leadoff spot the last 46 games, batting .360 with a .444 on-base percentage, 47 runs, 12 doubles, two triples, six home runs and 29 RBI.
• RYNE BIRK is on a career-long nine-game hit streak. Over the span, he's batting .361 (13-for-36) with 14 runs, one double, five home runs and nine RBI.
• LOGAN TAYLOR's 10 home runs are the most for an Aggie since 2010 when a trio hit the mark, led by Brodie Greene with 14.
• BLAKE ALLEMAND ranks seventh on A&M's career list for walks (114), seventh for at-bats (786), sixth for games played (223) and 14th for hits (233).
• The Aggies' current .307 batting average would rank as the highest since the Maroon and White batted .322 in 1999. A&M has not batted .300 since 2010.
POSTSEASON STREAK EXTENDED IN 2016
Prior to the arrival of head coach Rob Childress, Texas A&M had never appeared in the NCAA Tournament more than four consecutive years. Advancing to the NCAA College Station Regional in 2015 extended the Aggies current string to nine consecutive years, something that had never happened before in the program's 113 year history. Childress has led the Aggies to the postseason each of the last nine seasons, topping the previous-high water mark of four-straight trips, a feat that had happened only twice before at Texas A&M. Former head coach Tom Chandler led his squad to the NCAA Regionals each season from 1975 to 1978 and 11 years later the Aggies enjoyed a similar four-year run from 1986-89 under the direction of head coach Mark Johnson.
NOTTEBROK TOUCHED WITH OLSEN MAGIC
Hundreds of Aggies before him have gone their whole career without providing Olsen Magic. LOGAN NOTTEBROK has done it on three occasions during his two-year career, including delivering a special moment for the 12th Man twice in his first six games in College Station.
The first weekend of the 2014 season wrapped up with a 1-0 win over Northeastern to complete a three-game sweep. The victory was earned when Logan Nottebrok hit a 1-0 offering from the Huskies' Brad Burcroff over the leftfield fence for a leadoff and walk-off home run. It marked the first walk-off home run for Texas A&M since May 29, 2011, when Andrew Collazo hit a walk-off dinger in the Big 12 Championship title game against Missouri for a 10-9 victory.
In the Aggies' 7-5 win vs. Sacramento State, Nottebrok hit a two-run home run to the same location to break the 5-5 tie for the walk-off win in the bottom of the ninth.
This season, Nottebrok delivered a game-winning single in an 11-inning victory against Texas State.
AGGIES IN THE TOP TWENTY
Starting the week, the Aggies were rank in the top 10 in the nation in 10 NCAA categories, including eight on the offensive side and two on the mound.
| Stat | National Rank | SEC Rank |
Home Runs per Game | 1.14 | 8th | 1st |
Home Runs | 64 | 9th | 1st |
Slugging Percentage | .472 | 9th | 1st |
Batting Average | .307 | 9th | 2nd |
On-Base Percentage | .399 | 10th | 1st |
Sacrifice Flies | 31 | 18th | 1st |
Runs per Game | 7.0 | 18th | 2nd |
Runs | 393 | 23rd | 4th |
Strikeouts per Nine Innings | 9.0 | 9th | 2nd |
Strikeout-to-Walk | 3.05 | 13th | 1st |
AGAINST THE TOURNAMENT FIELD
Texas A&M owns a 10-6 record against teams in the tournament field. The Maroon and White won a series against Auburn (3-0). The Aggies split a pair of games against both Ole Miss and Vanderbilt. A&M dropped series against Arkansas (1-2) and LSU (1-2). The Aggies also won non-conference games against Houston Baptist, Houston and Rice.
BIRK'S POWER TRIP
After hitting three home runs in his first 47 games, Aggie sophomore second baseman RYNE BIRK has experienced a power surge, hitting five home runs in the last seven games. The tally includes two home runs in the second game of the South Carolina series, one home run in each game of the abbreviated Ole Miss series and a dinger in last Thursday's quarterfinal win against Vanderbilt at the SEC Tournament.
This season, Birk is hitting .295 with 47 runs, 10 doubles, two triples, nine home runs and 33 RBI in 55 games.
For his career, Birk is batting .299 with 68 runs, 15 doubles, four triples, 11 home runs, 51 RBI and seven stolen bases in 93 games.
PROTECTING THE HOMEFRONT
The Aggies are 30-6 in home games in 2015. Offensively, the Aggies are hitting .330 at home with seven players logging batting averages of .300 or higher. NICK BANKS (.412), MITCHELL NAU (.397), HUNTER MELTON (.388) and LOGAN TAYLOR (.369) are all batting .360 or higher. The Aggies are outslugging the opponents on Olsen Field with a 48-14 edge in home runs and all 10 of Taylor's dingers are at Blue Bell Park. Taylor (32), Banks (31), RONNIE GIDEON (31) and Nau (31) all have more than 30 RBI at the friendly confines.
SCHLOTTMANN: THE TESTED LEFTY
Junior TY SCHLOTTMANN has been one of the Aggies most tested performers in the bullpen. Schlottmann leads the team in appearances out of the bullpen with 31 and he has inherited the most runners in 2015. During the season, he has stranded 24 of the 31 runners he has inherited, for solid 77.4% percent left on base. On the season, he is 3-1 with a 3.65 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 24.2 innings.
For his career, Schlottmann ranks 15th on A&M's list for appearances with 63. He is 3-3 with two saves, a 2.79 ERA and 51 strikeouts in 61.1 innings. Last year, he had a breakout campaign in the bullpen, logging two saves and a 2.59 with 26 strikeouts over 31.1 innings in 24 appearances. he held opponents to a .226 batting average as one of the Aggies' top southpaws out of the bullpen.
VINSON: THE GO-TO NORTHPAW
Junior ANDREW VINSON is on pace to shatter the A&M career record for most appearances. With 32 appearances last season and 31 to date in 2015, the right-hander is up to 79 for his career and needs 24 appearances to equal the school record of 103 set by Kyle Thebeau (2006-09). Vinson currently ranks seventh on the A&M career list, three behind No. 6 Jason Meyer (82 - 2004-07) and four behind No. 5 Kyle Nicholson (2004-07).
Seventy-eight of Vinson's 79 appearances are out of the bullpen, with his only career start coming last weekend at the SEC Tournament. In three seasons, Vinson is 8-5 with six saves, a 2.50 ERA, .216 opponent batting average and 103 strikeouts in 108.0 innings. His career WHIP is a solid 1.05. His ERA currently ranks 10th on the Aggies' all-time list.
This year, Vinson is 4-2 with four saves, a 1.58 ERA, .199 opponent batting average, 0.90 WHIP and 49 strikeouts in 51.1 innings. He's has been tough as nails in 30 appearances out of the bullpen, going 4-1 with four saves, a 1.12 ERA, .192 opponent batting average, 0.85 WHIP and 48 strikeouts in 48.1 innings of relief.
UP NEXT
If the Aggies win they will play the winner of Friday's Coastal Carolina-California game in a 6 pm contest on Saturday. If the Aggies lose they will play either Coastal Carolina or California in an elimination game at 12 pm on Saturday.
