COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M Aggies boast seven players on Major League Baseball rosters as Opening Day rolled around Thursday.
The list includes Daniel Mengden (Oakland Athletics), A.J. Minter (Atlanta Braves), Tyler Naquin (Cleveland Indians), Cliff Pennington (Cincinnati Reds), Ross Stripling (Los Angeles Dodgers), Michael Wacha (St. Louis Cardinals) and Alex Wilson (Detroit Tigers).
Aggies have appeared in three of the last five World Series including Wacha in 2013, Naquin in 2016 and Stripling in 2017.
Mengden is in his third season with the As. Last season, he started seven games, posting a 3-2 record with a 3.14 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 43.0 innings.
Minter is in his second season with the Braves. He made his major league debut on August 23, 2017. He became the 57th Aggie to make the Major Leagues. He pitched 16 games in relief, logging a 0-1 record with a 3.00 ERA, fanning 26 and walking just two in 15.0 innings.
Naquin is entering his third season with the Indians. Last season, he batted .216 with four runs, two doubles and one RBI in 19 games. As a rookie, he hit .296 with 52 runs, 18 doubles, five triples, 14 home runs and 43 RBI on the Tribe's World Series run.
The elder statesman of the group, Pennington will be playing his 11th season in the Majors. This season marks his first with the Cincinnati Reds. Last year, with the Los Angeles Angels, he played in 87 games, batting .253 with 23 runs, six doubles, three home runs and 21 RBI.
Stripling is in his third season with the Dodgers. Last year, he pitched in 49 games, including two starts. Last season he posted a 3-5 record with a 3.75 ERA, two saves and 74 strikeouts in 74.0 innings.
In 2017, Stripling joined eight former Texas A&M players to appear in the World Series, including Naquin, Wacha, Chuck Knoblauch, Mark Thurmond, Doug Rau, Davey Johnson, Wally Moon and Rip Collins.
Wacha begins his sixth season with the St. Louis Cardinals. He started 30 games in 2017, logging a 12-9 record with a 4.13 ERA and 158 strikeouts in 165.2 innings. For his career, Wacha owns a 45-30 record with a 3.84 ERA and 584 strikeouts in 121 appearances, including 112 starts.
Wilson starts his sixth Major League season, including his fourth with the Tigers. Last season, Wilson went 2-5 with a 4.50 ERA, two saves and 42 strikeouts in 66 relief appearances.