Aggies Look To Leave Strong Impact In SEC Baseball Tournament

Still flirting with missing the national tournament, Texas A&M looks to gain ground in Hoover, Ala. starting Tuesday.

There are two ways of processing how Texas A&M baseball can guarantee its spot in this year's NCAA National Tournament. The Aggies could power their way through and win every game en route to the SEC Conference Championship in Hoover, Ala. starting Tuesday morning. 

They could also lose their first game against Tennessee and hope for the best. Simply leave the balance of their regular season schedule in the eyes of the voters and begin preparing as if they're one of the top 68 programs left standing for regionals starting next month. 

Second-year manager Jim Schlossnagle naturally wants to win the whole thing. Who wouldn't want to win their conference with the hopes of punching their ticket to the next round? There's a catch, however, and Schlossnagle knows it far too well. 

Winning early and losing late. 

"Somebody told me last winter that he thought Ole Miss had a better chance of getting in last year, only losing one game versus getting into the double-elimination round and adding two more losses," Schlossnagle said of potential seeding. "We're just going to try to win as many games without putting anybody in jeopardy of an injury standpoint." 

The No. 10-seed Aggies (32-23) find themselves in a better position than the reigning national champs from a season ago entering Tuesday's matchup against the No. 7-seed Volunteers at the Hoover Metroplex. The Rebels gutted their way through both the Coral Gables Regionals and Hattiesburg Super Regional as the last seed selected to make it to Omaha. From there, Ole Miss looked unstoppable in Omaha en route to winning its first title in program history. 

A win Tuesday over the Volunteers (38-18) likely warrants a second look from voters regardless of the double-elimination series against No. 2-seed Arkansas. Schlossangle also has reason to believe that after winning 14 of their last 20 SEC Series, including six of their previous eight, the Aggies' workload should garner substantial buzz entering Sunday's selection show. 

“There’s always value in winning, and since we’re not assured of anything beyond this week, we need to play well,” Schlossnagle said.

A&M, which hosted both the College Station Regional and super regional, regressed a year removed from making the College World Series semifinals. In large part, pitching has been a lingering concern. A&M has featured 12 different starting pitchers, with Ace Nathan Dettmer being the one constant on the rubber. 

At the plate, new and young talent have stepped up in place of CWS heroes Dylan Rock and Kole Kaler. Freshman sensation Jace LaViolette has filled in for Rock as A&M's new power bat in the heart of the lineup. In the series finale, the 6-6 left fielder from Katy Tompkins launched three home runs in the victory over the Bulldogs on Friday after A&M had dropped the Thursday opener. 

LaViolette was named SEC Player of the Week by the league Monday after his weekend in Starkville and was also named a member of the 12-man All-SEC freshman team. His 18 long balls also are an Aggies' freshman record, passing the 17 hit by A&M icon John Byington in 1987.

"He's capable of doing anything on a baseball field," Schlossnalge said. "I'm considering playing him in center field because this ballpark is massive. There is a lot of ground to cover... if he continues to stay healthy and progress... if you're putting up that kind of numbers in this league, all those guys become big leaguers." 

Junior shortstop Hunter Haas has replaced Kaler in both contact and defense. Transferring over from Arizona State, Haas has posted a .343 batting average to go along with nine home runs, 35 RBIs and 12 extra-base hits. He also has recorded just five errors since early March. 

Jack Moss, A&M's top hitter, remains on a hot streak entering the league tournament. After breaking onto the scene late spring, the junior once again led the team in batting average (.362) while totaling a team-leading 12 doubles. 

While the Aggies are hot, so are the Vols. Tennessee has won 15 of its last 19 games entering the postseason, a year after entering the NCAA Tournament ranked No. 1 in the country. They feature one of the more potent offenses in the country and a starting rotation led by future top-10 MLB pick Chase Dollander. 

Earlier this season, the Vols swept the Aggies in Knoxville, winning all three games by at least a run. A&M nearly avoided the sweep in Game 2, but pitching allowed Tennessee to score three runs in the seventh to tie the game at 7 apiece. Outfielder Jared Dickey walked it off with a sacrifice fly to score second baseman, Christian Moore. 

The Aggies own a team ERA of 5.79 through 55 games. Last season, led by Dettmer and transfers Micah Dallas and Jacob Palisch, A&M featured a 4.67 ERA entering Omaha. 

“Our starting pitching this past weekend (at MSU) was the best it’s been all year, so I was really encouraged by that,” Schlossnagle said.

Left-hander Troy Wansing is expected to start Tuesday's matchup. The first pitch from The Met is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. 

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