The boys on The Corner™®© look to continue their hot start against the Northeast Conference contenders from Staten Island
Schloss & The Boys are off to a pretty good start to 2024, following up their combined 31-1 thrashing of McNeese on opening weekend with a comfortable 9-3 midweek win over Incarnate Word on Tuesday. This marks the eighth time in the last 10 years that the Aggies have made it through the first four games unscathed, with the two outliers being last year (2023, if my math is correct) and 2021 (lmao).
That said, their four runs allowed to this point is the fewest an Aggie pitching staff has surrendered through four games since John Stilson, Michael Wacha, and Ross Stripling toed the rubber at Olsen in 2011. It’s also only the third time A&M has held their opponents to fewer than 10 runs across their first four contests since the NCAA switched to the flat-seamed baseballs in 2015. Obviously we have no idea how McNeese or UIW will fare for the rest of the season, but the Ags have given up way more runs against some pretty poor competition in the past. Either way, it’s a vast improvement to last season’s 14.
Leading the charge at the plate is one of the guys you’d probably expect. Jace LaViolette (.353/.421/1.235 lololol) currently leads the entire country with five homers and is tied for sixth with 11 RBIs. Then you’ve got Braden Montgomery (.313/.421/.750) with two bombs and six ribbies himself. Then you’ve got Ali Camarillo (.538/.647/.769), Teddy Two Bags Burton (.500/.583/1.100), and Hayden Schott (.313/.389/.625). Oh and then you’ve got two of them freshmen who don’t seem to know they’re freshmen, in Blake Binderup (.429/.526/.786) and Gavin Grahovac (.429/.556/.429). The offense has definitely clicked so far (please don’t let this bite them in the behind lol).
In town this weekend are the Wagner Seahawks, who were picked to finish second in the Northeast Conference in the NEC preseason poll. Saturday starter Connor Hayden was named by D1Baseball as one of their Top 150 starting pitchers in the country, with catcher David Melfi and second baseman Chris Conniff both named to D1B’s Top 50 at their positions.
Obviously, it would be silly to take too much away from their first three games (no matter how badly I want to). But a combined 46-14 drubbing by North Carolina in Chapel Hill is a rough one, regardless how good the Tar Heels are supposed to be this season. The Seahawks are an experienced side, with just one underclassman (3B Connor Roche) having started for them thus far.
Probable Starters
- Friday: Ryan Prager (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Frankie Wright (0-1, 3.60 ERA)
- Saturday: Justin Lamkin (0-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Connor Hayden (0-0, 21.60 ERA)
- Sunday: Tanner Jones (first appearance) vs. TBA
How to Watch
- Times: Friday, 6:00 pm | Saturday, 2:00 pm | Sunday, 1:00 pm
- Live Video: All three games can be streamed on SEC Network +
- Radio: SportsRadio 1150 AM/The Zone 93.7 FM
- Live Stats: 12thman.com, or tamustats.com