Coming into the game with a disappointing 11-9 record, Texas A&M baseball travels to Nashville, Tennessee to play No. 22 Vanderbilt in a three-game series at Hawkins Field beginning Thursday, March 20.
After a rollercoaster 17-7 run-rule victory over A&M-Corpus Christi, the Maroon and White have a chance to secure their first ranked victory and first Southeastern Conference victory of the season.
In their last game, junior shortstop Kaeden Kent went ballistic, scoring two runs and contributing three RBIs to spark the Aggies’ momentum. Junior center fielder Jace LaViolette demonstrated why he was the 2025 SEC Preseason Player of the Year, scoring a run off of four hits and two RBIs to keep A&M in control late in the game. Other contributors, like seldom-used sophomore catcher Bear Harrison, played a major role as the Aggies forced A&M-Corpus Christi to throw 181 pitches between five different pitchers.
All in all, the game was a well-balanced offense explosion from the Maroon and White as seven different players recorded hits, nine different players crossed home plate and Harrison sent two home runs to left field.
Just like A&M, Vanderbilt run-ruled Belmont 13-2 to improve its record to 16-5. Senior utility Jacob Humphrey led the way with three runs and an RBI, while sophomore left-fielder Braden Holcomb added two runs off of two at-bats. On the defensive side, freshman right-handed pitcher Hudson Barton led the way with three strikeouts, while other pitchers contributed as well.
The Commodores looked scary against the Bruins stringing consecutive hits together to score in all seven innings without allowing the crosstown rivals any chance to strike back. With 10 different scorers on the board, Belmont was absolutely hapless in the matchup.
“Losing is never the standard, but we attacked it like we were supposed to attack it, and that is what we are going to do this weekend,” coach Michael Earley said. “No matter who plays or what the lineup is, our guys are going to go in and play their tails off. I can promise you that.”
While this game looks like it could be a conference thriller, there are some questions regarding A&M’s play and the season they have had so far. With an 0-3 conference record, A&M has had quite the fall from preseason grace. After a memorable finals run in last year’s Men’s College World Series, it was expected that A&M would pick up where they left off. However, the bats going cold and relief pitching issues have derailed the Aggies’ success.
On the offensive end, while making contact with the ball has never been an issue, the Maroon and White’s lackluster ability to string consecutive hits together to capitalize on scoring opportunities has been a huge problem. In their losses this season, the Aggies have scored just 18 runs while their opponents have scored 42. Against a staunch Commodore defense, the Fightin’ Farmers’ bats need to get hot and connect on multiple hits in a row to ensure scores and put pressure on their opponent.
Also 1-4 against ranked opponents, the Commodores will be a formidable test for the Maroon and White. If they want any chance at another run in Omaha, the Aggies will be looking to fix problems on both sides of the mound.