Texas A&M baseball was outslugged by Alabama to lose the series finale 7-4 and fell in its sixth straight game on Sunday, April 11.
Despite having home field advantage for the series, the Aggies were outscored 18-10 over the three games. The Aggies now sit at 19-15 overall and 3-9 in conference. A&M coach Rob Childress said the blame for Sunday afternoon’s loss is his to bear.
“I should have run [junior pitcher Chris] Weber out there with a clean inning, it ends up costing us a run,” Childress said. “[Freshman pitcher Nathan] Dettmer did a super nice job. At the end of the day, this game falls squarely on my shoulders. Our guys competed incredibly hard. I just didn’t put our pitchers in very good positioning to win today and that’s my fault.”
Dettmer received the start on the day for his first start against SEC opponents. He worked through five innings, striking out five batters while allowing six hits, four runs and four walks. Dettmer said the nerves of receiving his first SEC start as a freshman were only helpful for him.
“It was really exciting just to get an SEC start,” Dettmer said. “I felt really good. My teammates were hyping me up. I felt like I competed. I might not have had my best stuff, but I kept competing.”
Junior designated hitter Austin Bost was crucial for A&M’s offense in the game, hitting 4-of-4 with one double, an RBI, and scoring once himself.
“[Bost is] a really good hitter,” Childress said. “Very competitive kid and he wants the best for his teammates. He gives us his best every time he steps in the box. I’m proud of him.”
Trailing 4-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning, junior second baseman Ty Coleman hit a solo home run to tie the score. However, Alabama quickly fired back in the seventh inning with a three-run home run to set the final score.
“That’s what this league will do. It’s so unforgiving,” Childress said. “Leaving the field today, I just told [the team] to remember that feeling a week ago after we beat Missouri 16-2. We’re the same team.”
Four Aggie pitchers took to the mound in the series final game, with senior Chandler Jozwiak holding the Crimson Tide scoreless through 1.2 innings after Weber’s sting. While Childress said he takes the blame, the three-run loss truly came to fruition only off the home run against Weber.
“You’ve got to love [Coach Childress],” Bost said. “ I mean he knows, he’s done this so long. He knows when he messed up. He’s going to tell us and he’s going to take credit for when he does bad. He’s definitely going to get it right more than he gets it wrong.”
Looking to right the ship and get back in the win column, A&M will travel to Texas State on Tuesday, April 13. The competition in the SEC will only improve from here, as the Aggies will take on No. 2 Arkansas next weekend, followed by No. 4 Tennessee, No. 5 Mississippi State and No. 3 Ole Miss.
“It’s baseball. You just have to move on,” Bost said. “Short-term memory, we can’t just think about it over and over again. It’s on to the next game to take down Texas State.”