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A&M baseball looking for sixth straight series win with defending champions coming to town

The No. 16 Texas A&M Aggies wrap up the regular-season home slate when they host the Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Credit: KAGS

COLLEGE STATION, Texas — The No. 16 Texas A&M Aggies wrap up the regular-season home slate when they host the Mississippi State Bulldogs in a three-game series on Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park. The series starts Friday at 6:32 pm and continues with games Saturday (2:02 pm) and Sunday (12:02 pm).

ABOUT THE AGGIES

The last five weekends the Aggies earned series wins against Kentucky, No. 10 Georgia, No. 3 Arkansas, No. 22 Vanderbilt and South Carolina. The last time the Maroon & White ripped off five consecutive SEC series wins was 2017 when they bested No. 6 LSU, No. 11 Auburn, Alabama, Tennessee and Missouri. Texas A&M is looking to win six SEC series in a row for the first time since 2016 when they bested Georgia, No. 8 Mississippi State, Alabama, Arkansas, No. 5 Vanderbilt, No. 8 South Carolina and No. 6 Ole Miss during a seven-series tear to end the regular season.

Ryan Targac stepped up his play in league action. Sporting just a .213 batting average with two doubles, three home runs and 11 RBI in 20 non-conference games, Targac has gone boom in league play. In 24 SEC games, Targac leads the conference with 34 RBI. He boasts a .313 batting average with three doubles, two triples and nine home runs in the first eight weeks of league play. Overall, Targac leads the team with 45 RBI and shares the Aggie homer lead with Dylan Rock with 12 dingers.

Dylan Rock has reached base in 37 consecutive games and 44 of the 45 games he has played this season, three times reaching base with a pinch-hit in his only at-bat of the game. After 24 league games, Rock leads the SEC with 32 runs. He ranks second in on-base percentage (.496), third in walks (24), sixth in total bases (64) and slugging percentage (.711) and seventh in RBI (24).

Jack has been the Aggies most consistent hitter, batting a team-high .370 to go with a .425 slugging percentage and .521 on-base percentage. He has reached base in 43 of the 46 games this season. In 2022, he has a team-high 24 multi-hit games. In addition to batting average, he leads the team in hits (71) and doubles (12) and ranks third in on-base percentage (.425) and slugging percentage.  Moss leads the SEC in hits per game (1.54). He ranks second in the SEC and 37th in the nation with 71 hits, trailing only Auburn’s Blake Rambusch (73) on the league chart.

Austin Bost has emerged as the Aggies top hitter the last 16 games as the Maroon & White have rolled to a 12-4 mark, their best stretch of the season.  Since the Aggies’ series finale against Kentucky, Bost has raked to the tune of a .475 batting average (28-for-59) with a .562 on-base percentage and .780 slugging percentage. Over the span, Bost has 19 runs, six doubles, four home runs, 14 RBI, and 12 walks. He has hits in 15 of the 16 games, including nine multi-hit efforts. The stretch includes a four-hit game and two three-hit performances. During the run, Bost’s batting average has ballooned from .299 to .361.

SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS

The Bulldogs enter the fray with a 25-24 overall mark, including a 9-15 SEC ledger. The 2021 National Champion have stumbled through the 2022 campaign, lingering around the .500 mark for much of the season. Mississippi State heads into the weekend with a six-game losing streak, including dropping the last two games at Missouri, a sweep at home against Florida and Tuesday’s loss to Samford.

Mississippi State is slashing .278/.377/.478 with 84 home runs and 35 stolen bases in 49 games. Four batters hitting over .300 lead the attack. Logan Tanner is hitting .317 with 34 runs, eight doubles, seven home runs and 38 RBI. RJ Yeager is batting .316 with 35 runs, 13 doubles, 16 home runs and 50 RBI. Brad Cumbest is hitting .303 with 35 runs, 11 doubles, 12 home runs and 30 RBI. Kamren James is batting .303 with 41 runs, eight doubles, eight home runs, 31 RBI and 12 stolen bases.

Bulldogs pitchers own a .554 ERA, .252 opponent batting average and 538 strikeouts in 430.2 innings.

SERIES NOTES

Texas A&M and Mississippi State have met 39 times with the Bulldogs taking the 20-19 advantage in the series with last year’s sweep in Starkville. The programs first took the field against each other in 1907 with the Aggies taking a 1-0 decision. The Maroon & White started hot, winning the first five games before the series took a 74-year hiatus. Since A&M joined the SEC for the 2013 campaign, Mississippi State owns a 14-11 edge in the series.

PROMOTIONS

WEEKEND

·         TURN IT GOLD – Aggie baseball and Turn It Gold are partnering to raise awareness for childhood cancer.

o   Turn It Gold will be on site selling gold bubble machines, bracelets and t-shirts all weekend while supplies last.

o   Visit www.12thMan.com/turnitgold for details.

FRIDAY

·         12th Man Centennial Celebration – SEC Friday Night Fireworks – Fans may enjoy a postgame pyrotechnical show after SEC Friday home games all season long.

·         12th Man Centennial Statue Giveaway – 12th Man Centennial desk statues will be given to the first 2,000 fans (Marketing table behind section 104 & Section 12).

·         Graduation Day Celebration – Three Aggie baseball players will receive their diplomas prior to the game

SATURDAY

·         Senior Day – Pregame celebration of the Aggie senior class.

SUNDAY

·         Kids Sunday Funday – Face painting before the game by the playground.

o   Buy 1 full-price GA ticket ($10) and bring up to 4 kids for FREE. No advance sales.

o   Pregame Face Painting – Face painting before the game by the playground.

o   Pregame Raising Cane’s Anthem Buddies – Kids 12 & under may join the Aggies on the field for the National Anthem.

o   Postgame Kids Run the Bases/Team Autographs – Kids will have the opportunity to run the bases and get autographs from the team.

o   Little League Sundays – Kids 12 & under in their little league uniform may enter the venue two hours prior to First Pitch to watch batting practice.

·         National Chocolate Chip Day – Free Tiff’s Treats chocolate chip cookies for the first 500 fans (Marketing table behind section 104).

Before You Leave, Check This Out