Tag: Kaiden Wilson

2 more Texas A&M baseball players enter NCAA transfer portal, bringing total to 9 thus far

Per D1Baseball managing editor Kendall Rogers, junior shortstop Ali Camarillo and freshman left-hander Kaiden Wilson have enter the portal.

Amid the fallout of head coach Jim Schlossnagle departing Texas A&M for bitter rival Texas on Tuesday, nine Aggies have exercised their right to enter the NCAA transfer portal.

Seven players initially entered the portal on Wednesday afternoon and two more have joined the group as of Wednesday evening. According to D1Baseball managing editor Kendall Rogers, junior shortstop Ali Camarillo and freshman left-handed pitcher Kaiden Wilson have followed suit.

The other seven players are freshman third baseman Gavin Grahovac, outfielder Caden Sorrell and shortstop Jack Bell; sophomore outfielder Jace LaViolette, second baseman Kaeden Kent and catcher Max Kaufer; and graduate student designated-hitter Hayden Schott.

Camarillo and Schott are the only portal entrants that are eligible for the 2024 MLB draft in July. Junior OF Braden Montgomery is likely to be drafted in the top 10 despite suffering a season-ending injury in the super regionals.

Amid the transfer madness on Wednesday, Montgomery’s mom Gretchen shared words of wisdom on her private X account.

“Don’t freak out about the transfer portal!! The players have to protect themselves — A&M doesn’t have a coach or staff,” she stated. “Most will get in the portal but can still stay. They will get NIL!! But nobody has more $ than A&M. Most will come back with a STRONG HIRE! Email the AD!”

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Coach Schlossnagle reacts to Texas A&M’s loss vs. Tennessee in College World Series finals

“Close ballgame, just what you’d expect with these two teams. To think you’d roll right through it in two games, that would’ve been nice.”

The Texas A&M baseball team gave up two-run homers in back-to-back innings during a 4-1 loss against top seed Tennessee on Sunday afternoon at Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska.

After the game, Aggies coach Jim Schlossnagle shared his reaction with the media.

“I guess the difference in the game was two, two out homers. They got the big swings at the right time,” Schlossnagle recalled. “I thought we battled back. (Aaron) Combs obviously settled down the game really well for them I thought Chris (Cortez) battled. I was proud of Kaiden Wilson, two pitches just got him. (Dylan) Dreiling was on the fastball and he hung a breaking ball to the catcher.

“Close ballgame, just exactly what you’d expect with these two teams. To think you’d roll right through it in two games, that would’ve been nice. We get to play the last college baseball game of the season and that’s awesome.”

No. 3 Texas A&M will attempt to win its first national championship in program history on Monday evening. First pitch of Game 3 is at 6 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN+.

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No. 1 Tennessee defeats No. 3 Texas A&M to force third game of College World Series finals

After scoring nine runs Saturday to begin the College World Series finals, the Aggies were nearly shutout by Tennessee on Sunday afternoon.

After scoring nine runs Saturday to begin the College World Series finals, the Texas A&M baseball team was nearly shutout by SEC rival Tennessee on Sunday, forcing a winner take all final matchup Monday for the national title.

The No. 3 Aggies (53-14) took an early 1-0 lead in Game 2 versus No. 1 Tennessee (59-13) in the bottom of the first inning with a solo home run to right field by sophomore outfielder Jace LaViolette, the 50th of his collegiate career. Texas A&M held that narrow advantage in a pitchers’ duel until the top of the seventh frame.

Senior right-handed pitcher Zane Badmaev opened the contest and recorded the first three outs, allowing 2 hits with 2 strikeouts on 20 pitches. After a tough appearance Wednesday against Florida, junior RHP Chris Cortez returned to his normal form of being a stone cold reliever.

Cortez pitched 4.1 scoreless innings and gave up 5 walks and 2 hits with 7 Ks on 99 pitches. He exited the matchup with two Volunteers on base and what appeared to be a hand injury. However, it was likely just due to fatigue as he nearly eclipsed the century mark in tosses.

Freshman lefty Kaiden Wilson took over for Cortez and threw well but two pitches ultimately made the difference Sunday afternoon. In the seventh frame, sophomore OF Dylan Dreiling destroyed a 2-run bomb to right field. Then in the eighth, senior catcher Cal Stark crushed a 2-run jack to left.

Wilson pitched 2.1 innings and allowed 4 runs, 3 hits and 1 walk with 2 punch outs on 41 pitches. Senior RHP Brock Peery recorded an out on 6 pitches. Freshman RHP Weston Moss pitched the final frame and tallied 1 strikeout on 15 pitches.

The Aggies threatened with runners on the corners in the bottom of the ninth but were unable to plate a run. Senior Ryan Targac took the last at-bat as a pinch hitter, blasting a pitch to the warning track in right field and nearly tying the game.

Texas A&M and Tennessee will respectively attempt to win its first national championship in program history on Monday evening. First pitch of Game 3 is at 6 p.m. on ESPN and ESPN+.

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Texas A&M baseball team reaches 5-0 for first time since 2020 with series-opening win versus Wagner

The Aggies continued to roll on Friday at Blue Bell Park, wallopping Wagner University of Staten Island, New York by a final score of 17-2.

For the 32nd time in program history and the first occurrence since 2020, the Texas A&M baseball team has begun the season with a 5-0 overall record.

The Aggies continued to roll to begin this weekend at Blue Bell Park, wallopping Wagner University of Staten Island, New York by a final score of 17-2. Friday’s matchup was the first all-time between the two programs.

Texas A&M kicked off the new campaign last weekend with a three-game sweep of McNeese State. The Aggies outscored the Cowboys 31-1 and achieved a feat that hadn’t been done in over 100 years.

On Tuesday night, Jace LaViolette propelled Texas A&M to a 9-3 win versus Incarnate Word. The superstar sophomore outfielder hit 2 home runs, bringing his total to 5 through four games. LaViolette didn’t homer in the series opener against the Seahawks on Friday but he did record his fourth multi-hit performance alongside junior infielder Ali Camarillo.

Graduate OF Hayden Schott has tallied at least 1 hit in each game thus far. Senior catcher Hank Bard set a new career-high with 4 runs batted in against Wagner.

Redshirt sophomore Ryan Prager (2-0) earned the win by pitching a career-best 6.2 scoreless innings. He also set a new career-high in strikeouts with 10. In two starts, Prager has tossed 11.2 shutout innings with 19 strikeouts and 1 walk.

Aggies starting pitchers have yet to allow an earned run through five games. Texas A&M will be back at it on Saturday at 2 p.m.

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Texas A&M baseball program ranked No. 8 in D1Baseball’s preseason top 25

After finishing the 2023 season with a 38-27 overall record, the Aggies were ranked No. 8 in the 2024 D1Baseball preseason top 25 this week.

The Texas A&M baseball program has cracked the top 10 of another preseason poll.

After finishing the 2023 season with a 38-27 overall record, the Aggies were ranked No. 8 in the 2024 D1Baseball preseason top 25, which was released on Tuesday morning.

Texas A&M is one of eight SEC schools in the D1 rankings. Conference foes that the Aggies are slotted behind include Florida (#2), Arkansas (#3), reigning national champion LSU (#4) and Vanderbilt (#6).

On Jan. 7, Perfect Game ranked Texas A&M as the No. 7 team in the country in its preseason poll.

The Aggies’ freshman class is fourth-best in the nation according to D1Baseball, only trailing No. 1 Arkansas, among the nine SEC rivals ranked. Four freshmen to watch this season include Caden Sorrell, Gavin Grahovac, Weston Moss and Kaiden Wilson.

Texas A&M right-handed pitcher and outfielder, Braden Montgomery, was slotted as the No. 4 junior in the country by Perfect Game. He is projected to be the fifth pick in July’s 2024 MLB Draft according to Perfect Game.

Two Aggies cracked Perfect Game’s top 50 seniors list. Ryan Targac is No. 12 and Ted Burton is No. 16.

Texas A&M begins the 2024 campaign with a three-game series at Blue Bell Park against McNeese State University on Feb. 16 at 6 p.m. CT.

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