Tag: texas longhorns baseball

Texas baseball looks to win series with BYU on Saturday afternoon

Texas looks to advance to 20 wins on the season.

By multiple measures the Texas baseball team has underachieved in 2024. Despite it all, the team has another golden opportunity in front of it. The Longhorns look to win a fourth straight series in Big 12 play.

To its credit, Texas has not lost a series in league competition. The team has defeated the Texas Tech Red Raiders, Baylor Bears and Kansas State Wildcats ahead of the series finale with BYU. Texas Tech and Kansas State are among the better teams in the Big 12.

The BYU series sits at a 1-1 tie after a tough 7-5 loss in Game 1. Texas evened the series on Friday with a 4-3 win. Max Belyeu is leading the way batting 4-for-7 so far in the two games. The sophomore right fielder added and RBI and two walks to the total reaching base over 66% of the time.

BYU first baseman Cooper Vest and catcher Collin Reuter have done the most damage at the plate for the Cougars. The two batters have combined to go 9-for-19 from the plate in the first two games.

With the Longhorns sitting at 19-12 and 0.5 games behind Oklahoma for first place in conference, Texas has an opportunity to build momentum in its push for NCAA tournament seeding. The third game of the series takes place at 2:30 p.m. CT on Saturday.

BYU holds on, defeats Longhorns to open three-game set in baseball

The Texas Longhorns baseball team saw its three-game winning streak snapped at the hands of the BYU Cougars.

The Texas Longhorns baseball team saw its three-game winning streak snapped at the hands of the BYU Cougars, who defeated Texas 7-5 in Big 12 baseball action Thursday at UFCU Disch-Falk Field.

The Cougars built a 6-0 lead before Texas got RBI singles from Dee Kennedy and Peyton Powell to cut the deficit to 6-2. After BYU got a run in the top of the sixth, the Longhorns got a solo home run from Jack O’Dowd before Kennedy’s double got him to three RBI in the contest.

Still, after getting 10 hits through six innings, the Longhorns mustered only two hits over the last three innings of play.

The win broke a six-game losing streak for BYU, 12-14 (5-8). Ben Hansen (4-3) picked up the win for the Cougars, giving up four runs on nine hits while striking out five Longhorns batters.

Lebarron Johnson Jr. (1-3) took the loss for UT, giving up four runs on six hits in three innings while striking out four batters. Andre Duplantier II struck out five batters, pitching the eighth and ninth innings.

Texas, 18-12 (6-4), and BYU continue their three-game set Friday in Austin.

WATCH: Texas SS Jalin Flores reaches 10 home runs on the season

Jalin Flores is racking up home runs in the young season.

Texas shortstop Jalin Flores is having a special season. The young player has a deceptively powerful swing.

The second-year shortstop reached 10 home runs on the season with an opposite field no doubt swing on Tuesday against the Abilene Christian Wildcats. The Abilene Christian right fielder didn’t bother to make an attempt to rob the home run. It was out of reach.

Flores’ 10 home runs move him to second on the team. Second-year outfielder Max Belyeu has 11 home runs on the season.

That Flores is thriving is a testament to his resilience and the work put in by him and the Texas staff after a tough season in 2023. The Longhorns shortstop batted .175 with four home runs, 23 RBI and a .603 OPS through 123 plate appearances. This season through 135 plate appearances, eight more than last season, Flores has over 1.000 OPS, .359 batting average, 10 home runs and 30 RBI.

Flores’ turnaround season could be what Texas needs to break through early struggles. The Longhorns look to build on a series win over Kansas State.

Texas baseball bounces back, wins series over No. 23 Kansas State

The Longhorns finally showed life on the diamond earning a huge series win over Kansas State.

They finally did it. The Texas Longhorns played up to expectation in a series win over the No. 23 Kansas State Wildcats.

The offense was there for Texas all series. The Longhorns scored 33 runs in the three game series with a 21-run game two sandwiched between two six-run performances.

Texas shortstop Jalin Flores had one of the more impressive outputs in the series. Flores went 7-for-12 with seven RBI, two home runs and a walk. Cleanup hitter Max Belyeu hit well after Flores with six hits and five RBI in the three games.

With the series win, Texas moves into a second place tie with Kansas State in the Big 12 standings at 6-3 in Big 12 play. Oklahoma ranks first in the conference standings at 7-2 against league competition despite a 15-12 record overall.

The next stretch gives the Longhorns a chance to add wins against the Abilene Christian Wildcats (17-11) and BYU Cougars (11-14). BYU ranks last in the Big 12 with a 4-8 conference record. Abilene Christian is 1-3 vs. Big 12 opponents.

The Longhorns’ remaining schedule is favorable as it makes its push toward an NCAA tournament bid. They’ll look to channel the positive momentum gained by the series victory over Kansas State.

Texas baseball’s woes continue in 14-6 loss to No. 23 Kansas State

The Longhorns continue to disappoint on the diamond.

Texas baseball continues to fall short of expectations.

The proud baseball program has been disappointing through 26 games. It fell to 15-11 on the season after a blowout loss to open a series with the No. 23 Kansas State Wildcats.

To be clear, losing to a ranked opponent isn’t the main source of frustration with the team despite too few quality wins on Texas’ resume. It’s simply a carryover of the failures Texas has endured this season.

The more disappointing of losses came earlier this week when Texas A&M Corpus-Christi (13-17) came to Austin and left with a midweek win. Had the team performed well in resume-building opportunities the loss might sting less. Albeit, in the early going the team has both lost its signature games and underperformed against Corpus Christi and Washington (6-11-1).

There’s been plenty of time for Texas to rebound from the players it lost in its loaded 2021 and 2022 rosters. The product simply isn’t up to par.

Texas head coach David Pierce needs to find solutions for the team if it wants to change course. It will look to battle back in the series on Friday against Kansas State.

Texas baseball wins two of three games against Texas Tech

Texas got a bounce back series win on the road against Texas Tech.

The Texas Longhorns got back in the win column against the Texas Tech Red Raiders over the weekend. The Longhorns took a series win with two victories in three days.

The much needed performance followed a four-game losing streak. The losing skid is in the rear view mirror after the team began Big 12 play with a 2-1 start in Lubbock.

Texas scored 22 runs in the first of three games to highlight the series performance. Its high scoring output unleashed four games worth of frustration on the diamond.

That it was able to put up so many runs against an opponent of Texas Tech’s caliber is noteworthy for the team moving forward. While series win doesn’t erase big picture concerns we have for the program, it was an impressive response to an adverse start to the season.

Texas will look to channel the momentum into more wins in Big 12 play. The Longhorns improve to 9-6 on the season.

Texas baseball drops its fourth straight in loss to Texas A&M, 9-2

Texas baseball hasn’t been all that competitive against top teams.

Texas baseball lost its fourth straight game on Tuesday. The Longhorns fell to the surging Texas A&M Aggies who in contrast are off to a scorching start.

The four-game stretch has seen Texas lose to good teams, but the Longhorns were completely outclassed in all four matchups. From a blown eight-run lead against Vanderbilt to a late inning lead against Texas State, head coach David Pierce’s team couldn’t capitalize even when it had an advantage.

In fairness to Pierce and company, top programs go through tough stretches. It’s normal for good teams to lose several games simply because baseball involves multiple variables. Even so, blown leads, unreliable performance and not playing up to top competition are indicators that a baseball team might not succeed in the postseason.

Texas can still improve, but the early start to the season portends what could be another disappointing postseason for college baseball’s most storied program. The team will need focused effort to live up to its high aspirations.

Texas A&M demolishes Texas in front of a record crowd in Austin to move to 12-0 on the year

The Aggies best their little brother to the tune of 9-2 in front of 8,000 plus fans in Austin on Tuesday night

Texas A&M (12-0) got hot late and scored six runs in the final three innings to win 9-2 over Texas (9-5).

The Aggies flexed their dominance in Austin in front of a crowd of 8.060 fans at Disch-Falk Field. Braden Montgomery got the Aggies on the board first with a home run over the right-center field just two pitches after Jace LaViolette was hit by a ball, giving the Maroon & White a quick 2-0 lead. The Maroon & White would hold that two-run lead until the bottom of the fourth inning.

The Longhorns took advantage of a free base and a fielding error, allowing them to put a running in scoring position. Then, a sac bunt followed by a sac fly was put across the plate to cut the lead to 2-1. A&M answered back immediately in the top of the fifth inning when Hayden Schott hit a two-out single through the right side, scoring LaViolette.

The game really opened up in the Aggies’ favor in the top of the seventh inning. A Gavin Grahovac single and Montgomery’s walk, followed by an error by the left fielder during Schott’s at-bat, allowed an unearned run for a 4-1 lead. A Ted Burton sac fly scored Montgomery, and a Jaxon Appel home run put two more on the board, extending the lead to 7-2 with two innings left.

With the bases loaded in the top of the eighth inning, Schott hit the ball to right field that should have only allowed one run, but the fielder let the ball bounce off his leg, allowing LaViolette and Grahovac to score standing up for the last two runs of the inning. After walking the lead-off batter and allowing him to advance due to a wild pitch, Shane Sdao shut down any hope of a miracle comeback by striking out the next three batters for a 9-2 Aggie win.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes, and opinions. Follow Jarrett Johnson on Twitter: @whosnextsports1.

Baseball Lone Star Showdown returns as No. 6 Texas A&M Aggies face No. 22 Texas Longhorns

The undefeated Aggies roll into a midweek matchup in Austin at Texas following the College Baseball Series at Globe Life Field in Arlington.

The undefeated Texas A&M baseball team rolls into a midweek matchup in Austin at the University of Texas following a three-game set in the College Baseball Series this past weekend at Globe Life Field in Arlington.

Junior right-handed pitcher Chris Cortez (1-0) is scheduled to start for the No. 6 Aggies (11-0) against redshirt junior RHP Tanner Witt (0-0). On Monday, Texas A&M moved up one spot in the USA TODAY Sports baseball coaches poll. Meanwhile, the No. 22 Longhorns (7-4) dropped nine spots.

Texas has lost three games in a row following a challenging three-game set in the Astros Foundation College Classic at Minute Maid Park this weekend.

The Longhorns lost 6-3 on Friday to the reigning national champions, No. 2 LSU. Texas was upset 11-10 by Texas State on Saturday. The Longhorns were defeated 14-11 on Sunday by No. 10 Vanderbilt.

The Aggies swept McNeese State to begin the season, outscoring the Cowboys 31-1. Texas A&M beat Incarnate Word 9-3 on Feb. 20, Lamar 13-2 on Feb. 27 and USC 9-3 on Saturday in single game play.

In the second weekend at Blue Bell Park, the Aggies swept Wagner and outscored the Seahawks 40-4. Texas A&M beat Arizona State 4-0 and 10-5 on Friday and Sunday, respectively.

The Aggies play the No. 22 Longhorns at UFCU Disch-Falk Field on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Texas baseball gets swept at Astros Foundation College Classic

Texas opponents sat the Longhorns down one, two, three in the three-game showcase.

The Texas baseball squad went winless this weekend in the Astros Foundation College Classic. What looked to be a tremendous opportunity to bolster its NCAA tournament resume resulted in a three-game sweep.

The Longhorns’ bats have struggled in the early going this season, but it was the pitching that led to the three losses. The pitching staff allowed 31 runs in the three games capped by a 14-11 loss to Vanderbilt on Sunday.

Texas didn’t lose for lack of offensive power. The Longhorns held a 10-9 lead heading into the ninth inning of Saturday’s game against Texas State before allowing two runs in the final inning. On Sunday, the team blew an 11-3 lead through four innings to allow 11 unanswered runs to end the game.

There’s plenty of baseball left to play, and one weekend won’t define how far the team can go in the postseason. But the three games illustrate just how far Texas is from competing atop college baseball this season.

The Longhorns will next face Texas A&M on Tuesday.