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Baseball Face Texas A&M, Baylor in Mid-Week Action
April 21, 2008
SAN MARCOS - After a five-game week of wins, the Texas State Bobcats will look to utilize the same offensive power Tuesday night when they face the No. 8 Texas A&M Aggies. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Olsen Field in College Station. Following the tilt, the Bobcats will return to Bobcat Field for the first of two meeting with the Baylor Bears. The game is scheduled for a 6 p.m. first pitch. The Bobcats improved to 23-14 overall after sweeping the week, beating out Texas-Pan American in non-conference action before taking three away from Central Arkansas in league play. An 8-0 Wednesday night shutout over the Broncs highlighted the week. The contest was the `Cats first mid-week victory since the March 12 meeting with Texas A&M-Kingsville. Texas State is 0-4 against ranked opponents this season, having facing No. 18 Houston and No. 12 Texas twice. The `Cats are 1-2 against the Big XII, after taking a 14-3 victory against Texas Tech in March. Collectively, Texas State and Texas A&M will pit a respective .332 team average against a .325 mark. Both teams jump out to an early start, outscoring their opponents by at least 20 in the first inning of play. Thomas Field took control of the Bobcat offense over the week, and will head Texas State's lineup with a .377 batting average. The shortstop has 58 hits on the season and 20 extra-base hits that include five triples and five home runs. Paul Goldschmidt follows with a .376 batting average and a .732 slugging percentage. Goldschmidt boasts a team-leading 12 home runs for the season and his 56 hits give the duo the number one and two spots in Southland Conference competition. Texas A&M spouts a 33-7 overall record and a 15-3 Big XII mark after wrapping up the weekend with a sweep over the Baylor Bears. The Aggies posted 13-straight wins before their Tuesday contest with No. 7 Rice, where the Owls upset the foe 11-2 in College Station.
Dane Carter is batting .423 to lead the Aggie bats. Carter has 69 hits and 23 multi-base hits for 45 RBI and a team-leading 112 bases. Jose Duran follows with a .390 batting average, and the duo are the only two members of the team who have made all 40 starts for TAMU. Duran has amassed 67 hits and scored 40 runs and batted in an equal amount. On the mound, Zach Boles (1-3) and Scott Migle (2-2) will battle the two productive offenses. Boles has made nine appearances on the mound and pitched 19.2 innings. The right-hander has faced 86 batters and given up just five extra-base hits, while striking out 16 batters to date. Migle has made seven starts for the Aggies and tossed 36.1 innings. The right-hander has allowed 40 hits and 29 runs to date, holding opponents to a .272 batting average. Texas State and Texas A&M have met 45 times since 1987 and the Aggies hold the all-time series lead 34-11. The Bobcats last met the Maroon rival April 3, 2007 at the Dell Diamond. After taking an early lead, the `Cats fell 9-4. The Bears are 23-17 overall and 8-10 in the Big XII. Baylor will face top-ranked Texas before taking on Texas State. The team was swept over the weekend by TAMU and will be recovering from an expunged bullpen on Tuesday. As a team, Baylor bats for a .279 average while its opponents fall in at .276. Shaver Hansen leads the team, batting .318 and slugging for .550 percent. Hansen has knocked 48 hits and batted in a second-best 29 runs for the Bears. Aaron Miller provides the long ball for BU, slugging .564 with nine home runs to date. Miller adds 13 multi-base hits to his home run total and 43 total hits. Baylor holds the all-time series, 37-13, taking the last meeting 13-4 last April at Bobcat Field. Texas State has not beaten the foe since March 22, 2005 in a 12-0 shutout at home. Both games will be broadcasted on 89.9 KTSW-FM. Live stats will be available for Tuesday night's game through the host school's website at www.AggieAthletics.com. Wednesday night live stats will be available on www.TxStateBobcats.com. |
