Missouri Tigers (19-7, 5-1) vs #3 Fightin' Texas Aggies (25-1, 5-1)

Friday, March 27, 2015 at 6:30 PM
Saturday March 28, 2015 at 1:00 PM
Sunday March 29, 2015 at 1:00 PM
Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park, College Station, Texas

TV Info:
Friday: SEC Network+ (via Watch ESPN, online only)
Saturday: SEC Network (actually on TV!)
Sunday: SEC Network+ (via Watch ESPN, online only)

A&M leads the all time series 47-32
Last Meeting: 3-0 series sweep by the Ags in 2013 in College Station (2-1, 6-5, 4-1)

Head Coach: Tim Jamieson (21st season, 661-514-2 at Mizzou)
2014 Record: 20-33 (6-24) 7th in the SEC East

2015 Results (19-7 overall)

• Series wins: #290 Iona (4-0, neutral), 3-1 at Kleberg Bank College Classic (Corpus) defeating#191 Sam Houston, #194 TAMU Corpus Christi and #198 Purdue and losing to #194 TAMU Corpus Christi, #272 Illinois-Chicago (3-0, neutral), @ #116 Georgia (3-0), #42 South Carolina (2-1)
  
• Series Losses: #48 Milwaukee (0-3)
  
• Midweek Wins: Non-D1 Truman State (10-2), #107 SIUE (9-4), #121 Air Force (6-0), #166 Arkansas-Pine Bluff (9-3)
  
• Midweek Losses: #121 Air Force (2-4), #166 Arkansas-Pine Bluff (3-8)
  

Pitching Matchups:
Friday: Grayson Long (Jr. RHP, 5-0, 2.08) vs Reggie McClain (Jr. RHP, 4-1, 1.74)
Saturday: Kyle Simonds (Jr. RHP, 2-0, 0.00) vs Tanner Houck (Fr. RHP, 3-1, 3.02)
Sunday: Matt Kent (Jr. LHP, 5-0, 3.20) vs Peter Fairbanks (Jr. RHP, 2-2, 1.82)

Stat Comparison:

• Team Batting Avg: MIZZOU: .250 (T-223rd) A&M: .311 (T-9th)
  
• Team ERA: MIZZOU: 2.28 (9th) A&M: 1.76 (1st)
  
• Home Runs: MIZZOU: 11 (T-116th) A&M: 22 (T-15th)
  
• Stolen Bases: MIZZOU: 42 (T-15th) A&M: 17 (T-208th)
  
• Fielding Pct.: MIZZOU: .979 (13th) A&M: .967 (108th)

Players to Watch:

• Jr. RHP Reggie McClain (4-1, 1.74)
  
• McClain has emerged as one of the conference's best, which, like the Tigers' season as a whole, has been a huge surprise. The JUCO transfer has certainly burst onto the scene in his debut season in the SEC. McClain has won or shared SEC Pitcher of the Week honors 3 times already this season, including sharing last week with Grayson Long. He'll go primarily with a good sinking fastball at 87-90 mph, and a plus plus changeup to complement it.
  
• Jr. RHP Breckin Williams (4-0, 1.26)
  
• The Mizzou starting rotation has been stellar, and Williams has been just as good, if not better, at shutting the door on opponents in the late innings. In 11 appearances (over 14 innings) he has given up only 2 runs (both earned) and earned 6 saves.
  
• Fr. C/DH Brett Bond (.291/3/11)
  
• Another huge surprise for the Tigers in the form of a newcomer. Bond leads the team in average and homeruns, and usually bats around the middle of the order. does really well to get on base and cause trouble, but like most freshmen, he can struggle with his strikeouts, especially against the better pitchers he's faced.
  

• Jr. 3B Josh Lester (.289/2/21)
  

• .Stepped up for the Tigers in a big way by raising his average over 50 points so far compared to last year. Bats in the 3 or 4 hole most nights, and is the main source of RBI for the Mizzou offense, leading the team in that category by a wide margin. .
  

Others to watch:

• So. SS Ryan Howard
  
• So, OF Jake Ring
  
• Sr. 2B Brett Peel
  
• Jr. RHP Peter Fairbanks
  
• Fr. RHP Tanner Houck
  
• Jr. LHP Austin Tribby
  

Overall Breakdown:

Missouri is an interesting animal in that they remind me a lot of some of A&M's recent teams under Childress and Sawyers. The Tigers have great pitching, but struggle to piece hits together to create big innings, leading to many close one run games, including seven of their wins so far.. Another eerie similarity is the fact that the Tigers will run. And run. And run. And run some more. They have already swiped 42 bags this season through 26 games (that's on pace of over 90 in the regular season if you're keeping score at home), led by Peel with 15. The glaring difference from those A&M teams is the lack of one or two truly dangerous hitters. No matter how bad some of those Aggie offenses seemed at times, there was always a Brodie Greene or Tyler Naquin waiting to do some damage. The Tigers don't have a single every-day hitter hitting over .300, and that lack of production has really led to some head-scratching results so far like losing to A&M Corpus, UAPB, and getting swept at home by Milwaukee. The fact is the Mizzou offence is just flat out bad. They only bat .250 as a team, with the only stellar pitching they've faced this year coming last weekend at home against South Carolina. Still, the Tigers have obviously found ways to win in spite of an inept offense. There will be some great pitching on display in College Station this weekend, and I for one believe the two best pitchers in the SEC so far this season will be going toe to toe on Friday night. The key for the Aggies will be pitching up to their potential, and being patient, like they have been all year, against the vaunted Tiger staff.

Prediction:

A&M will have a huge offensive advantage this weekend, plain and simple. This, however, will also be the best staff the Aggie offense has faced so far this year, so it'll be interesting to see how they respond. Friday night is setting up to be a classic between two All American candidates on the mound, and I personally can't wait. Mizzou's start is probably the only one that was more surprising than the Ags', and they'll be coming in looking to prove last weekend's series win against South Carolina wasn't a fluke. The key will be the Friday night game, as I think that's Missouri's best chance to steal a game on the road. If the Aggies can win that one, I think the offense will carry to a sweep. Thanks and Gig 'Em, and see you at Olsen!