Left-hander Jacob Palisch named Collegiate Baseball's National POTW

Warrior. Competitor. Teammate. National Player of the Week.

On Monday, Collegiate Baseball named Texas A&M left-hander Jacob Palisch the nation’s Player of the Week after picking up two saves in the Aggies’ series victory over then-No. 4 Arkansas. This is the first time the Stanford graduate transfer has earned such an honor.

“When you look up ‘warrior’ and ‘competitor’ and ‘teammate,’ and there’s more than just him, but he’s the living, breathing example of what that looks like,” Schlossnagle said of Palisch.

Working in both of A&M’s weekend wins, Palisch tossed six total innings of scoreless ball, allowing just three hits and no runs while punching out 10 batters with just one (intentional) walk.

In the first of his two outings, Palisch dazzled across four innings in the Aggies’ 2-1 Friday-night victory over the Razorbacks. In relief of Dettmer, the Richardson native nailed down the uber-rare four-inning save, holding Arkansas scoreless on just two hits while striking out seven Hogs in the lengthy appearance.

“Really all it is is collecting outs,” Palisch said Friday night. “I know I’ve got eight of the best infielders and outfielders behind me, so it honestly makes it pretty easy. You just go out there, execute a pitch, and whatever happens, happens.”

When asked about Palisch’s availability for the remainder of the weekend on Friday night, Texas A&M head coach Jim Schlossnagle said the lefty was likely unavailable, citing the 56 pitches Palisch tossed in the series opener.

As it turns out, Palisch had 33 bullets to offer.

“He wasn’t on the list to pitch,” Schlossnagle said on Sunday. “He came to me about the sixth or seventh and said, ‘Coach, if you need me for an inning, I can do it.’ Then he comes in there and does what he does in the eighth, then runs off the mound and said, ‘I’ll finish this.’”

With Arkansas threatening to pull off a wild comeback to steal the series, Schlossnagle went to Palisch with the bases loaded, nobody out and the Aggies leading 11-8. After allowing a run-scoring double, Palisch rebounded to strike out the side and preserve the one-run lead.

In the ninth, Palisch worked a 1-2-3 frame to seal the series victory as the Aggies made their statement to the rest of the nation.

On the year, Palisch is 3-3 with three saves and sports a 3.12 ERA in 34.2 innings of work. With a 46-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio, the Stanford man has established himself as a force in the Aggie pen.

As the Aggies continue to surge, Palisch will continue to be a relied-upon arm for Schlossnagle & Co.