Schlossnagle sets stage for A&M's road trip to Columbia, South Carolina

Third-ranked Texas A&M makes the long trek east for another top-25 series as the Aggies battle No. 22 South Carolina this weekend. On Thursday's edition of TexAgs Radio, head coach Jim Schlossnagle previewed what is expected to be another three-game dogfight in the SEC.

Key notes from Jim Schlossnagle interview

• It’s a pretty day here in Aggieland, and hopefully, we can get some good weather in Columbia. I don’t know which way the wind blows in that ballpark, but most winds should be between five to ten miles per hour. However, it will be chilly this weekend. We play a 4 p.m. and a 7 p.m. game, so it will get chilly when we play.
   
• The win against Texas State on Tuesday is one of my favorite wins since I got here. I talk to the team about maturity and playing one game at a time with the opening game mentality. With the highs and lows of an SEC season, the midweek games typically aren’t the same, so to go on the bus into an electric environment and have the wind blowing where it was, we were set up for a dogfight. Braden Montgomery hit that ball through the wind, and I can’t believe it happened. It fired our guys up and took the wind out of their sails. That really settled us in and took the crowd out of it for the rest of the game. I was really proud of our team for that game. Baseball can get anybody, but an immature team that’s not ready to play will show that pretty quickly, and you’re seeing that around the country in midweek games.
   
• Zane Badmaev did get the call. The outs on Tuesday were just as important on the weekend. This is a deep pitching staff, so you try to look at the current situation and what gives us the best chance to win games. But you’re also looking at the future of the program. We gave the lineup card to Badmaeve on Tuesday, and all those innings can help us have a good season. He did a nice job. We’re still looking for opportunities for Brett Antolick, Jason Bodin and Peyton Smith. Badmaev did great, and every single out is important, whether it’s on the weekend or during the week.
   
• We’ve seen Isaac Morton has high-end stuff. He has a really good fastball and breaking ball. He may have double the strikeouts compared to innings pitched, but he also has more walks and hit batters. You have to remember he only pitched eight innings his senior year and didn’t throw this summer, so he’s pretty behind in terms of development coming from Minnesota. You have to be able to adjust in the middle of the game. He’ll get there. He has a lot of promise.
   
• Gavin Grahovac is fine. He rolled his ankle. When he hit the base, he tripped and fell at first base. Nothing too bad, so when the score got to what it was, it was a good opportunity to get him out. He has been great this season. We knew his talent level offensively, but we didn’t know what position he would play. His versatility is incredible. He has never really had the opportunity to bear down on one position, and he has really improved as a third baseman.
   
• Travis Chestnut took batting practice on the field on Tuesday and hit in the cages yesterday. He hit with 100-percent effort in the simulated game on Wednesday, so unless he wakes up sore today, he’ll be available this weekend. Whatever the game calls for, we’ll use him.
   
• We’ve seen some really great progress from Ryan Targac. He would’ve had a grand slam if it wasn’t for that wind. We’ll see what the matchups are, but Chestnut is available.
   
• Targac can impact the game on one swing. He has experience. He plays solid at second base. He knows our system. As coach Chuck Box likes to say, you can’t coach birthdays. His experience is really valuable. I’m really proud of how he handled not playing. My job is to use my head to coach and not my heart. I love Kaeden Kent and Jack Bell, but what fans don’t see is practice every day. With a guy like Targac, we know what he’s capable of doing. We’ve been taking him out to play Kent late in games, who has had some huge at-bats late in games. Those are just the decisions a coach makes. I’m really proud of how Targac has handled everything, and the game is rewarding him.
   
• Jace LaViolette is managing it great. He puts a lot of pressure on himself to be good. Lots of young hitters search for hits instead of putting together great at-bats. LaViolette has walked a lot this year. Montgomery is leading the nation in RBI, but a lot of that is because LaViolette and Grahovac and Ali Camarillo and those guys are getting on base. You want them to have confidence in the box, but young players have to learn self-awareness. LaViolette is still maturing as a player. He’s a great player. LaViolette can handle those inside pitches just as well as any pitch. He is fine. He’s still young and still learning. My prediction is he’s going to have a great weekend.
   
• Caden Sorrel had that opposite-field homer at Globe Life Field, and against Mississippi State, he hit a homer. He would’ve had another homer on Tuesday. He’s playing really good defense, but he still searches for hits a little bit. That will come with time. Him staying on the ball shows me he’s locked in. When he does that, he’s a dangerous player.