College Station Super Regional preview: #1 Texas A&M vs #13 TCU

Who: TCU Horned Frogs (45-15, 15-9 Big 12)

Where: Olsen Field at Blue Bell Park — College Station, Texas

When:  Friday 8:00 pm CT (ESPN2)
             Saturday 8:00 pm CT (ESPN)
             Sunday 8:00 pm CT (ESPN2 or ESPNU)

Pitching matchups

• Friday: Brigham Hill (RHP, 9-1, 1.95) vs. Jared Janczak (RHP, 4-2, 2.55)
• Saturday:  Kyle Simonds (RHP, 10-3, 2.73) vs. Mitchell Traver (RHP, 1-1, 2.45)
• Sunday:  Turner Larkins (RHP, 3-0, 2.82) vs. Brian Howard (RHP, 8-2, 3.56)

TCU players to watch

Last year, TCU had one of the deepest and most talented pitching staffs in the country, and head coach Jim Schlossnagle rode those arms to the College World Series. While many of those big-time arms moved on to the pro ranks, this team still has plenty of talent on the hill, though the current staff cannot boast the quality or depth of the 2015 Horned Frogs.

Ironically, two of TCU's starting pitchers this weekend are very familiar with the veteran Texas A&M offense. Possible Saturday night starter Mitchell Traver pitched the final four innings and earned the win in the 16-inning marathon in game three of last year's Fort Worth Super Regional. Projected Sunday starter Brian Howard also threw two shut-out innings in that decisive game.

Traver could be the biggest factor in this super regional.

Coming off an injury that forced him to miss most of the 2016 season, the 6-7 right-hander has made a slow return to the starting rotation. He pitched five shut-out innings in the regional opener against Oral Roberts, and many observers feel he's rounding into shape at just the right time.

Still, he's thrown only 18 innings all year and threw only 60 pitches last week. How far he can go and how effective he can be against a potent Texas A&M offense could be the ultimate difference this weekend.

The other likely starter for the Frogs is redshirt freshman righty Jared Janczak, who was recently moved from the bullpen to the weekend rotation. He has a very solid 6-3 record and a 2.41 ERA, but his numbers across the board don't quite equal the dominance of any member of last season's starting rotation.

If necessary, TCU will likely start junior Brian Howard on Sunday. Once again, his 8-2 mark and 3.56 ERA are solid but not elite. The Texas A&M offense will need to be patient, but there should be opportunities to put the ball in play and score.

TCU does have a very stingy, young freshman closer.

Durbin Feltman is sporting a salty 1.88 ERA with seven saves. He's only given up 14 hits in 28 innings with opposing batters hitting just .143 against him. Texas A&M would rather avoid falling behind late in games with Feltman in the bullpen.

What TCU lacks on the mound compared to last year, they make up for at the plate. The Honed Frogs are a very similar offensive team to the Aggies, sporting power guys with .300-plus averages throughout the lineup.

Not only has TCU banged out an impressive 50 home runs in 2016 (A&M has hit 58), but it is also dangerous on the base paths, with 92 steals compared to the Aggies' 69. The Frogs are also patient at the plate, walking 292 times – 40 more times that the Aggies – and have a very impressive team on-base percentage of .401, a tick higher than A&M's .394. 

The middle of the lineup is especially dangerous, led by National Freshman of the Year and clean-up hitter Luken Baker. The young standout is batting .382 with eight homers, 54 RBI and a .497 on-base percentage.

Behind him in the five-hole is third baseman Elliott Barzilli, a junior hitting at a .369-clip with a team-leading .569 slugging percentage. Left fielder Josh Watson is in the six-spot and has hit 11 home runs. Evan Skoug's stats (.295, 50 RBI) in the three-hole don't wow you at first glance, but he was a thorn in Texas A&M's side throughout the super regional last year and will surely rise to the occasion this weekend.

Add in the speed element – at least five starters have double-digit steals – and this offense poses a very significant threat to Aggie pitching. 

Texas A&M players to watch

What's left to be said about this team that I haven't covered in these previews for the past 3.5 months? As has been the case for most of this season, the Aggies' starting pitching needs to stay on track.

Guys like Brigham Hill and Kyle Simonds need to give Texas A&M quality starts. They don't need to go 7-8 innings, but the starters need to hold the line and keep the Aggies in the game through at least five – and preferably six – innings. From there, the bullpen duo of Mark Ecker and Andrew Vinson, who have been very consistent and efficient at closing the door and holding a lead this season, can finish the job. 

The situation gets more complicated if Hill or Simonds scuffles and can't get out of the early innings. That probably means the Aggies are playing from behind on the scoreboard, but it also means Texas A&M will have to roll the dice on some unproven commodities in the bullpen that have been inconsistent most of the year. If Rob Childress is running out multiple pitchers trying to patch together 27 outs, that's not a good sign for the Aggies. 

However, the best 2-of-3 super regional format favors a thin but effective Texas A&M pitching staff. Theoretically, this team can easily advance to the CWS with Hill, Simonds, Vinson, and Ecker shouldering the workload, and if a game three is needed, Turner Larkins has quietly emerged as a quality Sunday starter in recent weeks. 

At the plate, this offense has to keep doing what it's been doing all season, which is hit up and down the lineup and score runs. With Jonathan Moroney on a sudden roll and Austin Homan hitting nearly .370 in the nine-hole, the Aggies can plate runs at any moment, and this lineup never gives the opposing pitcher time to settle into the game with some easy outs. 

The one guy in the batting order who's been struggling is leading RBI-man Hunter Melton who has dropped to the eight-hole in recent weeks. If he comes out of his slump this weekend, this offense will be hard to slow down.

Of course, all eyes will be on All-American Boomer White in the three-spot. If he comes out with a hot bat and plays like we think he'll play, it will be hard to keep this team from Omaha, but it won't be easy to eliminate the Frogs. 

TCU is getting hot at the right time and is one of the toughest super regional match-ups this weekend.

What's at stake this weekend...

Omaha. That's what's at stake when the Horned Frogs and Aggies tangle in College Station this weekend. 

In a match-up with so many compelling storylines that have placed this series in the prime national TV slots on ESPN and ESPN2, nobody should lose focus that this series is first and foremost about advancing to the College World Series. 

Texas A&M has not been to Omaha since 2011 when All-Americans and future MLB starting pitchers Michael Wacha and Ross Stripling led the Aggies to a super regional win at Florida State to pave the way to the College World Series.

TCU advanced to the College World Series last year after outlasting the Aggies in a memorable, 16-inning, game-three nailbiter that lasted well past the midnight hour in Fort Worth. This year, the two teams meet again in the super regional round, but unlike last time, Texas A&M will play host in the friendly, bubble-filled confines of Olsen Field.

As if this developing mini-rivalry needed more spice, there's the Boomer White story.

The one-time Big 12 Player of the Year at TCU abruptly transferred to Texas A&M two years ago, and from the "We Want Boomer" signs in the stands in Fort Worth last weekend, it appears that at least the Horned Frog fans want to exact revenge for his switch. While the TCU coaching staff and veteran players won't mention it publicly, you can bet there's a little extra motivation as they prepare for this weekend's series.

But that's the key here: the team likely to advance is the one that can control their emotions and play good, clean baseball. On paper, that would appear to give the veteran-laden Aggies a slight advantage over the youthful Frogs.

However, this game isn't played on paper.  It will be decided between two very evenly matched teams in front of 6,000-plus Texas A&M fans.

Sit back and enjoy. This will be fun.