Jim Schlossnagle details No. 21 A&M's showdown with Vandy in Music City

Jim Schlossnagle & Co. rolling into Nashville this weekend with a fair amount of momentum as No. 21 Texas A&M opens a three-game set with Vanderbilt on Thursday night. Ahead of the series opener, Schlossnagle joined TexAgs Radio to preview another crucial SEC showdown.

Key notes from Jim Schlossnagle interview

• I think it was good to have Tuesday off. We don't want to not play when we have an opportunity to play. Ryan Prager needed to pitch, but at the same time, guys are banged up. Vanderbilt didn't play in the midweek, so it’s good to be in the same situation as them.
   
• Vanderbilt puts a lot of pressure on you with their speed, the bunt game and the ability to play fundamental baseball. Arkansas had some of that, but they had more power. Vanderbilt plays a more aggressive, pressure style of baseball. They can hit the ball out of the ballpark, and the turf that they play on will come into play. They're playing with a lot of confidence after their series with Kentucky.
   
• Ideally, that's not the way we want to operate a starting rotation. In the long term, I'd like to have three legitimate starting pitchers that can stay in a routine, and Texas A&M should have three, well-defined starters. Guys in the bullpen should also have defined roles. With this roster being turned upside down and injuries, this is how we have had to work our staff. Ty Sexton and Khristian Curtis were two big injuries. Last week, I thought about giving Jacob Palisch the start, but on Friday night, we decided to fire our bullet then. We need Micah Dallas to give us more length in his start. Nathan Dettmer has been outstanding, and if you get two guys to do that, you feel better about Sunday. The plan right now is to attack them one at a time.
   
• The thing I asked from our team before we went to LSU was to show more competitive grit. Those first few weeks, we were just trying to find our way. That has become the identity of our team. I thought we'd catch it well on the infield, but then we lost our starting shortstop and third baseman. I thought we'd have a good offense if we could stay healthy, and that has proven to be true. This is a gritty bunch, and it's not always pretty. They found a way to win a ballgame on Sunday, and that's all you can ask. It doesn't get any easier, especially when you play Vanderbilt.
   
• I think Trevor Werner is feeling more comfortable. He played three straight days, so that was good. The ball isn't coming off the bat the way it was before the injury, but it's getting better each time out. Defensively, he makes us better, which is super important to the team and the coaching staff. He can run, so when he gets on base, he gives us some things that we don't have a ton of. It's nice to have him back.
   
• Austin Bost is a winning person from a winning family. He's a winning player. Whether he's in left field, second base or the DH, he is competitive. Sometimes you have the gear him back a little bit. He's a great Aggie, and it's nice to have a returning .300 hitter sitting in the six-hole. I think he still has more power there, and I don't know how much the back injury is impacting that. We'd love to have him back next year if professional baseball doesn't work out, and I think the numbers could be even better if that comes true.
   
• The Big 12 is a really good baseball conference, but you just don't have the atmospheres that you have in the SEC. You get that super-regional feel where every single pitch has so much weighing on it. I've seen summer league games at Vanderbilt, but I've never been part of a baseball game here. It will be new to me. It's very quaint and unique. I'm hoping it's a great crowd because all that does is prepare us for some level of postseason if we go out and earn that.
   
• You have to stay in the middle. This game will humble you so fast. You have to keep your blinders on. Don't take the cheese when things are going well. There is no one weekend that will define the team. The whole season will tell us who we are. This program is in no position to talk about anything other than making the SEC Tournament. That will be a step forward, and anything above that will be a little extra. The mental game is so important because you're going to get punched, and you're always going to deal with two things: Adrenaline and adversity.
   
• We were looking for good players, and we ended up with Troy Claunch, who went to the College World Series, Jacob Palisch, who has super regional experience, and Jack Moss, who played in a regional last year, among others. Our coaching staff has made multiple trips to the College World Series, and Nate Yeskie and Nolan Cain have been part of national championship teams. We're excited about the makeup of this club.