Game #48: Missouri 9, Texas A&M 6
Records: Texas A&M (27-21, 10-15), Missouri (14-35, 1-24)
WP: Xavier Lovett (2-2)
LP: Kaiden Wilson (0-2)
Box Score
Not even the explosions of a postgame fireworks display could drown out the sounds of an implosion heard around the college baseball world.
Leading 6-1 after three and up 6-3 entering the ninth, Texas A&M allowed previously-winless-in-conference Missouri to storm back with a six-run outburst on Friday night.
The 9-6 defeat is a major bomb to the Aggies and their postseason hopes.
"We didn't play good baseball," A&M head coach Michael Earley said. "We kicked it. We haven't played like that in a long time. It's unfortunate it happened right now."
A crowd of 6,521 at Blue Bell Park couldn't believe their eyes.
Like a car crash, they couldn't look away as the cruise-control Aggies slammed head-on into a devastating loss.
"Our backs have been up against the wall all year, and they're really up against it now," Earley said. "We got to come out tomorrow and play better baseball."
Again, up a trio of runs, Weston Moss sought the final three outs of what could have been a three-inning save.
"We didn't play good baseball. We kicked it. We haven't played like that in a long time. It's unfortunate it happened right now."
- A&M head coach Michael Earley
Instead, Keegan Knutson's single, Jedier Hernandez's walk and Gehrig Goldbeck's hit-by-pitch chased the right-handed reliever.
Further, southpaw Kaiden Wilson failed to prevent catastrophe as he allowed all three inherited runners to score before being charged with a trio himself — only one of which was earned.
"Just not enough strikes," Earley lamented of Moss and Wilson. "Just not enough strikes. Period. Hitting guys. Got to throw strikes, and they've done that, but they didn't do it today, and they've got to be better."
In a six-run ninth, Missouri needed just three hits to go along with three walks, the hit-by-pitch and a costly Kaeden Kent error to inflict maximum pain on the Aggies.
Kaden Peer's two-run double tied the contest before a pair scored on Kent's miscue. The Tigers added another insurance marker on a wild pitch.
Of course, desperately needing to respond to avoid disaster, the Aggies went quietly in the bottom half as former A&M right-hander Xavier Lovett vultured a victory.
"It'll be alright," outfielder Jace LaViolette said. "It's obviously not fun right now, but we'll be back here tomorrow, ready to play and ready to work our tail off again and trying to get back on the right side of this thing."
Friday's fall from grace is so stunning for multiple reasons.
For much of the last five weeks, the Aggies have played like one of the nation's elite, claiming series from a trio of clubs ranked No. 2 or higher.
Even on Friday, they appeared to be on cruise control toward an all-important 11th SEC win.
LaViolette homered in the first and again in the third as the Aggies homered four times in the first three innings.
Wyatt Henseler also jumped the yard before Blake Binderup's three-run blasted staked Ryan Prager to a 6-1 lead.
After Mizzou starter Brady Kehlenbrink departed, the Aggies did not score again as Earley noticed a change in his club's collective approach.
TexAgs
In likely his last start at Blue Bell Park, Ryan Prager was handed a no-decision after allowing three runs over six innings.
"We got out of our play," Earley said. "You see guys starting to do stuff offensively, so you try to do too much. We got completely outside of the plan past the third inning. We swung at balls. We swung at ball four. We got out of the way of pitches that could've hit us, and we didn't play a complete game.
"We did not play a complete game. It wasn't the ninth. It was that middle of the game where we had opportunities, and we had just really bad at-bats."
Beyond the first three innings, A&M mustered just two hits and moved only one runner into scoring position, with nobody reaching third base.
Still, before the final frame, the biggest Tiger swing was Jackson Lovich's two-run shot off Prager in the fifth.
That made it 6-3, which should have been enough vs. the SEC cellar dwellers.
Yet another blow to the egos in Aggieland is that the Maroon & White again wasted a quality start from their ace in what figures to be Prager's final home start of his career.
The left-hander finished his day with seven strikeouts in 108 pitches across six innings, allowing three runs on seven hits.
"It always sucks just losing a game. No matter what," LaViolette said. "But yeah, that hurts a little bit more, and I bet it hurts a little bit more for (Prager). We can just use it as fire and hopefully get back on the right side of things tomorrow."
Postgame, the Aggies were eerily quiet and understandably at a loss for words.
At times, silence can be deafening.
Whatever response the Aggies have in store must be so loud that it carries through the end of the weekend and into next week against Georgia.
That's the only way A&M will be able to make any noise this postseason.
