Game #4: No. 24 Texas A&M 8, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 3
Records: Texas A&M (4-0, 0-0), Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (4-1, 0-0)
WP: Ethan Darden (1-0)
LP: Nicho Crowley (0-1)
Box Score
The youth movement arrived at Blue Bell Park on Tuesday night.
And these kids are better than just alright.
In No. 24 Texas A&M’s 8-3 win over Corpus Christi, a trio of true freshmen left the ballpark to the delight of 5,385 as the promise of what could be was on full display.
Learn their names, for they are the future: Nico Partida, Boston Kellner and Jorian Wilson.
“The thing that helps is they are super talented,” A&M head coach Michael Earley said. “You got to have a certain level of talent to play in the SEC or any college baseball as a freshman, but they’ve also had some really good performances in practice where you feel good about putting them in there.
“Jorian’s still got another gear he can get to. The other two are on that gear trying to get to the next one, but they’re all super mature, and they work really hard.”
But the future is now.
Accounting for a third of A&M’s starting nine, the hardworking kids accounted for almost all of the offense.
First, it was Partida’s fourth-inning solo shot — his second of the year — that got the Aggies on the board and cut a 2-0 deficit in half.
In the sixth, Kellner’s first career home run was a two-run blast to put A&M up 3-2 momentarily.
An inning later, a new Hallettsville Hammer emerged as Wilson’s first collegiate hit threatened the right-field train tracks as a thunderous two-run homer traveled 387 feet to give the Maroon & White a 5-3 lead they would not relinquish.
“I’m not too sure what the pitch was, but I saw it, and I swung and just prayed for the best,” said Wilson, who started 0-for-3 with two strikeouts. “My team, they were building me up. I know it was a rough day out there on the baseball field, but they had my back the entire way, so I was confident going into that last AB.”
Each swing was big, matching the stature of all three rookies.
Wilson is decidedly the largest of the bunch. At 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, he looks as if he should be suiting up for Mike Elko. His upside is even bigger.
A three-time all-state pick from Pearland High School, Partida is comfortable and cool beyond his years at the hot corner.
An Arizona native, Kellner has five extra-base hits in his first four games while serving as A&M’s starting shortstop.
“Hopefully we end up being great,” Wilson said of his freshman class. “You never know, but in my opinion, I’m confident in us, and with the guys we got around us, we’re going to be pretty good.”
Partida, Kellner and Wilson produced A&M’s only runs until Bear Harrison’s solo home run kick-started a three-run eighth that turned a gritty come-from-behind effort into a comfortable evening.
“Resilience,” Earley said of his team as a whole. “Absolutely no panic. Kept grinding. Got on base when we needed to. Got the hits when we needed to get it, so that was a plus.
“That wasn’t a five-run game. That was tight. That was good for us to play in.”
Corpus Christi led early as Cade Sanchez and Noah Cassie hit back-to-back home runs on back-to-back Gavin Lyons pitches in the second.
From there, the second-year right-hander settled in and did not allow another run. Utilizing his cutter, Lyons tossed a career-best five innings and struck out a career-high six.
“I would say my night was pretty good,” Lyons said. “That is what’s expected out of me, and that’s what I expect of myself. I was just out there to compete today, and no matter what happened, I was just gonna keep battling and throwing strike one and go from there.”
Behind Lyons, lefty Ethan Darden surrendered the tying run on a hard-luck double during the second of his two frames before Juan Vargas and Clayton Freshcorn tossed scoreless innings to finish the night.
As midweek matchups with mid-majors occasionally can, Tuesday induced some anxiety as the timely hit eluded A&M for the first half of the game.
The Aggies were without Chris Hacopian for a second consecutive contest. SEC Player of the Week Caden Sorrell went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts. Wesley Jordan only had one hit.
Still, they persevered.
“We just want to be able to plug-and-play,” Earley said. “We’re playing, man. It don’t matter who’s on the field. There are two things you can do in a baseball game. You can win, or you can lose. If you’re in the game, we’re trying to win, and I thought those guys really battled and really grinded.”
As mature teams often do, the Aggies figured it out.
As for who led the way, don’t mistake inexperience for immaturity.
