Jim Schlossnagle shares how Texas A&M overcame slow start

Jim Schlossnagle is proud at how Texas A&M overcome their slow start in the Aggies’ 12-7 victory over Cal State Fullerton on Friday.

Will Johnston didn’t have his best outing for the Aggies, but Schlossnagle made sure to credit Shane Sdao for his effort in getting the game back on Texas A&M’s side while speaking to the media afterward.

“We haven’t made four errors in a week, or two weeks, much less in one game, so that’s an outlier game for us, from a defensive standpoint. But Will wasn’t commanding, I think he threw one off-speed pitch for a strike in his entire outing, and you know, give them credit, they got their bunts down, as Fullerton’s always going to do,” explained Schlossnagle. “Then they caught us, just when you think they’re bunting, they get a swing off. They have a good offense. They have a good team. I’m sure they’ll be heard from again in this tournament.

“So I think it was a bad day from Will, but Shane picked us up and the silver lining is Johnson will be more than available to pitch at some other point in this tournament, and he’s given us good outings before. So I’m sure we’ll need him again.”

As Schlossnagle mentioned, Johnston only pitched 1.2 innings for the Aggies on Friday, so he’ll certainly have another chance soon at redemption during the NCAA Baseball Tournament. Thankfully Sdao was able to push for four innings, amassing four strikeouts and giving up zero hits against Cal State Fullerton, and helping Texas A&M find victory.

On the offense side of the diamond, it was first baseman Jack Moss leading the way with three hits, adding two RBIs to his resume, as well. Additionally, outfielder Ryan Targac smacked a home run over the fence, which helped the Aggies get the victory on Friday.

Before the NCAA Baseball Tournament started, Schlossnagle claimed the Aggies were ready for whatever came their way, and they proved that on Friday.

“We’re built for any level of play,” Schlossnagle said. “We just played nine games in 11 days and six straight games in the SEC tournament, you know, being the first double-digit seed to make a championship, so you’re prepared for anything. I think the way we did that, we didn’t swing the bat that great. You know, I mean, we did a little bit yesterday, but we did it with pitching and defense.”

Moving forward, Texas A&M will be a tough team to beat, especially if you can’t catch them on a down afternoon.