The Florida Gators will host the Texas A&M Aggies for a three-game series to start the SEC part of their schedule. Texas A&M comes into Florida Ballpark with a 15-4 record after knocking off the Houston Cougars 9-4 Tuesday night.
As for the Gators, Florida really struggled against their in-state rival in their only midweek game this week. Florida was blown out by the Florida State Seminoles 10-2 on the road. FSU has won the last two meetings against the Gators after Florida had won eleven straight against the Seminoles.
The Gators will need to forget about the ugly loss to Florida State and Texas A&M is a very good team and will be a tough test to open SEC play. The Aggies weren’t considered a top SEC team heading into the season but are starting to play like one.
Texas A&M Aggies
The Texas A&M Aggies will take on the Florida Gators in Gainesville and will be led by their head coach, Rob Childress. The Aggies head coach is in the middle of his15th season with Texas A&M.
The Aggies pitching staff will be led by their two-star southpaw pitchers Dustin Saenz and Jonathan Childress. Saenz is the projected Thursday starting pitcher for the Aggies. Saenz is off to a really nice start in his senior season. In four starts, Saenz has a 3-1 record with a 1.71 ERA, 2.05 RA/9, 0.95 WHIP, and a 12.3 K/9.
Right-handed pitcher Bryce Miller should get the start on Friday. Miller is coming off a solid performance against Samford. Miller threw four innings allowing four hits, two runs, three walks, and six strikeouts. Left-handed pitcher Jonathan Childress will close out the series for the Aggies on Saturday. Childress has a 2-1 record with a 1.11 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and a .179 opponent batting average.
As for the Aggies offense, they are off to a really nice start batting .286 as a team, that is eighth in the SEC. Senior first baseman Will Frizzell is currently the Aggies team leader in hitting.
Frizzell is batting .385 with 25 hits, five doubles, seven home runs, eighteen RBIs, a .785 slugging percentage, and a 1.266 OPS. Outfielder Logan Britt is also off to a nice start in his third season at Texas A&M. The 6’5” 210 pound Texas native is batting .339 with 19 hits, two doubles, three triples, three home runs, and a 1.046 OPS. Two other Aggies hitter watch are DH Austin Bost and outfielder Ray Alejo.
Florida Gators
The Florida Gators are back after losing to their in-state rivals, the Florida State Seminoles, on Tuesday. Florida comes into the series with a 13-5 record with wins versus Miami, Samford, Stetson, and Georgia State.
The Gators will feature the same weekend rotation as they have had all season. Junior right-handed pitcher Tommy Mace will be on the mound Thursday night. Mace has been terrific to start the 2021 season. In four starts, Mace has a 3-0 record with a 1.96 ERA, 0.74 WHIP, 12.1 K/9, and 1.6 BB/9.
Junior right-handed pitcher Jack Leftwich will get the start on Friday and freshman left-handed pitcher Hunter Barco will be on the mound for the series finale on Saturday. Leftwich has been really good this season with a 3-0 record, 1.82 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, and .148 opponent batting average. Barco is starting to look like his old self in his past few starts. Barco has a 2-1 record with a 5.95 ERA 13.3 K/9, 2.7 BB/9, and .237 opponent batting average.
The Florida Gators offense has been off to a nice start in the 2021 season. In fourteen games, Florida has scored 115 runs which ranks fourth in the country. The Gators are also averaging 8.2 runs per game which is ranked 38th in the country. The Gators also have a .305 team batting average that ranks 29th in the country.
The Gators' offense is hitting well heading into SEC play due to the production from their entire lineup and freshmen. Leadoff hitter Jacob Young leads Florida in hitting. Young is slashing .358/.407/.519 with 29 hits, ten doubles, one home run and a .926 OPS.
Second-year catcher Nathan Hickey has been really good to start the season and is coming off a four-hit game against Stetson. Hickey is slashing .328/.458/.609 with 21 hits, four home runs, team-high 21 RBIs and a 1.067 OPS.
Florida’s third baseman Kirby McMullen is coming off a big weekend in which he went 7-20 with four home runs. McMullen is batting .340 with sixteen hits, four home runs, ten RBIs and a 1.088 OPS. Two other Gators hitters to watch in this series are infielder Colby Halter and Jud Fabian. Expect to see Fabian DH this weekend as he’s dealing with a lower body injury and was the DH last game.
