UTSA Baseball Run Rules Charlotte Twice, Leading to Series Win Ahead of Mid-Week Game Against #3 Texas A&M

It was another successful conference weekend for the Roadrunners. The weekend did open with a disappointing Friday night loss against the 49ers by the score of 10-5. UTSA refreshed and regrouped in a big way for the remainder of the weekend. With the bats coming alive and mostly solid pitching, the Roadrunners got their first two run-ruled wins of the season. The 14-4 and 13-1 wins led to UTSA’s third conference series win in as many tries. They now sit atop the conference standings, leading into a big Tuesday matchup. More on that in a bit. 

The Good… 

Across the two wins, the Roadrunners scored in almost every way possible. They were patient at the plate, hit the ball hard, and found the long ball multiple times. While only getting double-digit hits in one of the three games, they used base-on-balls and hit-by-pitches to bump up everyone’s on base percentage and pressure the Charlotte pitching staff. Across the three games, the Roadrunners reached base either by walk or hit by pitch 25 times. 

UTSA got a few players back this weekend. Fans saw Isaiah Walker in the lineup against UIW on Tuesday and Lorenzo Morresi returned this weekend against Charlotte. Walker drew two walks on Friday, and Morresi had a big day at the plate on Sunday, going 2-3 with five RBIs and three runs. The highlight of the day for Morresi was his first UTSA home run, with two runners on. Speaking of first, Ty Tilson also hit his first UTSA home run, a clutch three-run shot with one out that padded the Roadrunners’ lead. Hector Rodriguez also continues to find his bat. Highlighted by a perfect day at the plate on Saturday, Rodriguez collected seven hits and five RBIs while scoring four runs. 

Although the pitching across the weekend wasn’t perfect, and individual guys struggled at times, it was still a plus in multiple ways. What looked like it may be a wind-aided slugfest on Saturday quieted down. In two games, the UTSA pitching staff and defense held Charlotte to half as many runs as they allowed in Friday’s game. Even on Friday, the pitching staff worked out of jams and stayed composed despite a higher WHIP. Uli Quiroga continues to look solid since returning to the mound. With two run-ruled shortened games, UTSA finished the weekend using four pitchers on Saturday and Sunday. After walking eleven total batters through the first two games, only two 49er players reached base-on-balls on Sunday. 

While Friday wasn’t the best day for the outfield, the defense improved on Saturday and Sunday. Caleb Hill tracked down a nice ball in the gap and hopped to catch one on the warning track. In the infield, Zane Spinn dazzled at times, and Ryan Beaird had a web gem PFP self-put-out Friday night. When this team stays out of their way in the field, they can compete with anyone. 

The Not So Good…

For one of the few times this season, the outfield seemed out of sorts on Friday. Since I was watching Friday’s game from home, I’m not sure how much of a factor the wind played in these moments. Mason Lytle appeared to misread a hard-hit ball that bounced off the wall and allowed three runners to score. Later that evening, Hill and Lytle lost a ball in the sky in the seventh that scored one, and Hill (playing deep due to the wind) just missed coming up with the ball on a diving catch. Six of Charlotte’s ten runs came on those three plays. It is nothing to be overly worried about. The miscues were put to bed with the play for the remainder of the weekend. 

While UTSA got players back the past week, they, unfortunately, saw Tye Odom leave Friday with an apparent ankle injury. Attempting the double steal, Odom appeared to slip following the tag and grimaced after the fall. Odom is expected to miss some time, but it sounds like it wasn’t the worst result possible. Going back to Friday’s game, despite the bump, this outfield may be one of the best trios (certainly amongst mid-majors) in College Baseball when at 100%. 

The UTSA pitchers won full count at-bats several times over the weekend. Across the three games, Charlotte drew a full count thirteen times. This drives up the pitch count, and it creates undesired laboring early in the game at times. Credit to the pitching staff for working out of it for most of the series. At the same time, if it limits the long ball, that isn’t the worst result. 

Though limited on Saturday and Sunday, UTSA gave up a lot of chain-hitting Friday night. Like the full-count at-bats, this can wear down a pitcher, extend the inning for the defensive players in the field, and swing the momentum toward the opponent’s direction. As I mentioned, the Roadrunners prevented this much more in the final two games of the series. 

Looking Ahead… 

The Roadrunners will undoubtedly be feeling good going into Tuesday’s match-up in College Station. What awaits them is a much improved Texas A&M team that is ranked number three in the nation. The Aggies also certainly have not forgotten last year’s midweek game. Almost to the date, UTSA left College Station last year with a commanding 5-1 victory. 

The two teams have almost flipped last year’s starts. Last year, the Aggies struggled through the first part of the season. This year, UTSA got off to a slow start. In 2023, UTSA took a 25-8 record into the game, while this year, the Aggies are 28-4. 

Texas A&M managed to get through non-conference play undefeated. They have slowed down slightly but have only lost four games across the last month. It will be interesting to see how both teams approach the matchup. The top-five opponent on the road will help UTSA’s RPI regardless, but a win could give them a big bump. With the Aggies in the SEC and playing well, the outcome won’t impact them as much. It will be the first of four road games across six days for UTSA.

At the plate, A&M has six batters hitting above .300, all with over 130 plate appearances. They have three players with double-digit home runs. Braden Montgomery leads the team with seventeen, center fielder Jace Laviolette has thirteen, and Gavin Grahovac has eleven and plays third base. Montgomery may be a familiar name to some. He was on the Stanford team that UTSA defeated in a Monday game at the Bird Bath in 2022. A transfer that helped the Aggies have the number four transfer class in Division 1, Montgomery has been on an absolute tear this season. Although he has pitched in the past, he has only logged two innings this season while he’s focused on his production at the plate. 

As potent as the offense is, the pitching staff is just as dangerous. They are bringing a combined 3.26 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP into the game. The staff also has an impressive 12 K/9 to just 3.1 BB/9. UTSA has done an excellent job getting to solid pitching this season, but this may be the best pitching staff they have faced to date. It’s anybody’s guess who the Aggies will start on Tuesday. Outside their weekend starters, Chris Cortez has the highest start to appearance combination paired with the best ERA in the category. If the Aggies aren’t looking to use their core pitchers outside of conference play, getting off to a quick offensive start could be beneficial. 

To be a broken record, anything can happen in mid-week games. Facing such a formidable opponent, I would like to see some of the fire and fight UTSA has shown recently. The potential is there if you play smart, hard, and tough baseball. On paper, the stats are the stats. Tuesday evening will tell how that translates. 

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