Texas A&M baseball returns to Blue Bell Park on Friday and will be a first look at the team Michael Earley is putting together for his third season in College Station.
The Aggies will host Rice at 6 p.m. CT on October 2 before welcoming McNeese on October 16 at 7 p.m. CT. Admission to both fall exhibitions is free, and each game falls on the evening before a home football game, giving fans another reason to make a weekend of their trip to Aggieland.
A&M returns 15 letterwinners from last season’s NCAA tournament team while adding transfers and a freshman class ranked No. 8 nationally by Perfect Game. Earley now gets a chance to see those groups compete together against someone outside his own roster.
The changes extend to the coaching staff. Earley
hired former major league pitcher Barry Enright to lead the pitching staff and brought Nolan Cain back from Texas as associate head coach and recruiting coordinator. Enright brings professional coaching experience, while Cain returns to a program he helped recruit and develop during A&M’s College World Series runs in 2022 and 2024. Fall ball gives the staff time to get its approach in place before the spring
One important piece for Enright is Clayton Freshcorn, who chose to return rather than begin his professional career after the St. Louis Cardinals selected him in the 19th round of the MLB draft. Freshcorn finished last season with a 2.82 ERA over 54 1/3 innings and recorded 12 saves, tying for the third-most in a season in program history.
His return gives the Aggies an experienced option late in games, but fall ball is also about figuring out who can handle the innings before him. The exhibitions should give Enright opportunities to evaluate his pitching depth while the staff tests different defensive combinations and gets the newcomers at-bats.
There is no reason to put too much weight on an exhibition result. However, how the Aggies throw strikes, handle routine plays and approach their at-bats should provide a better picture of what still needs work before the spring.
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This article originally appeared on Aggies Wire: Texas A&M baseball fall schedule and preview ahead of 2027
