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A&M BASEBALL
THURSDAY: A&M 7, Texas 3
RECORDS: A&M (42-16), UT (43-15)
NEXT: A&M vs. Kansas State, Big 12 Championship pool play, 10 a.m. Saturday
RADIO: WTAW, 1620 AM
NOTE: A&M qualifies for the Big 12 Championship title game if the Aggies beat Kansas State and Texas beats Nebraska on Saturday.
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OKLAHOMA CITY - Texas A&M head baseball coach Rob Childress is the first to admit not all of his blueprints work. His latest, however, helped the 11th-ranked Aggies finally beat their rivals.
A&M ended a four-game losing streak and an eight-game skid to Texas by shuffling up the order for a 7-3 victory over the No. 5 Longhorns in the Aggies (42-16) second game of pool play in the Big 12 Championship at Bricktown Ballpark on Thursday.
"I've drawn it up for the last month, and it hasn't worked out that way every time," Childress said. "But it was able to work out that way today. That's exactly what we had planned, and it's nice when it goes the way you've planned."
The second-year A&M coach inserted Dane Carter at second base and, more importantly, atop the batting order. Brandon Hicks, who had been the leadoff hitter since mid-February, dropped down to the No. 3 hole, and Blake Stouffer moved to cleanup. Luke Anders was pushed backed two spots to No. 6.
Childress says the lineup changes were something he and the coaching staff had considered for some time.
"We all felt it was time to shake some things up in the lineup, and it worked today," Childress said.
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AP Photo
Texas A&M's Kirkland Rivers gave up three runs on seven hits and five walks in 6 2/3 innings Thursday against Texas.
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But the A&M coaching staff's biggest move was giving the ball to left-handed reliever Kirkland Rivers - then asking him to take the Aggies deep into the game. For Rivers, it was just his second start in 22 appearances this season.
"We needed a good start, and he's been throwing well the last month," Childress said. "Every time you get to the postseason, you always get someone to step up and fill a role that maybe they haven't filled all year long, and today, it was Kirkland."
Rivers responded with 6 2/3 innings, throwing 127 pitches before handing over the reins to first-team all-Big 12 starter Kyle Nicholson, who retired all seven hitters he faced.
"I hadn't been that far in a game since probably high school," said Rivers, who lasted 4 1/3 innings longer than in any other outing this season. "I knew that I needed to throw well and deep into the game."
Despite all the Aggie changes, A&M's biggest blow came from its regular No. 5 hitter, catcher Craig Stinson, whose grand slam knifed through the wind over the left-field fence to put the Aggies up 6-2 in the third.
"To be honest with you, I didn't think it was gone, because the wind was blowing in pretty strong and I got jammed a little bit," Stinson said. "I'm just glad I came up big for my team and picked Stouffer up who has come through for us all year."
After surrendering the lead in the top of the inning, the Aggies responded by loading the bases with three singles.
Hicks then was hit by the first pitch he saw to plate Brian Ruggiano and square the game at 2.
Stouffer fouled out on the first pitch, then Stinson, a senior, deposited a change-up into the stands for his team-leading 11th homer and his first grand slam as an Aggie. Brodie Greene, Carter and Hicks trotted home in front of Stinson.
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AP Photo
Teammates congratulate Blake Stouffer (3) after his solo home run.
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Stouffer gave the Aggies an insurance run in the fifth with his ninth homer on a shot that clanged off the Chick-fil-A Fowl Pole in left field. It was also Stouffer's 72nd RBI.
The Longhorns got one run back in the seventh with three straight singles to right field. Bradley Suttle hit the third one, knocking in Kyle Russell and knocking out Rivers.
The damage could have been worse, but Chance Wheeless got caught going to second by third baseman Ruggiano after right fielder Greene threw to third on Wheeless' single.
Nicholson then got Preston Clark, who homered in the Longhorns' sweep of A&M last weekend, to ground out to Ruggiano.
Nicholson mowed down the Longhorns in order in the eighth and ninth, getting Kyle Russell on a called third strike end the game. Russell had homered off Nicholson last weekend.
"I think it was very courageous pitching by [Rivers]," Texas coach Augie Garrido said. "It speaks well for his spirit, and it was a good decision by their coaching staff to use their best pitcher to nail it down."
A&M struck first, seizing a lead for the first time in 22 innings, with Carter walking, moving to second on a two-strike sacrifice bunt by Ben Feltner, stealing third and then scoring on second baseman Travis Tucker's error.
"That allowed us to relax a little bit," Childress said. "I don't know what our stats are but more often than not when we score first we're going to win."
Texas had an opportunity to grab the lead first, leading off with a Jordan Danks' double. Danks, who has seven hits against the Aggies, was stranded at third when a one-out bunt by Wheeless failed to get him home and Suttle grounded out to shortstop.
"For me, the difference in the game started in the first inning," Garrido said. "We both had the same chance and they capitalized on it and we didn't."
A&M faces Kansas State at 10 a.m. Saturday in the Aggies' third and final game in pool play.
The Aggies can reach the tournament's championship game with a win and a Texas victory over Nebraska on Saturday.
However, if Nebraska beats Texas on Saturday, the Cornhuskers would advance to the title game, even if A&M beats Kansas State.
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