Tag Archives: Michael Earley

College baseball: No. 1 Texas A&M opens today under first-year coach Michael Earley

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

The Texas A&M Aggies open a baseball season with national title hopes tonight, playing at home against Elon College of North Carolina.

The top-ranked Aggies will enter the new year led by a first-year coach, Michael Earley, who was promoted from his assistant’s post to take over for Jim Schlossnagle.

Schlossnagle sparked outrage in Aggieland last summer as he left College Station to take the head coaching job in Austin. He made the move within days after leading A&M to the finals of the Men’s College World Series.

Initially, Earley was expected to join his former boss on the UT staff, but A&M coaxed him to come back to College Station as the Aggies head coach.

Now he leads a team headlined by outfielder Jace LaViolette, infielder Gavin Grahovac, Penn transfer and infielder Wyatt Henseler and pitcher Ryan Prager, who is expected to start on the mound for the Aggies tonight.

Four teams from the state are ranked in the Top 25 of the D1 Baseball poll, including A&M at No. 1, Texas (19th), Dallas Baptist (20th) and TCU (23rd).

Tonight, the Longhorns open under Schlossnagle in Arlington, at Globe Life Field, against the Louisville Cardinals. The Patriots host North Dakota State and the Horned Frogs start on the road against the University of San Diego.

Locally, the UTSA Roadrunners open today in Arlington against the UT Arlington Mavericks. Also, the Incarnate Word Cardinals play host to Saint Peter’s (N.J.), and the San Marcos-based Texas State Bobcats host Binghamton (N.Y.)

Editor’s note: Please see The JB Replay’s list of athletes from San Antonio-area high schools on NCAA Division I baseball rosters. The list, an annual research project of this news outlet, is likely not inclusive of all San Antonio area players. It will be updated when new information comes to light.

UTSA

Jordan Ballin, freshman infielder from Boerne Champion High School
Josh Vaughn, junior infielder from Clark High School
Whitt Joyce, sophomore catcher from Lytle, Medina Valley High School
Ryan Jester, redshirt freshman pitcher from Bracken Christian

Texas State

Cole Tabor, junior infielder from Reagan, transfer from Temple JC
Ryne Farber, sophomore infielder from Johnson High School
Matthew Tippie, senior pitcher from Wimberley, Angelina College
Rocco Garza-Gongora, junior outfielder-infielder from Laredo Alexander, Oklahoma
Jackson Teer, redshirt senior pitcher from Johnson
Carson Laws, junior pitcher from Clark High School, Midland College
Rashawn Galloway, junior catcher from Boerne High School
Zachary Gingrich, freshman outfielder from Smithson Valley High School
Tyler Walton, freshman pitcher from San Antonio Johnson High School
Kutter Webb, freshman infielder from San Marcos High School

Virginia

Will Broderick, freshman catcher/outfielder from Alamo Heights

Vanderbilt

Tristan Bristow, freshman pitcher from Harlan High School

Texas

Jalin Flores, junior infielder from Brandeis High School
Ruger Riojas, junior pitcher from Wimberley High School and UTSA

Baylor

Andrew Petrowski, redshirt senior from Clark High School and San Jacinto College
Brytton Clements, freshman infielder from Laredo Alexander

TCU

Anthony Silva, junior infielder from Clark High School
Cohen Feser, redshirt junior pitcher from Reagan High School
Mason Bixby, sophomore pitcher from Johnson High School
Jacob Silva, freshman catcher from Clark High School

Incarnate Word

Isaiah Zavala, grad student pitcher from Southwest High School
EJ Garcia, sophomore pitcher from New Braunfels Canyon
AJ Herrera, freshman catcher from Central Catholic
Rey Mendoza, grad student outfielder from Eagle Pass
Julio Riggs, grad student infielder from Boerne High School

Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

Chad Pantuso, freshman utility player from Johnson High School
Chance Reisdorph, senior catcher from New Braunfels Canyon High School
Zach Garcia, senior pitcher from New Braunfels High School
Alberto Santos IV, freshman pitcher from San Marcos High School

UT Rio Grande Valley

Austin Stracener, redshirt junior infielder from New Braunfels Canyon; Texas A&M, Baylor and Texas State
Evan Janner, sophomore outfielder from New Braunfels Canyon
Francisco Hernandez, redshirt senior pitcher from Laredo Alexander
Arturo Garcia, freshman pitcher from Laredo United South High School
Emir Encalada, junior pitcher from Laredo Alexander High School

Wichita State

Camden Johnson, sophomore infielder from Boerne High School

Tarleton State

Jack Burcham, senior pitcher from Reagan High School
Ryan Beaird, senior pitcher from Reagan High School, UTSA

Duke

Edward Hart, junior pitcher from Alamo Heights High School

Lamar

Coleson Abel, junior pitcher from Kerrville Tivy, Lubbock Christian
Aiden Baumann, junior outfielder from New Braunfels High School, UTSA

Houston

David Stich, redshirt junior pitcher from Boerne, San Antonio Cornerston Christian

Sam Houston State

Connor Zaruba, sophomore pitcher from Yoakum High School; McLennan College

Stephen F. Austin

Dylan Hummel, junior infielder from Madison High School and Coastal Bend Community College

College World Series-finalist Texas A&M names Michael Earley as head baseball coach

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By Jerry Briggs
Special for The JB Replay

Michael Earley has been named the head baseball coach at Texas A&M to cap a wild six days since an Aggies rally fell short in the national title game.

Last Monday night, the Aggies lost to the Tennessee Volunteers 6-5 in Omaha to end their best season. By Tuesday, the head coach who led team to the brink of their first title accepted a job to become the head coach of the rival Texas Longhorns.

Jim Schlossnagle was introduced as head coach of the Longhorns in Austin last Wednesday. On the same day, the Longhorns announced that three Aggies assistants — including Earley — would also make the move to Texas.

All that changed over the last few days as the Aggies pursued Earley, an Indiana native, who had built a reputation as a hitting coach at both Arizona State and Texas A&M.

At Arizona State, Earley was credited with helping slugger Spencer Torkelson become a No. 1 overall pick in the Major League Baseball draft.

At A&M, Earley served as the hitting coach for the Aggies for the past three seasons, helping the squad to two College World Series appearances. In his tenure, he developed Texas A&M into one of the most powerful and potent offenses in the Southeastern Conference.

This season, the Aggies were led by sluggers Jace LaViolette, Braden Montgomery and Gavin Grahovac, and they set program records for home runs with 136 and walks with a nation-leading 422. In the last three seasons, the Aggies have belted 306 homers, 704 extra-base hits and have reached base on 1,178 walks.

“Michael is a very talented coach and recruiter, but what stood out to me was his character and the relationships he has built with his current and former players,” Texas A&M athletic director Trev Alberts said in a release.

Earley was an All-Big Ten player at Indiana University. In 2010, he batted .352 with 13 home runs and was the only player in the conference to reach double-digits in home runs and stolen bases.

He was selected by the Chicago White Sox in the 29th round of the 2010 MLB Draft and played six seasons in the White Sox organization, reaching the Triple-A level with the Charlotte Knights. He completed his professional career with the Southern Illinois Miners in the independent Frontier League in 2015.

“My family and I couldn’t be more excited for this opportunity,” said Earley, who thanked administrators for the opportunity.

“For putting your trust in me,” he said. “Being a part of this university and this program are a dream come true. I will not let you down. See you in Omaha!”

Next season, the Longhorns will join the Aggies in the SEC. The two bell-weather programs in the state will reunite as conference rivals for the first time since a decades-old rivalry developed in the Southwest Conference and the Big 12.

The Aggies fled the Big 12 and started play in the SEC in all sports in the 2012-13 academic year.