There are three schools that will clearly be the teams to beat in the Big 12 this season. Oklahoma has been ranked as high as No. 2 in some polls while Texas and Texas A&M both sit in the Top 15. Last weekend, the Aggies went into Norman and took 2 of 3 despite losing for Friday night starter (and potential first round draft pick John Stilson).
↵After losing 1-0 Friday night, A&M slugged past Oklahoma in the next two, winning by a combined score of 16-3. That's despite Oklahoma third baseman Garrett Buechele hitting his sixth home run of the season Sunday. Buechele is the son of former Texas Rangers third baseman Steve Buechele. He and teammate Cameron Seitzer (son of Kevin Seitzer) both share big-league bloodlines, but it hasn't been enough to stop an ugly tailspin recently. Oklahoma has now lost five of its last six after being undefeated in its first 16.
↵Texas, on the other hand, is sitting in first place of the Big 12 after sweeping Kansas State last weekend. The Longhorns figured to be led by a deep rotation of Taylor Jungmann and Cole Green. Neither has disappointed, as Jungmann has won all of his five starts. The junior has struck out 35 in 42 2/3 innings while walking four and allowing just three runs all season. The Longhorns are led offensively by true freshman Erich Weiss. The former Brenham standout is hitting .397/.552/.635 and leads the team in both RBIs (17) and total bases (40).
↵As for the Aggies, their Big 3 has been more impressive than Texas. Stilson, sophomore Michael Wacha and junior Ross Stripling have combined to give up just 11 earned runs in 98 2/3 innings. They have also struck out 107 and walked just 16. That's impressive stuff, considering Wacha was a reliever last season and Stripling was the Tuesday starter and came out of the bullpen to start this season.
↵Offensively, A&M relies more on speed than walks or home runs. Sophomore right fielder Tyler Naquin from Spring leads the team with a .392/.412/.608 batting line. Naquin only has one home run, but added six doubles and four triples. While he's not a standout offensively, second baseman Charlie Curl has one of the best baseball names I've come across in quite a while.
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