This is What Led Texas Baseball's Collapse vs. Texas A&M

Texas baseball fans have seen this show before.

The bullpen — once considered one of the deepest units in the country — has had its share of late-game collapses this season. First Ole Miss, then Auburn, then another stumble in Houston. It became a frustrating trend for a Texas team that, at times, simply couldn’t hold a lead.

The narrative had quieted after strong showings against Oklahoma and South Carolina.

On Friday night, it came right roaring back.

In a game the Longhorns controlled for several competitive stretches, a disastrous middle-to-late innings collapse from the bullpen flipped the script, allowing Texas A&M to surge ahead and take Game 1 with a 9-8 victory at Blue Bell Park.

Different game, same story

Texas pitcher Max Grubbs (38) throws a pitch in game two of the Big 12 baseball series. | Chase Seabolt/For the Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK

Usually, elite pitching outlasts elite hitting.

On paper, that leaned heavily in Texas’ favor. The Longhorns entered the night with a 3.07 ERA, while Texas A&M starter Shane Sdao had struggled in SEC play, carrying an ERA north of 9.00 in conference outings.

While undoubtedly still very talented, Texas had every opportunity to take advantage of the left-hander’s SEC struggles. And that supposed No. 2 best pitching team in the nation? They were meant to hold up just fine against an elite Aggie lineup.

But they didn’t. And it cost them.

The Longhorns traded blows with the Aggies through the first five innings, highlighted by a two-run home run from Aiden Robbins in the fifth and another blast from Carson Tinney in the sixth to put Texas up 6-4.

But everything unraveled in the sixth — a sentence that’s becoming all too familiar.

A leadoff walk from Ruger Riojas forced a move to the bullpen, and it all went downhill from there. Three different Texas pitchers combined to issue a string of free passes, loading the bases without a hit. Texas A&M capitalized with two bases-loaded walks and a sacrifice fly from Gavin Grahovac to reclaim a lead they would not let up for the rest of the night.

Brett Crossland continued to battle command in the seventh, issuing — you guessed it — more walks and hitting Texas A&M batter Terrence Kiel II in the helmet. Another sacrifice fly extended the Aggies’ lead, forcing Texas to play from behind the rest of the night.

In total, Texas A&M scored nine runs on just seven hits — with four runs coming directly off free passes.

Riojas wasn’t dominant, but he was far from the primary issue. The right-hander battled through five-plus innings, limiting hard contact for stretches and giving Texas a chance to win. Still, a few well-timed Aggie swings — combined with some costly defensive lapses behind him — kept the game within reach for the home team.

The bullpen did the rest to secure the win for A&M.

To its credit, the offense didn’t go quietly. Robbins and Anthony Pack Jr. delivered back-to-back solo home runs to cut the deficit to one in the ninth, bringing the tying run to the plate and injecting life into the dugout.

But the rally ended there, as Temo Becerra popped out to seal the loss.

Friday night collapses have become a familiar storyline for this Texas team. But fortunately for the Longhorns, they have a knack for responding, already bouncing back from a series-opening loss in three of four SEC series this season.

They’ll look to do it again Saturday when Game 2 begins at 2 p.m. CT.

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