Texas A&M secured its spot in the Men’s College World Series for the second time in three seasons last weekend after defeating Oregon to win the College Station Super Regional.
As the Aggies look forward to their upcoming MCWS opener, they’ve had to prepare without one of their strongest assets — second baseman Braden Montgomery, who was injured during the first inning of the final game of their super regional matchup.
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The injury occurred when Montgomery attempted to score from second base against the Ducks when he was tagged out by Oergon catcher Bennett Thompson on an awkward slide into home plate. Immediately favoring his lower right leg after the slide, the Texas A&M training staff secured Montgomery in an air cast before taking him to the locker room, from where he would not return.
“You never want to see anybody go down like that, but especially Braden right there,” outfielder Jace LaViolette said. “That was really tough. Even in the moment that was really, really, really hard for the dugout to kind of stay in. You kind of felt the dugout kind of — it was like we had something in our stomach. You could feel it, right?
“We just kind of had to realize what was important. We always say what’s important now, right? The most important thing right there was winning that ball game. Now we have to look at it like, I mean, I think the whole team has the utmost trust in every single person that comes off the bench. We all know we’re ready to play.”
LaViolette said he would be foolish to say that the Aggies won’t be missing him in Omaha this week. He continued by saying that it’s been a complete team effort during the Men’s College World Series and while Montgomery was a star in his role — he’s confident that guys like Kaeden Kent will come in and step up on college baseball’s brightest stage.
However, losing someone as productive as Montgomery is a tough pill to swallow for Texas A&M. Before his season ended prematurely, Montgomery had been one of the most productive players in the country this season. He finished the season batting .322 including 27 home runs while knocking in 85 RBIs. He also had an OPS well over 1.000, proving he was not only getting on base but recording extra-base hits consistently.
“Every guy has to step up now, “Aggies third baseman Gavin Grahovac said. “So whoever is coming off the bench is going to play. Like you saw the other day, Kaeden Kent, big swing, big plays. We’re going to have a great time, and Braden is going to be here with us.”
While Montgomery will be left to cheer his team on from the dugout, Texas A&M will begin its journey in Omaha on Saturday against a familiar face — the Florida Gators. The first pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET and will air live on ESPN.
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