LAS CRUCES, N.M. – The New Mexico State baseball team is set to open its 2019 season with a four-game series this weekend. The Aggies welcome Texas Southern to Presley Askew Field with the season-opener scheduled for 4:05 p.m. MT on Friday, Feb. 15.
 
PROBABLE STARTERS
Friday, Feb. 15 at 4:05 p.m.
NM State: Brock Whittlesey | RHP
Texas Southern: Aron Solis | RHP
 
Saturday, Feb. 16 at 12:05 p.m. (Game 1)
NM State: Justin Dehn | RHP
Texas Southern: Mason Furlong | RHP
 
Saturday, Feb. 16 at 3:45 p.m. (Game 2)
NM State: Chris Jefferson | RHP
Texas Southern: Alex Carrillo | RHP
 
Sunday, Feb. 17 at 12:05 p.m.
NM State: TBA
Texas Southern: Noe Guerrero III | RHP
 
GET YOUR SEASON TICKETS NOW!
With the start of the 2019 season, Aggie fans can be a part of the action for all 33 home games, including four doubleheaders, with the purchase of their season tickets. New Mexico State baseball season tickets are available for just $75 general admission and $100 for reserved seats. Fans looking to purchase can visit Ticketmaster or call the Pan Am ticket office at (575) 646-1420.
 
GAMEDAY PROMOTION
The season opening weekend at Presley Askew Field features plenty of great game day promotions for all Aggie fans who attend. The season opener on Friday, Feb. 15, has a hat giveaway of a crimson Aggie hat to be given to the first 100 fans in the stadium. Friday also features one-dollar popcorn at the concession stand.
 
After giving the great gift of extra baseball with two games for the price of one, Sunday's series finale welcomes Bark in the Park. All Aggie fans are invited to bring their friendly canines to The 'Skew and along with the opportunity to bring your dogs, the concession stand is offering one-dollar hot dogs.
 
GET CONNECTED
Get up to the minute information and news about the NM State baseball team all season on Twitter, and Instagram by following @NMStateBaseball and on Facebook.com/NMSUAthletics.
 
LIVE STATS
Live stats are available for all 33 of NM State's home games this season. Those looking to follow along with the stats can access each game on StatBroadcast or by visiting the team's schedule page online.
 
WHERE TO WATCH
Fans who are looking to watch the action live can stream the contests on Friday and Sunday each through the WAC Digital Network. A link can also be found on the team's schedule page.
 
LISTEN UP!
Aggie fans that can't make it to the game can listen to Adam Young (@youngpbp) for the games on Friday night and Sunday afternoon on 91.5 FM KRUX. Fans can also listen to the game live with their mobile or tablet device on the TuneIn app for free by searching KRUX or by using the link on the team's schedule page online.
 
TAKING A LOOK AT TEXAS SOUTHERN
Texas Southern is coming off of three Southwestern Athletic Conference titles in the last four years and the team was tabbed as the SWAC Western Division favorite in the preseason polls. The Tigers also saw Friday's starter Aron Solis selected as the SWAC Preseason Pitcher of the Year and Christian Sanchez voted as SWAC Preseason Player of the Year.
 
Solis, a first-team choice on the All-SWAC preseason team, is coming off a 2018 season where he posted a 10-4 record while striking out 69 batters on his way to a 3.67 ERA. He threw 90 2/3 innings, second-most in the conference.

Sanchez led the league with 17 home runs and was second in the SWAC with 60 runs batted in. The senior slugger hit .335 last season, adding 13 doubles and boasting a .651 slugging percentage while stealing 12 bases.

TSU's Olajide Oloruntimilehin was named to the preseason All-SWAC Second-Team. Last season, Oloruntimilehin batted .288 with 15 extra-base knocks and 29 RBI over 48 games played. The senior also added 10 stolen bases on fourteen attempts.
 
The Tigers 2018 season saw the team win the SWAC title and advance to the NCAA Regionals with a 27-28 overall record and 17-6 mark in conference play. TSU used its speed to score 370 runs and wreak havoc on the base paths with 115 stolen bases.
 
LOAD 'EM UP
Of the 35 active players on the NM State roster, 17 have transferred in from the junior college ranks the past two seasons. The Aggies are not short of any experience heading into this season, boasting 12 seniors and 11 juniors on the opening-day roster. Four sophomores and eight freshmen round out the roster for fifth-year head coach Brian Green.
 
MAKING HISTORY
Following last season, right-handed pitcher Kyle Bradish was selected in the fourth round, pick 121 by the Los Angeles Angels. The early selection marked the highest drafted Aggie in NM State baseball's history.
 
This was the third year in a row an Aggie had been taken in the first six rounds. The junior joined former teammates Marcel Renteria drafted in the sixth round by the New York Mets in 2017 and Daniel Johnson taken during the fifth round by the Washington Nationals in 2016. Six NM State players have now been drafted in the first 10 rounds of the MLB Draft in school history.
 
RECORD SETTING SEASON IN 2018
After an impressive statistical year in 2018, NM State and its players set multiple program records. Kyle Bradish set a new record for strikeouts (140) that had stood since 1991 when Albert Montoya had 107. Brock Whittlesey snapped a record held by three Aggie closers as he set the new single-season mark in saves (12) and Jonathan Groff topped five former Aggies setting a new record in wins (11). At the plate, Tristen Carranza was disciplined and got plunked so many times he set a new record for hit by pitch (21).
 
As a team, the Aggies broke the record from 2009 for strikeouts in a season (537), set a new single-season record for hit by pitch (119) and broke a record set last year for fielding percentage (.977).
 
AGGIES DUBBED RUNNER-UP IN PRESEASON POLL
On the Western Athletic Conference preseason coaches' poll, the 2018 WAC Tournament Champion NM State Aggies were picked to finish in second, receiving three first-place votes. Grand Canyon was selected as the preseason champion garnering five first-place votes and Sacramento State was right behind the Aggies picked third and received the remaining two first-place votes.
 
The remainder of the poll featured Seattle U picked to finish fourth, Cal Baptist and UT Rio Grande Valley tied for fifth, CSU Bakersfield selected for seventh, Northern Colorado took eighth, followed by Utah Valley and Chicago State in ninth and tenth, respectively.
 
WAC-LEADING SIX AGGIES EARN PRESEASON HONORS
New Mexico State led all conference opponents in Preseason All-WAC Team selections with six and Brock Whittlesey was projected as the WAC Pitcher of the Year.
 
A strong contingent of Aggies on the All-WAC team featured Braden Williams earning the nod at catcher for his senior season. The Irving, Texas native had a strong first season behind the plate with the Crimson & White with a 1.000 fielding percentage and was a perfect 9-for-9 on catching runners stealing.
 
Next up on the all-conference team was first baseman Caleb Henderson. Henderson is coming off an impressive junior campaign that saw the slugger set the new program record with 62 games played. The first baseman bat .341 with a team-high 10 home runs and ranked 25^th in the nation with 65 runs batted in. The impressive numbers also saw Henderson earn an All-WAC First-Team honor at the end of the 2018 season.
 
Remaining in the infield, Aggie second baseman Nick Gonzales earned the All-WAC team nod after a stellar freshman campaign. Gonzales led the Aggies with a .347 batting average with 28 extra-base hits and 36 RBI. The Vail, Ariz. native was named to the All-WAC First-Team and was NM State's first ever WAC Freshman of the Year. The accolades did not stop there at season's end, however, as the second baseman was also named to five freshman All-American teams.
 
Joey Ortiz anchors the Aggies strong middle infield and was honored as the All-WAC team shortstop heading into 2019. Last season, Ortiz was named to the All-WAC First-Team to conclude the regular season after posting a .289 batting average with 54 RBI. Ortiz' strong play is also highlighted by his fielding and last season the shortstop posted a .970 fielding percentage with 175 assists, 87 putouts and 29 double plays turned.
 
Moving to the outfield, last year's WAC Tournament MVP, Tristen Carranza, earned a preseason honor to open up his senior season. In 2018, Carranza posted a .325 batting average with nine homers and 53 RBI. Disciplined at the plate, he also ranked ninth in the country in hit by pitch with a total of 21 to set the new NM State program record in a single season.
 
Whittlesey earned the nod from the Aggies pitching staff, as well as being voted the WAC Preseason Pitcher of the Year. Whittlesey is moving to a starting role after a phenomenal 2018 season as the Aggies closer. Last year, the right-handers new program record of 12 saves also ranked 24^th in the NCAA. A stellar set of outings in the postseason also earned Whittlesey a spot on the All-WAC Tournament team.
 
LOOKING BACK AT 2018
The New Mexico State baseball squad wrapped up another historic season in 2018 that saw the team finish 40-22 with a 17-7 mark in Western Athletic Conference play. The Aggies won their first ever WAC Tournament title and advanced to the NCAA Regionals for the first time since 2012.
 
At season's end, NM State was ranked in the top-25 nationally in multiple categories. The Aggies led the NCAA in hit by pitch (119), were third in the country in triples (25), fourth in on-base percentage (.409), fifth in batting average (.310), sixth in runs (493) and scoring (8.0), ninth in hits (656), 10^th in slugging percentage (.478) and 21^st in doubles (123).
 
Several NM State players also cracked the top-25 with impressive seasons at the plate and on the mound. Jonathan Groff was fifth in the nation in victories (11), while Kyle Bradish was seventh in strikeouts (140) and Brock Whittlesey was 24th in saves (12). At the dish, Tristen Carranza was ninth in hit by pitch (21) and Mason Fishback was 23^rd in that category (19). Then slugger Caleb Henderson ranked 25^th in the country in runs batted in (65).
 
The Aggies also ranked first in the WAC in numerous categories at the end of the year. Along with the aforementioned batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, doubles, triples, hits, hit by pitch and runs scored, NM State led the conference in six other categories. The Crimson & White finished in first in RBI (450), home runs (60), total bases (1,009), strikeouts (537), wins (40) and fielding percentage (.977).
 
Three Aggies also combined for seven All-American awards with Bradish being named a Perfect Game/Rawlings Third-Team All-American, while Groff was a Collegiate Baseball Second-Team All-American. Gonzales earned five Freshman All-American nods from Baseball America, D1 Baseball, National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association, Perfect Game/Rawlings and Collegiate Baseball. Groff and Bradish were also named to the Midwest ABCA/Rawlings All-Region Second Team.
 
Along with leading the team to a historic 2018 season, the team's skipper went on to make history in his own right. NM State went on to sweep Battle of I-25 rival New Mexico in a three-game season series for the first time in program history. One of the wins also marked a historic milestone in head coach Brian Green's career when the Aggies took down the Lobos, 9-1, on the road on April 10. The victory marked the 100th win of Green's career as head coach of NM State. The skipper joined Elliot Avent and Gary Ward as the only coaches in school history to record 100 wins in just four seasons.
 
NEW FACE ON THE STAFF
This past summer, New Mexico State head baseball coach Brian Green named major league draft pick Trevor Hairgrove as a volunteer assistant coach for the 2019 season.
 
Hairgrove spent the last three seasons on the staff at his alma mater, University of California Riverside. The third and final year of his tenure with the Highlanders saw Hairgrove serve as the director of baseball operations during the 2017 season and was in charge of the travel for the team and helped prepare scouting reports.
 
As an undergraduate assistant from 2014-16 at UC Riverside, he worked with the infielders and was the first base coach. Hairgrove helped keep pitching and spray charts during the game in his work under head coach Doug Smith.
 
During the summer season from 2014-17, Hairgrove also worked as a field manager for the Rochester Honkers of the Northwoods League. He was in charge of recruiting players for the summer league team and helped run the offense serving as the third base coach. IN 2016, Hairgrove mentored and coached Drew Ellis, the 44^th overall selection in the 2017 MLB Draft. The summer of 2017 saw him help the offense lead the league in home runs and sit at third in walks at season's end. He also coached the 2017 Northwoods League MVP, Zack Zubia.
 
Following a stellar four-year playing career at UC Riverside, Hairgrove was selected in the 18^th round, 555^th overall, by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. The 2011 season saw him start in 52 games for the Orem Owlz before moving up to Low-A ball with the Cedar Rapids Kernels in 2012. In 2013, Hairgrove progressed to High-A as a utility player with the Inland Empire 66ers before being promoted to Double-A in the middle of the season.

As a student-athlete at UC Riverside, Hairgrove started 200 games at shortstop which puts him at fourth all-time in school history for career game started. He was named First-Team All-Big West and to the ABCA All-West Region team in 2011. Hairgrove earned his bachelor's degree from UC Riverside in 2014.
 
UP NEXT
Following the season opener, New Mexico State remains at home for another four-game weekend series against Yale from Feb. 22-24 on Presley Askew Field.