Moss rolls in relief as A&M beats Arkansas to extend winning ways, 7-4

Game #37: Texas A&M 7, No. 2 Arkansas 4
Records: Texas A&M (22-15, 7-9), Arkansas (33-6, 12-4)
WP: Weston Moss (5-2)
LP: Zach Root (5-2)
Box Score

A rolling stone gathers no moss.

But what about when the Moss is rolling?

Five scoreless innings of relief from right-hander Weston Moss were massive in Texas A&M’s 7-4 series-opening victory over No. 2 Arkansas on Thursday night at Baum-Walker Stadium in Fayetteville.

“Basically, everything we threw today was to set up the changeup, and it was very fun,” Moss told the SEC Network postgame. “I had a great time.”

Aggies everywhere likely had a great time because the great times continue to...well...roll.

Behind the dominant bullpen performance, A&M stretched its winning streak to eight in a row.

Further, the Maroon & White have won six straight SEC contests and are among the hottest teams in the nation’s best college baseball conference.

Behind this surge, the Aggies are climbing the RPI rankings at breakneck speed.

Yet it was Moss’ off-speed pitch that sank the Hogs.

“I threw it like 80 percent of the time,” Moss said. “I mean, I love throwing it. It’s always so much fun, and they always struggle with it. It’s a blast to throw.”

Needing 67 pitches to cover the final five frames, the sophomore from Spring allowed just three hits, issued just one walk and struck out five.

He entered after A&M took a 6-4 lead in the top of the fifth and Ryan Prager allowed a leadoff single to Justin Thomas Jr.

Moss then retired the first eight men he faced before Arkansas built its only threat against him with two outs in the seventh.

With the proximate and tying runs aboard, the right-hander fanned the ever-dangerous Wehiwa Aloy for the final out and walked off the mound with a thunderous roar that accompanied an emphatic fist pump.

Moss’ clutch K of Wehiwa Aloy came after his two-run home run off Prager tied the game 4-4 in the third.

“Just throw strikes,” Moss said of his mindset. “That’s the approach every time. It’s a faceless game, so I just pitch to everyone. I don’t care what number is on their back. I just have confidence with anyone I pitch to. That’s kind of how I pitch.”

The Aggies, who scored first on Caden Sorrell’s first-inning RBI single, trailed 2-1 before Jace LaViolette’s RBI fielder’s choice and Wyatt Henseler’s two-run double put them on top 4-2 vs. Arkansas starter Zach Root in the second.

In the fifth and the game tied 4-4, Root issued back-to-back walks to open the inning before Kaeden Kent’s RBI single put A&M up for good, and Blake Binderup added an ensuing insurance run.

With Prager and Root out of the ballgame, Moss and Dylan Carter dueled through the middle innings and into the latter stages as the outcome hung in the balance.

Yet, Arkansas head coach Dave Van Horn elected to bring in hard-throwing righty Christian Foutch for the ninth.

Foutch promptly surrendered an opposite-field leadoff homer to LaViolette as his 12th of the year and 62nd of his career gave Moss one final insurance marker.

Leading 7-4 in the ninth, Arkansas got the tying run to the plate with two outs before Moss induced a game-ending groundout off the bat of Charles Davalan to seal the Aggie victory.

And thus A&M’s winning streak rolls on for at least another day.

The series continues and concludes with a Friday doubleheader that begins at 2 p.m. CT.