Texas travels down I-35 for road game against Texas State

Following a series sweep by the Oklahoma State Cowboys in Stillwater last weekend, the Texas Longhorns will be in an unusual position on Thursday evening — playing as underdogs in San Marcos against the Texas State Bobcats at Bobcat Ballpark.

At 27-13 and ranked No. 34 nationally in the Massey Ratings, Texas State has won six straight games, in sharp contrast to a reeling Texas team that has won only once in the last five games and ranks 41st in those ratings. Simply put, the Bobcats are playing better baseball right now and loom as a formidable opponent — Texas State has won its last four midweek games and boasts a 7-2 midweek record, including a win over Texas A&M in College Station two weeks ago.

The middle infield is particularly dangerous for Texas State, as second baseman Jaxon Williams is batting .353 with 47 runs scored and shortstop Dalton Shuffield is hitting .344 with nine doubles and two triples.

Texas State Junior right-hander Garrett Hermann (4-1, 4.46 ERA) will take the mound for his ninth midweek start of the season. He’s struck out 29 batters in 36.1 innings of work. For the Longhorns, there isn’t nearly as much stability with the midweek starter, with freshman right-hander Kolby Kubichek (0-0, 6.28) set to receive his second career start. The concern is that Kubichek hasn’t thrown more than 2.2 innings or 38 pitches in any appearance this season, while Hermann hasn’t thrown less than 3.1 innings in any of his eight previous starts. He’s regularly pitched deep into games.

Texas is 4-1 playing on the road in San Marcos, with the only loss coming on a 10th inning walk-off single two years ago. First pitch is at 6 p.m. Central, with streaming available at TXStateBobcats.com/Watch.