Texas A&M faces a pitching dilemma amid Shane Sdao's struggles

No. 7 Texas A&M entered the weekend with plenty of momentum after defeating Tarleton State 9-7 on Tuesday night, set to host No. 8 Auburn for a Saturday doubleheader after weather forced Game 1 to be canceled. However, while the Aggies defeated Florida 2-1, losing Game 1 with junior lefty Shane Sdao on the mound of another guessing game that ended in defeat.

After back-to-back seasons dealing with injury issues, including missing the entirety of the 2025 campaign, Shane Sdao's career was on the right track, looking like a future MLB starter with the arm talent and control to become one of the Aggies' top arms.

However, while his recovery from Tommy John Surgery was successful, Sdao's 12 appearances, including Saturday's first game of the doubleheader vs. Auburn, lasted just one full inning before the redshirt junior was pulled after giving up six earned runs. Currently 3-4 on the year, Sdao's 6.55 ERA is one of the highest among starting pitchers in the SEC, while the Aggies are tied for 10th in the conference with a 4.54 team ERA.

Compared to sophomore Aiden Sims, who is having a career year on the mound and is currently undefeated on the year, Sdao has not fixed his issues after his other disastrous start against Vanderbilt, and even allowed seven earned runs vs. Missouri, despite the Aggies sweeping the Tigers on the road.

Texas A&M's offense, which is third in the SEC in batting average (.310), paired with 429 hits, 90 home runs, and averaging nearly 10 runs per game, is the team's predominant strength, meaning the starting pitching and three key bullpen arms must keep things clean and allow the offense to score in bunches.

Well, after Sdao's poor showing on Saturday, second-year coach Michael Earely and pitching coach Jason Kelley opted not to waste any more arms before the second game of the doubleheader, but it has now become clear that the coaching staff needs to make a move regarding the future Game 1 starter.

At first glance, junior Weston Moss, who has since become the Game 3 starting option, looks like the best move to replace Sdao for every Game 1 moving forward, allowing Sdao more time to potentially fix his issues and become a Sunday Game 3 option. On paper, this looks like the only realistic move to allow Gavin Lyons to stay in his middle-reief role alongside Ethan Darden.