LAS CRUCES, N.M. – New Mexico State's baseball team will host a top-10 program at Presley Askew Field for the first time since 1999 on Tuesday, April 4, when it entertains No. 6 Texas Tech at 2 p.m. for a midweek game.
 
The last time the Red Raiders came to Las Cruces as a top-5 program was in 1997 as the No. 1 team in the country. That top-ranked team dropped both games to the Aggies 12-11 and 19-17.
 
Tuesday's contest will also not have radio due time conflicts with the local radio stations.
 
PROBABLY STARTERS
NM State will send Chris Kucko on the mound for Tuesday's contest while sixth-ranked Texas Tech has yet to name a starter. Kucko has been a versatile arm for the Aggies, appearing in six games with three starts and a 7.00 earned runs average in 9.0 innings of work.
 
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.
 
GET YOUR SEASON TICKETS NOW!
With the start of the 2017 season tickets, Aggie fans can be a part of the action for all 23 home games (including three double-headers) for just $100 per seat. Season tickets will guarantee fans a seat in the reserved section of 104 behind home plate. Fans can purchase 2017 Aggie baseball season tickets by going to the Pan American Center ticket office or by calling 575-646-1420.
 
CARRANZA BRINGS THE BOOM STICK
New Mexico State corner infielder Tristen Carranza was named this week's (March 27-April 2) Western Athletic Conference Hitter of the Week after blasting three homers with an unreal 1.133 slugging-percentage, .529 on-base percentage and .467 batting average.
 
This is the first hitter of the week honor for Carranza and second for NM State this season.
 
The sophomore also finished with four RBI, a double, walk, hit-by-pitch and scored four runs over the week. Carranza opened NM State's WAC-opening weekend with a pair of dingers last Friday, going 3-for-4 from the plate with three RBI while scoring two. He then followed that up with a 2-for-4 performance with an RBI and scored two thanks to a solo shot to left. He then wrapped up the weekend with a single and walk on Sunday against the Redhawks' pitchers.
 
In the weekend series against Seattle U, Carranza batted .545 (6-for-11) with 4 RBI, three homers, a 1.455 slugging-percentage and .615 on-base percentage while scoring four.
 
Through Sunday's games, Carranza is 19th in the country with nine homers and leads the WAC. His 1.25 RBI per game ranks him 20th amongst Division I players while his .728 slugging percentage also places him in 20th in the NCAA.
 
ENTER THE RED RAIDERS
Tuesday's 2 p.m. first pitch against No. 6 Texas Tech will be the second meeting between the two programs this season and the 63rd time these two programs will face off on the diamond. Texas Tech, then ranked No. 21 in the country, took the first contest this season 16-1 in Lubbock.
 
The Red Raiders enter the midweek tilt 25-6 overall and 4-2 in Big 12 action after dropping 2-of-3 at No. 17 Oklahoma this past weekend. TTU salvaged the win on Saturday to not get swept with a 9-4 victory in a day game against the Sooners. The Red Raiders had won 10-straight before it fell in the series opener against OU.
 
Left fielder Grand Little paces Texas Tech offensively with a .357 batting average with 30 hits, 11 RBI and 24 runs scored. However, it's Hunter Hargrove who leads the team in hits with 43 to go with a .341 average, 27 RBI and three homers with 28 runs scored. The shortstop, Orlando Garcia, is second on the team with 26 RBI but owns a team-best four homers to go with 24 hits and a .240 batting average.
 
John McMillion, who has seen action in 12 games with eight starts, is tied with Garcia with four homers of his own in just 35 plate appearances with a .600 slugging-percentage and .229 batting average.
 
Steven Gingery leads the Texas Tech pitching staff with a 6-0 record and staggering 0.92 ERA in 48.2 innings of work. He's only allowed six runs, five earned, with 13 walks and 54 punch outs. Jacob Patterson is second on wins list with a 4-0 mark and 2.84 EAR in 15 appearances of relief. Davis Martin also owns a 4-1 mark for TTU in six starts with a 2.57 ERA while batters are hitting just .229.
 
BASH BROTHERS
Sophomore Tristen Carranza and senior Dan Hetzel put the fear into Seattle U's pitching staff last weekend, combing for five homers, with 10 hits and five RBI while scoring seven. The two also teamed up to hit .435 from the dish with a 1.130 slugging-percentage and .519 on-base percentage. Carranza has now gone yard twice in a game for the second time this season. He last hit two homers against Yale back on March 4 at home.
 
YARDHOUSE
Carranza accounted for three home runs on the weekend, matching the total NM State had hit as a team on the road heading into the Seattle U series. As a team, NM State hit six dingers in total – doubling its total of three in the previous 26 games. The six homers over the weekend was also a third of NM State's home runs heading into the series as well (19).
 
WAC ROUND UP
Heading into Tuesday's contest, NM State leads the WAC in in several offensive categories: batting average (.316), slugging percentage (.474), on-base percentage (.403), hits (322), RBI (204), triples (15) and homers (25).
 
In addition, NM State is second in the league in strike outs with 229 and third in team ERA with 5.00 while opponents are .268 – which is also good for third in the WAC.
 
STARTING TO ZONE IN
The Aggie pitching staff was fantastic over the weekend with all three starters pitching 7.0 solid innings for work. Friday's starter, Kyle Bradish, gave up just one earned run while fanning a season-high eight batters. The seven innings ties the season-high for Bradish and also matched his career-high for the fifth time.
 
The seven frames of work and nine strike outs for Marcel Renteria last Saturday was also a season-high for the senior righty. Sunday's starter, Johnathan Groff, only allowed four hits during his outing – which is the lowest number of hits he's given up this season (min. 7 innings).
 
LAST TIME OUT
New Mexico State had a huge conference-opening weekend against Seattle U, sweeping the WAC Preseason Favorites on the road, sending 8-18 overall on the season and just 1-5 in WAC play.
 
The Aggies took the series opener 6-2 behind a huge night from Tristen Carranza who went 3-for-4 from the plate with three RBI while scoring two thanks to a pair of long balls. Dan Hetzel joined in on the fun in game one, launching a three-run jack of his own.
 
In game the second game of the series, the 1-2 punch of Carranza and LJ Hatch combined to go 4-for-8 from the dish with three RBI and four runs scored. Freshman Joey Ortiz and senior Austin Botello also chipped in with a pair of hits of their own with an RBI each.
 
Game three saw Hetzel go deep once again and finished perfect at the plate with a 3-for-3 afternoon. Catcher Mason Fishback also joined the fun on Sunday, going yard on the first pitch he saw and finished 2-for-4 at the plate with three RBI.
 
UP NEXT
New Mexico State will stay at home after its midweek match-up against Texas Tech, hosting UT Rio Grande Valley for a three-game tilt in its WAC home-opener. First pitch is schedule for 6 p.m. (MT) on Friday, April 7, for the series opener followed by a 2 p.m. and noon first pitch the rest of the weekend.