Six Aggies Open Season on MLB 25-Man Rosters

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The Texas A&M Aggies have six former players opening the Major League Baseball season on 25-man rosters. Two of the players, Tyler Naquin and Ross Stripling, will be making their MLB debuts the opening week.

The group of six includes Naquin (Cleveland Indians), Logan Kensing (Detroit Tigers), Cliff Pennington (Los Angeles Angels), Justin Ruggiano (Texas Rangers), Stripling (Los Angeles Dodgers) and Michael Wacha (St. Louis Cardinals). Alex Wilson starts the season on the 15-day disabled list, but is expected to be a stalwart in the Tigers' bullpen.

Kensing and Pennington are the most veteran of the group as each will be playing in their ninth MLB season.

Kensing has appeared in 154 games with most of his action coming as a relief pitcher. Last season, he pitched in 19 games for the Seattle Mariners, posting a 2-1 record with 13 strikeouts in 15.1 innings.

Pennington has played in 794 games during his career, racking up 589 hits. Last season he saw action in 105 games combined, starting the season with the Arizona Diamondbacks and finishing the year in the Toronto Blue Jays' pennant race. He appeared in four postseason games for the Blue Jays.

Ruggiano has seen action in 455 games, logging a .256 batting average with 322 hits, including 49 home runs in his seven-year career. Last season he spent time with the Mariners and Dodgers, playing a total of 57 games with a .248 batting average, six home runs and 15 RBI. He appeared in four National League Division Series games with the Dodgers in 2015.

Wacha has enjoyed immense success as a three-year veteran. He has already earned one MLB All-Star Game appearance and NLCS MVP accolades in his career. Wacha has pitched in 64 games during his career, including 58 starts, logging a 26-14 record, 3.21 ERA and 312 strikeouts in 353.0 innings. As a rookie in 2013, he went 4-1 with a 2.78 ERA and 65 strikeouts in 64.2 innings during the regular-season. Over the course of the 2013 postseason, he was 4-1 and went a combined 3-0 with just one run over 21.0 innings in the NLDS and NLCS as the Cardinals made it to the World Series. Last season, Wacha went 17-7 with a 3.38 ERA and 153 strikeouts in 30 starts. He was named to the NL All-Star Game roster, but did not appear in the game.

Wilson is also a three-year veteran, pitching in 103 games, mainly out of the bullpen. His career numbers include a 5-4 record with two saves. a 2.71 ERA and 79 strikeouts in 126.0 innings. With the Tigers in 2015, he posted a 3-3 record with two saves, a 2.19 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 70.0 innings over 59 appearances.

Naquin, who appeared in 50 Triple-A games last season, lit up the Cactus League this spring. He batted .397 in Arizona with 14 runs, three doubles, three triples, four home runs and seven RBI in 22 games. Last season, he appeared destined for his major league debut before sustaining a hand injury making a heroic defensive play.

This spring, Stripling emerged as a dark horse to claim the No. 5 spot in the Dodgers' rotation. The right-hander also seemed on pace for an earlier start to his major league career, but was forced to have Tommy John surgery two years ago. After missing nearly two full seasons, he returned late last season to go 3-6 with a 3.88 ERA in 13 starts at Double-A Tulsa.