Texas baseball coach Jim Schlossnagle demanded maturation from his prized freshman when he arrived on campus. Outfielder Anthony Pack Jr. delivered it on his second collegiate swing.
Pack, a lefthanded batter, smoked an outside fastball from UC Davis starter Noel Valdez into the left-center field gap for the first of three hits in his debut. He reached base in all four of his plate appearances, driving in two runs and scoring two himself while stealing a base.
“Really proud of him,” Schlossnagle said. “His first college hit, staying on the ball and hitting it the other way. That’s not something that he was really good at when he first got here.”
“It’s called trust,” Pack added. “We just trust it deep and take the ball where it’s supposed to go.”
If improvement comes that easily to Pack, it’s reasonable to wonder what he might be capable of in a Texas uniform. His introduction to Longhorns fans showed off a dynamic skillset. At 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, Pack said himself that he isn’t likely to become a home-run hero. But he’ll spray doubles to the gaps and wreak havoc with his speed.
After working a walk in his second plate appearance, Pack stepped into the batter’s box with the bases loaded against Mason Lerma, a lefthanded reliever who pitched to a dominant 1.01 ERA last season. With a two-strike count, he ripped a two-run single on a breaking ball down the right field line, then swiped a bag to get himself in scoring position.
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“He’s such a more mature player than he was when he came in,” fellow outfielder Aiden Robbins said. “And he showed it today.”
Pack, who closed his night with a bloop single to left field, wasn’t perfect — he misplayed a first-inning pop fly, deferring to second baseman Ethan Mendoza when he said he should have taken charge.
Still, he delivered a striking debut, raising every eyebrow inside UFCU Disch-Falk Field for Texas’ 12-2 season-opening win. Except, perhaps, his own.
“I wouldn’t say I surprised myself,” he said. “I just think I showed people what I can do, and I’m just going to keep working to have performances like that continuously.”
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A top-250 prospect in last year’s MLB Draft cycle, Pack’s decision to attend Texas gave Schlossnagle and his staff a major recruiting win. The player who signed in Pack’s slot, Ryan Weingartner of Penn State, received a signing bonus of $226,000. Pack, who had more leverage as a high school prospect, likely could have demanded more than that.
But Pack said he always dreamed about playing college baseball. And Friday night’s showing gave him a dream start.
It also laid down a marker as Texas works to decide on its best outfield combination. Robbins is locked in as UT’s centerfielder, but the corner outfield positions were both question marks coming into the season.
Ashton Larson, an LSU transfer, got the start in left field and went 0-for-2 before he was replaced by Jayden Duplantier. Two-sport athlete Jonah Williams, who batted .327 last season as a freshman and often played right field, did not see any action Friday.
Schlossnagle said after the game that Williams is recovering from an injury and was available to hit, but not play defense. He predicted that he’ll be a full-go by next weekend.
Still, Schlossnagle admitted, Texas’ options at the outfield positions are limited. The Longhorns need production from players like Pack.
“He’s fearless,” Schlossnagle said. “He doesn’t play scared. Some guys, even transfers, get in their first game in this environment and then play a little spooked. It’s a different player. Anthony, he looked like a better player tonight. He was playing with a lot of freedom and not afraid to make a mistake.”