New Mexico State Professional Athletes

Two Aggies, Two Clubs, One Impressive Week

New Mexico State doesn't typically get mentioned in the same breath as college baseball powerhouses, but a pair of Aggies are quietly forcing the conversation in MLB. Nick Gonzales and Joey Ortiz gave Las Cruces plenty to celebrate during the week of Aug. 23–29 — with Gonzales delivering the signature moment.

Gonzales Sends Pittsburgh Home Happy

The headliner came Wednesday night when Gonzales drove in the winning run in Pittsburgh's 3-2 extra-inning win over San Diego. The Pirates third baseman has made a habit of being in the middle of things this week: he recorded a hit and a walk in that same contest and added another productive outing Tuesday against the Padres, going 2-for-something with an RBI, a walk, and a .308 average at the time.

By Saturday against St. Louis, Gonzales kept the momentum rolling — notching two hits and an RBI while drawing a walk, with his average settling at .307. That's a consistent, professional hitter doing real damage in the middle of a pennant-race schedule. For a player drafted out of New Mexico State, the trajectory has been deliberate and now looks very much like the real thing.

Over the full week, Gonzales collected multiple multi-hit games, drove in runs in extra innings and against division rivals, and maintained a .305–.308 average range throughout — numbers that hold up against any third baseman in the National League right now.

Ortiz Holds His Own in Milwaukee

Meanwhile, Joey Ortiz has been quietly dependable for the Brewers at shortstop. The week wasn't a fireworks show, but it was the kind of steady production Milwaukee needs. He picked up a hit Tuesday against the Mets, two hits and a run scored Thursday, and added another hit Friday against Texas — consistently keeping his average at .250 across those outings.

Ortiz's week won't generate highlight reels, but a shortstop hitting .250 while playing sound defense in a playoff chase is a real contributor. His consistency across multiple games against different opponents speaks to his ability to handle diverse pitching — no slumps, no disappeared stretches, just a guy showing up.

Bradish Runs Into Trouble in St. Louis

The week wasn't perfect for every Aggie. Kyle Bradish, starting for Baltimore against the Cardinals on Wednesday, had a rough outing — surrendering seven earned runs in 4.1 innings while striking out four. His ERA climbed to 4.03 on the night. The Orioles were hoping Bradish could help clinch the series in St. Louis; instead, he handed the Cardinals an opportunity. It's a bump for a pitcher who still has the repertoire to turn it around, but Wednesday was a night to forget.

The NMSU Pipeline Is Real

Three MLB-caliber players from New Mexico State active in the same week — a walk-off hero, a steady everyday shortstop, and a rotation arm — is no accident. The Aggie baseball program has quietly developed professional talent, and Gonzales and Ortiz, in particular, are proving that development wasn't a fluke. Pittsburgh and Milwaukee are both better for having them.

New Mexico State hasn't had a football powerhouse reputation in recent years, but its MLB alumni are quietly making a case for Las Cruces as a legitimate big-league pipeline. This week, Aggies shortstop Joey Ortiz and infielder Nick Gonzales delivered back-to-back standout stretches that put NMSU on the baseball map.

Joey Ortiz: Milwaukee's Clutch Man

Ortiz had the week's signature moment on Wednesday, Aug. 19, going 2-for-the-night against the Mariners with a home run and four RBIs — a performance that served as the offensive centerpiece of Milwaukee's win. He didn't stop there: he followed it up Thursday with another hit, an RBI, and a run scored, capping a three-game stretch against Seattle in which he reached base in every game. By Saturday, Aug. 22, Ortiz added another hit and a run against the Braves, bumping his average to .249 on the season.

The home run in particular carried weight. According to Sportsnet, Ortiz's two-run blast — alongside William Contreras's — powered the Brewers to a 4-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers earlier in the week, with starter Jacob Misiorowski earning his 12th win. Ortiz is emerging as a reliable middle-of-the-lineup contributor for a Brewers club still in the hunt.

Nick Gonzales: Quietly Climbing in Pittsburgh

While Ortiz grabbed the headlines, Gonzales may be having the more quietly impressive week. The Pirates third baseman went 1-for-the-day Monday against Detroit, working two walks and scoring a run to open the stretch. He followed that Wednesday with 2 hits and a walk against the Tigers, pushing his average to .310. Then on Saturday against the Dodgers, Gonzales went 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs, lifting his season average to .311 — the kind of consistency that keeps a lineup card from being rewritten.

Gonzales has now hit at or above .308 in every recorded game this week, a stretch that speaks less to one electric night and more to a locked-in approach at the plate. For a Pirates team still building toward relevance, his production at third base represents one of the more reliable constants in their lineup.

Bradish Logs Innings for Baltimore

The week wasn't entirely about the bats. Kyle Bradish, the NMSU product now pitching for the Orioles, took the mound Thursday against the Yankees and worked 5.2 innings, striking out five while allowing three earned runs (ERA: 3.70). It wasn't a dominant outing, but eating up innings against New York is no soft assignment, and Bradish continues to log meaningful starts for Baltimore.

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Three Aggies. Three different roles. One strong week for New Mexico State's MLB footprint. Ortiz's power surge, Gonzales's contact consistency, and Bradish's workload all point to a program whose big-league presence is more than a footnote — it's a trend worth watching.

Aggies Are All Over the Box Scores

New Mexico State's MLB alumni had a productive week, with infielders Nick Gonzales and Joey Ortiz both swinging hot bats and reliever Samy Natera Jr. turning in a pair of sharp outings out of the Angels' bullpen.

Gonzales Stays Locked In for Pittsburgh

Nick Gonzales has been one of the quieter success stories in Pittsburgh this summer, and the third baseman showed exactly why during the week of Aug. 9–15. His biggest moment came Sunday, Aug. 9, when he drove in three runs to help the Pirates dismantle the New York Mets 9-0 — a dominant performance capped by Bubba Chandler's five-strikeout, six-inning shutout effort.

The production didn't stop there. Gonzales went 2-for-4 with two runs and a walk against the Marlins on Aug. 12, then added another multi-hit game on Aug. 13. By the time the Pirates wrapped their series against the Red Sox on Aug. 14, Gonzales was sitting at a .307 average — a number that reflects real consistency, not a hot streak distorting a shaky baseline. He's hovered between .304 and .309 all week, which tells the full story.

Ortiz Provides Pop in Milwaukee

Joey Ortiz has had a busier road through mid-August, but he's delivered when it counted. The Brewers shortstop collected hits in multiple games across the week, including a standout Saturday outing against the Dodgers where he went 1-for-3 with a home run and two RBI — lifting his average to .249. He had already posted an RBI single the previous day against Los Angeles, adding to a week where he consistently found ways to contribute.

Ortiz's average fluctuated between .241 and .249 during the stretch, but the power numbers and consistent RBI production paint a picture of a player who's more impactful than a batting average alone suggests. Against one of the NL's tougher lineups in the Dodgers, he came up with a long ball — not a bad way to close the week.

Natera Dealing in Anaheim

Samy Natera Jr. made two appearances out of the Angels' bullpen, both against the Rangers, and neither required a fire extinguisher. He struck out two in each outing — logging a perfect inning in both games — and kept his ERA down to 2.08 by Tuesday and 2.00 by Wednesday. For a bullpen that hasn't had much to celebrate this season, the NMSU product has been a reliable arm.

The Week in Full

Three Aggies. Three different franchises. All three contributing. Gonzales is the headliner right now, batting .307 with multi-RBI production in a week that included Pittsburgh's most lopsided win of the stretch. But Ortiz's home run against the Dodgers and Natera's back-to-back two-strikeout innings are the kind of details that remind Las Cruces fans there's plenty of reason to keep checking the box scores.