Sam Houston State Professional Athletes

Sam Houston State's footprint in MLB is small but meaningful — and during the week of Aug. 23–29, two Bearkats gave alumni plenty to talk about.

Wesneski Quiets the Bronx

Hayden Wesneski turned in one of his best outings of the season Thursday night in the Bronx, holding the New York Yankees to one earned run across five innings while striking out six. The performance dropped his ERA to 3.86 and pushed him to 3-1 on the year — no small feat for a pitcher squaring off against Gerrit Cole and a Yankees lineup that entered the night at 75-57, among the best records in the American League.

The start carried an extra layer of narrative: Wesneski was originally drafted by New York in the sixth round before finding his way to the Houston organization. Facing his former club at Yankee Stadium, he rewarded the Astros (66-67) with exactly the type of quality start a bubble team needs to stay within reach of the playoff picture.

Cowser Finds His Stroke

While Wesneski was handling business on the mound, Orioles center fielder Colton Cowser quietly turned August into a personal turnaround story. The outfielder strung together hits in four consecutive tracked games this week, lifting his batting average from .219 to .227 — modest numbers, but the trajectory is the story.

The surge opened Sunday, Aug. 23, when Cowser went 2-for-4 against the Rays and launched a home run, driving in a run and scoring one himself. He kept it rolling Wednesday with a 2-hit, walk performance against the Cardinals, added an RBI knock Thursday in the same series, and capped the week Saturday with a hit and a walk against the Athletics, finishing 2-for-2 on that afternoon. Over the four-game stretch, he went 6-for-12 at the plate — the kind of sustained contact that separates a slump from a stretch.

Cowser entered the week at .219, a number that signals a hitter still searching for consistency at the big-league level. The multi-game surge won't silence those questions entirely, but it's a reminder of the tools that made him a first-round pick. Baltimore will take whatever he can give down the stretch.

The Bigger Picture

Two Bearkats. Two different roles. One strong week. Wesneski is making a legitimate case as a mid-rotation contributor for an Astros team clinging to relevance, while Cowser is fighting to cement himself as a fixture in Baltimore's outfield. Neither story is finished — but Sam Houston State alumni tracking the MLB calendar had reasons to check the box scores this week.

Sam Houston State Alumni Report | MLB | Aug. 2–8, 2026

Hayden Wesneski is making his case for a rotation spot in Houston — one start at a time.

The Sam Houston State product delivered his strongest outing of the young season on Wednesday, August 5, tossing a clean 6.0 innings against the Toronto Blue Jays, striking out four and allowing just two earned runs in a 7-2 Astros victory. The performance dropped his ERA from 4.76 to 3.86 — a meaningful correction for a pitcher working to cement himself on a first-place club.

Context makes the number even more impressive. Wesneski had appeared sparingly this season before this spot start, and came in with just 5.2 innings on his 2026 ledger — a strong-enough debut that earned him this second shot. He rewarded the trust. Six innings, minimal damage, and a lineup in check: it's the kind of game that keeps a pitcher in rotation conversations. The Astros, sitting at 58-56 after snapping a six-game winning streak the night before, needed this one — and Wesneski delivered it.

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Cowser Quietly Heating Up in Baltimore

Colton Cowser had a quietly productive week at the plate for the Orioles, registering hits in multiple games across the Aug. 2–8 stretch. The center fielder picked up a hit on Tuesday, August 4 against the Angels — scoring a run — and added another against the Rangers on Saturday, August 8. His batting average nudged up to .207 by week's end after hovering between .203 and .206 throughout the period.

It's modest production by any standard, but Cowser has shown resilience in staying in the everyday lineup despite the underwhelming average. For a player drafted to be a piece of Baltimore's long-term outfield picture, every multi-hit stretch matters.

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Backhus Logging Innings Out of Philly's Bullpen

Kyle Backhus made appearances in each of the first two games of the period, pitching a clean inning against the Nationals on Monday, August 3, and another inning against the Orioles on Sunday, August 2 — totaling a strikeout in each outing. His ERA sits at 4.95, reflecting the challenges of carving out a consistent role in a competitive Phillies bullpen. Still, the workload signals he's a trusted arm for low-leverage situations.

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The bottom line: Wesneski is the story of the week, and perhaps the most compelling Sam Houston State MLB narrative of the season. If he keeps posting lines like Wednesday's against the Blue Jays, the Astros may not have much choice but to keep him in the rotation for a postseason push. For Bearkats fans, it's worth watching closely — the window for him to state his case is now.