The Launch Angle

The University of Missouri has never been a school known for having outstanding athletics outside of the small few. Despite being in the Southeastern Conference, it has often been the one school that feels left out of the conversation. With only five guys from Mizzou making it to the bigs, the third least in the SEC, seeing two Tigers on the same roster is something special. 

But now, two former Mizzou teammates, roommates and leaders find themselves sharing a Triple-A clubhouse as they chase the same goal.

Those teammates are Bryce Mayer and Trevor Austin for the Houston Astros’ Triple-A affiliate, the Sugar Land Space Cowboys. Mayer, a 16th round pick by the Astros in 2024, and Austin, who signed an undrafted free agent deal with Houston in 2024, are trying to help put the Tigers on the map in professional baseball and show that Mizzou’s program can produce big leaguers. 

“We lived together and had a great relationship at Mizzou,’ Austin said. “And then he got drafted by the Astros, but had another year, so he didn’t know if he was going to take it or not. Then I heard from my agent that the Astros were going to give me a free agent deal and I said to him, ‘Christ, you gotta come’ and we both decided to take it.”

Coming from a program that has given us veterans like Max Scherzer and Ian Kinsler, both Mayer and Austin are trying their best to add to that short list of Tigers to make it all the way to The Show. Their dynamic with each other is something that is already going to be special to both: they were not only teammates at Mizzou, but roommates.

Dating back to their freshman year of college, when they first met and became friends during their time on the same team in the Appalachian League, Mayer and Austin were always close. So when Austin finally got Mayer to transfer after their sophomore year, he knew that the Tigers had gotten a great player.

“We had a lot of fun together at Mizzou both on and off the field,” Mayer said. “Being able to come to the Astros together was something really cool that not a lot of college teammates get to experience. And it provided a bit of comfort for both of us knowing someone right away.”

During the 2024 season at Missouri, one that saw Mayer redshirt for his first season as a Tiger, the two of them were always close. Austin was a vet in the program by the time Mayer got there, so it was easy for him to take Bryce, who transferred in as a sophomore, and show him around. This sparked a quick friendship between the two, as Austin helped Mayer navigate the city of Columbia, Missouri.

But now, the roles are reversed. 

Mayer has been with the Space Cowboys since early August and has put together a fantastic season so far, going 6-3 with a 3.09 ERA across two levels. Meanwhile Austin, who joined the squad as a September call-up, is hitting just .236 on the season but carries 40 extra-base hits and a solid .982 fielding percentage at second and third.

Having each other in the same dugout could help out more than expected on the field.

“The higher you move up, the less familiar faces,” Mayer said. “Having someone like Trevor , that I’ve known for so long, here with me now has been great. It’s cool to get to go through this together with him.”

Despite being on different levels at times, they both have kept up with one another the entire time. They are constantly in contact, making sure to be the first person to congratulate the other on an achievement or the first to give advice when the other screws up. They hold each other accountable. They did it in Como, and now they get to do it for each other again in Sugar Land.

“Everyone keeps saying ‘Trevor and Bryce are a package deal,” Austin said about the two of them. “That is what was nice for both of us with the Astros. We weren’t going into it not knowing anybody. We knew each other which brought a level of comfort to it knowing you have someone you can fall back on when you need to.”

Playing in the SEC is hard for anyone. It is the highest level of competition, and they are playing against some of the best ballplayers in the country. But that helped prepare them for the next level. The higher level of competition that is on display throughout the conference is something that both Mayer and Austin credit as playing a huge part in being able to navigate the lower levels of the minors.

But being at Mizzou is a little different than other programs. In the past, it was hard for either one of them to have that “killer instinct” when it comes to winning due to the nature of the program at the school. But since joining the Astros, it has been a whole new ballgame for both of them.

“It’s tough in the SEC,” Mayer said. “You are playing great competition every single weekend, and I think that is really what helped me get through the lower levels of the minor leagues quickly because of that. I struggled a lot, but it allowed me to learn more about myself and get better throughout that time.”

“There’s higher stakes,” Austin said. “Obviously in college ball, it feels like every game means a little more. But now, I feel like this year in the Astros system, we’ve played to win a little more than we have in the past.”

Even with being such competitors though, at the end of the day, the friendship is something that will never be lost on them.

“I called him and said ‘I’m headed your way!” Austin said about his first phone call with Bryce after his call to Triple-A. “His first response was ‘are you going to tell Anna (in charge of housing for Space Cowboys) to be my roommate or what?’ and I would have if it was earlier in the season.”

This is not the first time the two of them had to face difficult times in baseball with each other either. In their final year at Mizzou, they were tasked with leading the Tigers along with their first-year head coach Kerrick Jackson. That task, which did not sound very hard, helped prepare them for the minors more than they expected at the time and it is something both of them remember and hold near to their hearts.

“Getting to face those adversities and working through them is kind of like the minor leagues,” Austin said. “You are not always going to be hitting good, you are going to face adversities. Going through slumps and losing streaks with your team. So finding ways to enjoy the game and work out those kinks is something I learned in college.”

There is not a whole lot of representation of Missouri Tigers in the majors or minors, but right now, Sugar land is housing not one, but two Tigers who have a chance to do something great in the majors with the Astros or any other team that may trade for them.

In this past draft, the Astros even went back to Mizzou for another pick, taking infielder Kam Durnin in the fourth round of the 2026 draft, who is now with the Fayetteville Woodpecker. Austin, being a fellow Tiger and infielder, has already had the chance to reach out to him and offer his support in any way, showing just how strong of a community they build during their time in Columbia, no matter the state of the program.

Feature photo from Space Cowboys on X, Source Link