On a perfect spring night, the LSU Tigers continue to play bad baseball in a 10-4 loss to 10th-ranked Texas A&M to open a three-game series. The Aggies hit three home runs, and LSU pitchers continue to struggle with their control.
LSU falls to 6-10 in the SEC as NCAA Tournament hopes continue to fade away.
Key Stats: This is all you need to know.
LSU pitchers walked 8, they hit a batter (a pitch from Mavrick Rizy that hit Chris Hacopian in the face, and he had to leave the game.) Also, two more wild pitches.
Aggie pitchers walked just one LSU hitter, and that was it.
How can you expect to win when you are giving the other team free base runners and free bases?
Casan Evans: For whatever reason, it just hasn’t worked with Casan Evans as the Friday night starter. He continues to rack up the strikeouts as the sophomore right-hander struck out eight.
But walks continue to be a problem.
In the 3rd inning, Evans walked the lead-off man, and he came around to score.
In the 5th inning, Evans walked the off man, and that led to a three-run rally.
In the 6th inning, Evans gave up a two-run homer, and his night was done.
His stat line: five plus innings pitched, seven hits, six runs, all of them earned, three walks, and eight strikeouts. It’s just not good enough.
LSU’s offense was lethargic: Once again, LSU’s bats didn’t really come alive until late in the game, and when they were down by a bunch of runs. The Tigers scored a couple of runs in the 8th inning, but that was it.
Cade Arrambide had three hits and drove in a run. Steven Milam had a couple of hits, including a home run, but two of your best hitters, Derek Curiel and Jake Brown, each struck out twice.
What does it mean? The start to the second half of the SEC schedule looked much like what we saw in the first half, especially the walks.
LSU used eight pitchers, but they didn’t use their best relievers, so that gives them a chance on Saturday and Sunday.
The Tigers could really use a game where the starting pitcher goes seven innings and allows four runs or fewer.
That will be the task in front of William Schmidt, but this is a really good Texas A&M offense that averages 10 runs a game, and the vibes are not good for LSU right now.
First pitch on Saturday is at 7 PM.
Scheduled starting pitchers
LSU – So. RH William Schmidt (4-3, 3.22 ERA, 44.2 IP, 18 BB, 63 SO)
A&M – So. RH Aiden Sims (6-0, 3.56 ERA, 48.0 IP, 15 BB, 51 SO)