How LSU Won Baton Rouge Regional, Regular Season Series vs. Kentucky
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Not much needs to be said when laying out what makes LSU baseball so dominant. While the 2023 Tigers may not be the best in program history, they do contain oodles of star power and the ability to truly put on a show. LSU won the Baton Rouge Regional, the No. 5 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, defeating No. 12 Kentucky 7-2 in a thrilling game. The Tigers will now face the SEC in a Super Regional for one of the eight spots in the College World Series in Omaha this weekend. Paul Skenes, LSU's ace and a top-two MLB draft prospect, threw a whopping 124 pitches, striking out 12 while allowing seven hits and two runs in a complete-game 7-0 victory over the Wildcats. Dylan Crews, the top-rated center fielder, went 3-for-5 and was one of four players to record multiple hits in the win, while seven Tigers made the LSU All-Regional team. The win was part of a three-game series between the two teams, with seven LSU players making it to the final. The LSU offense raked in 26 runs in three games, while the Wildcats offense did all it needed to.
公開済み : 10ヶ月前 沿って Hunter Shelton の Sports
LEXINGTON, Ky. — Not much needs to be said when laying out what makes LSU baseball so dominant.
While the 2023 Tigers may not be the best in program history, they do contain oodles of star power and the ability to truly put on a show. Now 46-15 and the No. 5 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, head coach Jay Johnson's team fully expected to be in this position before the beginning of the season.
They'll welcome No. 12 Kentucky to Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge for the second time this season, though the stakes will be infinitely higher. The SEC foes will duke it out in a Super Regional for one of the eight spots in the College World Series in Omaha.
While the Wildcats took a much more treacherous path to reach this upcoming weekend, LSU breezed through the Baton Rouge Regional, which featured Oregon State, Sam Houston State and Tulane.
The Tigers walked into a low-stress opener vs. Tulane, which made a miracle run in its conference tournament to nab an auto-bid as a 40-loss ballclub. Out trotted Paul Skenes, LSU's ace and a top-two MLB draft prospect. The lanky right-hander threw a whopping 124 pitches, striking out 12 while allowing seven hits and two runs in a complete-game 7-2 victory.
Center fielder Dylan Crews, the other top-two MLB draft prospect, went 3-for-5 and was one of four players to record multiple hits in the win. Catcher Hayden Travinski reached base four times and drove in a pair of runs.
Then, after rain on the Bayou put the Regional a bit behind schedule, LSU returned for a 1-0 game vs. Oregon State, with the winner moving to the final. The Beavers had a 3-0 lead in the fourth, and while they out-hit the Tigers 13-10, an eighth-inning home run from OF Brayden Jobert broke a tie, giving LSU a 6-5 win.
Ty Floyd and Thatcher Hurd combined for 8.0 innings, allowing 12 hits and five runs, though Hurd fanned 12 in 99 pitches.
Oregon State made it back to the final, but didn't have the pitching to make it all that far. LSU scored five runs in the seventh, blowing open what finished as a 13-7 victory. Crews and Travinski each had three hits, while six others had a pair in a 19-hit performance as a team .
Riley Cooper, Nate Ackenhausen, Griffin Herring and Gavin Guidry all gave up at least one run, but the pitching didn't have to be stellar. A total of 26 runs in three games for the LSU offense did all it needed to.
As a result, seven Tigers made the Baton Rouge All-Regional team, headlined by Crews, the Most Outstanding Player:
Kentucky saw the potent LSU offense first-hand back in April, when it trekked down to BR for a three-game series in the regular season. The Tigers scored 34 runs in that trio of outings, though UK was able to plate 25 runs of its own.
The Cats and head coach Nick Mingione refused to let Crews do damage in the series, walking him six times, holding him to just three hits and one RBI. They decided pitching to third baseman Tommy White was the lesser of two evils. As a result, the mashing third baseman raked in eight RBIs on five hits.
Thompson and Jobert both also went yard, combing for 10 RBIs and seven knocks in the series. Travinski, the hottest hitter on the team not named Crews, didn't catch vs. UK and only had two ABs.
As for pitching, which has been the big question for LSU this season, Skenes worked with a humongous lead in his outing in game one, though he did surrender some damage. UK plated five runs on the righty on seven hits, though it did strike out 13 times on 111 pitches in six innings.
Floyd labored in game two, surrendering five runs (three earned) on six hits across 4.2 innings, striking out two while walking three. Herring came out in relief and was promptly shelled, allowing seven more runs (three earned) on six hits in 1.2 innings as the Wildcats piled on 13 runs.
Christian Little started game three, allowing no hits through 3.1 innings, walking three and allowing one earned. Johnson sent out Guidry, Cooper, Hurd and Bryce Collins for the final 8.0 innings. It was Collins who earned the win by allowing just one hit and no damage in the final 2.1. Guidry and Hurd allowed a total of five earned on five hits in 3.0 complete frames.
All things considered, Kentucky left Baton Rouge with a somewhat-decent taste in its mouth, knowing it could compete with what was at the time the No. 1 team in the country, even if it lost the series on a tightly-contested rubber match that was decided by a hit batsman.
Needing a pair of wins in this second trip, the Cats will look to lean on past experiences as they try to make history and their first CWS in program history. The Super Regional first-game schedule around the tournament can be found below:
• Duke vs. #7 Virginia - Friday, June 9 at 12 PM ET
• #15 South Carolina vs. #2 Florida - Friday, June 9 at 6 PM ET
• Oral Roberts vs. Oregon - Friday, June 9 at 8 PM ET
• #12 Kentucky vs. #5 LSU - Saturday, June 10 at 3 PM ET
• Tennessee vs. Southern Miss - Saturday, June 10 at 3 PM ET
Times for games two and three (if necessary) for UK-LSU are yet to be announced.
Roommates, Kentuckians, Brothers: More on Darren Williams and Mason Moore HERE.
The King of Work: More on catcher Devin Burkes and his MVP honors HERE.
Game recap of Kentucky's Regional-clinching win can be found HERE.
How getting hit in batting practice helps Kentucky HERE.
Want the latest on national football and basketball recruiting, including Cats targets? Head over to SI All-American for the latest news, blogs, and updates about the nation's best prospects.
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トピック: Baton Rouge, Louisiana State University, Academia, Louisiana, Kentucky