Heading into the SEC opening series against Mississippi State, LSU had only allowed eight runs or more twice. The Bulldogs scored at least eight runs in every game as they won the series two games to one in a very disappointing weekend on the mound for the Tigers.
The Tigers defense also faltered. LSU only committed 13 errors in 18 games heading into the weekend series in Starkville. LSU committed six errors during the three-game set.
At the plate, LSU struggled to get clutch hits. The Tigers were 3-for-24 at the plate with runners in scoring position.
Meanwhile, 17 of the 33 runs scored by State came with two outs.
The starting pitching has been a strength for LSU’s pitching staff. But we found out Luke Holman is human, as he allowed five runs and could not get past the fifth inning.
Despite being spotted a 9-1 lead on Saturday; Gage Jump was pulled in the fourth inning after giving up four runs and allowing the Bulldogs to get back in the game.
Thatcher Hurd had a rough outing on Sunday. He gave up seven runs in five innings and his ERA ballooned to 6.55.
On Sunday, Christian Little and Nic Bronzini also got lit up which resulted in Mississippi State run ruling LSU on Sunday 15-5 in eight innings.
LSU’s offense exploded for nine runs in the first three innings in a 9-8 win on Saturday, but for the most part, they were held in check.
It was a good weekend for Tommy White, who belted a home run in every game and Josh Pearson broke out of his slump, with a home run in the series and had three hits on Sunday.
Steven Milam went into the series as LSU’s most consistent hitter, but only had one hit on the weekend. Brady Neal forced his way into being an everyday player, but he went hitless and Mac Bingham had just two hits.
Paxton Kling did not play the last two games of the series. He does not have a hit since the game winning double against Southeastern Louisiana on March 6th.
So what do we make out of what happened in Starkville? For me, it was just a bad weekend. I still like LSU’s pitching. I am a little concerned about Thatcher Hurd. We saw this a lot last year, trouble staying away from the big inning.
Offensively, LSU needs to get Kling on track. Not having him out in center field weakens LSU defensively. You had a feeling Milam would come down to earth, but it was good to see the power return to White’s bat.
Coach Jay Johnson said heading into the Mississippi State series that his team will face adversity this season. You can consider this the first bump in the road and returning to Alex Box Stadium this week can hopefully bring back the good vibes.
But the next four SEC opponents LSU will face, will really challenge them. They host Florida this week, then travel to Arkansas, host Vanderbilt and travel to Tennessee. It would have been good to get a series win against Mississippi State before an extremely tough stretch of SEC foes.