LSU baseball is deep into the search to find its next head coach, but there's at least one familiar name squaring up an opportunity to make his own return to Baton Rouge.
Former Tigers star 2nd baseman Todd Walker spoke on the Tim Fletcher Show this week to discuss the search, endorsing a fellow former LSU player in Mike Bianco -- who has risen as the top candidate following Paul Mainieri's retirement.
Walker also gave a not-so-subtle hint that he'd be interested in hearing his phone ring for a job interview.
"I'd love for him to call me to try and do the hitting job down there. You know?" Walker said. "But we'll see. ... We talk hitting a lot when I’ve covered games for SEC Network, and he coached me, so he knows that I know that craft as good as anybody.”
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Walker's endorsement of the longtime Ole Miss coach came with his assessment that he initially didn't expect Bianco to be a serious candidate because he was so "ingrained" in Oxford, where he's coached for the last 21 years.
"You talk about experience, I mean, he’s got it," Walker said. "I don’t know about the longevity, but I like the move"
Walker played for LSU from 1992-'94 and was named the Most Outstanding Player at the College World Series in 1993. He was drafted in the first round of the 1994 MLB draft by the Minnesota Twins and played for seven teams over his 11-year career.
Walker, who had his number retired by LSU in 2017, said he doesn't plan to reach out to Bianco, but...
"He knows I’m here," Walker said, "and it’s a thing where I know he’s going to hire the best he can possibly find."
Bianco emerged as a top candidate, along with East Carolina's Cliff Godwin, this week in a report from The Advocate. Earlier reports had indicated retired former Oregon State coach Pat Casey and Florida coach Kevin O'Sullivan were potential candidates, but both appear to have fallen out of consideration.
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If Bianco does go from Oxford to Baton Rouge, he'd join his son, Drew, who played 2nd base and outfield for the Tigers this season.