Twelve SEC games are down and the LSU baseball team has split them in half, losing 2 out of 3 the first 2 weekends then winning 2 out of 3 the last 2 weekends.
The journey is young. There’s so much baseball to be played.
So let’s do a little progress report.
Here’s some good, bad and ugly for the Tigers.
THE GOOD
This team don’t quit – LSU can be down 3 runs, 5 runs or 1 run in the top of the 9th with 2 outs and 2 strikes. It doesn’t matter. This LSU team doesn’t quit. That’s a trait that hunts in May and June. That’s a trait that overcomes a lot of bad stuff.
High end standout players – This year’s LSU team does not have the depth it thought it would have in early February when it looked like Johnson could realistically play 12-13 guys as starters comfortably. But the Tigers have high end dudes. Jake Brown, Derek Curiel, William Schmidt and so many others are high-end, All-SEC caliber players. Get a more consistent Casan Evans and get Milam hitting again and look out.
THE BAD
Whiffed in the Portal a little on Offense – A lot of what you got in the portal isn’t working out. Zach Yorke is either in a slump or just can’t play at this level. I tend to think it’s the latter at this point. Seth Dardar has come on as of late but has been inconsistent. Your lineup right now just isn’t as deep as it was last year with just two dudes hitting above .300. By comparison, you had 5 dudes do it last year with Stanfield at .298 and Milam at .295 nipping at .300s heels.
The Schedule – You’re 6-6 in the SEC which is not bad. But this was the part of the conference schedule that you probably needed to make some hay. No one out of Vanderbilt, Oklahoma, Kentucky or Tennessee is above .500 in conference play and you still have Texas A&M (7-5), Mississippi State (7-5), Georgia (10-2) and Florida (7-5) left.
THE UGLY
LSU’s defense outside of Steven Milam is atrocious. The Tigers have a team fielding percentage of .964, which is dead last in the SEC. The Tigers also don’t have great range at either first or third which means that plays that they used to make in years past, they’re not making and are becoming hits. Behind the plate, it’s an absolute mess with so many passed balls and free bases for the opponent. You CANNOT win big in this sport fielding .964. Frankly, it’s a miracle you’re 6-6 with those mistakes.
THE DIAGNOSIS
LSU is an average team right now, but they have potential to be better. They’re 6-6 in conference but that’s without a true No. 1 starter, without a set lineup and with a team kicking the ball around. If they can clean up their yard even just a little bit, this is a team that can go on a run. The problem is the schedule is about to be stiff so it better happen sooner rather than later. The skies are still partly cloudy. But it’s not nearly as dark as it was a few weeks ago – that’s for sure.