By Hunt Palmer
Friday night’s scene was bleak.
An errant pitch followed by a visit from the head coach and trainer carries a heavy implication. Cooper Moore didn’t even try to throw another pitch. As he walked off the mound, everyone had to fear the worst. Fear doesn’t always mean reality, but it’s uncomfortable.
Jay Johnson said after the game that Moore’s triceps was bothering him. Johnson also remained “optimistic that he’ll be okay.” That’s best-case scenario, but it can also mean different things. At the very least, Moore’s availability is in question moving forward. LSU is about to play three of four series on the road in the short term. The long term is in play here, as well.
So, what happens if LSU loses is second starter?
ZAC COWAN
Cowan has put together back-to-back strong outings after a poor start to the season. He’s worked 4.2 innings over the two appearances and yielded just one hit with six strikeouts no walks or runs allowed. He’s also got a history as a starter at Wofford where he worked 110 innings as the ace in 2o24.
Cowan started two NCAA Tournament games a season ago. The first was a poor outing against Little Rock, but the second was a stellar showing against Arkansas in the College World Series. He worked three-plus innings nine times last year.
Cowan’s track record and temperament are big positive for his candidacy. He’s a question mark facing an order multiple times. The fastball and changeup are great compliments to one another, but the slider is not a plus pitch. That could hold him back, but he’s certainly an option.
COOPER WILLIAMS
Jay Johnson has always seen Williams as a projected starter at LSU. Williams just hasn’t quite gotten to that level. The lanky lefty hasn’t topped 27 pitches since Opening Day, but he was very good in that 49-pitch outing and was stretched out a little bit in the preseason.
Williams has a fastball in the low 90s and a sweepy breaking ball. Aside from a four-walk outing at Vanderbilt, he’s thrown the ball over the plate. He’s also kept it in the yard, only allowing one home run on the season in 9.1 innings.
Casan Evans are both mid-90s righties, so Williams could provide another look from a 3/4 left-handed slot.
GAVIN GUIDRY
Guidry was auditioning for a starter role in 2025 before his back started bothering him. The staff upped his pitch count during the preseason, and he was scheduled to start the first midweek game. That never happened.
He’s got four pitches and plenty of competitiveness. Does Johnson want to move him from the back end of the bullpen? That remains to be seen. Guidry got a start at Louisiana-Lafayette. The injury history is also a question here. The Tiger staff didn’t want to overwork Guidry as he returned. We’re a month into the season, and the weather has warmed up. Maybe things have changed.
This would weaken LSU’s bullpen on Fridays and Saturdays, so I don’t see it as a likely option unless Guidry isn’t used on those days due to the flow of the games.
JADEN NOOT
Noot hasn’t really carved out a defined role to this point. Three of his six outings have been under 10 pitches. His first of the season was 59 against Kent State.
Plugging Noot in would not really alter the bullpen usage on the weekend. He’s made six starts over the last 13 months, though much of that is midweek action where he gets a handful of outs and passes the baton.
Noot has a decent fastball and an excellent split-change that he can use to eat up outs.
FINAL THOUGHTS
In actuality, the most likely scenario is that LSU reverts to what it’s been in four years under Johnson. The third starter is undefined.
Casan Evans will handle Fridays. William Schmidt, who will start in this Saturday series finale, will pitch Saturdays, and Sunday will be TBA. Aside from 2017 when LSU trotted out Lange-Poche-Walker for 18 weeks, it’s almost always been that way.
That means Sunday’s starter will be tasked to get six to 12 outs before going to the next arm. This staff was projected to feature a ton of depth. That hasn’t necessarily played out to this point, but it’s going to be tested now. Lengthy relief outings like Griffin Herring, Cowan, Evans and Chase Shores have provided over the last two years ae going to be a big deal, especially early in weekends. Those can come to finish Friday and or Saturday or in a big spot on Sunday.
Weekends are a collection of outs, and they can be chopped up any which way. Johnson and Nate Yeskie have shown they can do that as well as anyone.
Moore’s injury is a massive blow to LSU as long as he’s out. Until the imaging has been done, doubt will linger. Evans and Schmidt have plenty of talent to form a one-two punch, especially the way Evans threw the ball on Thursday. Moore was just a high-floor option that could be counted on for 15 to 18 outs per weekend. LSU now likely has to account for those some other way.
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