By Hunt Palmer
LSU needs to win this Alabama series.
Getting swept at Auburn is less than ideal, but it’s just three of 30 games. Plus, it was on the road. Losing a home series against a middling Alabama team would sting. A quick look at the upcoming schedule would make it sting worse.
Last year LSU got negative momentum going, and it took a month for it to stop. The nine games after Alabama are three against the No. 4 Tennessee Volunteers, three at a surging Texas A&M team and three more against a top five Arkansas team.
LSU is good enough to win any of those series, but none of the individual wins will come easy.
This home set against Alabama is as favorable a matchup as LSU will see until a trip to South Carolina to close the regular season.
ROTATION REVIEW
On Thursday night, LSU will turn to its ace, and Alabama will start Tyler Fay who has started one game in his career. That was last week against Mississippi State. He lasted 3.1 innings and allowed two earned runs on two hits. He threw 50 pitches.
Fay is a 6-foot-5 right hander with a fastball that sits around 90 mph. He throws a ton of sliders. He’s a career reliever.
Alabama has had massive issues in its starting rotation during SEC play, so they’re bumping Zane Adams, their game one starter, to game three and essentially starting a relief pitcher in game one.
Meanwhile, LSU is countering with Kade Anderson who wasn’t at his best last week although the line score doesn’t tell the entire story. One double play ball LSU didn’t handle opened the doors to a big inning. The big left hander looked strong at Auburn. His velocity was good. A good start tonight by Anderson will quell any concerns about the heavy workload two weeks ago followed by a short start at Auburn.
Game two is a big game for both teams. Riley Quick is Alabama’s most talented arm. He’ll get the ball Friday night. Quick has a fastball that touches 99 on the radar gun and a good high-80s slider. He’s a year and a half removed from Tommy John surgery and has been pretty good for the Tide.
Last week against Mississippi State, he threw 5.1 innings of one-run baseball with seven strikeouts and no walks. The two prior outings, he allowed seven walks and seven runs total in six combined innings versus Tennessee and Auburn.
LSU will counter Adams with Anthony Eyanson who has been good, not great. His defense didn’t do him many favors last weekend, either. Eyanson’s last home outing was five really good innings against Mississippi State where he struck out 12.
Saturday’s game three will feature a couple of pitchers searching for a good outing– Chase Shores against Zane Adams who has been Alabama’s game one starter all year. Adams is a 6-foot-4 sophomore lefty with a 92 mph fastball and a big, bending curve. I don’t really have a nice way to write this. He’s gotten shelled in SEC play.
His league ERA is 8.57, and he’s given up 20 earned runs on 34 hits in 21 innings. Last week Mississippi State tattooed Adams for seven earned runs on nine hits in four innings. The week prior, Auburn treated him worse. The Tigers bashed eight hits and scored six earned runs. Adams got three outs.
The Tide (30-8, 8-7) has been run-ruled the last two game ones by a combined score of 23-3. That’s one reason for this shakeup.
Meanwhile, Shores is allowing SEC hitters to swing it at a .297 clip. Depending on how the bullpens have been used the first two nights, game three could feature some fireworks.
FACE OF THE LEAGUE
It’s a Lebron, just not that one. Justin Lebron is perhaps the best player in the SEC. If every player in the league were draft eligible in July, Lebron would likely be the top pick. He’s manned shortstop for the Tide since his first game last year.
He’s third in the country in home runs (14) and second in RBI (54). He’s also got a flare for the dramatic. His home run at Auburn in game two essentially staved off a sweep. He’s got huge power to all fields and plays slick defense.
He will be circled by Nate Yeskie and the LSU pitching staff. In big moment, it behooves LSU to stay away from Lebron and make someone else in Crimson beat you.
SCORE MORE
Both of these lineups are skidding a little bit. Through 15 SEC games, Alabama is 15th in batting average, 15th in home runs and 15th in stolen bases among SEC teams. When you don’t get a lot of hits, don’t hit for power and don’t run to manufacture runs…you don’t score much.
Alabama has averaged 3,3 runs per game over their last six SEC games (@ Auburn and vs. Miss State). That won’t get it done when your starting pitching is also struggling to find it.
LSU has not been much better over the last two SEC weekends. The Saturday game in Norman aside, LSU has been handcuffed for two weeks.
The Box will be a hitter-friendly environment this weekend. Highs will top 85 all three days, and the wind will be coming out of the south.
If either team doesn’t swing the bats well, it’ll be a red flag.
SERIES SCHEDULE
Thursday: 7:00 ESPNU
Friday: 6:00 ESPN+
Saturday: 5:00 SECN
In Baton Rouge, all three games will be broadcast on the flagship of LSU athletics, WDGL 98.1 FM.
LSU will play host to Alabama this weekend at Alex Box Stadium! pic.twitter.com/Q824czaLkT
— LSU Baseball (@LSUbaseball) April 16, 2025
