By Hunt Palmer
THE STORY
The future of LSU baseball made the present look pretty damn good on Sunday.
Two of the best freshmen in college baseball, Derek Curiel and Casan Evans, put LSU on their backs in a massive series clinching win over Tennessee, 12-2 in eight innings, at Alex Box Stadium.
Curiel, just 15 hours after his 43-game on base streak ended while he stood in the on-deck circle, went 4-for-4 with a walk, reaching base five times and missing the cycle by a triple.
He kick-started a skidding LSU offense by lacing a solo homer into the seats in right in the first. That swing halted some of the momentum Tennessee had built on Saturday night and with a two-spot in the top of the first.
In his second at bat, Curiel doubled home a run in the second inning off of Vol southpaw Michael Sharman who typically owns left-handed hitters. He came around to score on Jake Brown’s mammoth homer that nearly reached The Intimidator in right field.
Curiel singled home a run in the fourth and doubled home two more in the fifth. That made it 8-2 in favor of the home team.
Evans, making his first collegiate start, was welcomed to the role by a Tennessee lineup that was locked in. The Vols hit five balls on the screws in the first inning and used four hits and a sacrifice fly to take a 2-0 lead.
From there Evans cruised.
He retired 16 of 18 without allowing a walk or a run. The fastball popped the mitt at his typical 95-97, but the changeup kept Tennessee guessing all afternoon. One Vol hitter reached second after the first inning.
Evans’s role moving forward likely won’t change. If LSU needs him to win a game out of the bullpen on Friday night, he’ll pitch. If he hasn’t been used in the first two games, he’ll start game three. He won’t face a significantly better lineup from here on out, so he’s proven he can do it.
LSU collected nine runs on 10 hits total through two games entering Sunday. They rolled up 12 runs on 13 hits Sunday.
It wasn’t perfect.
Chris Stanfield struck out after a one-out Luis Hernandez triple in the second. In the fourth, with runners and second and third and no one out, Brown struck out after another bunt attempt with one strike. Daniel Dickinson followed with a strikeout, and LSU was unable to add to the lead in a prime spot.
Those matters of execution need to be cleaned up. But more than anything, LSU needed signs of offensive life and a win. They got both.
A three-spot on three hits in the eighth walked Tennessee off.
Zac Cowan was Zac Cowan. He threw two scoreless frames to keep the Volunteers in submission.
The Tigers have won five of seven SEC series and sit 14-7 in league play with nine to play. Also, LSU beat one of the big boys this weekend. That was missing from the resume. Arkansas is still to come. The Tigers missed a shot at Texas. LSU doesn’t play Georgia who owns a top five RPI. Auburn, who has a top five RPI, swept LSU.
The SEC is a complete log jam atop the RPI. LSU is just outside that mix, but racking up conference wins is one way to change that. Huge step forward on Sunday.
THE SCORECARD
Casan Evans line: 6IP, 6H, 2R, 2ER, 0BB, 6K 85 pitches, 61 strikes
Zac Cowan line: 2IP, 1H, 0R, 0ER, 1BB, 2K, 35 pitches, 18 strikes
Derek Curiel: 4-for-4, HR, 2B, BB, 2R, 5RBI
Jared Jones: 2-for-4, 2B, BB, R
Jake Brown: 1-for-5, HR, 3RBI
Michael Braswell: 1-for-4, HR, BB, 2RBI, 3R
Luis Hernandez: 2-for-4, 2R, 2B, 3B, 2RBI
Tennessee was 1-for-4 (.250) with runners in scoring position.
LSU was 5-for-14 (.357) with runners in scoring position
Neither team made an error.
Gavin Kilen, who killed LSU Friday and Saturday, was 0-for-4.
WHAT’S NEXT
LSU will host Southeastern Louisiana on Tuesday night before traveling to College Station to face Texas A&M for a Friday to Sunday series at Blue Bell Park.
