LSU baseball
By Hunt Palmer
THE STORY
LSU has been outclassed.
Texas A&M’s relentless offense has hammered Tiger arms, and the Aggie staff has controlled the strike zone and the LSU lineup for two days.
Saturday’s result was a 7-2 Aggie win to take the series.
I’ll again point to the offense. Aiden Simms is a fine SEC pitcher, but LSU didn’t even put up a fight against a guy who allowed nine hits including a pair of homers to Missouri a few weeks ago and had completed six innings in SEC play one time. He struck out the side in the first and never really slowed down over seven innings of two-run work.
Two Tigers reached second base, and LSU was 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position. Both of those numbers are a problem, but the two is the greater sin.
Seven runs is right about where I would have suggested LSU could keep A&M in order to win the game. The pitching, especially the relievers who only allowed the one inherited runner to score, was good enough to have a chance.
It was an offensive no show which is always going to lose to Texas A&M. LSU has not gifted the Aggies a large amount of walks or kicked the ball around. The Tigers have not made an error in two games. The decisive factor between the two teams through two days has been hard contact. A&M produces it seemingly every inning, and LSU rarely does.
Steven Milam was 2-for-4 with a homer and a ninth inning single. The rest of the group mustered three hits. One was an infield single.
Meanwhile, A&M roasted some mistake fastballs from William Schmidt.
Jorian Wilson smoked an opposite field ground ball for a two-out RBI single in the second, and Bear Harrison followed with a laser of a homer into the seat in left. It was 3-0 in a flash on a pair of middle-middle Schmidt heaters.
Gavin Grahovac’s second homer of the weekend came in the third to make it 4-1, and two more hits immediately followed. A sacrifice fly padded the lead. None of that was cheap in the slightest.
Schmidt ran out of gas after an admirable effort. He issued three consecutive walks with one out in the sixth. Connor Benge came on to face Grahovac who he jammed, but the fister found grass in right to make it 7-1.
I thought every Tiger reliever was excellent, but that didn’t matter. The damage was done off Schmidt and by the Aggie arms.
LSU has dropped five straight in the league and sits at 6-11. It’s getting late early.
THE SCORECARD
Aiden Simms: 7 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 105 pitches, 64 strikes
William Schmidt: 5.1 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 105 pitches, 60 strikes
LSU’s bullpen (Benge, Williams, Theophilus, Lachenmayer, Paz): 3.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K
LSU with runners on: 1-for-9 (.111)
A&M walked two Tigers and did not commit and error.
A&M left eight runners. LSU stranded two.
WHAT’S NEXT
LSU will try to salvage a game on Sunday. First pitch is set for 1:00. Neither team announced a starter on Thursday. Weston Moss of Texas A&M and Zac Cowan from LSU are the most likely candidates.
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