Baseball thoughts

[AlSwearengen]

-lsu baseball is like olemiss football. They seem to get a lot of help from the opponent.
-Our lineup is pretty scary.
-Halter is a twitchy athlete, but damn he is bailing out on every pitch. It almost looks like he is afraid of getting hit. If he would dig in and drive his shoulder toward the plate, he would probably be a damn good hitter.
-Our middle infield defense is average at best. The days of flashy double plays are gone for now. Thank God for our offense.
-We need to recruit as many pitchers that we can that throw a heavy sinking fastball because the ?new dude? is a launching pad. It is going to take awhile for me to get used to it. Polar opposite of the old park.
-The scouting report on Tanner is to throw him up in the zone. He and Gotro need to adjust. He is going to struggle as long as he keeps swinging at the high fastball.

Bullpen gets it?s own section because it is going to probably be a deciding factor.
-Barlow and Cole should be considered co-closers at this point. We can use one in a tight important spot and the other to close it out, just like we did tonight.
-When Cole has his curve, I am much more at ease.
-We should all pray for Riley Self to be healthy and strong. If we can rely on him to pitch like he did as a freshman. We need him b/c some of the other guys are showing inconsistency. He has looked good the last two times out and hasn?t hung that slider/cutter.
-Can Spencer Price get to 90% by tournament time? Any chance he can be all the way 100% back?
-Right now, Barlow is our steadiest bullpen option. Everyone else makes me need a drink.

[maroonmania]

Can't count on Spencer until he improves his ability to locate. He has most of his velocity back but he doesn't have the location control he had before the injury.

[Cooterpoot]

We?re 17ing good. The end.

[ShotgunDawg]

Need 7 from Ginn tomorrow
1 from Eagan
1 from White to close it out.

Then On Sunday, go by committee with the guys that pitched tonight + KJ

Ginn is going to shut their ass out tomorrow

[ShotgunDawg]

We?re 17ing good. The end.

We really are.

We aren't perfect for sure, but we are closer to perfect than any other college team I've seen this year.

[smootness]

Here's what is really good about this year's team.

What we know we can do:
- We can rake
- We have 2 aces

Those are the things you either have or you don't. You can't find an ace during the year, and you can't find hitters out of nowhere.

What we know are struggles right now:
- Bullpen consistency
- Infield defense

The defense, to some degree, you also either have or you don't, though I do think guys can settle in as they get more experience. But a lot of times, bullpens come together as the year goes. We still have time to have guys settle in and find more command as the year goes. So we know we can rake, we know we have 2 aces who can shoulder a big load, and we have enough talent in the pen that I think come postseason, we'll have several really solid options out there.

The defense will be frustrating at times, but hopefully the bats will make up for it. We are really, really, really good. Maybe the best State team in 30 years.

[smootness]

Also, it's time to move Allen down. Right now, I'd go with this:

Mangum
Westburg
MacNamee
Foscue
Hatcher
Skelton
Allen
Halter
Rowdey

I wouldn't put Rowdey 9th because he's the worst but because I like alternating R/L near the bottom and I like his chances to get to Mangum with runners on. I'm fine if you move him up past Allen.

[FriarsPoint]

I?d go back further than 30. That 89 team was a monster. Baseball is weird, funny, strange. We?ll just have to wait and see. Damn fun ride though.

ETA. Sorry. Didn?t have my glasses. This shit happens when you get old.

[Lord McBuckethead]

I would go Mangum, Skelton, Mac, Westburg, Fosc, rowdey, Allen, Halter, Hatcher

[Todd4State]

Need 7 from Ginn tomorrow
1 from Eagan
1 from White to close it out.

Then On Sunday, go by committee with the guys that pitched tonight + KJ

Ginn is going to shut their ass out tomorrow

I like how you think.

[Todd4State]

Also, it's time to move Allen down. Right now, I'd go with this:

Mangum
Westburg
MacNamee
Foscue
Hatcher
Skelton
Allen
Halter
Rowdey

I wouldn't put Rowdey 9th because he's the worst but because I like alternating R/L near the bottom and I like his chances to get to Mangum with runners on. I'm fine if you move him up past Allen.


I would go Mangum, Skelton, Mac, Westburg, Fosc, rowdey, Allen, Halter, Hatcher

I might do something like this:

1. Mangum
2. Rowdey
3. Westburg
4. Foscue
5. MacNamee
6. Hatcher
7. Skelton
8. Allen
9. Halter


Great lineup any way we fill out the card.

[Todd4State]

Here's what is really good about this year's team.

What we know we can do:
- We can rake
- We have 2 aces

Those are the things you either have or you don't. You can't find an ace during the year, and you can't find hitters out of nowhere.

What we know are struggles right now:
- Bullpen consistency
- Infield defense

The defense, to some degree, you also either have or you don't, though I do think guys can settle in as they get more experience. But a lot of times, bullpens come together as the year goes. We still have time to have guys settle in and find more command as the year goes. So we know we can rake, we know we have 2 aces who can shoulder a big load, and we have enough talent in the pen that I think come postseason, we'll have several really solid options out there.

The defense will be frustrating at times, but hopefully the bats will make up for it. We are really, really, really good. Maybe the best State team in 30 years.

This may not be a popular take at the moment- but I thought our bullpen did better tonight. Yes, Leibelt gave up some runs and it wasn't a flawless performance by any means by anyone and there is room to improve. But in a short stint everyone we threw tonight got out of jams. See Barlow, Leibelt, and Gordon. And yes, some of them got into jams as well. But the encouraging thing is we also didn't walk very many guys. And then our defense let Barlow down big time. If we field the ball a little more cleanly we probably get at least two from Barlow tonight. I think we tried to overextend some of our guys tonight in particular and that's why we saw them come in be lights out one inning and then get into trouble the next. I have to wonder how the game turns out if we throw Colby White for one inning instead of bringing Leibelt for a second inning? And again we don't have to extend Leibelt or maybe we even get to save him if our defense makes the plays in the field.


I think what we basically have in the bullpen are a lot of guys that are good in a one inning/short relief stint in general. We don't have very many multiple inning guys. Cole Gordon, maybe Brandon Smith, and if we move him to the bullpen maybe Keegan James can be that multiple inning relief guy that some MLB teams use in the postseason. And I don't necessarily think we need a long relief guy- but if we don't we just have to live within our means.

[shoeless joe]

The defense killed the pen last nite. If we catch pop ups then nobody gets extended past their comfort zone and it’s never close. I had flashbacks of maniscalco in the regional against ND. Which reminds me...mainieri was a bitch back then too

[timotheus]

The Braves organ player was great.

[louisvilledawg]

-lsu baseball is like olemiss football. They seem to get a lot of help from the opponent.
-Our lineup is pretty scary.
-Halter is a twitchy athlete, but damn he is bailing out on every pitch. It almost looks like he is afraid of getting hit. If he would dig in and drive his shoulder toward the plate, he would probably be a damn good hitter.
-Our middle infield defense is average at best. The days of flashy double plays are gone for now. Thank God for our offense.
-We need to recruit as many pitchers that we can that throw a heavy sinking fastball because the ?new dude? is a launching pad. It is going to take awhile for me to get used to it. Polar opposite of the old park.
-The scouting report on Tanner is to throw him up in the zone. He and Gotro need to adjust. He is going to struggle as long as he keeps swinging at the high fastball.

Bullpen gets it?s own section because it is going to probably be a deciding factor.
-Barlow and Cole should be considered co-closers at this point. We can use one in a tight important spot and the other to close it out, just like we did tonight.
-When Cole has his curve, I am much more at ease.
-We should all pray for Riley Self to be healthy and strong. If we can rely on him to pitch like he did as a freshman. We need him b/c some of the other guys are showing inconsistency. He has looked good the last two times out and hasn?t hung that slider/cutter.
-Can Spencer Price get to 90% by tournament time? Any chance he can be all the way 100% back?
-Right now, Barlow is our steadiest bullpen option. Everyone else makes me need a drink.

I don't presume to know as much as Gautreau, but I've seen that too. His stride opens him up and he looks to pull off of everything. I think if we've seen, then Gautreau and crew have definitely seen it so will trust in them to get him right. However, if I were a pitcher, I would be throwing him nothing but outside because he's going to pull off and hit a weak ground ball or cue shot everytime.

[AlSwearengen]

I don't presume to know as much as Gautreau, but I've seen that too. His stride opens him up and he looks to pull off of everything. I think if we've seen, then Gautreau and crew have definitely seen it so will trust in them to get him right. However, if I were a pitcher, I would be throwing him nothing but outside because he's going to pull off and hit a weak ground ball or cue shot everytime.

That is what they are doing, throwing him away. Halter is fast, so he has been able to beat out some of those dribblers he hits b/c he is running out of bat. If he weren’t fast and didn’t have a little luck, his average would be lower. Same with Tanner. If you noticed, lsu kept throwing him fastballs up. I don’t remember Tanner having this problem last year but if he can get that fixed, his average will soar. He is a good hitter.

[smootness]

This may not be a popular take at the moment- but I thought our bullpen did better tonight. Yes, Leibelt gave up some runs and it wasn't a flawless performance by any means by anyone and there is room to improve. But in a short stint everyone we threw tonight got out of jams. See Barlow, Leibelt, and Gordon. And yes, some of them got into jams as well. But the encouraging thing is we also didn't walk very many guys. And then our defense let Barlow down big time. If we field the ball a little more cleanly we probably get at least two from Barlow tonight. I think we tried to overextend some of our guys tonight in particular and that's why we saw them come in be lights out one inning and then get into trouble the next. I have to wonder how the game turns out if we throw Colby White for one inning instead of bringing Leibelt for a second inning? And again we don't have to extend Leibelt or maybe we even get to save him if our defense makes the plays in the field.


I think what we basically have in the bullpen are a lot of guys that are good in a one inning/short relief stint in general. We don't have very many multiple inning guys. Cole Gordon, maybe Brandon Smith, and if we move him to the bullpen maybe Keegan James can be that multiple inning relief guy that some MLB teams use in the postseason. And I don't necessarily think we need a long relief guy- but if we don't we just have to live within our means.

I agree with all of this. The bullpen certainly wasn't bad tonight. Barlow was great, Liebelt got us out of a jam in the 7th, and Gordon was great.

In general, we've been shaky there for a few weeks. We still haven't had really anybody step up that we know can be a shut-down guy consistently. Barlow is showing signs, but he's always going to be less effective vs. RHH. Gordon can be, but he can also be really shaky. Everybody in the pen has had good moments and bad moments. Which is kind of my point. I think by the end of the year, there's a decent chance we have at least 2-3 guys that we feel very confident will come in and shut an opposing lineup down for an inning or so at least. We don't have that yet, and it's important in the postseason, but we have the talent and guys who have shown flashes.

[shoeless joe]

The more times Gordon comes into a situation like last nite and closes the deal the more likely he is to do it again. Confidence is a helluva drug.


And damn we can swing it!

[Homedawg]

Barlow has turned into a legit guy who is filthy and will be a good draft pick

[Commercecomet24]

We?re 17ing good. The end.

Straight to the point and dead on balls accurate!

[Percho]

I thought the umpire behind the plate shook Barlow a little on a no call. He will grow out of that. See Small. He had several reasons to get shaken but did not appear to bother him.

[Percho]

I also thought the out by Skelton at third hurt the team's mental outlook.

[shoeless joe]

I also thought the out by Skelton at third hurt the team's mental outlook.

Yep. We were about to stomp on their throats and that let them off the hook.

[State82]

I also thought the out by Skelton at third hurt the team's mental outlook.

Yes. First out of the inning. That can't happen.

[I seen it dawg]

The defense killed the pen last nite. If we catch pop ups then nobody gets extended past their comfort zone and it’s never close. I had flashbacks of maniscalco in the regional against ND. Which reminds me...mainieri was a bitch back then too

Thank you. The pen was zero problem last night and did their job and then some. They were extended past where they should have been. Not on them they pitched great.

[I seen it dawg]

Yep. We were about to stomp on their throats and that let them off the hook.

Im still cussing about that from last night. Holy shit what a bonehead to the nth degree move that almost killed us.

[The Federalist Engineer]

I also thought the out by Skelton at third hurt the team's mental outlook.

It was the beginning of general carelessness and out-of-control behavior...

(1) Skelton looked like a slow 8-year-old that is still learning base-running
(2) Small showing up the Umpire and then walking two straight hitters...Foxhall had to go talk to him
(3) The two dropped pop-ups
(4) LSU's bottom of the order started hurting us

The good new is the we should have blown them out and that LSU knows that we got bored in the 6th inning. Food knows it's Food. They know they are the tied-up goat and we are the T-Rex.

[The Federalist Engineer]

Thank you. The pen was zero problem last night and did their job and then some. They were extended past where they should have been. Not on them they pitched great.

Was Rowdey out-of-position or some crazy shift on the CJ Wilson double?

The defense looked like garbage last night.

[Commercecomet24]

Im still cussing about that from last night. Holy shit what a bonehead to the nth degree move that almost killed us.

Yeah, thats Baseball 101 never, ever make the first or third out at third base. He has catcher speed and Rowdey hit a bullet on top of that, no way he should've even dreamed about going first to third. That's one of those plays so boneheaded when you go to the dugout you go to the opposite end from the head coach lol

[smootness]

Yeah, thats Baseball 101 never, ever make the first or third out at third base. He has catcher speed and Rowdey hit a bullet on top of that, no way he should've even dreamed about going first to third. That's one of those plays so boneheaded when you go to the dugout you go to the opposite end from the head coach lol

I'd much rather make the 3rd out at 3B instead of the 1st, too. Just about any sequence that will score you from 3B with 0 outs will also score you from 2B with 0 outs.